Breaking news, the Lingerie Football League (LFL) has just announced that Minneapolis is being awarded a franchise. I’ve written previously about my disdain for the LFL and why I think the league is problematic (click here and here).
What troubles me is that while the LFL is expanding, REAL women’s professional teams and athletes are struggling. The LFL is adding up to five additional teams–which would bring the league to 15 teams. The WNBA has 10 teams. The WPS has 7 teams. Let me be clear, the LFL is not sport. The LFL is about sex, and selling sex. The target consumer of the LFL is not female sport fans, or serious fans of women’s sport. The LFL target market is the coveted 18-35 year old male fan. The LFL is selling sex, not sport. As I’ve written before, sex sells sex. Sex does not sell women’s sport.
There is one small silver lining this for me. The good news about having an LFL franchise in Mpls is that I can finally do some research around the league–who attends, why do they attend, who tries out and plays in the LFL, what is the motive for playing and attending, what is the fan perception of the league, and so much more! Maybe I’ll submit my suggestion for the MSP team name….that way I can win lifetime season tickets so I can conduct my research with lower cost.
One Sport Voice 
Some points:
1. The WNBA has 12 teams, not 10.
2. Lingerie Football is indeed a sport, just one that you admittedly disdain. (Disclosure: So do I.) You handed the argument back to proponents of the LFL when you expressed an interest in who “plays” for the LFL.
3. Yes, the LFL sells sex. So…? I don’t think any of the LFL players have been sold in to slavery.
Best of luck with your research.
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and what happened to the Minnesota Vixens WPFL team from years back? it might be interesting, if that or some other women’s pro football team still exists in Minn, to study that and the LFL team – – if they would be honest about what they are producing and selling, rather than, again relying on the desire to believe that sport liberates women, this could be a very different discussion. i’d like to know also if there is any homoerotic production value in their website as well as their actual games, given how often a particular heterosexual gaze upon lesbian sexuality is mass produced (film, tv, ads, etc.) . . .again, thanks for your blog – interesting posts – – kathy
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