Chelsea manager Emma Hayes teamed up with inaugural Blue Creator Fund winner Becky Gordon to create a collection of commemorative, personalised rings that have been gifted to each member of the Blues squad.
WEBWIRE – Friday, May 17, 2024
Hayes will bring an end to her transformative 12-year tenure at the club after tomorrows (Saturdays) game against Manchester United at Old Trafford, which could end with the Blues claiming a fifth successive Womens Super League title.
Lifting another piece of silverware would be a fitting end to Hayes time at Chelsea. She has helped establish the Blues as a dominant force in the English womens game and taken the club to a UEFA Champions League final.
On and off the pitch, she will leave a lasting legacy. The relationships she has forged with every player will also endure and its those bonds that led to Emma collaborating with Becky to create heartfelt gifts for her players.
After a design session at Cobham in which Hayes outlined her vision for each ring, Becky got to work to create a unique and striking design.
The rings celebrate the 12-year tenure of Emma and the unrivalled success the womens team has enjoyed under her stewardship
Engraved is the year she arrived at Chelsea, the current year to signify her departure, and decorative details inspired by our 2021/22 home shirt, which Hayes highlights as her favourite.
The standout feature is the clubs famous rampant lion accompanied by the words What got us here, which is taken from a mantra what got us here wont get us there used by Hayes throughout her time at Chelsea.
She also ensured each ring was personalised, with the bands engraved with a single word that encapsulated each member of her squad, and they were presented to the players during a BBQ at Cobham.
There was one final surprise for the Chelsea manager as she was presented with a ring of her own, which had her initials engraved into the band.
Becky was one of two winners of the inaugural Blue Creator Fund, which was launched last year between Chelsea FC, the Chelsea Foundation and VERSUS.
The fund awarded two aspiring creatives from underrepresented backgrounds 15,000 to produce a creative project about Chelsea and its community. Becky delivered Unsung, a capsule collection of signet rings to champion 100 unsung heroes of Chelseas community.
Her collection and the documentary of fellow winner Xaymaca Awoyungbo were showcased at the Saatchi Gallery in December to a room of creators from Chelsea FC, football and the wider creative community.