I've never been a Football fan. I've never played Football, and have only once attended a Pro' match. I was shanghaied into watching Brighton & Hove Albion play against some far superior team back in the mid 60's. I only remember two things about the game; firstly the terrible noise from all the shouting, and secondly Norman Wisdom leading the singing of 'Sussex by the Sea' before kick-off. I think Wisdom was Chairman of the club.
I've always been a Rugby player. I played from Prep' School through to Club Rugby, and have played against such formidable clubs as London Welsh, London Irish, and (worst of all) Croydon RFC. My Club Rugby career ended quite quickly on account of too many regular injuries.
However, I have recently watched some female Football, and very good it was too. I almost prefer it to male Football. It is getting very good coverage at the moment, with several international games on TV. I have noticed that they tend to play at inferior venues, and they are nowhere nearly as well paid as their male counterparts. About time this changed.
N.B. The photo above is of a nearby team in France. I'm not quite sure why they're all wearing chest-warmers, I'm sure they're not all 'trans' players.
28 comments:
I think the "chest warmers" might be to stop any accidental nipple damage. You don't want them torn off in a scrum or a tackle.
I knew there had to be a logical explanation.
Rugby is a man's game, I would have said once. But women play rugby too. The NZ team the Black Ferns have won world competitions many times.
As for football, you just can't escape it here. The islanders all gather in the harbour cafes for big matches and watch them on wide screen tv
Did you see any games of the very recent Women's Rugby World Cup. We watched all the games that were free to air here and enjoyed it more than the men's rugby. Many of the games were held here in Whangarei.
NZ and Rugby go together, for men and women these days. And all the better for that.
Yes, I've seen some women's rugby too. They play extremely well. I've also seen some Wheelchair Rugby which is a bit odd.
The final last Saturday was between England and New Zealand and was a great game.
Of the few games I watched when I took my son to the games many years ago the crowd always seemed like a religious cult to me.
I doubt they'll be dressing like that in Qatar.
Who won?
I remember the noise as being horrific.
We won't know what they're wearing under their shirts, we can only guess.
OK, I've just looked online!
Unlike you. I have watched hundreds of professional football matches. I also played football but not as often as I played rugby union. Sheffield is the birthplace of modern football. Sheffield F.C. is the oldest football club in the world. Sheffield Hallam F.C.'s ground is the oldest football ground in the world - in continuous use since 1860 - and Sheffield United's Bramall Lane ground is the oldest professional ground in the world. But coming from The East Riding of Yorkshire, I support Hull City.
To merit better pay, professional women will need to attract more supporters and more TV coverage.
I come from a long ancestry of Tottenham supporters so I'm a supporter by default. I'm delighted that women's football is getting tv coverage...but it does mean my husband watches EVEN MORE sport on tv.
If the women continue to play at their present standard, I'm sure they'll get the coverage they deserve.
They seem to play a more 'logical' game than the men. I like to see that.
I recently said on my blog that if an alien asked to see how football is played I would take them to a women's game. They play much purer football.
Cro, your kickball players are raising awareness of Breast Cancer and the fact that men can get it as well as women...
The Pink Balloons are everywhere at the moment.... and a recent cut of baleable silage has resulted in a flush of pink marshmallows* in the fields!!
There are also pink flags, bunting and ribbons all over the place.
La Roche Posay has covered their market place with pink umbrellas!!
*The normal black plastic they wrap them in is laid aside and the pink Breast Cancer Awareness used instead.... the farmer doesn't get a sub for using it.... he actually pays a bit more!!
I agree.
I too agree. They play 'by the book', following most of the classic scoring movements. Women Rugby players tend to do the same.
I did actually know this, but thought it more fun not to mention it. I did write about the pink wrapping for silage bales back in 2019.
England's women did a brilliant job of lifting the profile of the women's game. The best thing about that is that it has inspired thousands of schoolgirls to take up the game without shame or embarrassment. This will improve their fitness and general health - making them physically better equipped for adult life.
Women in football (known as soccer in the US) are starting to receive pay more equal to men. US woman's soccer team filed a gender discrimination lawsuit over pay gap and they won. The lawsuit said: women earned $15K for making the World Cup team in 2013 while men earned $55K for making the team in 2014 and $68+K in 2018. Discrimination and pay gap continues on, just a little less so.
They will probably never be on a par, because much is based on audience figures and TV rights, but they certainly need to be better paid.
Re your comment above as to who won the Rygby World Cup it was extremely close and the other side were winning until the last minute.
I wish I'd seen it!
I am surprised you didn't.
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