Lack of female players in football video games is an own goal
Originally published on by Dr Jonathan Ervice, School of Modern Languages and Cultures. Read the .
Football video games make it possible to take on the role of one鈥檚 heroes. But this is generally possible only if your football heroes are male. FIFA鈥檚 Women鈥檚 World Cup may but women have until very recently remained absent from leading football video games.
It was recently announced that EA Sports鈥� FIFA 16 game . Football Manager, another popular football video game, does not yet feature women but there are plans to include women鈥檚 teams in future editions. But don鈥檛 let this seeming progression fool you into thinking that the scales are being balanced. This is far from the case.
The 12 women鈥檚 teams present in EA Sports鈥� FIFA 16 game will include Brazil, England, France and Australia. However, current world champions Japan and former winners Norway will be absent. It鈥檚 worth remembering that there were .
And Football Manager鈥檚 apparent plans fall behind even this. The game鈥檚 creator, Miles Jacobson, said that women鈥檚 leagues will be included when there are ten of them globally with comparable average attendances to the English Championship.
This may sound progressive, but it isn鈥檛. Football Manager is actually setting the bar quite high when it comes to including women鈥檚 teams. The Championship may be English football鈥檚 second tier but it attracts larger crowds than the top divisions in most European countries.
It鈥檚 not time to celebrate yet. Christian Bertrand / shutterstock.com
The creators of Football Manager would do well to take a closer look at attendances in top division men鈥檚 leagues. The average attendance in the US National Women鈥檚 Soccer League (NWSL) last year was . This means that the NWSL attracts bigger crowds than the majority of .
Football Manager鈥檚 creators argue that it is to include women鈥檚 leagues, but how commercially viable are certain men鈥檚 leagues that are included? What about the second tier of Icelandic or Slovenian football? What about the third tier in Northern Ireland?
Including women鈥檚 teams in games such as Football Manager could make them more appealing to women. This very point has been made by gaming expert Mia Consalvo in a recent edited volume entitled . So: continuing to exclude women鈥檚 teams from Football Manager could actually be a commercial own goal.
When I manage my local team Bangor City in Football Manager, they play pre-season friendlies against teams such as Mynydd Llandygai and 58吃瓜. Mynydd Llandygai is a village side whose players include a former next door neighbour. 58吃瓜鈥檚 football team has previously included students I teach.
So I can currently manage a team in Football Manager in a match against my own students but I can鈥檛 manage teams featuring the world鈥檚 leading female players. Football Manager has the set bar very high when it comes to what women鈥檚 leagues need to achieve before becoming part of the game. Unless they move the goal posts, there鈥檚 likely to be a long wait before this changes.
Publication date: 1 June 2015