Loughborough Graduate wins the first 'Asian Woman Footballer of the Year' award

Loughborough University MSc graduate, Aditi Chauhan, has created history by becoming the first Asian Woman Footballer of the year in England.

The awards, supported by the English Football Association (FA) and the Asian Football Project, recognise achievements of British Asians in football.

Coming from a country that doesn’t have a domestic league of its own, Aditi became the second only female from her country to play women’s football in England and the first to win Asian Woman Footballer of the year.

Having graduated with an MSc in Sports Management at Loughborough, Aditi kick started her football journey when her school coach asked her to participate in the under-19 team trials. Playing for the Loughborough Students Women’s Football Club (LSWFC) over the last year, Aditi now turns her focus to playing for West Ham United Ladies in the FA Women’s Premier League Southern Division.

Speaking of her award, she comments:

This award is all worth it. Getting this award at Wembley is a fairytale, especially for someone who comes from a country that has no league for women. It was not easy to pursue a career in football. I am thankful to West Ham and my family for all the support.

Loughborough is one of the country’s leading universities, with an international reputation for research that matters, excellence in teaching, strong links with industry, and unrivalled achievement in sport and its underpinning academic disciplines.

It has been awarded five stars in the independent QS Stars university rating scheme, named the best university in the world for sports-related subjects in the 2020 QS World University Rankings and top in the country for its student experience in the 2018 THE Student Experience Survey.

Loughborough is in the top 10 of every national league table, being ranked 4th in the Guardian University League Table 2020, 5th in the Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2020 and 8th in The UK Complete University Guide 2020.

Loughborough is consistently ranked in the top twenty of UK universities in the Times Higher Education’s ‘table of tables’ and is in the top 10 in England for research intensity. In recognition of its contribution to the sector, Loughborough has been awarded seven Queen's Anniversary Prizes.

Specialising exclusively in postgraduate-level study, Loughborough University London is based on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and offers cutting-edge master’s and PhD degrees, as well as business collaboration, research and enterprise opportunities.

The seven specialist institutes at Loughborough University London include: Design Innovation, Digital Technologies, Diplomacy and International Governance, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, International Management, Media and Creative Industries, and Sport Business. Close industry partnerships with a wealth of leading businesses and creative organisations means teaching and learning is informed by real-life challenges and driven by true industry pressures.