Today is National Girls & Women in Sports Day! This day serves to celebrate the extraordinary achievements of women and girls in sports. Seeing as the 51st Super Bowl is just a few days away, let’s take a look at the progress women have made in the male-dominated world of football.
Historically, American football has been viewed as a man’s game for male fans. Since 2009, that stereotype has shifted as the popularity of football for women has increased significantly. According to a study by Ohio University, about half of all American women are football fans as opposed to 69 percent of American men. In fact, women are the fastest-growing audience for the National Football League. Between 2009-2013, overall NFL female viewership rose by 26 percent, more than double the 10 percent increase among US men.
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Today is National Girls & Women in Sports Day! This day serves to celebrate the extraordinary achievements of women and girls in sports. Seeing as the 51st Super Bowl is just a few days away, let’s take a look at the progress women have made in the male-dominated world of football.
Historically, American football has been viewed as a man’s game for male fans. Since 2009, that stereotype has shifted as the popularity of football for women has increased significantly. According to a study by Ohio University, about half of all American women are football fans as opposed to 69 percent of American men. In fact, women are the fastest-growing audience for the National Football League. Between 2009-2013, overall NFL female viewership rose by 26 percent, more than double the 10 percent increase among US men.
More women are not only watching football, they are playing the sport in great numbers as well. In fact, 1,715 girls played 11-man football during the 2013-2014 high school and college sports season. This means that female participation in football has increased by 161 percent since the 1999-2000 season.
This growing involvement at both the fan and participation levels, is driving the demand for women on the field in roles of authority. The Arizona Cardinals and Buffalo Bills both made history by hiring women in coaching capacities: Jen Welter works as an Assistant Coach for Arizona and Kathryn Smith is a Special Teams Coach for Buffalo. Three NFL teams are owned outright by women, and others have female co-owners.
While women have made great progress in the world of football in recent years, there is still work to be done to continue to expand these opportunities. To learn more about football’s fastest-growing market and the women dominating the industry, checkout the infographic below, created by Ohio University.
