Barbie Pays Homage To Women Working In Sports For 2023’s Career Of The Year
With the Women’s World Cup still very much a part of the public conversation, Mattel has announced that this year’s Career of the Year for Barbie is none other than a collection of women in sports.
Featuring four job scopes—general manager, coach, referee, and sports reporter—the capsule launch hopes to encourage more girls to take part in the growing industry. Throughout the decades, the special-edition doll has spotlighted over 250 aspirational roles where women are often underrepresented.
Dr Jen Welter, the first female coach in the National Football League (NFL), said that she was “blown away” when she learned about women in sports being the choice for Career of the Year. Now, each young collector who takes the toys out of the box can picture herself in their shoes.
According to Forbes, more has to be done to ensure an equal representation of women in sports. The 2021 Sports Media Racial and Gender Report Card: Associated Press Sports Editors (APSE) Racial and Gender Report Card noted that just 16.7% of sports editors are women.
In addition, only 17.8% of reporters and 14.4% of columnists in the business identify as female. Plus, Kim Ng, the first female general manager in Major League Baseball (MLB), was only appointed recently in 2020.
To complement the special launch, Barbie has partnered with VOICEINSPORT, a community aiming to inspire more girls through sports, to host a virtual mentoring session on the subject for teens aged 12 to 13.
Head here to check out the Career of the Year Women in Sports dolls, retailing for US$49.99.
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