When linking our WebCase to the 4 Just Sustainabilities it was quite easy to find initiatives and programs that work towards three out of the four of them in the context of sports. When looking at justice and equity in sports, it has always been an uphill battle for equal representation in ownership groups, management, coaching, and on the field, court, or ice.
When Anthony Buttafoco interviewed Reanna Jarchow, who grew up near Seattle, she gave her thoughts on this subject saying “I think like everybody you know at the very top in my impression is, is an old white guy… I don’t know if there’s any effort though for like management like all of the coaches and managers are white guys, to my knowledge”. If you look at any sports organization here in the United States you will find that it is dominated by white males from top to bottom in both the organization and the media surrounding the teams. Sports media is the link between us fans and the organizations themselves and their impact on the sports landscape is huge, where justice and equity are equally important.
In the Seattle market and in general, there is a minimal representation of non-white male employees in a position of influence. With the Seattle market in particular they’ve done a better job with this issue compared to other markets, but there is still so much to do. One of the owners of the Seattle Sounders FC and Chair of the Seattle Seahawks Jody Allen has done excellent work with both teams but became a part of these groups in tandem with her late brother Paul G. Allen and her bios mention how she works to realize her brother’s vision. She now has a position of great influence thanks to her hard work and dedication to the sports industry, but she came along with her brother instead of on her own two feet. I mention this because there are no majority female owners in sports, and any female a part of an ownership group is with their brother or husband. Women and people of color who have a passion for sports should be given the same opportunity as anyone else, and a lot of sports ownership and ownership groups follow very nepotistic practices and are very protective of their group keeping out anyone not within their inner circle.
Jody Allen
Sports ownership in general has always been an exclusive club and that needs to change. Stories in the WNBA with the Seattle Storm ownership group of Lisa Brummel, Ginny Glider, Dawn Trudeau, and now former player Sue Bird just this past week show that it can be done and be done successfully. The Seattle Storm have won 4 championships, 18 playoff appearances, 2nd most playoff wins, and the 4th best winning percentage out of the 25 seasons of the WNBA. If you were to look at a successful sports franchise in Seattle, the top of that list would be the Seattle Storm. The hope is that the sporting world can look to female-led ownership groups like the Seattle Storm as the blueprint for the future of sports and ownership groups.