Over the last few years, women’s sports has seen a massive rise in popularity. Athletes like Caitlin Clark (basketball), Trinity Rodman (soccer), Mallory Swanson (soccer), and Ilona Maher (rugby) have become mainstream celebrities, appearing in various commercials and podcasts. As someone who has never been into sports, I have recently become invested in leagues like the NWSL and WNBA.
A little over a year ago, I scrolled through Netflix, desperate for something new to watch. I love a good documentary, and one in particular caught my eye, Under Pressure: The U.S. Women’s World Cup Team. Growing up, I remember always hearing about soccer star Alex Morgan. She was actually one of the few athletes I knew of, and I had heard of the hype around the USWNT, but had never gotten into it myself. As an obsessive fangirl to my core, I always joke about how I can “never enjoy anything casually.” So it was to no one’s surprise that I began to deep dive into the lore of women’s soccer after watching this documentary. This was accidentally perfect timing, as the 2024 Olympics were right around the corner. I have always loved watching the Olympics, but this year I was especially invested, watching almost every soccer game along with basketball, rugby, swimming, gymnastics, and many other sports. I got really into some of the kayaking events, which is a sport I would never have considered watching if it hadn’t shown up on one of the Olympic channels. This Olympics brought tons of attention to women’s sports in particular, with the rise of new stars, such as Ilona Maher and Trinity Rodman, as well as the return of legends like Simone Biles, Sha’Carri Richardson, and Katie Ledecky.Â
Since the 2024 Olympics, women’s sports have continued to skyrocket in viewership, whether it be the WNBA (basketball), NWSL (soccer), or the recently established PWHL (hockey). When I talk about watching sports, people are often surprised to hear that I am referring to women’s sports. Becoming a women’s sports fan has really opened my eyes to some of the inherent misogyny and inequality that exists in the sports world. A lot of times, I am unable to watch some of my favorite teams play, simply because they are not given the coverage that the men’s teams are given. Celebrating and uplifting women’s sports has become incredibly important to me for so many reasons. Growing up, I was very much a “girly girl,” and was not attracted to sports. Although I knew girls could play sports, and I even tried a few myself, it never felt like a space that was made for me. I also didn’t grow up watching women’s sports, and seeing only men’s sports on my TV definitely furthered my perception of sports as manly. Maybe if I had been exposed to more female athletes as a kid, I would’ve been more inspired to play sports. Because I’m an insane fangirl, I’ve listened to several women’s sports podcasts. In an episode of The RE-CAP Show, hosted by legendary soccer players Tobin Heath and Christen Press, they have a conversation about the intersection of sports and femininity with guests Abby Wambach (retired soccer player) and Glennon Doyle (author and activist), that I would highly recommend listening to.
Women’s sports still have such a long way to go in terms of equality, but this new era holds a lot of promise. Recently, women’s softball has started to gain more attention, and with the US Open having just taken place, young athletes like Coco Gauff are leading the way into the future of women’s sports. Even if you don’t think you like sports, I highly recommend watching women’s sports, because, as someone who has never liked sports, I have found women’s sports to have a very different energy, rooted in community and progress. So if you’ve made it to the end of this article and are interested in getting more into women’s sports, here are my recommendations:Â
- The documentary I previously mentioned (Under Pressure: The U.S. Women’s World Cup Team) is truly one of my favorites. I would additionally recommend the Angel City docuseries.
- I also mentioned The RE-CAP Show, which is primarily focused on soccer, but if you’re looking for something that touches on more of a variety of sports, I would recommend Sports are Fun by Just Women’s Sports.
- If you want to be a sports fan, you should probably watch some of the actual games. As I mentioned, it can sometimes be hard to find certain games, but a quick search like “WNBA upcoming games” or something similar should tell you where and when you can watch the games of your choice.
- While watching sports on TV is cool, watching in person is so much more fun. Conn is located super close to Mohegan Sun where the Connecticut Sun (WNBAl) frequently plays. We are about two hours out from Boston where the Boston Fleet (PWHL) plays, and where the Boston Legacy (NWSL) will be coming in 2026. New York also has three professional women’s teams, the New York Liberty (WNBA), Gotham FC (NWSL) and the New York Sirens (PWHL).