The Impact of Gender Inequality on Women’s Team Sports – Evidence from Europe

Abstract

Gender inequality is a major challenge to tackle in the world of sports and has adverse effects on success in women’s sports. Previous studies provide empirical evidence regarding these adverse effects yet they do not take the stereotyping in sports into consideration. This study acknowledges the presence of gender-typing in sports and investigates its influence on success in team sports. The results of a panel data estimation suggest that the impact of gender inequality differs both in magnitude and direction depending on the type of sports. In sports that are considered more feminine, gender inequality is actually positively influential on sporting success. Keywords: gender-typing in sports, determinants of success in sports, European team sports