Body-conscious teen girls shun team sports as participation rates drop

Girls are abandoning team sports because of body judgment fears despite government campaigns to encourage female participation and the rising profile of women’s cricket, rugby league and football.

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Girls are abandoning team sports because of body judgment fears despite government campaigns to encourage female participation and the rising profile of women’s cricket, rugby league and football.

Almost three-quarters of girls play a team sport between the ages of 12 and 14 but the percentage drastically falls to just 20 per cent by the time they reach 18 — about half that of boys.

Participation rates continue to fall to an astonishingly low 8.9 per cent when women reach their mid-20s.

Girls’ participation rates for team sports has dropped more dramatically than boys. Picture: Generic image

The Australian Sports Commission survey called Ausplay also revealed boys’ team participation rates decline — but nowhere near as steeply as girls.

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NSW opposition sports spokeswoman Lynda Voltz, who coaches an under-13s girl’s soccer team at Earlwood, said girls can be body-conscious during adolescence and some sporting outfits added to their concerns.

“Teenage years can be very difficult for girls,” she said.

“But soccer, surprisingly, is a sport that picks up more girls during their teenage years than any other. I think part of it is about the outfits they get to wear in soccer, because they are looser and they can run around without being so self-conscious.”

Rugby Sevens’ star Charlotte Caslick says she has noticed less girls want to be involved in team sports. Picture: Francois Nel/Getty

Rugby Sevens Olympic gold medallist Charlotte Caslick, 23, said she was shocked at the low participation rates for girls.

“I remember when I was in Year 8 all the girls were keen and put up their hands to play sport, but we were struggling to field a team by Year 12, so you definitely notice the drop-off,” she said.

“High school can be quite difficult at times, but sport helped me get through that.”

Australian Women's Rugby Sevens’ star Charlotte Caslick is recuperating from a hand injury on her farm at Stanthorpe. Picture: Adam Head

Between 2016-17 and 2017-2018 the percentage of girls playing organised sport outside of school hours at least once a week fell from 62.5 per cent to 57.6 per cent — a drop in raw numbers of almost 88,000.

The Sports Commission says the figures don’t take into account the fact girls do far more “non-sport activities” like dance, gymnastics or walking.

Netball NSW participation manager Shohan Khan said while netball was the most popular female team sport, research has shown a general drift away from organised sports.

In NSW, netball peaks among 11- and 12-year-old girls before dropping by 10 per cent. In their late teens it drops even more — by almost 30 per cent.

Australian Sports Foundation boss Patrick Walker said “we are still a generation away” from women’s sports having the same participation as male sports.

“Women’s participation is half that of men and, frankly, that is not good enough,” he said.