Jesminder "Jess" Bhamra is the 18-year-old daughter of Punjabi people Sikhism living in Hounslow, London. Juliette "Jules" Paxton is the same age and the daughter of a native English family. Jess is infatuated with football, but because she is a woman, her conservative family won't let her play. However, she sometimes plays in the park with boys, including her best friend, Tony, a closeted gay man.