Walk into any professional sports team’s merchandise shop, and you’ll be greeted by delightful displays of hats, t-shirts and jerseys, all featuring that team’s colors. But don’t get too excited if you’re a woman, because this is only the case for the men’s section. The women’s section, on the other hand, will be nothing more than an endless sea of sequins and bright pink fabric. How disappointing.
The marketing strategies used for male and female sports fans are wildly different. Men are typically offered products that would be considered very masculine or gender-neutral at the very least. This includes products like jerseys and hats in a wide array of colors. Men are given the opportunity to buy a greater variety of products, which appeal to a wide range of individuals.
Unfortunately, female sports fans aren’t as lucky, and marketing strategies for women’s merchandise aren’t quite as diverse. Although some professional leagues are evolving their marketing strategies, the general consensus is still “the smaller and pinker, the better.” The main problem is that this type of marketing assumes that all women want very feminine clothing options when it comes to supporting their favorite sports teams. However, this is far from the truth. Women, like men, have very different tastes depending on the individual. Just as not all men would want to wear something covered in flames and skulls, not all women would want to go out dressed head-to-toe in light pink.
This extreme difference in products forces a number of women to shop in the men’s section in order to get the merchandise they want. However, a major drawback of this for women is sizing. If women want to buy a plain black T-shirt with their team’s logo, the men’s section will most likely be their first stop. More often than not, women will end up with ill-fitting shirts or jerseys but will have to deal with it anyway to get the type of merchandise they want.
It’s understandable that some gendered products exist, but marketing campaigns for sports merchandise should, as a whole, evolve into something that can appeal to both genders. Having the option for pink or bedazzled jerseys for women is great, and some women love wearing them, but that shouldn’t be our only option. Women want to have the same options as men when it comes to sports merchandise, but we also want them to come in sizes that fit our bodies.
Women are heavily involved in the realm of sports, whether it’s as fans or athletes, and the merchandise we are offered should reflect this participation. I know it’s hard for companies to believe that women can be major consumers of sporting goods, but it’s true. Women just want their wants to be acknowledged. Women just want something other than pink.
