Visualizing Equality: iStock's Study Reveals Low Female Representation in Sports Visuals
11 Julho 2023 - 10:12AM
As anticipation builds for the upcoming Women's World Cup, iStock,
a leading e-commerce platform providing premium visual content to
SMBs, SMEs, creatives and students everywhere, has released
research revealing that only 9% of iStock’s most downloaded sports
visuals depict women and girls actively participating in sports.
Results are only marginally better when looking at football imagery
specifically, with only 13% of football-related customer downloads
showing women and girls.
According to iStock's visual experts, these insights fail to
reflect consumer expectation regarding the visual representation of
women in sports. iStock's VisualGPS research indicates 72% agree
that sports organizations and businesses of all sizes should make
greater efforts to promote women's teams and female stars.
Moreover, it is not sufficient to simply increase representation,
with 75% of people wanting to see authentic portrayals of female
athletes, where their skill and athleticism is emphasized over
their beauty, glamour, or sex appeal.
“In order to bridge the gender gap in sport, representing the
full female sporting experience with an inclusive lens is key,
showing fans, players, coaches, moms, community leaders, sports
clubs’ ownerships and beyond," said Jacqueline Bourke,
Creative Insights Director for EMEA at iStock. “According
to our VisualGPS research, almost 1 in 3 women who do not play or
follow sports declared that they were never given the opportunity
to learn about the sport they were interested and/or even were
afraid of being judged. Businesses have an opportunity to help
empower women and girls into sport by using authentic and inclusive
visuals which focus on what sports women and girls can do rather
than on how they look.”
VisualGPS research also reveals a greater appetite to engage
with women’s sports, with 8 in 10 people of all genders considering
it crucial to provide female athletes with the same level of
coverage as their male counterparts. Sports sponsors are taking
notice with Sponsor United reporting a 20% growth in global women's
sports sponsorships in 2022. Additionally, the Women's World Cup
has already sold over one million tickets surpassing the total
sales for France 2019, serving as concrete proof of the escalating
support for women's sports.
To support SMBs in effectively marketing around women in sports,
iStock's visual experts offer the following recommendations:
- Choose visuals which showcase the athletic capabilities and key
action moments of female athletes rather than focusing on their
appearance, thereby avoiding sexualization.
- Images and videos which show the realities of women and girls
in sports at both the elite and grassroots levels creates deeper
engagement.
- Look for visuals which include female support staff (such as
coaches), as it provides a more comprehensive representation of the
power, skill, and sustained involvement of women in sports as a
whole.
- Think about using visuals which consider a wide range of
emotions beyond joy, such as anger, disappointment, determination,
frustration, love, pain, and happiness.
- Don’t forget to represent fans of all genders supporting
women’s sports and tap into the strong sense of community that
women sports offers.
- Above all, ensure your visuals represent diversity in age,
ethnicity, ability and realistic body shapes for the sport you
are showing.
To find imagery and videos that authentically depict women in
sport, visit www.istockphoto.com.
Media Contact: Ilse
Noguezilse.noguez@gettyimages.com
Getty Images (NYSE:GETY)
Gráfico Histórico do Ativo
De Mai 2024 até Jun 2024
Getty Images (NYSE:GETY)
Gráfico Histórico do Ativo
De Jun 2023 até Jun 2024