Women Sport Fans: Identification, Participation, Representation

169 Pages·2017·7.727 MB·English

by  Kim Toffoletti

Women Sport Fans
Women worldwide are making their presence felt as sport fans in rapidly
increasing numbers. This book makes a distinctive and innovative contri-
bution to the study of sport fandom by exploring the growing visibility
and interest in women who follow sport. It presents the latest data on
women’s sport spectatorship in different regions of the world, posing new
theoretical paradigms to study the globalised nature of female sport
fandom.
This book goes beyond conventional approaches to analysing the prac-
tices of women sport fans. By using a critical feminist perspective to inves-
tigate cultural conditions and social contexts (including globalisation,
digital networked technologies, consumerism, neoliberalism and postfemi-
nism), it brings into view a diversity of women’s voices and experiences as
sport fans. It sheds new light on the power dynamics of gender, ethnicity
and sexuality influencing women’s participation in sport spectatorship and
interrogates the ways female sport fandom is made visible through trans-
national media networks.
Women Sport Fans: Identification, Participation, Representation is fas-
cinating reading for all those interested in sport and gender, the sociology
of sport, or women’s studies.
Kim Toffoletti is Senior Lecturer in Sociology at Deakin University, Aus-
tralia. She specialises in the study of women’s sporting experiences and
representations, using transnational feminist and critical postfeminist per-
spectives. She is the co- editor of Sport and Its Female Fans (Routledge,
2012).
Routledge Research in Sport, Culture and Society
78 Lifestyle Sports and Public Policy
Edited by Daniel Turner and Sandro Carnicelli
79 International Sports Volunteering
Edited by Angela M. Benson and Nicholas Wise
80 Football Fans, Rivalry and Cooperation
Edited by Christian Brandt, Fabian Hertel and Sean Huddleston
81 The Feminization of Sports Fandom
A Sociological Study
Stacey Pope
82 Transgender Athletes in Competitive Sport
Edited by Eric Anderson and Ann Travers
83 Sport and Militarism
Contemporary global perspectives
Edited by Michael L. Butterworth
84 Sport, Community Regeneration, Governance and
Development
A comparative global perspective
Rory Shand
85 Women Sport Fans
Identification, participation, representation
Kim Toffoletti
86 Sport in Iceland
How small nations achieve international success
Vidar Halldorsson
Women Sport Fans
Identification, Participation,
Representation
Kim Toffoletti
First published 2017
by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
and by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2017 Kim Toffoletti
The right of Kim Toffoletti to be identified as author of this work
has been asserted by her in accordance with sections 77 and 78
of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic,
mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented,
including photocopying and recording, or in any information
storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from
the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks
or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and
explanation without intent to infringe.
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
A catalog record for this book has been requested
ISBN: 978-1-138-18927-0 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-64169-0 (ebk)
Typeset in Sabon
by Wearset Ltd, Boldon, Tyne and Wear
To Ike and Art

Contents
Acknowledgements viii
List of Abbreviations x
Introduction 1
1 Facts, Figures and Frameworks: Approaching the
Study of Women Sport Fans 14
2 Identities, Performances and Pleasures 32
3 Consumption 55
4 Representation 79
5 Digital Networks 102
6 The Postfeminist Sport Fan 123
Conclusion 148
Index 153
Acknowledgements
During the writing of this book I have been given the opportunity to
explore my ideas and gain valuable insights through discussions amongst
various intellectual networks. I am grateful to Loyola Marymount Univer-
sity (LMU) in Los Angeles for inviting me to present my research and
hosting me while I wrote a number of chapters for this book. My time at
LMU was enhanced by conversations with many of the students and
faculty in the College of Communication and Fine Arts. Particular thanks
go out to Larry Wenner, Michele Hammers, Lisa Lugo and Dean Keith
Alexander Bryant for being so welcoming and supportive. Various aca-
demic communities in Australia and elsewhere have sustained and enriched
my scholarly pursuits. I am deeply thankful to (and for!) my feminist peers
in the Australian Women’s and Gender Studies Association, and many
members of the feminist sport research community who have engaged with
my work and whose insights and feedback have greatly advanced my
thinking.
I feel lucky to be working with such supportive, respectful and thor-
oughly pleasant colleagues in the discipline of Sociology at Deakin Univer-
sity. The higher powers in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences
and the Faculty of Arts and Education have been generous with time and
money, allowing me to undertake the work necessary to write this book.
Special shout- outs to the following Deakin people past and present – Peter
Mewett, Catherine Palmer and Grazyna Zajdow – who have variously
taken on the roles of supporter, sounding board, collaborator, conspirator
and confidante during the journey. This book has come about, to a large
extent, because of the collective research I have undertaken with Peter
Mewett on women fans of Australian rules football over many years. I owe
Peter a debt of gratitude for being an exceptionally generous and easy-
going collaborator, for endorsing my ongoing work in this area and for
granting permission to use our data in this volume. At Routledge I must
thank Max Novick, Simon Whitmore, Cecily Davey and Jennifer Morrow
for their enthusiasm for this project, as well as their patience and help
throughout the writing, editing, publishing and marketing processes.
Acknowledgements ix
I take the opportunity here to note that the case study presented in
Chapter 3 draws from the article ‘Advertising the 2015 Cricket World
Cup: Representing multicultural female sports fans’ in Communication
and Sport. Parts of Chapter 4 appeared in an earlier incarnation as ‘Iranian
women’s sports fandom: Gender, resistance and identity in the football
movie Offside’, in the Journal of Sport and Social Issues. Some of the
material in Chapter 6 has been adapted from an article appearing in Fem-
inist Media Studies titled ‘Sexy women sport fans: Femininity, sexuality
and the global sport spectacle’.
Most importantly, thanks to my family for their enduring love and
encouragement. The combination of pride and belief that my parents,
Guido and Loretta, show in my achievements means more to me than they
probably realise. I take the opportunity here to let them know how fantas-
tic they are and how much their support mattered in getting this book
written. My brothers and their families – Denny, Lisa, Caitlyn, Zachary
and Elouise Toffoletti; Patrick, Elizabeth and Nina Toffoletti; and Eddy
and Liz Toffoletti – I’m lucky to have you in my life. You are always,
always there for me. The Silkstones and Grinlintons – Pamela, Brian, Amy,
Bree, Bradley and baby Marlowe – offer unconditional practical support
and fun times in equal measure.
The idea for this book emerged at a formative moment in my life, just
after the birth of Ike and Art. During the time it has taken for me to write
it, I have watched with delight as they have developed into funny, feisty,
curious and caring little boys. My daughter Sid is a pleasure and joy – it
brings me immense happiness to witness her burgeoning independence and
creativity. All of my children have shown much patience and acceptance of
my writing. Undertaking the dual roles of parent and academic, both of
which can seem at times to be all- consuming and overwhelming tasks, has
only been possible as part of a team. Dan has been instrumental in the
making of this book. He has unreservedly given all his energy and love to
caring for our children, is always interested in listening to my ideas and
engages in thoughtful and generative ways with my work. I’ll always pick
you first in my squad, Silky.