The mistreatment of female athletes and fans makes many feel unwelcome in fan bases
9/2/21 by Nicolette Cavallaro
For as long as I can remember, hockey has been a part of my life. My family has had season tickets to the New York Rangers for years, and I have been attending games since I was in a baby carriage. I have been a Montreal Canadiens fan for years after learning about the team from my Canadian family members. I watch the NHL draft every year, talk about team stats and even play street hockey with my friends. But every time I talk to other hockey fans, especially men, I often feel the need to prove my knowledge. “Can you even name one player on the team?” is a question that is often asked when someone sees me in one of my Canadiens jerseys. After talking to other female fans, I have learned that this is quite common, even in other fan bases for comic books, video games and bands. Why is this such a universal experience? Why are female fans treated so differently? Why do they feel so unwelcome in these communities?
Not only is the division of athletic fans extremely misogynistic, but it pulls back the blinds on an even bigger issue — women are not accepted and often kept out of fan bases, especially ones with a “macho” connotation. The corresponding sports are seen as so manly and intense that bad behavior is often swept under the rug. Across the world, soccer, or football elsewhere, is seen as the sport that unites every country, but this is often only true for men. A 2014 study found that domestic violence, especially for wives of male soccer fans, increased by 38 percent after a loss in England. This violence and toxic masculinity is tied to the “macho” aspect of the sport, which protects abusers and fuels abusive behavior. How can women ever feel accepted in an athletic community that ignores these issues? These sporting events are rooted in sexism and are so focused on men that in some countries, they don’t even let women into athletic stadiums, especially soccer matches. While this rule has been thankfully demolished in Iran, there are still many countries that follow the age-old tradition of banning women from these facilities, preventing them from being sports fans and including them in the community.
In continuation, the United States has its own problems when it comes to sports-fueled violence. We are known for destroying cities and flipping over buses, as seen in Philadelphia following the Philadelphia Eagles’ Super Bowl win in 2018. Thankfully, there is a lack of evidence for sports-related domestic violence in the United States, but there are still a great deal of issues for female fans. In 2014, The Guardian wrote an article about a tweet from the Orlando City Soccer Club which claimed the only way women would go to matches is if their male partner bought them a jersey. These teams believe that the only way women would actually be interested in their “male activities” is if they offer them clothes. As a soccer fan myself, the thought of having to prove that I’m not just watching a match for the nice attire, or because a male partner is dragging me to the games, is stressful and tiring. There’s even evidence of this attire-based sexism within women’s sports. For example, women who play beach volleyball are forced to wear uncomfortable, extremely revealing bikinis. When the Norwegian women’s beach handball team attempted to stop this by wearing shorts, they were fined. Women aren’t even allowed to enjoy their own athletic events without having to become eye candy to male viewers.
Additionally, women are often told the only reason they participate in any type of fan behavior is because of the attention it brings them. Female athletes themselves are often accused of only caring about their figure or physical appearance. Is it so outrageous that women actually enjoy the spirit of competition or have hometown athletic pride, and they don’t just watch sports to impress others? This is tied to the erotic fantasy many men have of a “cool” woman who likes sports, or the uncomfortable sexualization of cheerleaders. This idea is present in many realms outside of sports as well, such as comic books and anime, and is all based on the belief that women only do things because they crave attention from men, which couldn’t be farther from the truth.
Furthermore, one of the most tedious parts of being a female athletic fan is the constant accusations that they only enjoy said sports because they find the players attractive. For hockey, it’s normally wrapped up in the term “puck bunny,” which describes a girl attracted to hockey players for popularity or bragging rights. It’s often used very degradingly and to bring down female fans. How can women enjoy anything if they are constantly told the only reason they like it is due to romance or sexual attraction? Why is everything we like brought back to that? Why can’t I say I’m a Cole Caufield fan without someone saying it’s only because he’s handsome and not because he was one of the top scorers on the Canadiens this year? Why can’t women say they like the New Jersey Devils or the New York Islanders without male fans mentioning Jack Hughes or Mathew Barzal? Not to mention, why does finding a player attractive take away from my identity as a fan? I can think Josh Anderson is attractive and still talk about his stats and amazing shots this playoff season. Once again, it falls back on the sexism of the sport and the belief that women can’t enjoy the same things as men do.
As you can see, there is a history of sexism in both viewing and playing sports. Women are targeted for being fake fans, sexualized for their athletic interests and prevented from truly immersing themselves within the community. Women’s sports lack funding and are watched less, with the criticism often being that they aren’t as good as or don’t bring in as much revenue as the men. In other words, the prominence of these male teams perpetuates the stereotype that sports are a manly thing. Therefore, male fan bases are supposedly the only ones of importance.
Being a female sports fan has its downsides, but I wouldn’t give it up for the world. For me and many women, there’s nothing quite like the heart-racing excitement of the first game of the season or singing the goal song in a crowded arena. It’s important to constantly refute these sexist, offensive ideas that women only like sports for attention or the male athletes. In the future, I hope more sports corporations, countries and males realize that we have the same ability to enjoy the events as they do.
Nicolette Cavallaro is a junior majoring in integrative neuroscience.
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