Women's League

[kruddler]

So stoked to see the national womens league get off the ground, and even more proud that Carlton are going to be one of the inaugural clubs.

Really disappointed at some of the comments on here, which just highlight many of the obstacles that female sportspeople face each day. Thankfully attitudes like these are becoming a thing of the past, even if that's an extremely slow process. A lot of the comments made about the skill level of women footballers could be said of many men playing at suburban clubs, however those men often take home a bit of cash for their efforts. Until now even the best female footballers have been prohibited from being paid for their services which is yet another example of gender inequality in sport.

Not only do women in almost all sports, play second fiddle to the men in terms of facilities and resources, then they're mocked for not having the same level of skill as their male counterparts. If the same amount of money and time was poured into womens sport as it is men, there would be a massive difference in the output.

I'm so proud of all the women who will represent the 8 clubs next year, a lot of them have (until recently) done it with so fewer opportunities than far less talented men. I've had the privilege of playing with or against a number of them and have seen first hand how hard they work to achieve what they have.  Also very thankful to the AFL for stepping in about 5 years ago and investing heavily in the development of womens footy.

Now here's hoping the Billie Judd and the Carrazzo triplets can come along and represent the Blues one day 

Let me start with saying i am 100% behind the club and its new venture.....and the AFL for that matter.

Now, let me play devils advocate a bit here in answering a question with a question.
re bold paragraphs...
Is it not a case of simple economics - supply and demand?

Could it be that suburban men, and obviously AFL players get paid to play because it is financially viable to do so. That is, people are willing to pay to watch blokes run around in the suburban leagues.....at least in terms of inflated bar prices at a minimum. So in order to grow that 'business', paying for better players is the way to go. Both in goodwill, and immediate financial revenue.

In regards to womens sport, i think it is more about a lack of audience, rather than a lack of skill as to why women don't get paid (more/at all).