I don’t remember the first time I saw a woman coaching basketball, but I know she was described as a “woman coach.” Maybe because they became so uncommon after Title IX was passed.

When our girls’ basketball conference was formed in the 1970s, all of the coaches were men. At my high school, female physical education teachers coached volleyball or track, and I’m not sure why no women came forward at the time to coach girls’ basketball. We were in very small school district, so perhaps few had experience or interest—or maybe they had already taken on a full-load of coaching responsibilities.

It took 20 years for me to see an occasional woman basketball coach, yet before Title IX was passed, women held 90% of the head coaching positions for women’s teams.

The number of female coaches dropped from 90 percent in 1972 to 43 percent in 2014. And it hasn’t changed much since then.

What happened to female coaches?

They didn’t just disappear. They were pushed aside. When more money was directed to women’s sports, more coaching opportunities became available. Men began applying for the jobs, and as is too often the case in our society, they were perceived as more qualified and chosen over women. Despite the fact that women had coached successfully for decades.

It’s taken nearly fifty years for women to begin regaining equity in the coaching ranks. In 2019 they held 40% of the head coaching positions for women’s teams. There’s no doubt that women know the game and how to coach it. Many teams benefit from their knowledge and dedication. And both boys and girls would benefit by seeing more women-led teams and from playing for a woman.

After all, it’s quite likely they will work for a woman someday.

In the words of Muffet McGraw, retired head coach of the Notre Dame Women’s Basketball Program:

“When these girls are coming out, who are they looking up to to tell them that’s not the way it has to be?” McGraw continued. “Where better to do that than in sports? All these millions of girls that play sports across the country, we’re teaching them great things about life skills, but wouldn’t it be great if we could teach them to watch how women lead?”

Awareness and focused effort can bring change

Some credit the words of McGraw and other collegiate coaches who have called out the inequity for the increase in the number of female head college coaches over the past five years. And while the WNBA hasn’t followed the same trend, 2/3 of assistant coaches in the WNBA are women who should be on track to take on head roles in the future. 

The news isn’t as promising at the high school level. According to the Aspen Institute only 24% of youth sports were coached by women in 2019, down from 28% five years earlier.

WeCOACH

If you want to support women coaches or are one yourself, check out WeCOACH.

The mission of WeCOACH is to recruit, advance and retain women coaches of all sports and at all levels. Their programming provides support through mentoring programs and coaching leadership academies.

Their resources include a bi-weekly podcast highlighting women coaches, administrators and leaders.

Learn more 

Changing the Game for Girls by Caitlin Morris, February 5, 2019 

Here’s Why Women’s Teams are Coached by Men by Kim Elsesser, Forbes, March 1, 2019 

A look at gender balance in NCAA, WNBA head coaching by Jenn Hatfield, High Post Hoops, 2020

The Field Where Men Still Call the Shots by Linda Flanagan, The Atlantic, July 28, 2017

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