Sportswomen in the German popular press: a study carried out in the context of the 2011 Women’s Football World Cup

Abstract

The aim of this article is the presentation and interpretation of the coverage of female football players in the largest German boulevard paper (tabloid) during the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup. Main issues are the ways in which the players are portrayed and women’s football is ‘framed’. In addition, the article explores the self-presentations of the players and their reactions to the mediated messages and images. Drawing on constructivist approaches to gender, playing football is considered as a gender performance, staged by the players and presented as well as interpreted by the media. A content analysis of the BILD newspaper shows that the game and the players were ‘gendered’, meaning that their femininity was emphasized. In addition, the paper published texts and images with a focus on eroticism and sexuality. Some of the footballers complied with these framing strategies, while others rejected any sexualization with the argument: ‘We want to market our sport, not our looks’.

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