DiCaro: The NFL's Problem With Women
By Julie DiCaro--
(CBS) Recently, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers managed to insult female football fans everywhere, and this time it had nothing to do with Jameis Winston.
A bold, new movement aimed at changing the way female fans connect with their home team and own their individual football experience is sweeping across the Bay Area and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are leading the charge. RED is a movement that will be led by the women of Tampa Bay, alongside the Buccaneers, to become innovators and leaders in changing the way football is enjoyed by women. All women of the Tampa Bay Area are invited to join the movement and help usher in an exciting, new era for female fans across the region.
Hey -- that sounds great! You mean women will get the chance to help create much-needed reforms in the way the game treats fans and women? That's amazing!
RED will provide female Buccaneers fans with year-round educational experiences focused on providing a better understanding of the game, along with unprecedented access to their favorite team. In addition, RED will re-invent the female fan experience by providing insight into topics such as: what goes on behind the scenes on gamedays at Raymond James Stadium; how to maximize their gameday experience; how to blend personal Buccaneer pride with the latest NFL fashions; as well as tips on sharing their experiences and ideas via social media platforms such as Pinterest.
RED members will also have access to exclusive networking events throughout the year designed to encourage interaction while providing practical advice on how to express their love for the Bucs into original design projects, fashion-forward team apparel and creative culinary creations.
I . . . oooohhhh wait.
I'm proud to say that women make up 45 percent of the NFL's fan base, and I think I speak for the vast majority of us when I say that my interest in football has nothing to do with NFL fashion, culinary creations or Pinterest. Frankly, it's pretty insulting that the NFL thinks the way to interact with women is to add a page to their website that sounds like it came out of a 1950s edition of Redbook. What's next, telling us we should always wear pearls with our NFL gear to remind everyone we're still ladies? Should we only cross our jeans at the ankle, too?
The Bucs new "women's movement" includes "gameday style tips" and explaining what a play clock is. I'm serious. https://t.co/oT1bFYLGFz
— Kristen Balboni (@KristenBalboni) August 6, 2015
Unfortunately, it's not the first time the NFL has talked to women like five-year-olds just learning the game. There's the Gronk Football 101 Women's Clinic (don't forget to bring your singles, ladies!), the Colts' 101 and 201 women's clinics, the Jaguars' Women's Club (obviously, there's wine) and the annual NFL/Vogue fashion show (no, I'm not making that one up).
Look, I'm not saying that plying a certain population of women with plastic flutes of boxed wine and bedazzled T-shirts won't be successful (catch me after a particularly bad week, and that might work on me, too). But the real problem with the NFL is that it thinks it has to treat women differently from men in order to curry their loyalty. And in so thinking, the NFL reveals that it doesn't understand female fans at all.
Women are attracted to the NFL for the same reasons men are. Many of us grew up watching football on Sunday afternoons with our dads. We enjoy the sense of community that results from cheering for the same team people we care about cheer on. We like the gladiator element of watching grown men smash into each other. We help our kids learn their team playbooks and toss a million passes to them in the backyard. Devastatingly un-ladylike, I realize, but there it is.
Assuming that women need fashion shows and explanations of the game clock isn't only insulting but laughable. Does the NFL really think those of us who have watched the game for decades have no idea what the game clock is for? Or where the quarterback plays? Granted, I'm sure there are women who need those explanations, but there are men who could use them, as well.
Instead of making all these "Football 101" clinics to target women, why not make them for new fans, regardless of gender? Because, to be honest, when it comes to football, I know plenty of guys who have no clue what they're looking at, no matter how loudly they cheer or how many man-child jerseys they squeeze their guts into.
If the NFL really wants to attract women, here are some ideas: Get your team owners and coaches to stop sticking up for domestic abusers (this stink eye is directed at you, George McCaskey), insist the more women have meaningful broadcasting roles (no, I don't mean as sideline reporters), get us some team apparel options that don't include the color pink or rhinestones and, for crying out loud, stop assuming we don't know anything about the game.
Julie DiCaro is an update anchor for 670 The Score. Follow Julie on Twitter @JulieDiCaro or on Facebook. The views expressed on this page are those of the author, not CBS Local Chicago or our affiliated television and radio stations.
