A study carried out on women in sport suggests that there is still a huge gender bias in UK sport viewership and participation.
Sport England said: ‘Fear of judgement, lacking confidence, not having enough time – our research shows there are a mix of practical and emotional pressures that stop many women from being as active as they would like.
Around 39% of women aged 16 and over are not active enough to get the full health benefits of sport and physical activity, compared to 35% of men.’
Tori Cook, a former player who’s been in many sports teams feels that gender bias is still very prominent.
However, it seems the popularity of women’s sport is increasing, according to the Women’s Sport Trust, the first four months of 2023 brought record TV viewership for female sport in the UK.
20.6 million people, according to data from Futures Sport & Entertainment, watched 3 minutes or more of women’s sport coverage from 1st January to 30th April, in comparison to 18.9 million in 2022.
The increase was driven by record-breaking audience figures in the UK for highly anticipated women’s sporting games including the Barclays Women’s Super League, the TikTok Women’s Six Nations, and the ICC T20 World Cup.
A rise in viewership for female sports could also mean a rise in women wanting to get involved themselves, some organisations in Liverpool are creating a safe space for women who want to get active.
The LFC Foundation launched a female employability programme that aims to unlock the potential of females aspiring to gain further education or employment at LFC and beyond.
The programme will improve self-esteem and support females to become more confident and competitive when entering the job market.
Other organisations are also working to get more women involved, one being ‘This Girl Can’ which helps groups across the local sport and physical activity sector to develop solutions and action plans to get more women involved with sports and fitness.
‘The plan locally is to harness the determination and build momentum across the city to ensure women throughout Liverpool have the opportunity to enjoy getting active.’
Former Mayor of Liverpool, Joanne Anderson said: “Work is needed to close this gap (between men and women in sport), with a focus on making activity more safe, social, self-affirming and suitable for women.”
Image By Sophie Cook
