Women still on the back foot in sport leadership
THIS year marks the 30th anniversary of democracy in South Africa – indeed a moment to celebrate. No doubt, we have made significant progress in some respects compared to where we were as a country before 1994. Sadly, in other areas the needle has not moved enough over the past three decades. One such area is that of women in sport leadership.
In South Africa, the leadership landscape for women in sport can only be described as dire. Many women still experience marginalisation and unequal treatment in sport. A regional study in 2014 and its follow-up in 2021 highlight slow progress for women to access leadership within the formal sporting sector as guided by selected targets of the UN’s policy framework and that of the AU.
The celebration of a handful of women attaining top leadership positions in South African sport is seldom more than allowing their voices in the public space, while simultaneously marginalising and oppressing others. In instances where women are awarded positions, these are usually that of secretary or chairing gender or safeguarding commissions. Also, women who stand for leadership positions will often face multiple obstacles and resistance from men who have been dominating executive boards and created an exclusionary organisational culture (boys’ club). This contributes to apprehension from some women who are critical of tokenism for compliance’s sake and who aspire to future leadership roles in sport.
The gender leadership composition of SA’s three most popular sports – cricket, football, and rugby (by numbers) – confirms that sport leadership in the country is inherently maledominated and in need of reform.
But we are not alone in this regard. Globally, sport remains entrenched in male-dominated ideology, structures and practices where women continue to work in the shadows of male gatekeepers, especially within decision-making roles, which continue to be influenced by embedded patriarchal structures. The lack of representation of women in sport leadership is a persistent, unremitting challenge worldwide, and especially in South Africa. Even though South Africa’s sport federations and organisations have made the right noises regarding the pursuit of gender equality/equity in sport, women in sport leadership positions remain a minority. Men are still seen (and still consider themselves) as the custodians of influence, power, privilege and resources in the country when it comes to sport leadership.
To make matters worse, the Eminent Persons Group on Transformation in Sport – the assigned national task team overseeing racial and gender transformation in the country – is not rigorously monitoring the South African sport leadership landscape.
The Group’s mandate is to annually audit and report on transformation in sport in the country, in alignment with the prescripts of the Transformation Charter for South African Sport. The latter is a guiding document for an equitable and demographically representative South African sporting landscape. However, since its inception in 2011, the Eminent Persons Group has only released eight reports, with the last reflecting statistics from 2019.
The above-mentioned issues in South African sport leadership came to the fore in a recent study we conducted among prominent administrators, gender activists in sport and practitioners from the sport-for-development sector. We interviewed them to gain a better understanding of their experiences and opinions regarding notions of fairness and justice for women and girls in sport. In addition to the interviews, we also scrutinised relevant policies and national strategic plans.
What we found is that despite national policies on equal opportunity for women in sport, gendered mindsets and expectations have superseded formal policy. Behind the public veneer of co-operation, women in sport leadership seem to be controlled behind the scenes. Women are often placed in leadership positions to “showcase” gender representation, rather than being actively engaged with issues concerning gender reform.
The results of our study show minimal traction on changing patriarchally informed cultural beliefs towards women, with men as gatekeepers and masculinity framed for leadership attributes in most sports. The debate surrounding women in sport leadership often fails to detail barriers affecting gender inequity, especially in a country like South Africa.
Also emerging from our research is the idea that societal influences, public opinions and cultural beliefs continue to inform the continuation of gender inequalities at all levels of sport that mitigate against women’s access and promotion into decision-making positions.
The interviewees also identified a disconnect between policy and the implementation thereof (from policy to practice), which they attributed to societal issues that are influenced by institutionalised male hegemony and African patriarchal thinking – both somewhat ensconced by colonialism and apartheid. This has resulted in continued experiences and practices of gender inequities at sport leadership levels.
Patriarchal ideology and manifested hegemonic practices dominate most sport structures in South Africa and have a consistent influence, especially at leadership levels within sport. The lack of women in key decision-making positions and structures has had a snowball effect on how resources are allocated to women and girls in sport.
However, it should not be about the gender of the decision-maker, but about their gender-mindedness as men have a significant influence when it comes to ensuring genderequitable resource allocation and shared leadership. The increased inclusion of women in sport leadership positions is required if actions are to be implemented that truly achieve intended outcomes of gendered policies – including clear guidelines and appropriate rationalisations.
The mindsets of men in South African sport leadership need to change, as egos are seemingly driving decision-making involving women in sport leadership. Systemic change is not only a slow process, but hardly possible unless incentivised or enforced by international or national policy actors with the political clout to drive a gender equity agenda that will ensure women take their rightful places in all structures and levels of sport leadership in South Africa.
◆ This article is based, in part, on the paper “The underrepresentation of women in sport leadership in South Africa”, published recently in Frontiers in Sports and Active Living.