There was always a smile. No matter how the game had ended, even if his team lost, Matt Beard, the former Liverpool Women’s manager who died suddenly at the age of 47 over the weekend, would always find a moment to smile. Beardy, as he was affectionately known, was a devoted father and husband who will be sorely missed by his wife Debbie and three children Scott, Harry and Ellie. The grief is being felt throughout women’s football, too, where he passionately worked during a long coaching career,
No matter how the game had ended, even if his team lost, Matt Beard, the former Liverpool Women’s manager who died suddenly at the age of 47 over the weekend, would always find a moment to smile.
Beardy, as he was affectionately known, was a devoted father and husband who will be sorely missed by his wife Debbie and three children Scott, Harry and Ellie.
The grief is being felt throughout women’s football, too, where he passionately worked during a long coaching career, becoming the most successful manager in the history of Liverpool’s women’s team as he led them to two Women’s Super League (WSL) titles, in 2013 and 2014, and, during a second spell with the club, guided them back to English football’s top tier in 2022.
The stories shared about Beard after his death focused as much on his qualities as a friend as on his skill as a football coach and his efforts to stand by and grow the women’s game.
He was a transformative presence, a coach who pushed the sport forward in England and whose legacy will be lasting.
During his time at Chelsea, he took them to their first FA Cup final in 2012, won promotion with Millwall Lionesses, and most recently managed Burnley in the third tier.
Liverpool and Burnley postponed their fixtures on Sunday as staff and players processed the news. Liverpool’s players were together at the team hotel when they learned of his death on the eve of their WSL match against Aston Villa.
On Sunday morning Liverpool staff met with the player’s senior leadership group, led by captain Grace Fisk, and the message was relayed that the squad was in favour of a postponement. Any support needed would be provided.
At other fixtures around the country, black armbands were worn and a minute’s silence was observed while a picture of Beard was shown on big screens.
Arsenal travelled to Leigh Sports Village, home of Manchester United. The decision to play the game would have always been player-led; there were no discussions to postpone and both clubs have psychological support on hand. The north London club gave former Liverpool players Olivia Smith and Taylor Hinds, who played under Beard, the choice to participate. Both said Beard would have wanted them to play.
“It was really hard for them but it shows a lot of strength, showing up today for the team,” said Arsenal manager Renee Slegers.
Equally Beard’s former Liverpool assistant Scott Rogers and goalkeeper coach Joe Potts, now working at United, wanted to be in the dugout.
In the 47th minute, the Arsenal away end held up a message which read: “We love you Beardy” as applause rippled around LSV stadium.
— Joanna🤍 (@joannaxfootball) September 21, 2025
Beard’s impact was wide-reaching across women’s football.
United head coach Marc Skinner described him as an “incredible human”, an “iconic”, “larger than life character” who will continue to leave a “legacy” on the women’s game.
Emma Hayes, the USWNT head coach who took over from Beard at Chelsea in 2012, called him “absolutely one of the best humans”, someone who was “always available for a chat” and a “champion” of the women’s game.
That sentiment was echoed by Canada women’s national team manager, Casey Stoney, who was at Charlton Athletic when Beard worked there as a coach. When Chelsea needed a manager, Stoney, who was playing for the club at the time, called Beard to ask if he could manage the team.
“We had no money (and could) barely pay you but you still said yes,” Stoney wrote on social media. “He was a fierce supporter of the women’s game when no one cared, he was a manager that cared deeply for his players, he was a friend that could always make you laugh on the darkest of days.”
Smith, the Canada international who spent her first season in England under Beard’s tutelage before making her record-breaking £1million pound move to Arsenal earlier this summer, put it even more simply on her social media. “Wouldn’t be where I am without you,” she wrote.
She was not alone.
Beard had the accent and cheeky smile typical of a south-west Londoner. His customary greeting to those he called friends was, “Alright darlin’?”, which was usually followed by a warm hug. There was no pretence: he was down to earth, humble and always authentic, whether in a boardroom, dressing room, with fans or at a press conference.
When he joined Liverpool in 2012 for his first stint at the club, aged 34, he had given up a career as an estate agent to follow his passion.
It was a risk which was never going to pay off financially, given there was even less money in the women’s game then than there is now.
