Introduction: the sociology of everyday life

Abstract

It’s July 2019 at the time of writing this introduction. The British summer has taken some time to arrive, but the smell of barbeques has started to fill the air. The England football team has just lost in the semi-finals of the World Cup. This is the second tournament in succession that the England team has been defeated at this stage. Their downfall in 2019 followed only a year after the Men’s England football team suffered a similar defeat in the semi-final of the Men’s World Cup. In contrast, the winners of the 2019 Women’s World Cup faced a different battle – after their triumph, no less. Despite their victory, the United States players were locked in a dispute with their national federation over pay. Even though they are more successful on the pitch than their male counterparts, having won the World Cup and Olympic Gold four times apiece, as well as being commercially more successful through shirt sales and corporate endorsements, they were paid substantially less. Added to this, the tournament’s star player, Megan Rapinoe, had attracted disdain from the President of the United States because she has been outspoken in terms of equal rights. As well as fighting for equal pay, Rapinoe was the first white player to take a knee in support of the American footballer Colin Kaepernick who led a protest highlighting police violence against African Americans. Rapinoe also highlighted that ‘you can’t win a championship without gays on your team’. In one brief global tournament, significant social issues like gender inequality, sexuality and racism were all highlighted.