If you didn't know by now, I'm a huge soccer fan. I follow Manchester United, Atlético de Madrid, Columbus Crew SC, and the national teams of England, France, and the USA. I've been to so many Crew games as well as two US men's national team matches in Columbus and a Real Madrid preseason match! Not only do I love watching the game, but I love to play the FIFA video games as well (since I have no athletic ability whatsoever).

I know so many other girls who have a passion for this beautiful game. My good friend Emma is a diehard Chelsea fan, as well as a supporter of the German national team. We love to smack talk each others' teams and watch World Cup matches together.

Soccer isn't just a men's sport. Just ask the US women's national team, who have won three World Cups. People have started to realize this, and in 2015, the new FIFA 16 game included an option to play with a few different women's national teams like the USA, England, Japan, Germany, and Australia. However, playing with women's teams just isn't as fun. It seems like the gameplay is much slower and the overall quality is lower, which is a shame.

When I'm not playing kickoff mode against my 13-year-old brother on the computer or buying items for my Ultimate Team, I'm playing manager career mode. I love manager mode. You can buy all of your favorite players and win the league five consecutive times, manage a national team and win the World Cup, and more.

But there's one thing about manager mode that has bothered me since I started playing FIFA.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/bagogames/14244165745

You can't be a female manager.

Now, I understand why you can't be a female in Player Career mode. The game has a very small database of female players and women's teams, and you can't play for a men's team. But managers? There's no excuse. You see men managing women's teams all the time. In fact, only 4 out of the 10 nominees for FIFA's Best Women's Coach award are actually women. All ten nominees for the Best Men's Coach award are men.

Would it really hurt for FIFA and EA to put the option of being a girl running a team in their games? It can't be that hard. I'm sick of playing manager mode and being called "Mr. Emma Adams" and being a guy wearing a suit and tie. That's not who I am. And while the PC game Football Manager 2018 lets me coach Manchester United and England as a woman, I prefer the FIFA games because it's much easier for me to use. I can complete multiple seasons in an afternoon with FIFA 18, while FM18 takes a whole week just to get through one season.

So here's what I'm asking, FIFA, and I'm sure lots of girls and women across the world have the same request. I'm not asking you to create a huge, complex database full of female players and leagues. I just want the chance to be able to wear a dress or skirt on the touchline and not be referred to as "Mister." All I want is representation.