Lydia Bedford named Head Coach of Calgary Wild FC
Lydia Bedford moves after leading Brentford’s Men’s U18 academy programme since its 2023 inception
Wild FC become the final team in Canada’s Northern Super League (NSL) to unveil their inaugural Head Coach, today announcing the appointment of English coach Lydia Bedford after agreement with Brentford FC.
Bedford joins Calgary after 18 months in charge of Brentford’s U18 Boys Academy side, where she had become the first female head coach within in a Premier League Club. Similar to her experience at Brentford, who reinstated their U18 team ahead of the 2023/24 season, Bedford will take a key role behind-the-scenes in defining the playing model, building the initial staff, working with the Sporting Director on the roster build and forging a strong team culture.
Wild FC are one of the six founding members of the NSL, Canada’s first professional female sports league, which has leaned on the experience of key former members of the Canada WNT, including Diana Matheson and Christine Sinclair. The season runs similar to the NWSL, with a 25-game regular season kicking off in April 2025, before final playoffs determine a Championship winner. The league has established an impressive salary cap of $1.6MM CAD on day one, while each team can sign up to eight international players, as well as one designated player, which fits outside of the salary cap.
The appointment marks a return to women’s football for the UEFA Pro-Licensed coach. After growing within the FA/Young Lionesses pathway, Bedford’s first taste of senior management was with Leicester City in the Women’s Super League, who she managed from 2021 to 2022, securing their WSL status after taking over with the Foxes bottom of the table. After leaving midway through the season, Bedford returned to join Jonas Eidevall’s staff at Arsenal, supporting the group as they reached FA Continental Cup success, reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Women’s Champions League and secured a top-3 finish. While with the Bees, Lydia has continued to expand her horizons, joining the England staff at both the UEFA European Women’s U19 Championships and FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup, while also spending time working within the Bees’ first-team environment.
Speaking about what attracted her to the opportunity in a nascent league, Bedford referenced the infectious energy of the Club leadership and “how much they cared about bringing a professional women's team into Calgary.”
“It is an honour to be named as the first coach of Calgary Wild in its inaugural season. There's something special about being there from the start and it’s certainly going to be an exciting journey here with Calgary.
“Fans will see a style of football that evolves across the season. We want to play an exciting style of football which is enjoyable to watch. We will be a gritty and hard working team without the ball, and look to utilise our team strengths on the ball to assert ourselves on the opponent.“
Congratulations, Lydia!
