So now they’re rid of the white pants. The lionesses, as the English women’s soccer team is called, presented their new outfit on Monday. From now on, the current European champions wear dark blue shorts with their white tops, this Thursday they will be seen on the pitch for the first time in the game against Brazil. This is a cause for joy for the soccer players, because since last year they have been campaigning to no longer have to stand on the pitch all in white. The reason: You don’t want to worry about blood stains during your period, which of course is more noticeable on white fabric than on blue. Or as goalscorer Beth Mead put it: “White isn’t very practical when we’re at that time of the month.”
The debates over the trousers of England’s footballers are just one example of the growing voices in women’s sport opposing standards in competitions, which at first glance are all about clothing – and on the second often sexism . The concern of many athletes is to get the female menstrual cycle out of the taboo zone.
In 2014, the dress code at Wimbledon was tightened
Also last year, at the Wimbledon tournament, tennis player Alicia Barnett drew attention to how stressful it can be to menstruate during important competitions: “Having your period during games is difficult enough, but then wearing white is not easy “, she said. The rule that participants in Wimbledon may only wear white clothing is still in place today site of the tournament. In 2014, the dress code was even tightened, and since then underwear can only be white. At least there is now a footnote, according to which women’s underwear can also be black for the first time this year.
But it’s not just about the period, but also about the sexualization of women’s bodies through certain clothing. In Germany, for example, it was the gymnasts Sarah Voss, Elisabeth Seitz and Kim Bui who questioned the clothing conventions of their sport by doing gymnastics in full-body suits at the European Championships two years ago instead of the tight, swimsuit-like outfits.
The pants-wearing woman questioned the foundation of values
The sport, on the other hand, has had other developments for a while. Today it is difficult to imagine how women cyclists still had to practice their sport at the end of the 19th century. At that time, even a visible ankle was considered scandalous and just sitting on a bicycle saddle was immoral and obscene, according to the book “Cycling and Society” by sports scientist Rüdiger Rabenstein. Accordingly, the clothing conventions of the time forbade women to wear trousers on a bicycle. The self-confident, pants-wearing woman questioned conservative values and therefore aroused resentment among men. From the 1890s onwards, women cyclists had to struggle to wear knee-length bloomers instead of the cumbersome long skirts on the bike.
Away from dress codes, however, something else is happening today: the cycle phases are slowly finding their way into training theory – perhaps also because they can be used to increase performance. At Chelsea FC, the players’ training and nutrition plan has been based on their individual cycle for three years now, and other clubs and associations have followed suit. Chelsea manager Emma Hayes told the British in 2020 telegraph: “You can say that I am a trainer in an industry in which women have always been treated like little men. Whether rehab, strength, conditioning or tactics training – everything is based on what men do.” So that’s changing, at least a little bit.