(CNN)FIFA's decision to appoint Brazilian supermodel Adriana Lima as its global fan ambassador ahead of the Women's World Cup has been derided as "tone deaf" and "truly baffling" by former Australian international Moya Dodd.
Soccer's world governing body announced Monday that Lima, a former Victoria's Secret model, would "develop, promote and participate in several global initiatives involving fans from all over the world," while FIFA President Gianni Infantino said the 41-year-old Brazilian "lives and breathes 'futebol.'"
Dodd, the former vice-captain of Australia's women's football team, said on Wednesday that Lima's public image "looked an odd fit for an organisation that says it wants to empower girls and women, and whose President is required to be "a vanguard" for promoting gender equality (yes, that's in the FIFA Governance Regulations)."
Dodd, who previously led Fifa's taskforce on women's football, wrote on Linkedin: "[W]hen a girl plays football, the world sees her differently. Instead of being complimented on her nice looks or her pretty dress, she is valued for her game-saving tackles and brilliant goal-scoring.
"She's admired for what she can DO, rather than how she looks, putting her on a more equal footing with her brothers in a way that can alter the whole trajectory of her life's ambitions.