Women who coach sport are twice as likely to be bullied as men

New research from UK charity Women in Sport shows that sports coaching in the UK is a hostile environment for women.

Coaching is an insecure and precarious route to take for anyone, but for women it’s also deeply unequal and fraught with bullying and harassment. In a system that offers less security, less support and greater risks, it is no surprise that many women feel they have to walk away. This is not about individual choice but is the result of how the system responds when authority is held by women.

The report, Reimagining Sport Coaching: Designing a System That Works for Women, is the most in–depth study of its kind into the experiences of coaches in the UK. Women in Sport and Leeds Beckett University surveyed 2000 coaches alongside senior leaders in sport.  
 
One of the most shocking findings is that women coaches say it is other coaches who are bullying and harassing them.

Across all coaching roles from grassroots to elite, 30% of women report experiencing bullying compared with 15% of men, within a system not designed to fully support women. Women also report higher levels of harassment (21% vs 12% of men) and aggression or violence (22% vs 19% of men). 

The perpetrators of harassment of women coaches, often sexualised, are mostly fellow coaches, reflecting hierarchical, male-dominated environments. Aggression and violence most often take the form of intimidation from parents, with women more likely than men to have their decisions challenged or authority undermined.