Women’s football created its own culture: more solidarity, more open, emotional. And that is why he should not become male football. Anyone who talks only about wages, rights to television and professionalization overlooks the foundations: the cultural value of these sports players, for fans, for society.
Football was originally a man. He quickly became massive sports, and at some point a billion dollars. Women’s football was supposed to fight for a huge resistance – from the very beginning. In (Western) Germany, DFB banned women’s football in 1955, by 1970: “These martial arts are essentially strange for the nature of women.” Instead of television money and large sponsors, women’s football grew up with a strong, solitary community. It was created not as a mass product, but as a counter culture. This is still forming it today.
Female football accent. Girls who kick often hear early, this is not for them. They are offended as lesbians or “men -women” – simply because they play football. And yet they continue. Why?
Our culture is vulnerable, diverse and possibly stronger
Because they exceed the threshold in football. They enter a room in which these attributes no longer make sense. In which you experience: insults come from outside, but not from here. In the square, in the salon, in the team you will experience another cooperation. Women’s football becomes a room in which the children are already studying: these alleged depreciating girls do not say anything about me, but a lot about those who use them.
Women’s football creates that male football does not create to this day: he offers a lot of houses that does not feel safe in the main football. While fear often plays in male football – homophism, to toxic masculinity, to violence – women’s football is associated with other values: respect, solidarity, community.
This is not about more money, more frequent victories and the fall of others
And yes, men’s football is now looking for a lot. For example, a rainbow bandage, which, of course, wears in some amateur teams – although this still causes discussions. What is everyday life in women’s football, often remains only one gesture for men.
Work in houses is often open to women in youth and with little shame. It is not only said not only about tactics, but also about everything: about injuries, about mental pain, about life. Mothers bring their children to a team meeting. Players resist at the top after pregnancy. All this is part of the culture.
And although men talk about “more professional conditions” in women’s football, they often do not notice what they actually mean “professional”: like ours. More pressure, more money, more trade. But this is exactly the matter: when women’s football becomes like male football, we lose what makes us.
Because what is this in football? About emotions, clear. But it’s not about what emotions in which thousands of tips on the shoulders are ignited by pies and put the enemy’s command “on the face”. This is not an emotional expression – this is a culture of cruelty.
Our emotions look like a strict. We are discussing with the directors of the club so that we can get balls at all. We fought for rooms, time of training, recognition for years. And in all this we created a football culture, which is vulnerable, more diverse – and, perhaps, that is why it is much stronger.
I don’t want to be like men. And the men who want to explain to us how we have football, I say to them: you violate our sport.
This text was created as part of the seminar of the TAZ Panter Foundation for young journalists in sports.