Since 2008 Anna Nyman of Sweden is a coach of South African fotboll team Thanda Lions. Nyman is challenging the gender roles in South Africa and is the only female coach for a male football team in South Africa.

The team were originally employees at a safarilodge in small town Hlulwue in the KwaZulu-Natal Province and were looking for a new coach when someone suggested Anna from Sweden.

At first it was totally unnaccetable to have a female coach of a male team but thanks to her effort the team has advanced from being an average team to a higher position. Anna puts a lof of effort to work against the traditional gender roles in Sothc Africa where the most common thing is that the wife runs the kitchen and the house. Besides from teaching the players discipline coach Anna also demands the players to be responsible and cook, clean, do laundry and thing thats usually is totally unnaccebtable in the Zulu culture.

The Thanda  Lions moved to a clubhouse three years ago and the majority of the players stay together in the house. Anna lived two years with the team in the clubhouse since she thought she couldn’t ask the players to live in a place where she couldn’t live by herself.

Despite of being a coach of Thanda Lions Anna also try to put effort in making more girls and women to play football. The organisation, Football for Life, that Anna works for recently built a new clubhouse for female football.

It is not always accepted to be a female coach in South Africa, and a lot of the other teams try their best to destroy Annas work, and often cast spells and pour blood outside the clubhouse.