Gender equality in sports is a huge issue. Male athletes in basketball, golf and soccer, for example, earn anywhere from 15% to 100% more than females who play the same sport, according to a study by Korn Ferry. The issue is not just the amount of money being made by men versus women, but also the lack of opportunities for women to play sport in general.

The lack of opportunity to participate in sports, especially high-contact sport like football and rugby, can have long-term effects on women’s mental and physical health – and even lead to an increased risk of eating disorders. However, there are many barriers to getting more girls and boys playing sport.

Although Title IX has helped increase the number of women in sport, gender stereotypes and masculine influences still dominate many sporting organizations. This is reflected in the fact that there are more men than women in leadership positions on sport governance boards and athletic sports teams. This is due to hegemonic masculinity and a culture of “boys will be boys” that teaches females to be soft, passive, and less capable than males.

The #MeToo and #SeAcabo movements have been successful in bringing gender inequality in sports to the public’s attention, but they are not enough. The more people are exposed to sporting environments, the more likely they will be to support gender equality (GE). This is why we use Eurobarometer data to analyze attitudes towards GE in sport using Fuzzy-Hybrid TOPSIS and Latent Profile Analysis. We find that GE in sports is linked to political ideology, with those who identify as left-wing supporting GE more than those who identify as right-wing.