The modern idea of sports arose from the industrial era. The “men of the house,” who had traditionally worked at home, were finding jobs in factories due to the expansive growth of industry. Seeing that females would now become their children’s primary agents of socialization, men began to emphasize athletics to prevent their sons from becoming “sissies.” From this point on, sports would be seen as an overtly male domain.

Collegiate sports came to embody this fact. When the NCAA was founded, in 1906, little attention was being paid to women’s sports. While athletic departments began to show serious interest in developing their men’s teams, women’s teams received modest support at best, especially in the area of finance. In the early 70’s the federal government finally recognized the disparities that existed between men and women’s sports on the college level. The Education Act of 1973 provided us with Title IX (nine), which encourages equality in collegiate athletics. Title IX basically states that if a college’s female enrollment is fifty percent, then females should constitute fifty percent of the college’s varsity athletes and their sports teams should receive fifty percent of the athletic budget.

Most colleges have been reluctant to comply with Title IX’s provisions. In fact, the government views only twelve schools in the country as meeting these standards of equality. Incidentally, Virginia Tech is among these few.

Professional sports also provide us with some interesting facts. When Toronto’s Sky Dome was built in the early 90’s, eighty-six million dollars in public funds were allocated towards its construction along with twenty-five acres of public land. This was done at a time when organizations like women’s crisis centers were severely under funded. It is important to keep in mind that Sky Dome provides an arena for male sports teams and their predominately male audiences.

In professional basketball, the NBA’s highest paid player, Kevin Garnett, makes 70 times as much as the WNBA’s. While the NBA is obviously a more successful commercial organization, it is a tribute to and product of the fact that, traditionally, men’s sports have had more access to higher levels of support in all areas.

Suggested Readings:
Mariah Burton Nelson, The Stronger Women Get the More Men Love Football.