Women’s History Month is here! Trailblazing women such as Billie Jean King, Mia Hamm, Serena Williams, Candace Parker, Simone Biles, the list goes on, have paved the way for the next generation of female athletes.
At Good Sports, we believe that sports change lives and for girls especially, empowers them to become strong, confident leaders. While Title IX and other movements have generated significant progress for female athletes, there is still more work left to do.
Let’s break down the facts:
– Girls are dropping out of sports at 2x the rate of boys by age 14. Many of these young athletes drop out due to cost and access.
– In addition to cost and access, factors such as social stigma, safety and transportation issues and lack of positive role models all contribute to the reasons why girls drop out of sports in their adolescent years, according to the Women’s Sports Foundation.
– Girls have 1.3 million fewer opportunities to play high school sports than boys have.
– 40% of teen girls are not actively participating in sports. (WSF Teen Sport Report, 2018)
It’s important to examine the gaps, so we can ensure all girls and women can get in the game. As we say here at Good Sports, kid who play do better, and it is certainly true.
Here are why girl’s need sports:
– They can learn important skills such as teamwork, leadership, and confidence.
– According to the Women’s Sports Foundation, girls and women who play sports have a more positive body image and experience higher states of psychological well-being than girls and women who do not play sports.
– 74% of female executives say a background in playing sport can accelerate a woman’s career. (EY & espnW infographic, 2015)
Our She Who Plays initiative is the next move to support new and equitable access to sports for girls nationwide. Good Sports exists to make sure cost doesn’t keep kids on the bench, which is why we are committed to donating $5 million in brand new sports and fitness equipment, apparel, and footwear over three years to directly impact young female athletes.
Keeping girls in the game and creating equal access for them to participate, is important for the betterment of sport, but for our society as well. If you’re interested in learning how you can level the playing field for girls in need across the country through our She Who Plays initiative, visit our page here.
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