Women and The Super Bowl

When you hear the words Super Bowl the first things to come to mind are football, beer, food, and commercials. Usually, this combination makes you think of men hanging out in a bar or man cave. It also makes you think about men running around a field throwing and kicking a football. One thing you don't think of much while watching football is women. As much as men are related to the sport of football and the Super Bowl, women still watch it and this year for the first time in history a woman was a part of the San Francisco 49s coaching staff.

Think about it: when you're watching the Super Bowl, when do you see women? Definitely not on the field. During the broadcast, the only women you see are the wives and girlfriends of the players/coaches/owners (sometimes condescendingly clumped together as WAGs), the cheerleaders, and sideline reporters. What do all the women who even make it onto the broadcast have in common? They are (almost) all very attractive. In the context of a sports broadcast, women exist solely to either exude their beauty like a cheerleader or attractive sideline reporter or serve as trophies to wealthy owners and athletes.

This year's Super Bowl was a welcome departure from this. For the first time, a woman was actually on the field and part of the game being played. Katie Sowers is an offensive assistant for the San Fransisco 49ers football team and was on the field during their appearance in this year's Super Bowl. What is remarkable about her appearance, aside from the obvious that she was the first woman coach to feature in a Super Bowl, is that by being a part of the broadcast not because of her beauty but rather her achievement she can serve as a role model for other women who want to participate in sports, but don't want to be marginalized to being objects. Hopefully, other young women who aspire to be in the sports world see her example as a way to be valued for their talents rather than their looks.

Brittany Matthews (Patrick Mahomes' girlfriend)

Katie Sowers (49ers offensive assistant coach)

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