Wednesday, September 07, 2011
Let’s Hear It for the Girls
By Torrie Hazlewood, Summer Intern
I would hesitate to say that most people in the United States knew that the Women’s World Cup (WWC) was going to take place this summer. Although soccer is the sport of choice for many young girls in the United States, women’s soccer is hardly recognized beyond that of its young female fan base. Many people have heard of Mia Hamm, who still serves as the face of women’s soccer in the United States, though few have heard of Kristine Lilly, who has the most international match appearances - male or female, or Abby Wambach, who is the current star of the USA national team and might be gaining recognition after her WWC work. My own brother easily casts aside my reasoning for wanting to watch the one women’s soccer game shown on TV each week, even after I tell him about the recent poll taken in the US that found people believed the USA women’s national team could beat USA’s men’s national team. (I received a blank stare before being waved away.) Battling to convince my brother, and dad sometimes, that women’s soccer and women’s sports in general (besides beach volleyball) are worth watching is, in my mind, a manifestation of the American sports discourse that sports are a male preserve, and female athletes must continually prove they are worth watching and being supported. For example, Steven Colbert recently joked on his show, The Colbert Report, that he wanted to thank the USA women’s soccer team for almost making Americans care about women’s soccer. While I laughed along with my brother, I realized he was absolutely right, though this “caring” about women’s soccer may be due to the WWC matches taking over much of ESPN’s air time and sport-aholics were left with few choices. But I like to be an optimist and think people really did start to enjoy world class soccer and hopefully the interest will continue.
As mentioned above, the United States and many sports news stations, such as ESPN, are making an effort to put women’s soccer on TV. Just this past WWC, ESPN showed every group-stage game (there were 24), not just the USA matches, and every match until the final. As I watched coverage of this year’s WWC they interviewed many of the glorified (by me and other 9 year olds like myself back in the day) veterans of the sport who won the WWC in 1999. They constantly mentioned how little TV coverage there was leading up to the final game of their epic match against China and some even reflected back on when the USA won the WWC back in 1990 and the game was not even televised. Granted, by looking at the strides made from 1990 to today, women’s soccer has grown considerably in recognition, but in my mind, it still has a long way to go.
I also would not hesitate to guess that most people do not know there is a Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) league in the United States. Today, the WPS league is the best in the world. It draws the finest players from all around the globe including the amazing Marta from Brazil, Kelly Smith from England, WWC champion Aya Sameshima from Japan, and all of the USA’s great players such as Abby Wambach (hooray if you recognized any or all of these players). When I was a kid the precursor to the WPS was the WUSA (Women’s United Soccer Association); however, the league lasted only three years crumbling in 2003 due to lack of funding. The WPS started up under its new title in 2006 hoping for more success. While the league is seeing a huge spike in attendance and ticket sales following the WWC, it is in danger of shutting down once again due to inadequate financial support. A recent ESPN W.com article noted that the women’s league provides a place for USA players to develop and grow, which only means a better and stronger USA team competing in World Cups and Olympic Games.
I recently attended a WPS game - Boston Breakers vs. MagicJack with one of my best friends, Anna, who is also a women’s soccer enthusiast. Throughout the game we watched our favorite WWC players, Wambach, Megan Rapinoe, and Lauren Cheney among them, and reminisced about our experiences watching WUSA and World Cup matches when we were younger. Both Anna and I still hold the soccer heroes of our younger years in a golden light. After the game, Kristine Lilly, who lives in Brookline and attends all Boston Breakers games as a veteran of the team, was walking behind us and Anna began to tear up. She had walked Lilly out onto the field when she was 12 and still remembers how friendly, upbeat, and great she made Anna feel in the ten minutes she met her. Anna’s love for the sport began with that 1999 World Cup team, which included Lilly, and she continues her passion by playing in college.
I use this sappy moment as an example of both the role model potential and the confidence boost these women’s soccer players can provide if people are willing to get to know them. As a young girl I could recognize people with confidence and I looked at the women soccer players as the most confident fun-loving group of people. Every girl and woman wants that confidence, and for many, sports are where to go and professional female athletes show them it is possible. So while soccer parents bring their soccer-playing daughters to Boston Breakers games, they should be encouraged to bring their son’s so they too can appreciate what the women’s game has to offer and possibly look up to these players as their role models. I can only hope that this past WWC has helped shed more light on women’s soccer and gets people to understand that in a country where being the best is highly valued, you have to support the best to win and right now USA sports fans have the chance to gain some great role models and invest in a great game.
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