Women and Football- Whats the Rif

I've often wondered why stores have great sales on the days the last major professional football game is played. That game is the "Super Bowl." And why are there big floral parades spotlighting the college football leagues' season at the beginning of the year? I think they call that one the "Rose Parade." It sounds like some kind of conspiracy to me?

Is this a way of saying women are not invited to view or attend the last big games of the year? Are they saying women and football are like oil and water, they don't mix? I still have not yet come to a conclusion that makes sense on this matter.

But this is what I found. A research was done which centered around women and football. The research was done in the 1980s by the University of Preston. I believe the research reached back as far as World War I and up to 2001. The question of women's relationship with football was the objective of the research project.

Historically, women have been interested in football since at least the 1880s. I believe it goes back farther than that but officially the records show indications of female involvement starting around the 1880s. Women attended professional football games free until about 1885.

• After World War I, more women attended the games. They experienced their worth during the war and as a result their confidence grew. They were therefore more willing to attend the games without their spouses or boyfriends. With the increased population of women at the games, some of the male attendees felt women were infringing on their relaxation time away from home.
• The games were known for the rough street language and manly behavior of the men. Most important, the men were personally supportive of their favorite team. Women presented an unwanted distraction to their day of enjoyment. The men claimed women did not understand what was going on and they were women of a lesser economic influence. This type stereotype ballooned into a hostile male population at the games toward women. They did not want women attending their games.
• The intrusion felt by men toward women did not help when the female football teams surfaced and thrived. That was as bad as adding fuel to the fire. The men became violent and threatened the women and the team players.
• By the 1950s women began to attend the games less and less. They were attracted to more safe and family oriented activities. The women were also aware of possible illegal activity at the games.
• The 1960's ushered a return of women to the stadiums across the country. Their attendance was more a result of the women's feminist activities and their feelings of liberation and equality with men.
• But by the 1970's women's attendance declined once again. The stimulus for their decline was more rumored illegal activity at the games and more negative behavior of men toward women attendees.

The baffling situation women faced was many of them were taught by their fathers and boyfriends, the ins-and-outs of the football game. Many women had been watching the game since childhood with their fathers. Those women who took to the game, knew it as well as the man sitting beside her at the games.

By the 1990s, for every 10 homes that turned on the television to watch professional football, 7 of them had avid female viewers. They were watching the game as a spectator and not as a symbol of their sexuality. They were true fans of the team they favored.

The women's dedication for the game revealed itself in the team's fan base. The Preston reseach discovered that at least 12 percent of the fans of a major team were females. And unlike the early days of football, women were being recruited for positions on professional football teams. The female rediscovered football. Their interest in football continues to grow at an impressive rate to this day.

Not all women love football and not all men love football. But for those people that like football, most of them l- o-v-e the game. That goes for both sexes. Research has shown some men feel threatened by women who love the game. The reason for this fear is not clear for this behavior.

Just as their male counter parts, women lovers of the sport are consumed by it.They feel the same contagious excitement and the energy that bursts into the room when games are played. Whether the game is viewed from the sofa at home or in the VIP seat at the game, they all become one large energy ball.

Some people define the high energy spiraling from the excitement of the game as life being played out on the field. It brings out the worst of both the players and the viewers. And it brings out the best of them. They all connect to their favorite player and team and intrinsically play the game on the green football turfs of America. At a moment in time people across the country have a common reference of spiritual interest.

Now I ask you once again, whats with the distractions of shopping and college parades during a football game? Why not offer those great deals after the game or before the game. ? Enjoy the few moments with someone you love. Its only at this time that two people can yell and scream at the top of their voices with each other. They're releasing energy few things in life can bring about when they view a football team competing for the title as best in the country.