Going by her Instagram, which has more than 50,000 followers, English footballer Madelene Wright is unashamedly out to have fun. A little too much fun for her former employer Charlton Athletic, though, who parted company with the 22-year-old Londoner after allegations that she’d been seen swigging champagne whilst at the wheel of her Range Rover, and inhaling from balloons at a party. The horror!
I don’t know the full details of the club’s investigation into Wright’s behaviour, but it seems harsh to axe her for behaviour that would be seen as a wee bit of mischief coming from a sportsman in his early 20s – I can’t imagine any Premier League player losing his job for the offences Wright is alleged to have committed. Alexander Lacazette and Mason Greenwood have both been caught inhaling balloons, and I don’t recall either being sacked.
If you read the tabloid reports on this story – hmm, I wonder why the tabloids took an interest? – it’s clear that Wright has been branded as a certain type of person. The Daily Mail did a big write-up and not once did the story mention which position she played. Ditto The Sun. Instead both newspapers peppered their article with her most revealing Instagram photos.
Double standards are an occupational hazard for women footballers, I’m sure. Wright has some growing up to do, clearly, but I hope she finds a new club.