Why Are Men So Angry About Women's Football?

As I write this, England are due to play the Netherlands tomorrow in the men’s Euro’s semi-final. I’m excited. I’m terrified. I’m fully invested. By the time you read this we could be on our way to the final yet again. Or (whisper it) we might’ve already brought it home.

And in case you hadn’t realised; I’m a woman. A woman who loves football. Who understands football. Who watches football not begrudgingly, but out of choice. I’m not a rare breed either. There are loads of us footy-loving females out there. I’ve grown up with it you see. My whole family are fanatics and I’ve gone on to have not one, not two but three footy-mad sons (they play for no fewer than ten teams between the three of them so I watch a fair amount).

And one thing which is still very clear to me and my girlfriends who love the beautiful game, is that our enthusiasm for football is still something which makes a lot of men, including our own partners, very uncomfortable. They think it’s ‘theirs’ you see. That they own it. That it’s something we can observe but not fully be part of. If I had a fiver for every time a bloke had asked me if I ‘definitely’ understood the off-side rule, I’d be able to buy my own Premiership striker.

You’d have thought the fact that the England women’s team actually won the last Euro’s would have gone some way towards helping bridge the gap. Anecdotally I have to say it did the exact opposite with a lot of men. They claimed that the whole standard of female football is so much lower that it’s ‘not even the same sport’. Or that ‘the best female footballers in the world aren’t as good as the really bad men’s professionals.’ I’ve heard that latter statement a lot. Not as quick, not as dynamic, not as competitive. The put-downs come thick and fast.

I say a lot of men because I accept that some men do indeed rate female footballers; their skill, speed and the level of graft it’s taken to get where they are in what has very much been traditionally a mans world. Thank you to those enlightened fellas, especially to the ones in the public eye who use their platform to call out sexism in sport. All Hail Gary Lineker.

But what is it that actually makes men so uncomfortable with women liking football, or even sport in general. Is it because they feel it’s their domain and we’re trying to muscle in? Is it because sport isn’t girly and we’re somehow compromising our delicate femininity by engaging with it? I once had a man tell me that ‘liking football makes a woman immediately less attractive.’ Wow. Is being attractive (which is subjective at any point anyway) really so incompatible with talking tactics? We need to find out what it is that’s so triggering for men.

Professor Stacey Pope, of Durham University, who has studied the subject extensively states that ‘football is seen as the last bastion of masculinity.’ It therefore provokes huge insecurity in some men that women are entering a community/discussion/pub where men are revelling in being ‘real men’. It seems to me to be almost an animalistic instinctive reaction to something males might feel is being undermined or taken away from them. Ego’s are a fragile thing as we all know.

It also doesn’t help when you have prominent figures in the mens game who speak so disparagingly about the women’s game, and female fans. Former players such as Joey Barton have consistently fuelled the fire of hatred on social media, giving the faceless (and often anonymous) posters an echo chamber to scream into.

Professor Pope collected research from almost 2000 men on the topic of women in sport for her research paper. A shocking 68% of respondents revealed openly misogynistic hostile views. Less than a quarter held inclusive, progressive views and interestingly; 8% were what can be classified as covertly sexist. We know the ones don’t we? The guy who will seem very positive about women in sport to a female colleague or manager, but then will use a safe space such as a pub, or a football ground, to express their true views.

So where do we go from here? Well, just as racism in sport has been insidious and damaging for decades, it now seems a similar fight might need to be fought when it comes to misogyny. With female sport only growing in popularity and media presence, the haters are gonna continue to hate.

And that’s why it’s important to call it out when we see it. To educate our sons to be inclusive to their female friends and encourage them not just to watch sport but to participate. It’s why we need to champion and support our daughters when they want to pursue any traditionally masculine/sports or pursuits.

Just like charities such as Show Racism The Red Card have done for racism, work will need to be done to educate all youngsters on sexism in sport. It’s kind of vital isn’t it, so that the other 50% of the population can be allowed to join in with the party. Football is after all, a pretty big force for good. It’s been shown to enhance social collaboration, give an increased sense of community and reduce loneliness. Who wouldn’t want to get a piece of that pie?

Budge up blokes, there’s room for all of us on the subs bench.

// Sarah Lawton