Abstract

Recent research on the “feminization” of fandom in men’s sport has considered how fans interpret and respond to the increased presence of women in this masculinized social setting. We explore the converse: the masculinization of fandom in women’s sport, a feminized social setting. Based on interviews with 35 U.S. women’s professional soccer fans in 2019 and 2023, we explore fan perceptions of a greater number of boys and men attending women’s games over time and the meanings they give to this pattern. Themes of ‘beyond the fathers of daughters,’ ‘men’s changing masculinities,’ and ‘masculinization as legitimizing women’s sport’ reveal fan perceptions of men’s growing inclusive masculinities, and thus interest in women’s sport, but also continued gendered power dynamics, with the presence of men fans understood to grant women’s soccer recognition and respect as “real” sport.

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