Brighton & Hove Albion's Chris Hughton says "a harder push" is needed to add more people of colour in English football, not only as managers but also in the boardrooms.
Hughton guided the Seagulls to promotion to the Premier League for next season, but he is one of only two black managers among the Football League's 92 clubs.
And with 25 percent of players from a black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) background, Hughton told The Guardian: "'It is shocking and the more we speak about it, and reflect on it, the more it hits home that there's an incredible imbalance."
Hughton says he supports the adoption of guidelines like the NFL's Rooney Rule, which requires minorities to be interviewed for senior position. The Football League introduced a variation in 2015 for youth development roles.
But he believes real change won't occur until there is better representation in the boardrooms.
"We're in an age of big business and I'm sure there will be future legislation about the workplace," he said. "All of the stakeholders in our game appear to have an enthusiasm for change. You see it with the big broadcasters. We're broadcasting English football all over the world -- including many African countries.
"I feel people in the game want to see diverse players and multiracial cultures -- which means [black] people in better positions at the stadium, doing the actual interviewing in the boardrooms, because the game on the field is multiracial."
Hughton said he would like to see multiracial boardrooms become commonplace in the next decade.
"Am I hopeful? The stats over the last 10 to 20 years don't suggest [much hope]. But the stakeholders seem to say we need a harder push," he said.