Sexism in football is a problem that won’t go away

In the lead up to the recent Manchester Men’s Derby, officers from Greater Manchester Police (GMP) and partner organizations were deployed across the city to raise awareness of Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) and protect vulnerable people.

The United Nations defines violence against women and girls as acts of gender-based violence that cause physical, sexual or psychological harm. While this includes serious crimes such as domestic violence and sexual violence, experts say misogyny and sexist comments can also contribute to gender inequality.

Fans in Manchester have been encouraged to recognize and challenge the abuse.

Ch Supt Colette Rose – head of specialist operations at GMP – said: “I believe violence against women and girls is a societal problem. It is high on the national agenda. It seeps into every aspect of our society, and that includes sport and football.

“What we tend to see in football is predominantly a male-dominated fan base. If we can work with males on behaviors that might make women feel unsafe or intimidated and educate people, it will have an impact on wider society.”

Figures released by GMP show that the number of reported incidents of violence against women and girls at football matches rose from 18 in the 2023-24 season to 28 last season – and this is expected to rise again.

Meanwhile, Game Too told us they receive at least one report every matchday.

But Rose doesn’t think this necessarily shows the problem is getting worse.

“I think what’s really happening is we’re announcing it,” she said. “I think the community is starting to see that these behaviors are unacceptable and our partners are really engaged in working with us on this.

“People are reporting this more because they see it as wrong and we shouldn’t just accept it.”

Rose recalls an incident that occurred at a match in Germany when she was targeted.

“I had reason to talk to some players who were leaving the game and they were very cheerful, but they were singing songs that would have caused real offense in Germany,” she says.

“The barrage of abuse I was subjected to because of this was largely to do with my gender, and the way I looked. I was followed around the stadium for some time, and was unable to find a uniformed police officer to support me.

“It shook me to the core. I didn’t realize I could feel this vulnerable in a crowd of people as a police officer, and in fear of such direct violence towards me, just because I’m female.”

“The language used was extremely misogynistic, and the person who committed it was exploiting my vulnerabilities to make me feel the way I feel. It’s a terrible feeling.”