The uphill battle for women in sports

For women, carving out a space for themselves in sports has always been an uphill battle. When women play, they transcend the mere act of competing against their opponents. They play for something far more significant: the promotion of their sport and their rightful place in the sporting world. But why is it that, in the 21st century, women still do not get due recognition and respect for their athletic abilities, or the support to nurture those skills?

Lucy Bronze is a four-time Champions League winner, a European Champion, four-time PFA Women's Player of the Year, Fifa's Best Women's Player in 2020, and holds various accolades earned from her achievements in football. Her profile in women's football is immense, yet very few people outside of women's football actually know who she is.

Iga Swiatek is 22 years old and has already won four Grand Slams in tennis. Her first one came in when she was aged 19, the same age Carlos Alcaraz was when he won his first US Open title. Compare the number of headlines Alcaraz got to what Swiatek got, and the difference is staggering. Why? A significant reason is that female athletes are not marketed well enough. If you look at the amount of money spent on marketing male athletes compared to women, there is an astounding difference. Marketing has become an integral part of modern sports. The space allotted to female athletes in newspapers is too small to notice, billboards celebrate more male achievements than female ones, and television studios broadcast almost every male sport but will only air a few major matches of women athletes, that too for selected sports.

With the conversation about why the visibility of women in sports is so poor, the most common defence that is used is that women's sport does not attract as many fans. That is quite untrue. In fact, women's football is actually one of the fastest-growing sports in the world. Attendance for the domestic league has gone up by 200 percent, and Sky, the official broadcasting partner of the Women's Super League, reported 16 million viewers during the 2022 calendar year. The ICC Women's T20 World Cup in 2023 acquired a 790 percent increase in viewership compared to 2020. Several of the women's tennis Grand Slam finals brought in a larger audience than men's.

There is no doubt that there is disparity in the quality of play between male and women's sports. But how can we expect our female athletes to play at the same level as men when the facilities and the pathways to development for the respective parties are still miles apart? In most countries, very few women actually play sports as a pastime, let alone for a career. Outside the US and Europe, the early participation of primary-school-aged girls in sports is very poor. Accessibility to development programmes is almost non-existent and there are no clear pathways for aspiring athletes. The domestic competitions are poorly organised, very few sponsors and broadcasters are brought in, or the leagues are not sustainable. The very root of success in sports is early development. And until we actually invest in this, women's sports will continue to suffer.

Male athletes have access to a larger pool of development pathways, better coaching, and more sponsors and exposure to advance their careers. They also have access to world-class facilities, higher quality training centres, and technology to springboard them to the top of their respective sport. Comparing the quality of men's sports to women's sports is illogical. Women's sports are still 50 years behind in terms of development and trying to catch up with the standards of their male counterparts. That standard will only be attainable for women athletes when there is constant and thorough development across all fields in a sport. This responsibility does not start and end with international sporting organisations; it also trickles down to our local sports authorities.

Then, there are injuries. Female athletes are more susceptible to injuries than male athletes, which is now a very big cause of concern in women's football. In just the past year, 195 elite women footballers suffered ACL injuries (an overstretching or tearing of the anterior cruciate ligament in one's knee). For many players, ACL injuries can hasten retirement, while those who are able to continue tend to see a substantial decline in their calibre. The equipment, including the shoes provided to female athletes, is mostly designed for male ones. It is not possible for anyone to play at the highest sporting level with gear that is not made to cater to their specific needs. Major organisations such as the WTA, ICC, Fifa, and FIBA need to actively invest in research on injury prevention, while athletic brands such as Nike, PUMA, and Adidas must continue their efforts in creating products that are designed solely for female athletes.

The disparity between male and female athletes will always exist to a certain level. However, it is important to continue investing in order to reduce that disparity. It is also vital to keep in mind that men's sports and women's sports are ultimately not the same. The playing styles are different, the tactics are unique in each, and female athletes bring different strengths to every sport. It is understandable if a format does not pique one's interest, but that does not rationalise the argument of "nobody wants to watch it." There is a huge demand for women's sports, and it is high time we support it. Who knows how many female sporting greats we have missed out on due to our failure in advocating and developing sports for our girls? For now, we can only hope that, someday, female athletes will simply be able to play their sport without having to become advocates for better conditions at every turn.

Raiyan Binte Rafiq is pursuing an LLM, while freelancing for Football.Co and INDIVISA to cover UEFA Women's Champions League and Women's Super League. She also oversees recruitment in Next Level Sports Management, based in Bangladesh.