We could credit sexism and bad representation in media for the problems in women's football, but while you can't deny their existence, they don't tell the whole story.

We have all seen that picture comparing the salary of a teacher to that of a football player or actor to question the priorities of society. What that picture fails to register is the fact that salaries are determined by who deserves how much, but rather depending on the revenue that one person in that one job in that one place brings.

Simply put; salaries are dependent on what the market will bear.

What Does the Market Looks Like For Women in Sports?

Diversity in sports media is a problem, but, it is a problem that comes from the market. Basically, there isn't a lot of interest put into women's sports that warrants sports media to focus there.

The biggest example of that is ESPN creating a sub-channel called ESPN Women. No one conducts as many studies and surveys to understand that market more than sports stations. If they felt or concluded that women's sports isn't something worth covering more, they'd have done that by now as it will make them money, and who says no to that.

The Problem is Deeper

More diversity and that's it is never the answer, you can't add women and stir for the problem to be solved. The problem isn't that people aren't watching women's sports enough, but rather that women not watching women's sports.

Yes, women's football is spreading like wildfire worldwide, but still, the highest demographic of its audience is men. Men make up 64% of the women's football audience, that's a higher percentage than men watching men's football, which is 58%.

Why Do Men Care About Sports More Than Women?

It's not just football or just football in America. In 2014, a survey was conducted in 37 countries, men were always more likely to get into sports in all countries according to the survey. It's worth mentioning that some countries had both genders polling closer than others, but it was always men who were more likely to get into sports.

The fluctuating differences could also simply be a sign of costumes and traditions as well as gender roles playing a part in those numbers. You know, the whole men are from mars and women are from venus style of raising a child. Add to that the fact that there aren't many women's associations hosting and organizing sporting events for women.

I do credit what's written in the paragraph above for possibly being a reason, but a small reason, in my opinion. The reason I consider it a small reason only is because of something like the WNBA being highly competitive with great quality, still not many watch it, compared to the men's NBA at least.

Also, the same survey had a bigger gap when it came to competitive sports as men were more likely to aim to enter competitive sports and go for records while more women were likely to settle to just watching or not even that. What's the reason?

Men and Women are Different

While this argument has been used as a trojan horse to say that women don't belong in sports, and trust me, I have a part specifically to disproving it, it does apply here. In this specific situation and in terms of ambition, men and women are different.

Some could link it to basic biology or what it is known as the spectator lek where men competed more with each other as women watched and picked in the animal kingdom. That is possibly the reason, but I won't linger as the result is still the same anyway.

That's the biggest difference between men and women in sports.

Competitiveness

Running is a great example, it is not considered a highly competitive sport but someone should tell that to men as they are more likely to be competitive. Men are three times more likely to finish a race closer to the records than women. It sounds like a positive but they're also three times more likely to break down and not be able to finish the race, at least not with the same pace.

Women, on the other hand, calculate it better as they prefer to finish the race at a regulated speed for a longer time rather than fluctuate and risk losing speed for a chance of a higher finish.

That does explain why men are more into sports, but it doesn't why they're more into men's sports. That's where the argument "Men and women are different" comes in place, usually followed by saying that men are stronger, faster, and in general more able to play sports than women.

It is an easy answer that creates a false narrative, but more on that in the next post in this series.

Sources

Men hating women: A look into the psychology of misogyny

Media Coverage & Female Athletes: A Tucker Center/tptMN video documentary

Why Don't People Watch Women's Sports

Media is ‘failing women’ — sports journalism particularly so

Share of women’s soccer fans worldwide in 2019, by gender

The Scientific Reason Men Like Sports More Than Women

lek animal behaviour

The Battle of the Sexes

The weaker sex? Science that shows women are stronger than men

Yes, Men’s and Women’s Brains Do Function Differently — But It’s a Tiny Difference

Why Americans Call Soccer 'Soccer'

U.S. Women’s Soccer Suffers Setback In Fight For Equal Pay

Why Aren't Women's Sports as Big as Men's? Your Thoughts

Why males pack a powerful punch

Gender Media Coverage in Tennis