Tenth International Conference on Sport & Society

Abstract

Traditional narratives of American “gridiron” football hinge on the sport as an expression of American exceptionalism as well as its ‘manliness’. While there is truth to both accounts, each deserves reconsideration. This essay challenges both of these assumptions by tracing the development of the game, often considered the last male stronghold in sport. In particular, the role of women in shoring up the game’s legitimacy in the wake of controversies over its safety is highlighted, both in its early days as well as in its modern iteration. Additionally, while football is indeed unique in many ways, it developed through fairly standard practices of colonialism and nation-building. Finally but perhaps most importantly, the recent entrance of women into the sport as coaches, players, and referees is discussed, and the prospects of women gaining a real foothold into the sport is considered, along with the ways in which women playing the sport may change public perception of the sport.