Winning With Women
Within the 1.7 million square feet of the stadium on 1 Cardinals Drive, in Glendale Arizona, is the home of the Arizona Cardinal professional football team. Holding a capacity of an impressive 63,400 fans, this 123 year old team has established its following and holds a name of much success. Being the oldest football team in the National Football League, two time NFL champions, coach Kliff Kingsbury is working with a powerful team, in the world, I hope to soon call my home.
Currently pursuing a double major in journalism broadcast and communications with a double minor in sports management and marketing, I’m putting my already developed journalism skills to the test in a brand new environment. Women in sports are up and coming, but is definitely not the typical job you hear being tossed around. When people ask the question why sports, why football, I only can come up with one response. The challenge!
Whether we are talking about quarterback, Kyler Murray, number 11 wide receiver, Larry Fitzgerald, or kicker, Matt Prater, this team works in and out to adequately prepare to face any of the other 31 NFL teams on the field. Team training camp this past year consisted of 12 open training days, covering all sevens days of the week. It is obvious how much time the players put forth, to perform to their expectation, but what tends to be easily overlooked, is the people behind the desks of these teams.
There are 17 officially recognized departments that oversee all the activity and functioning of the team; keeping up the good outer appearance they present to their community. My eyes are specifically locked on Broadcast, Marketing, and Media Relations. Broadcast. Media Relations Senior VP, Mark Dalton and Broadcast Director, Richard Mendez are just two of the men that have helped their team on the path that led their stadium to get sponsorship from State Farm Insurance, earning over $9.9 Million in funding. Making an even larger impact in the team’s public following is Chase Russell, Cardinals Media Relations Coordinator. Exceeding over 500 personal connections, being a previous Minnesota Vikings Media intern, a member of the Super Bowl Public Relations staff, and securing the Cardinals Instagram page with over 1 million followers, the man is a force to be reckoned with.
With all these numbers, stats, and partnerships, the ones making the magic happen, all seem to be males. It often dawns on me why exactly that is the case, considering we as females, have the ability to perform just as these accomplished men do. I look at the idea of me as a female working alongside such a large number of men, as an opportunity for growth.
Intimidation is defined as “frighten or overawe; especially in order to make them do as one wants. (Webster, 2021)” One girl working with 40 plus men does not intimidate me at all, instead it motivates me. Men like Chase Rusell and Richard Mendez, at one time took the same classes I take today. They went through the steps, gained experience, and continue to develop in their careers, each and everyday. There is not one place where it says that females “can’t” work for male sports or can’t match up to the work ethic that men show.
“Firmness and purpose” are used in Webster’s dictionary, to highlight the objective of determination (Webster, 2021). The players of the Cardinals are determined for a winning season, the staff is determined to represent the team proudly, and I am determined to one day be a part of the staff that makes the Cardinals a success story that continues.
It is Adele Harris, who holds the title for the first African American women executive in the NFL; hired on by the Arizona Cardinals in 1978. It is the honesty from team president Michael Bidwill saying “Many roles on the football side of the organization have traditionally been held by men, but they really don’t need to be (AZ Cardinal, 2007).” These are the types of truths of unbalanced ratios of men to women in sports, that sparks my determination to work in male sports.
“38.2,” the exact percentage of females employed by the NFL in 2020 (Statista, 2020). It may appear that the female presence is still shockingly low, but beginning 2009 at only 26.9% female, the gap is slowly being closed. With hope of completing an internship with the Arizona Cardinals in the upcoming year, it is encouraging to know that the future of football holds a place for change, more importantly women. No matter men or women, professional sports hold a legacy of their own and I am set on joining and contributing to that legacy very soon. With the current 452 employees of Arizona’s Cardinal football team, I’m confident I will one day call myself 1 of the 452.
Bibliography
Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Intimate. Merriam-Webster. Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/intimate.
Odegard, K. (2018, May 17). NFL focusing on job growth for women. NFL Focusing On Job Growth For Women. Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://www.azcardinals.com/news/nfl-focusing-on-job-growth-for-women-18683192.
Gough, C. (2021, March 16). Share of women working in the NFL 2020. Statista. Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1167953/nfl-female-employees/.
Growjo. (n.d.). Arizona Cardinals football club competitors, revenue, alternatives and pricing. Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://growjo.com/company/Arizona_Cardinals_Football_Club.
MLB Spring training locations in Arizona. (n.d.). Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://faq-courses.com/mlb-spring-training-locations-in-arizona/.