The women’s game was underfunded and overlooked. The eight-team WSL was semi-professional — a maximum of four players per team could be paid over £20,000 annually when the new league began in 2011. The Football Association was giving away the broadcast rights to the WSL free of charge and would give grants to clubs for being in the league — a distant past compared to the £65m TV deal the WSL agreed with Sky Sports and the BBC last year.
Players would mostly train in the evenings and play in front of a few spectators. Months before Beard joined Liverpool the first time, the team had lost 4-1 against Bristol Academy in front of 105 fans. In 2015, during Beard’s last year of his first stint in charge of Liverpool, the average WSL attendance was 1,022.
But Beard cared for the women’s game when very few did and he worked his way from the bottom to the top.
He built a Liverpool team that won back-to-back WSL titles with Lionesses such as defender Lucy Bronze and midfielder Fara Williams.
Both were characterised by his never-give-up mantra, won on the final day of the season. In 2013, Liverpool defeated runners-up Bristol Academy to top the table by five points. Even more dramatically, the following year, Liverpool started the day third in the league, three points behind Chelsea and two adrift of Birmingham.
As others faltered, a 3-0 win against Bristol Academy meant Liverpool retained the title, beating Chelsea on goal difference.
His impact was not limited to England. He left Liverpool to join the NWSL’s Boston Breakers in 2016, an opportunity he said he could not turn down.
He returned a year later and took charge at West Ham United, guiding them to the FA Cup final at Wembley in 2019. They lost 3-0 against Manchester City but it was a massive achievement for the club to reach their first cup final.
And then Liverpool, who had been relegated from the WSL in 2020, and were struggling to make it back to the top flight, called on Beard, who had been interim boss at Bristol City in 2021, to save them.
He did just that; once again, he was celebrating a title win with Liverpool, soaked in champagne on the pitch, just like he had been all those years earlier.
His players loved him and he loved them. He inspired them, demanded more from them and for them. Better pitches, better facilities, better officiating.
The tributes paid around stadiums on Sunday reflected Beard’s standing in the sport but it is the memories shared by his former players that will live longest in the memory.
Former England international Gilly Flaherty, one of many players who played for Beard at more than one club (West Ham United and Liverpool) said she would have “travelled around the world” to play on his team.
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Natasha Dowie did just that, playing for Beard at Charlton aged 17, following him to the States and back to Liverpool where she retired.
“You were different to most, always making sure the person came first before the player,” she wrote.
Williams said, via BBC Radio 5 Live, Beard “was more than a manager, a great mentor, a great friend, somebody that maybe saw potential in me that maybe I didn’t see myself. When I had difficult periods outside of football he was there.”
She described him as an “older brother”, a “special guy”, “one of a kind” who had the “purest of souls”. Williams reminisced about their Liverpool away trips, “sitting in hotel bars late watching the boxing, sharing our clueless opinions between rounds like we knew what we were talking about.”
Carla Ward, former WSL manager and now Republic of Ireland head coach, remembered the days “we sung, we danced, we laughed, we cried”. Ward said on the Upfront podcast she would often call Beard when he was in the bath with a beer.
There were equally heartfelt words from Jasmine Matthews, who won the Women’s Championship with Liverpool in Beard’s second stint with the club, Aston Villa midfielder Missy Bo Kearns, whom Beard made the youngest player to wear the captain’s armband for her girlhood club Liverpool, and the former Arsenal, Chelsea and England player Anita Asante.
Beard’s warmth is what shows up again and again. He would often invite his opposite number into his office for a chat or a drink after the match.
“We don’t all do that but he did,” said Slegers.
Beard was approachable and relatable. He took his work seriously, and loved to win, but he had a humanity which made people warm to him.
“It’s not just about the achievements on the pitch, but how he made everyone feel like they were part of the success,” Liverpool season ticket holder Philippa Smallwood tells The Athletic.
“He always wanted you to feel OK, and would make sure that you did. Young fans in particular have benefited from his many words of wisdom, helping them through difficult moments and making them feel confident again.”
Beard would often mark the end of a season by going to a pub near the club’s ground with his backroom staff. No matter what that campaign had brought it would be a celebration of all their hard work.
That work and the impact he had on the game will never be forgotten. And neither will that smile.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
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