Communication Dans Un Congrès Année : 2022

Practices Regarding Media Coverage, Promotion and Visibility for Women in Football in Europe

Résumé

This article is a part of a large research study conducted in six European countries. The online survey was completed by 1,129 adults and the focus groups and interviews were carried out with 41 individuals (footballers, coaches, and support staff, managers and leaders). Through a survey, focus groups, and interviews, we wished to gain a deeper understanding of football practices, concerning the following: practices regarding media coverage, promotion, and visibility for females in football. The study used quantitative analysis of Likert-scale questions (e.g. what extent they felt that their current club ensured equality between males and females regarding media coverage., and open-text comments on good practices and areas of improvement regarding media coverage and promotion (e.g. how might media coverage, promotion and visibility of females in your club be improved?). Media coverage of women’s football (Coche, 2014) and hence sponsorship and financial security for the game, has also been found to be limited (Pfister, 2015a), although there is evidence that there has been an increase in mainstream media exposure (Peeters & Elling, 2015). Use of social media, such as Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, was particularly highlighted in the open-text comments as a positive practice allowing for a cost-effective and up-to-date way of advertising matches, uploading match highlights and results, making transfer announcements, sourcing sponsors, as well as providing a platform for player, coach and club promotion. Based on the open-text survey comments, there was a preference for integration in terms of media coverage and marketing, whereby things like match statistics, advertisement of matches, and interviews to promote players, were felt to be beneficial when incorporated into the existing men’s or general club webpages. Having dedicated social media staff will help towards posts being managed, as there is potential that women are represented negatively, owing to its ease of use (Peeters & Elling, 2015). Promoting positive role models is something that could be achieved through social media, being highlighted as a positive aspect of social media. Using social media specifically to promote coaches and women in leadership positions was also highlighted as a positive. There is, however, little evidence from the research that players as role models, especially those who are ‘celebrities’, directly increase girls’ participation at the grassroots level (Ishigami, 2019). There is even less evidence for the effectiveness of female coaches and leaders as role models (Adamson & Kelan, 2019). Despite there being some improvements in media coverage of women’s football (Petty & Pope, 2019; Sherwood et al., 2019), based on survey data on areas for improvement, having unbiased reporting and media coverage was something that was felt to be still needed. Raising the profile of women’s football to “attract more and more girls”, and having a greater circulation, such as more media coverage, visibility, and awareness are still important aspects that can be improved on.

Fichier non déposé

Dates et versions

hal-04752358 , version 1 (24-10-2024)

Identifiants

  • HAL Id : hal-04752358 , version 1

Citer

Marie-Stéphanie Abouna, Magdalena Zmuda Palka, Alexander Blackett, Alejandro Leiva Arcas. Practices Regarding Media Coverage, Promotion and Visibility for Women in Football in Europe. 2022 IACS Summit on communication & Sport, Rowan University, Mar 2022, Glassboro, New Jersey, United States. ⟨hal-04752358⟩
94 Consultations
0 Téléchargements

Partager

  • More