Female Football Players Clad In Underwear Want To Be Taken Seriously
Posted by: Annika Harris
Filed in:
news
1:20PM, Friday September 4th 2009
Sex can sell almost anything in our culture, so football shouldn’t be any different. At least, that’s what the Lingerie Football League, LFL, is banking on. The idea for the LFL was hatched from the “Lingerie Bowl,” a half-time show featuring scantily dressed women that is broadcast during the Super Bowl. The league, which opens its debut season Sept. 4, has 10 teams (with names like San Diego Seduction, Dallas Desire, and Los Angeles Temptation) competing in seven-a-side, full-contact football. The players want to be respected even though they wear sports bras, tiny boyshorts, and protective gear. They say they’re playing real football, regardless of their attire, and those who tried out and couldn’t play didn’t make the cut.
But even though these women are competing in a sport that often excludes women professionally, feminists are still bothered by the concept of fierce women running around with little clothing. Here’s what feminist writer Courtney Martin wrote on Feministing.com: “This is objectification at its most pernicious—give women an opportunity to participate in a sport that they haven’t had the chance to do for pay and publicly previously, but only let them do it if they are stereotypically pretty and willing to do it in their underwear.”
True, it is objectification, but sports are in general, regardless of the sex of the players. Professional athletes are practically put on auction blocks when it’s draft season and they’re only valued for how fast they can run, how far they can shoot or hit, and how hard they tackle. It’s sad, but I doubt anyone, except die-hard women’s football fans, would watch the LFL play if the players weren’t dressed in underwear. That being said, I can tell these women bring it on the football field from looking at the photos. I hope the teams have excellent medics in their employ because those outfits protect very little skin. [Reuters]
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I Go To 11
wrote on September 4 2009 @ 12:42 pm: [report]
“That being said, I can tell these women bring it on the football field from looking at the photos. I hope the teams have excellent medics in their employ because those outfits protect very little skin.”
My thoughts exactly. Am I thrilled with the idea of women playing football while wearing next to nothing? Not really, but it’s mainly because it seems much easier to become injured that if they wore more traditional attire.
Humble Bee
wrote on September 4 2009 @ 12:48 pm: [report]
I think that’s hardcore. They are still playing with pads and actually tackling people AND they look cute while doing it, like Katt Williams says, Get yo paper boo.
spatula
wrote on September 4 2009 @ 02:17 pm: [report]
I just don’t see how they can get around the whole looks-discrimination (if you will) thing. I don’t care what anyone says about football skills, these are televised games. The producers are NOT going to put a girl out there if she doesnt look sexy in lingerie. So it doesnt seem accurate to portray it as being all about the sport, or gender equality, when (IMO) it’s really about looking at girls in their undies getting dirty and tackling each other. Which is fine, but call a spade a spade.
I also wonder at the statement “those who tried out and couldn’t play didn’t make the cut”. What about the ones who COULD play football, but didn’t look as pretty or sexy in the “uniform”? I’d bet they didn’t make the cut, either.
PinkRanger
wrote on September 4 2009 @ 02:26 pm: [report]
*sigh*.....dammit…...
oceeaneyess
wrote on September 4 2009 @ 10:32 pm: [report]
This seems like a recipe for a Wardrobe Malfunction.
Anniushka
wrote on September 5 2009 @ 11:29 am: [report]
Women + (Football - protective gear) ≈ rugby.
However,
Women + lingerie + (Football - protective gear) = most lawsuit-prone VS photo shoot ever conceived.
Casper
wrote on September 5 2009 @ 06:03 pm: [report]
Where are the guys in the skimpy clothes for us then? Why do the men get all the fun?
But still, why should they be respected while playing a sport in underwear when pole dancers and exotic dancers don’t get the same respect? What they do is strenuous on the body and hard work, they perform for the public and get paid for while not actually having sex too. (majority of them anyway)
If they want to play football and be respected, put a football strip on, if you want to be objectified and treated as a piece of ass then they should just carry on. They’re not going to get the respect they want dressing like that, people don’t work like that.
Lavanderism
wrote on September 6 2009 @ 06:31 am: [report]
After seeing those photos, I have an opinion (yay).
For one, those girls are ripped. To shreds. Too hot.
Secondly, many of them aren’t conventionally pretty, most having that tomboy-ish thing going on. Yes, running around in skivvies for “equality” is not a good idea, but it seems like not just the prettiest faces made the cut. I can give this whole shindig that much.