football

CC

I was at a university football match (women’s football). The male referee came over to us and we asked if we needed to provide someone to run the line. He said something along the lines of ‘no, I find that when the girls run the line they get things wrong, and when they get told that they’re wrong they go off and cry’. Some of us made comments saying how that was stereotypical and sexist and he first seemed shocked that we were offended, and then tried to backtrack before we told him to go away.

The Rodent

When I was a child, around the middle of the last century, I was very good at sport, particularly swimming and football. I went to a very small junior school and I often used to make up the numbers for a team, as did several other girls. We were never allowed to play against other schools, despite the fact that we were better than some of the boys who did. At secondary school football was completely out but I managed to make captain of the netball team. I often wonder if I, and many other women, would have been able to take our skills to a higher level had we been born later. The prejudices which try and channel children into gender stereotypical activities are still present although not so prevalent as when I was a girl and I wonder how many potential male ballet dancers, female boxers etc. we have lost through the conventional, traditional role requirements society demanded.

Bella

was in a pub the other day with my football team. A man comes over and proceeds to give us a long lecture about how in womens football, the athletes are much gentler and more polite than in mens football and how we should be proud of ourselves. The whole thing felt really patronising and everyone was extremely awkward. He even gave us a round of applause. I was not best pleased that my own sport was mansplained to me (incorrectly!)

Alara

I used to play football, and yes, with the guys. They didn’t provide a girl team. Anyway there were two of us girls and we always hung out together, and the boys accepted us because we were just as good as them. It was my coach that was the problem. A kid would mess up and he would yell “don’t play like a girl” then he would look over at me and say “no offense.” I just kept quiet because I would never yell or talk back to any of my coaches. He probably didn’t think he was being sexist, but he really was.

CC

I was hobbling down the corridor at work on my crutches after hurting my knee at football, and a male colleague asked “What have you done?”. I said that I had torn my ligament playing football to which he replied “What are you doing playing that? That’s a boys’ sport!”. I really couldn’t tell if he was joking or not, but seeing as I didn’t really know him, I thought probably not. I was so astonished by the outdated cliché remark, all I could say back was “It is 2020 you know”, but I wish I’d have been able to think quickly enough to say something a bit more thought-provoking.

S

So I just turned 17 and ever since I was like 14 I have loved soccer. What started out as a simple interest revolved into my number one passion over the years and I couldn’t be happier. However, in almost every situation of someone realizing I’m into soccer, I can feel the social standards and there always seems to be a little disbelief or rejection. I’m super tired of explaining offside for the 100000 time just to defend my answer when they try and prove it wrong or pick out little inaccuracies. I have even experienced this within my family, where no guy would really believe me whenever I talked about soccer and I am soo sick of these role models

Annon

I am a huge football fan. Have been all my life. A girl mate and I went to a sports bar specifically to watch two games of football. We choose this place as you can watch many different games on different screens. For them to do this they have to come round to your booth to ask you which games you would like to watch. I could see the guy doing his rounds, booth by booth, asking gangs of men which game/s they wanted to watch. He got to our booth, looked at us as said ‘ah’ and went to the next booth. I had to chase after him and usher him back to us and ask him to put the two games of football on that we wanted to watch.

Anita

Sad but true, myself and another female work colleague came up with the idea of naming our printers in our office after football managers – as we are both football fans. Another member of the centre asked why the printer was now being called Klopp. As a Liverpool FC uber fan, I was about to explain about the current Liverpool manager and how Liverpool have recently won the Champions league, when I was interrupted by a male work colleague, saying yes Nic (my male line manager) can tell you about that. I started to explain again – and was stopped again in mid-sentence. “No no – Nic can tell you about that, he knows more about football than I can.” Needless to say I am fuming. And I find that incident more frustrating and infuriating than any other technical workplace issue I’ve ever had in my life!

Anonymous

Everyday sexism I took my daughter to a women’s cricket match the other day. We sat next to an adult son and father who expressed loudly some questionable views about a variety of topics (egg donation, transgender people etc.). They spent the match sarcastically applauding any mistakes the teams made, shouting “just hit the ball” and generally rubbishing women’s cricket. (The home team contained 3 English players who have recently won the World Cup.) By the end of the first innings, I had had enough. We packed up our things and moved to where more families were sitting. As we left, I told the men they were pathetic. My daughter loves sport (as do I), and we go to lots of football and cricket matches. We now attend football matches with friends due to the toxic atmosphere even in the family stands of our local team. I hadn’t expected to experience similar behaviour at a women’s cricket match.

b

… I’m the first women at my school to be a football player. I’m a model who loves fashion and loves sports. Men are awful my coach is awful. I can stick through all that but what I can’t stick through is when people tell me to brush off the coaches sexist remarks. They tell me to stop being so sensitive. I’ve been told to “man up”. I started football because I liked the sport, I continue football for all the girls to follow and the girls that will interact with these men with small minds who believe we can’t amount to what they can.