Getting in touch with football's feminine side

I am not a soccer guru or anything like that. I'm merely a female football fan who was bitten by the World Cup bug in 1986, when the tournament was held in Mexico, and France defeated Brazil in a penalty shoot-out while I was in high school.

That sensational match turned me into a lifetime supporter of the Samba. Now it's 2006, and I can't believe it's been 20 whole years since I first became hooked on football.

Surprisingly, after these two decades, so many still think of football as a "guy" thing. Do I agree with that? No! I believe football is good for all ages and both sexes, even though I indulge in the game rather differently than do my male counterparts.

I got a disgusted look when I told a male colleague that with as many as 22 guys to watch on the field in a single match, there's a good chance of spotting at least a few very good-looking men. He was not amused by my light-hearted comment and told me, "You'd do better to stick to the game rather than to the players."

True, female supporters do follow the game, but you can't overlook the beauty of men, their nice bodies and legs. It's the same with men watching tennis and lusting over how Anna Kournikova, Maria Sharapova and Martina Hingis look.

The physical beauty of the players is arguably a large part of the pleasure of watching football. The male fans fancy the beautiful goals that are made, and so do we. While my male counterparts can watch repeated replays of a goal, we also love to see repeated close-ups of the faces celebrating the goal.

But we also love all the sentimental moments, like when national squads walk out from the tunnel singing their national anthem. For us, that's a fantastic moment. We watch them chat with their team-mates while they stand in the tunnel before coming out onto the field. We watch each one closely.

And when guy fans evaluate each player's skill in defence or striking, we ladies do the same. While men may ignore some of the "lighter" moments, we observe the relationships among the team-mates and the mannerisms of each player.

Female attendance in football stadiums is on the rise and hooliganism on the decrease. I doubt that's a coincidence, but whether it is or not, women certainly don't fancy violence.

Apart from that, we also observe whether our favourite player has changed his hairstyle or which national shirts are cool. For example, we've always admired Italy as the nation with the best team shirts. All those little things add to the fun of the game. For us, our interest in football consists of bits and pieces on the field and beyond.

Male supporters may follow match analyses on the Internet, but we study the footballers' wives, girlfriends and children. We love to read about every facet of our favourite footballers and their teams.

Whether male fans like it or not, female fans do contribute a lot to football culture and strengthen the cult of the game. Our interest in football is not contained solely in the sport itself, but also by the presenters. The most obvious example is David Beckham, who takes football to pages of women's magazines like Hello! and OK! Even to the cover of the US version of Vanity Fair magazine.

Other evidence is the growing numbers of merchandise targeting women supporters. This traditional male pastime is getting a feminine touch. Walk into any football-club store, and more and more you see fashionable women's wear and accessories.

Whether male supporters like it or not, they may want to thank us female fans for making football a more beautiful cult.

Yes, our rituals include reading football gossip, and some of the scandals may not be to the guys' liking. But we've broadened the perspective of the game. We also don't need any beers in hand to enjoy the games and be as happy as any male fan.

And for you broadcasters, it would be nice if you could try not to cut any of those "lovely" player moments from the screen. You should know better than most that football is a human sport and not a computer game, so a sensational moment here and there would be perfect.