Spatial justice in the development of a women’s football team in Melbourne, Australia; an ethnographic study

Abstract

The barriers and challenges to women’s participation in sport have been well established, however there is a paucity of research examining the development of a women’s football team from an ethnographic methodology. In this case study, the primary researcher was embedded as an insider researcher within a football club, conducting 160 hours of observations, field notes, informal discussions, and three semi-structed interviews capturing the development of a women’s football team over an 18-month period in Melbourne, Australia. Utilising a spatial justice theoretical framework, this study revealed that although there has been an increase in investment in women’s sport, and a desire by women to play, women’s teams still face an abundance of spatial injustices that constrain their participation, such as pre-established sporting clubs being privileged and prioritised. This led to difficulties for a newly established ethnically diverse women’s team in negotiating access to facilities and playing in competitive leagues. Issues of spatial justice are rarely considered within gender equity in sport policy, yet the findings of the study outline the need to address injustice if gender equity within sport participation is to be realised. This research provides methodological, empirical and practical contributions to knowledge on women’s participation in community football. The paper concludes by illustrating that issues of spatial justice need to be foregrounded in efforts to promote and support women’s participation in sport.