A Seat at the Table: Challenging Assumptions about Gender Quotas in Sport Governance
Name: Katharine Curran
Role & company: Head of Marketing - Man City Women
Dissertation length: 14,966 words
Introduction:
Despite dramatic progress in women’s sport participation and visibility, leadership roles within sport remain overwhelmingly male-dominated. While women now comprise half of Olympic athletes, they occupy less than 30% of sport governance positions; a stark imbalance which reflects persistent structural inequalities.
While diversity and inclusion strategies are increasingly being embraced, especially in the years following the COVID-19 pandemic, progress on gender equality in governance has been slow and sporadic. Many well-meaning interventions have been ineffective or counterproductive.
This paper investigates gender quotas as a key intervention, questioning whether they treat the symptoms of inequality, or whether they can transform the cultures and power structures within sport organisations.
Key findings:
This paper critically examines the use of gender quotas in sport governance, focusing on their implementation, impact, and limitations. Through an extensive literature review and comparative case studies, the research shows that quotas do rapidly improve numerical female representation, particularly when linked to sanctions, but that quotas alone do not dismantle the gendered structures that disadvantage women.
Three potential barriers to the success of quotas are identified as:
1) Homologous reproduction: where those in power maintain influence by hiring and promoting only those who have similar characteristics to them, arguing that other candidates or colleagues are not a “cultural fit”
2) The double bind: traditional leadership norms require women to exhibit stereotypically masculine traits to be judged as effective leaders, but when women demonstrate masculine traits, they are liked less and evaluated less favourably
3) Illusion of meritocracy: many perceive that hiring the “best person for the job” is at odds with a quota system, believing that quotas undermine meritocracy. However, few question whether the industry does currently function as a meritocracy.
The importance of intersectionality is also highlighted – while quotas may be beneficial for female representation as a whole, it is typically white, middle-class women who benefit disproportionately from this approach. The idea that women will feel represented, and the idea that women will be represented through quotas alone, are both challenged.
The case analysis suggests that meaningful change only occurs when quotas are supported by leadership commitment, mentorship, inclusive networking, and deep cultural reform. The research underscores that quotas are most effective as part of a multi-pronged, systemic diversity and inclusion strategy.
Conclusion:
This paper argues that gender quotas are an important and justifiable first step in achieving gender equality in sport governance, but that they require an accompanying suite of strategies to address the circumstances that have created the imbalance.
The value of quotas lies in opening the door to female participation, but real progress depends on structural changes, inclusive leadership development, and recognition of intersectional experiences. Critically, men must be engaged as active agents of change, not bystanders.
Beyond the focus of quotas, this paper suggests a re-framing of the current challenge – positioning the problem as the over-representation of masculine norms, rather than the under-representation of women. This implies that it is the system that needs fixing, rather than women, and therefore that systemic change is the pathway to achieving lasting, representative, and equitable leadership in sport.
This dissertation was part of the MA Leadership in Sport course, co-delivered between the Institute of Sports Humanities and the University of Buckingham, educating current and future leaders.