User:MackGee/sandbox

Sweden

In Sweden, public funds are mostly given to men’s hockey and football, and the women’s team are left without proper funding. In 2016, the Aljazeera published an article bringing the discrimination that female Swedish athletes face to light by mentioning the the double standard put on female athletes in terms of having to work double and still not receive the recognition or pay of the men’s teams. Sweden is recognized as being a feminist country, however the wage gap is significant between male and female athletes. In 2013, Swedish striker, Zlatan Ibrahimovic earned $16.7 million a year playing for Paris Saint-German, whereas Lotta Schellin who played for Lyon in France only earned $239,720. The wage gap is also evident among coaches. The difference in pay is evident in how male athletes and female athletes are able to spend their time between games. Women often have to work between training and games to make a living and to pay for their training camps, whereas men have that time to recuperate and relax; men also don’t pay to attend training camps.

Norway

Norwegian sports are shaped by the values associated with them. For example, aggression generally is associated with males and being personable, with females. However, in terms of Norwegian handball, a study done by the Norwegian School of Sports and Sciencesshows that gender is disregarded when the sport is covered in the media. The same study revealed that Women’s handball is covered and followed as equally if not more than the men’s team. In contrast to international handball coverage, the Norwegian coverage of Men’s and Women’s handball are discussed in the media using the same or similar verbiage. While they are especially noticeable in handball, equality and opportunity in Norwegian sports is not limited to the handball. Many top-female athletes from a number of sports have come from Norway. The act of playing or coaching were described slightly differently but categorized as successful using similar terms despite the gender of the coach or the player.

Denmark:

Sports in Denmark are not as widely practiced in comparison to places like America. Hegemonic patriarchy has shaped much of the stigma of women’s sports in Denmark. Resources between men and women are not divided equally, specifically in soccer. Therefore, it would take a law similar to Title IX that has the potential to evenly distribute the finances for both men and women’s sports. Entertainment wise, men sports are more enjoyable to watch for the average Dane. Many believe women’s soccer does not even come close to comparing to men’s, and in order to create a space for women’s soccer, it must offer a different product than men’s. The wage gap between men and women make it significantly harder for women to maintain a career in sports in comparison to men. Women have to want it so badly in order to justify their time and effort, and it is common for female Danish athletes to move to another country in order to pursue her athletic professional career.

1.    Johansen, Andreas B. “The Unique Norwegian Female Sports Heroes.” Sciencenordic.com, Science Nordic, sciencenordic.com/unique norwegian-female-sports-heroes.

2.     Liinason, Mia. Equality Struggles : Women’s Movements, Neoliberal Markets and State Political Agendas in Scandinavia / Mia Liinason. London ;: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2018. Print.

3.      "New Findings from University of Southern Denmark in the Area of Women's Health Described ('I don't need a flat tummy; I just want to run fast' - self-understanding and bodily identity of women in competitive and recreational sports)." Women's Health Weekly, 27 Sept. 2018, p. 233. Academic OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A555309794/AONE?u=txshracd2548&sid=AONE&xid=e458a284. Accessed 2 Apr. 2019.

4.     Tornkvist, Ann. “Swedish Female Athletes Face Discrimination.” GCC  News | Al Jazeera, Al Jazeera, 2 Apr. 2016,

www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2016/03/swedish-female-athletes-face-discrimination-160315110758946.html.