One of the resounding themes of the Euro 2020 coverage was how many women were involved in the presentation, analysis, and punditry. Typically, when women have been involved in men’s football coverage in Britain, we’ve been restricted to Gabby Logan filling in when Gary Lineker is off or covering a less glamorous tie ahead of Lineker hosting the big match-up later that evening. While the Logan-Lineker dynamic was still present at Euro 2020, we also had punditry from Eni Aluko, Karen Carney, and Shelley Kerr, while Emma Hayes provided both analysis and commentary for ITV and Eilidh Barbour joined Gabby Logan as another female presenter. Alex Scott provided both pitchside analysis and punditry in many of the biggest games, including the final itself. Gender boundaries are fading in sport – and video games are finally starting to notice.
Recently, the Football Manager series pledged to include the women’s game at some point in the future. We spoke with director Miles Jacobson and head of women’s research Tina Keech about the reasoning behind the initiative, and the struggles that go with it. This is part of a clear pattern in sports video games. In NBA 2K22, Candace Parker will become the first WNBA player on the cover, two years after WNBA itself was added to the game. FIFA has included the women’s national game since FIFA 16, where it also introduced its first – and so far only – female cover stars. This year, the aforementioned Alex Scott will be on commentary duty. Another EA game, PGA Tour, recently announced that it would be adding female golfers and golf tournaments when it launches in 2022. I reached out to the teams behind these games to get their thoughts on this rise in inclusivity across the sporting scene.
“Alex is an inspirational voice in the world of football, as she continues to evolve her talent from the pitch to the studio,” David Jackson, FIFA’s VP of brand said when Scott’s role was confirmed in this year’s football sim. “Authenticity and immersion are at the core of what makes FIFA special, so we’re thrilled to include Alex’s experience and insight in FIFA 22, as part of our English Language commentary team.”
Scott added her own, typically eloquent, thoughts on the matter. “This is a big moment for FIFA, for football, and [for] women and girls across the world,” she said in a press release. “Representation is crucial, and the inclusion of an English-speaking female commentator on FIFA is game-changing. The impact it will have is simply stratospheric. It’s a big moment for me personally and professionally. Whilst I am the first English-speaking female broadcaster to feature in FIFA, I will certainly not be the last. This is just the start of stronger female footballing representation from EA Sports, and the football community as a whole.”
This representation is important for a number of reasons, as Football Manager’s Tina Keech points out. Growing up, all of Keech’s sporting role models were men, because that’s all she had access to. For young girls today, that’s no longer the case. “One of the earliest memories I have is with the USA player, Brandi Chastain,” Keech says. “[At the] World Cup in ‘99, she took her top off and her sports bra was on show. There was just complete uproar, nothing to do with the fact that they just won the game, it was just about that. I've got two young children, I want my daughters to grow up and be able to easily see the visibility of women's sports on their screens, in the newspapers, and on the internet. And for them to go, ‘Mummy, I want to do that. Mummy, I want to be that’. It's so important for women's football, women's sports, and women in general. The world is changing, for the better in my opinion.”
The divide between the men’s game and the women’s game in England – and across the world – is shrinking. While the men still earn significantly higher wages and draw greater crowds, we’re seeing a lot more crossover. Punditry, as proven at Euro 2020, is no longer separated by gender lines, while the advances Emma Hayes has made with Chelsea have been noted by many teams – male and female. It’s in this union – not men’s football or women’s football, but football – that the biggest strides for inclusion and diversity can be made. That’s why it’s so important for games to bring women into titles that for a long time featured, and were marketed to, men only.
FIFA’s next step is to include the women’s leagues in England, France, Germany, and Spain, but putting Alex Scott in the base game, alongside the women’s national teams – as opposed to making ‘Lady FIFA’ – not only gives women in football the platform they deserve, it also means the women’s game can be introduced to new audiences.
From this upcoming season, BBC and Sky Sports will show WSL games, which will also bring the game to new audiences – but it’s important to point out that football is part of the rule, not one of the exceptions. One of the most iconic athletes in the world right now is the legendary Simone Biles, while no one, not even Messi or Ronaldo, has dominated their sport the way Serena Williams has for tennis this century. The new Space Jam movie features WNBA stars Nneka Ogwumike and Diana Taurasi. Naomi Osaka lit the Olympic torch. This trend is far bigger than having more women analyse Raheem Sterling’s link-up play with Harry Kane. The floodgates are open.
The NBA 2K series might argue it was slightly ahead of this curve in video games, having added the WNBA in NBA 2K20. FIFA has had women’s football since ‘16, but still has no women’s leagues, and will not feature them in FIFA 22. This season, NBA 2K22 is doubling down on inclusion, with Chicago Sky forward and six-time WNBA All-Star Candace Parker being on the cover of the special editions. “I’m honored to work with a company that’s investing in women and betting on us to succeed,” Parker tweeted after the reveal. “I’m hopeful there will be many more badass females to follow.”
Disappointingly, Parker’s edition is not one of the two base editions. Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic adorns the standard cover, while the 75th Anniversary Edition version – the ‘main’ special edition – has room for NBA legends Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Dirk Nowitzki, and Kevin Durant, but no Parker. Washington Wizards’ Rui Hachimura is also getting a cover exclusive to Japan. That’s five men to one woman, but still – it’s a higher ratio than six to zero.
Completing the round of sports titles offering more visibility and representation to female athletes in 2021, EA PGA Tour is diversifying its roster as it takes back the PGA license from 2K. “I’m incredibly excited that EA Sports PGA Tour laid out a vision to represent female athletes and the LPGA in the game,” Iona Stephen, golf presenter and EA Sports ambassador, said in a press release. “My goal in helping EA is to give women the satisfaction of playing a quality golf game while seeing themselves in a variety of ways that go beyond a handful of female character models.”
Meanwhile, Jin Young Ko, one of the professionals being included in the game, gave her thoughts. “I’m beyond excited to be included as one of the female golfers in EA Sports PGA Tour,” she said when the news was confirmed. “Women’s golf is growing so fast and having us included in this game is a great opportunity to reach fans all around the world. I can’t wait to see how it turns out – and I can’t wait to play the game!”
The amount of women playing sport – and the amount of high level female athletes getting the recognition they deserve – has been rising steadily over the past decade. Video games are finally paying attention, and things will only get better in the coming years.
Next: If We Want To Talk About Diversity In Gaming, We Need To Be Intersectional
