Free Your Mind to Reality

Reading over this article taking new MLS team Orlando City to task over a tweet, I felt a familiar frustration rising up. 

Of course, in North America, women can be fans. Fans=customers and to the emerging soccer market in the USA and Canada, every customer is generally valued. 

But why should women be "just" fans? 

Why can't they be players who have their own cadre of loyal fans? 

Why can't they coach? 

Why can't they be commentators and analysts and writers?

Why can't they be trainers and producers and publicists?

Why can't they own teams? 

But I've traveled enough to know that those are first-world problems in general, and that even in those scenarios, the USA is more welcoming and supportive of women in the sport than many countries in Europe, for example. 

In other places, no, women can't even just be fans. 

It doesn't mean that the battles at every level to eradicate sexism aren't worth fighting, but it's also important to realize how in some places, even a basic enjoyment of the beautiful game is limited to human beings because of their gender.