Where are the girls? by John Cavill

Over the past few years I have noticed a massive decline in girls playing tennis and when I go to local club level tournaments, there are very few competing. If I am only to look at our club coaching programme I notice that there are only about 20% girls.

The concern for woman’s sports is regularly asked but there is no simple answer and governing bodies / sporting organisations have been confounded by this issue for a while. Boys and girls sport at primary school is virtually identical but then a large number of girls decide to ‘opt out’ before secondary school. Girl’s involvement also decreases at a more rapid rate than the boys through their teens and beyond. But why?

There are many potential reasons why girls drop out of sport but surveys have shown that sport is seen by society as turning ‘boys into men’ and that it is a significant form of male socialisation. Sporting prowess gives males a status amongst both male and female peers where girls receive the message from an early age that boys play sport and girls watch them. This message is reinforced in many different ways when you look at media attention e.g. David and Victoria Beckham, Louis Hamilton and Nicole Scherzinger and so on. 

Although modern times are pushing girls’ sports, in the past it was frequently argued that girls shouldn’t play football and other ‘traditional’ male sports as they may get hurt. In junior schools girls are allowed to compete with the boys but once at secondary school age, they are not.

The media plays a huge role in social acceptance and trends and the lack of media coverage for women’s sport limits girl’s opportunities to discover more about women’s sporting achievements and denies many young women of ‘sporting’ role models. Tennis has an advantage over many other sports as Women are seen as respected top athletes by everyone, so it should be more appealing to girls to take up the sport. With the lack of TV coverage, this further decreases female athlete’s opportunities to attract sponsorship, but again, the opportunity in tennis for women is far better than most sports.

Women do want to be active and statistical evidence indicates that women are more likely to be active in non-organised activities and a more interested in playing sport for fun and to make friends. Studies also reveal that girls will consistently tend to underestimate their performance and not look at themselves as excelling in comparison with their male peers. With a lack of confidence in their own abilities, this can lead to girls avoiding situations where their lack of competence could be exposed. Females are more concerned about their eating, body weight, appearance and dieting than males, which can become obsessive during adolescence and there are many uniforms in sports or school that further make them feel more self conscious. Again, in tennis, women can dress in some very feminine clothes while performing...another benefit our sport has over team sports like football.

Family also plays a big part in whether a female will continue to play sport as girls who have parents involved in sport are more likely to continue their involvement than those whose parents are inactive. Social acceptance is very important and if a girl feels a lack of confidence in their skill level or appearance then this can be confounded in the way that their peers treat them in school or at the club. When you look across the school playground you will tend to see the boys taking up the largest amount of space playing sport or games, so girls tend to keep in smaller areas.

Hopefully some of what I’ve mentioned will resonate with you but why should girls play sport? Sport and physical activity provides physical, social and psychological benefits including:

·         Improved self esteem

·         Assertiveness

·         Confidence

·         Pride

·         A more positive body image

·         Leadership skills

·         Independence

·         More social contacts

·         Reduced risk of osteoporosis when over 50 years old through building up bone mass

I think there are two areas to look at when discussing the reduced number of girl’s sports participation and they are the reasons for dropping out of sport AND not playing in the first place, which could be different. Factors like peer groups or social values, enjoyment and other priorities and confidence all play a part.

So what are the solutions to these issues and who is responsible for addressing them? In a modern world sport must be sold right and communicated in a medium that is gratefully accepted by girls. The use of social networking, positive imagery on promotional material, advocates of women’s sport and equal publicity of women’s international teams / events can all help. At club level the clubs should be ensuring that girls have the opportunity to compete within their own age / ability groups to help make them feel more comfortable able competing. Making sport fashionable is important, so sports manufacturers designing flattering clothing will attract girls. 

So what can clubs do to get more girls playing and staying in the game? I believe that it is much easier to get females playing sport if they start early, so giving them the opportunity is key. Forming good school links with clubs will also help girls feel familiar with that transition to the club if they know the people involved before. Females love social events, so anything that can be arranged around the club to bring people together will help. I think that teenage girls should also be encouraged to take on responsibility, for example, assisting in coaching sessions or organising events so they have ownership. If every girl in the club introduced a friend to the club, then immediately the numbers will go up, so an ‘introduce a friend night’ could be organised. Girls can feel pressure when asked to compete so maybe some cardio tennis or fun drill sessions could be organised to target them or to just have female only sessions. If you can use modern technology like forums or facebook to get the girls interacting, then social events, newsletters, special sessions etc can be regularly discussed to bring people to the club.

I hope this article has gone some way to explaining some of the trends, reasons and observations as to why there aren’t many girls playing sport, including tennis, but also given you food for thought as to how this can be addressed to make for a better future.

John Cavill runs Tennis Works, a tennis developmental and resource company.  For more information check out http://www.tennisworks.net/