ScottishPower has been named the ‘Best Breakthrough Business’  at the annual UK Women’s Football Awards in London, just nine months after it launched a major partnership deal dedicated to energising women’s football at every age and stage across Scotland.

Now in its second year, the 2024 Women’s Football Awards celebrates the people, brands and organisations contributing to the phenomenal growth of the women’s game.

ScottishPower was announced as the award winner at a star-studded ceremony yesterday evening. It had also been shortlisted in the ‘Brand of the Year’ and ‘Grassroots Initiative of the Year’ categories.

Organisers of Europe’s biggest awards event, which shines a light on outstanding achievements in women’s football, described the partnership as a ‘major breakthrough’ for the game in Scotland and demonstrated ‘an outstanding commitment to diversity and inclusion and equality for women’ from the renewable energy company.

The award was collected by Julie Keough Brand Director at ScottishPower supported by the all-female team delivering the partnership, along with representatives from both Scottish Women’s Football and the Scottish Women’s Premier League, and Stripe Communications. It was presented by singer Faye Tozer from the band Steps, alongside event hosts former Lioness Eni Aluko and Sky Sports presenter Jamie Carragher.

Julie Keough said: “The growth in the women’s game across the UK has been extraordinary, and the interest from media and brands who want to support it is quite rightly growing too.

“For ScottishPower, this partnership really has been about finding ways to make a positive impact on girls and women playing the game, whether at grassroots level or elite. We’re serious about wanting to create more opportunities for girls to play, including supporting and opening doors for those players in more remote communities.

“To receive such high recognition really is a fantastic honour and testament to the hard work that is being done not just by ScottishPower but our partners at the Scottish Women’s Premier League and Scottish Women’s Football to make a real and lasting impact right across the country.”

ScottishPower is the exclusive Principal Partner for Scottish Women’s Football (SWF) and the Scottish Women’s Premier League (SWPL), sponsor of the Scottish Youth Challenge Cups at all three age groups and the first ever title sponsor of the Scottish Women’s Highlands and Islands League.