From the football pitch to fashion runways and the counselling chair – our Brighton Summit MC is someone who knows a fair bit about What if? moments.

Karen Dobres is a writer, former counselling therapist, ex-board member of Lewes FC – and earlier in her career, a fashion model. From 2017 to 2023, she helped to create the pioneering Equality FC project at Lewes FC. Having a unique voice on their Board (because she had no interest in football whatsoever), Karen created and led on campaigns to welcome ‘unwelcome women’ into football. Prior to this she created and managed an internal counselling service for PolyGram Records.

She’s a regular speaker at Sports and Business conferences about equality in football and its effect on driving gender equality in the wider world. Her new book, Pitch Invasion: My Story as a Feminist on a Football Club Board is published by Cassell this summer.