The last decade has witnessed a ballooning of the attention paid to female sports. In addition to the well-established bases for tennis and athletics, cricket, soccer and martial arts have all grown significantly in both audience and participation. Developing institutions, supporter bases, financial backing and recognised brands to uphold the success of women’s sport will still need a lot of work. But it is on the right track. The emerging women’s sports can piggyback on the existing networks and experience of men’s sports which, without precedent, needed decades to develop into the celebrated leagues and tournaments that exist today.

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For example it took 15 editions of the men’s football world cup to reach today’s 64-team format, the first full format taking place in 1998. In just its 9th edition, the women’s tournament has achieved the same thing. In Australia last week South Africa’s Banyana Banyana, who were eliminated this weekend by Netherlands, ousted Italy’s women’s team from the tournament. But for both nations, Italy and South Africa, their female squad’s qualification was an upgrade on the qualifications disappointments from the respective men’s sides.

This is the first year that the success of the netball world cup in Cape Town which finished on Sunday and was won by Australia, speaks to the growth of women’s sports. South Africa finished 6th place. Netball holds a unique position globally as one of the only majority female sports. Netball interestingly has its origins in a misinterpretation of the rules of basketball by a sports teacher in New Orleans. The sport subsequently spread to Britain and then throughout the British Empire, which explains why all the participants in this year’s netball tournament are part of the British Commonwealth.

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Women’s sports have not come without their unique controversy. The demands for criteria of those eligible to participate in women’s sport have led to invasive and humiliating tests. Caster Semenya, one of South Africa’s best ever athletes, is an example of the difficulties women’s sports will always experience at its borders. Sport, like a legal system, will always require boundaries; and exactly how these boundaries are drawn will always be subject to emotion and contest.

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The famous chess grandmaster Judit Polgar resented the separation of chess tournaments into men’s and women’s divisions. However, in most sports these divisions, despite being fraught, will persist for practical reasons. The main reason being that such division actually helps expand the sport and encourages broader participation.

What cannot be lost is the essence of sport – i.e. that it is a game – and in games we unite and celebrate, even while competing. We thus invite all women to test out their swing at our upcoming EU golfdays in Johannesburg and Cape Town. Golf being one of those sports where a system is designed for men and women to compete, a great day is in store for all. 

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