Female football players in the UK are suffering from wearing boots that have been designed to fit men’s feet.
New research by the European Clubs Association found that up to 82 per cent of female players at 16 top-tier European clubs have reported suffering regular discomfort from wearing boots that compromise their performance.
More than a third of female players said they felt discomfort specifically in their heel.
Twenty per cent said they have been ordering customised boots, with many saying they insert specialised insoles given by podiatrists and even cut holes in their boots to improve comfort and prevent blisters.
Claire Bloomfield, the ECA’s head of women’s football, said the results from the study was “staggering”.
“We knew we were going to find something but those numbers really did shock us all,” she said.
“It highlighted the importance of this work and why it needs to be done now. The end goal is about inspiring industry change. It is highlighting a really key area in neglected research.”
The ECA research also found a startling divide when it came to players from different races: a higher number of black football players reported discomfort with their boots compared with white footballers.
“The area that generally had the highest issue was the heel of the foot which caused discomfort and pain,” sports rehabilitation lecturer Dr Katrine Kryger told BBC.
“When we looked at it from an ethnicity perspective, it was 48% of black players who had heel discomfort. That highlights the fact that one size doesn’t fit all and ethnicity plays a part in that too.”
The ECA research found that two fifths of players said the current range of football boots on the market did not offer good injury prevention.
“It was all around the foot, really highlighting that the shape of a football boot isn’t suitable for women and it’s not just an easy fix,” Dr Kryger said.
Sports kits gender discrimination
For years, female sports players have called out the sexism of sports kits being designed only for the male body — putting women at risk of injury and discomfort.
Sports scientists and advocates have been calling for sports kits to cater to women’s needs and their various body shapes — for instance, in the case of boots – men heels and arches are shaped differently to women’s.
England hockey player Tess Howard carried out research earlier this year that found sport uniforms brought on “identity tensions” in teenage girls, making them feel “sexualised” and causing them to drop out of sports.
“No person should be put off participating in any sport based purely on what the uniform requires them to wear,” Howard said. “We must put the purpose of sport first and enable individuals to enjoy being active for all the clear benefits.”
“Women’s bodies are incredible and complicated,” said Lynn Le, the founder of women’s boxing gear and sportswear brand Society Nine. Le has been trying to design gloves and shin guards suitable for women, because the current available gear are designed to fit men’s hands and knees.
“[Women’s bodies] are way more different in variability than men’s bodies,” she said. “That’s the number one thing I’ve learned.”
“[In combat sport] your first line of defence is creating that shock absorption through the power of your own body, which is compressing your hand into as close of a perfectly formed fist as you can. If you’re wearing a glove that’s two sizes too big, how on earth can you possibly do that?… You want to enjoy what you’re doing, and to enjoy what you’re doing, you want to wear things that are comfortable, support you and help you prevent injury.”
The world’s top female cyclists have had to endure saddles that did not have their body’s features considered when they were designed.
“Nobody has ever systematically and scientifically documented the problems women on the saddle can face,” cyclist Hanna Dines, who is also a competitive surfer, wrote in an op ed for The Guardian in 2019.
“The male-anatomy-specific-saddle hadn’t received such a lack of research and design development as to be laughable. While the valuable parts of the male genitalia can be moved out of the way, female cyclists sit right on the money.”
Fortunately, several companies around the world are tackling this sexist design issue and making sportswear designed to fit the plethora of female body shapes.
In cycling, Selle Italia designed a saddle that is made of softer material and has a cutout in the middle of its saddle for extra comfort.
In 2018, Laura Youngson founded IDA, a footwear brand that sells boots designed specifically around women’s unique feet shape.
Canberra-based company, even playing field, was formed by Helen Ritchie in June 2019 that offers female specific sportswear and equipment to girls and women.
She spoke to the ABC about the importance of keeping young girls in sport and to “give them stuff that’s not going to make them feel self-conscious.”
“My passion is about getting things that fit girls and women properly,” she said, adding that the sports gear her company offers “makes a big difference to injury rates, especially around knee and hip injuries.”
“My daughter wears them, and she trains a lot, but she never complains of sore feet or legs anymore. I don’t want her being put off by the time she’s 14 or 15 because she feels uncomfortable; these girls are going through puberty.”