Stereotypes Vs. Women's Basketball

In the sports world, there is a drastic difference between men’s and women's basketball, especially Women’s College Basketball (WCBB). The difference makes you wonder why there is such a substantial difference when they play the same sport. There are many factors, such as genetics, playing style, sexism, views/media coverage, rules, cultural factors, stereotypes, and more. Several authors agree there is a disparity between men's and women's basketball. “Basketball culture, like other subcultures, teaches those who practice it a complex array of lessons (McLaughlin 2004)”. Basketball is more than just a game. It has increased layers and an array of real-world issues, such as sexism and equality. Many people have seen the change in recent years

Sam and Johnson (2021) state, “Men’s basketball receives far more media attention, leading to higher viewership and sponsorship opportunities compared to women’s basketball.” Years ago, when you saw women’s basketball posts compared to men’s basketball posts, the men would focus more on their athleticism and women’s were more on femininity and appearance. In recent years, Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, and many more amazing women’s basketball players have become big names worldwide and also impacted women's basketball as a whole. The South Carolina Gamecocks have also had a huge impact on women’s basketball. After winning the National Championship this past season, many male athletes have gone on social media congratulating them, including Lebron James, Deebo Samuel, Earvin Magic Johnson, and even Deion Sanders. Caitlin Clark is one of the best-known players currently. In her 2023-2024 season, she became the first D1 collegiate player to have more than 3,000. Caitlin Clark has impacted the game of basketball, not just for women, but for everyone. She also had the most 30-point games than any man or woman in D1 history. Clark was offered $10 million to play in Ice’s Cube Big 3 games, but she decided to decline and enter herself into the WNBA draft. Clark and her teammates also added $82.5 million to Iowa’s community. The recent viewership rise shows fans' sudden interest in women’s basketball. In 2019, the women’s championship game between Baylor and Notre Dame had a 3.7 million view count. In 2021, the match-up between Stanford and Arizona had 4.1 million viewers; in 2022 South Carolina vs UConn had 4.9 million views. Views have been growing each year, but 2023 is where the surge in views has grew. In 2023, the LSU and Iowa game was the game everyone wanted to see. They racked up 9.9 million views. In the rematch this year, they had 12.3 million views