Underrepresented in the media

Women’s sport hopes for more visibility

In 3x3 basketball, Austria's women (right: Camilla Neumann) are big in the picture.

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

Only around 19 percent of all sports coverage in Austria is dedicated to women. That's why win2day presented a new initiative to promote equal rights by introducing an Equal Play Day (March 1) to draw attention to the unequal visibility.

They deliver top performances. Celebrate victories and medals. But women are underrepresented in sports reporting. A new study by MediaAffairs shows that only around 19 percent of domestic reports in TV or print media are dedicated to female athletes. The study took into account the number of images and reporting volume in selected Austrian media within one year until fall 2023. 
Schnaderbeck as star guest

This is why a new initiative was presented on Thursday at the Haus des Sports in Vienna, where Austria's former soccer captain Viki Schnaderbeck, basketball team player Lisa Zderadicka and top wheelchair tennis player Tina Pesendorfer also spoke. At this event, win2day, which has been very actively campaigning for equal rights in domestic sport (men's, women's and para-sports) for years, drew attention to the imbalance in visibility. More presence of women's sport means: more sponsoring, more professionalization, more young talent.

Schnaderbeck (top left) was a star guest at the Haus des Sports.

(Bild: APA Fotoservice/ Ben Leitner/ win2day)

Seasonal fluctuations are striking. In winter, female athletes receive more than a third of the total coverage thanks to the Ski World Cup. Similar positive effects were only seen during the Women's Football World Cup in summer 2023. The opposite trend can be seen in the rest of the year, where the share often drops below 10 percent. The situation is similar for the TV stations analyzed, where the presence of female athletes is slightly higher than in print at 21.3%.
Team boss Fuhrmann also emphasizes importance

Speaking of soccer: Austria's team manager Irene Fuhrmann, who has just returned from the first preparation camp of the year in Spain, always points out how important the visibility of women and women's sport is. "From our point of view, it is of course important that women's soccer is present in the media. In this respect, the World Cup in Australia was certainly a big step forward." The ÖFB team also reached a milestone last fall when it set a new record of 10,051 spectators at home against France in the Nations League.

Win2day wants to give men's, women's and disabled sports real prospects.

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

In any case, win2day, the online gaming site of Austrian Lotteries, has been committed to equal opportunities in domestic men's, women's and disabled sports since 2022. Georg Wawer, Managing Director at win2day, on the Equal Play initiative: "We stand for fair play and equality. Our sponsorship creates real prospects for all teams in Austria. We are on the right track, but there is still a lot to do." And: "By introducing Equal Play Day year after year, we draw society's attention to the imbalance in the visibility of men's, women's and disabled sports."