Being a woman and working in the sports area is a challenge. In 2016, the Gênero e Número, a brazilian organization that studies data to verify gender equality in the media, checked the sport column from the ten biggest newspapers in Brazil and found out that less than 10% of those texts were signed by women. Even so, many of them face the challenge and rock in the Sport’s Journalism.
That is the case of Priscila Senhorães, 2nd year of Journalism at Cásper Líbero College, who deals with too many challenges. “I’ve never been through any physical abuse, but the verbal abuse happens daily and this one is, no doubt, the worst part. You have to learn how to deal and accept it, because you can’t argue with your interviewee or, worse, lose the interview”, she tells.
The young woman produces content for Esporte Interativo, an online platform totally focused on sports coverage, and, despite the difficulties, she stands out for being only 19 years old and works with Sports’ Journalism. By the way, this is her first job and she really likes it. “I love my job and I also love the place where I work. As far as I’m concerned, I would still work there for many years still”, says Priscila.
Already on her first year of college, the young journalist had to show her potential in Sports’ Journalism during one job with two of the biggest brazilians soccer teams. “For sure what marked me the most until today was my first soccer game as reporter, in 2018. I worked at the game between São Paulo and Corinthians Football Club (3×1), at the Morumbi Stadium. It was my first one, so it is the most important to me”.
Priscila and her coworkers during the press conference | Image Source: Personal Archive – Priscila Senhorães
Sometimes, the sport is present in women’s life since very early and it leads her to work with it. That’s what happened with Gabriele Martinez, 20 years old, 4th year of Journalism student at Cásper Líbero College. “I love football since always. I was born on a day in which Brazil played in the World Cup, so I joke that I’ve been involved with football since ever (despite cheering for the Argentina national team)”, says Gabriele.
Beyond the sport, the Journalism has also been in Gabriele’s life for a long time. Since she was 8, the young woman already knew what she wanted to study in the future. So, she united her greatest passions to be her career. “I like some other areas, like international politics, but I can’t imagine myself doing something that is not connected to football”, she explains.
Today, the casperian works with the Football Museum social media, but she has worked with sports programs of Radio Gazeta AM and TV Cultura, where she did one of her most important jobs: “I really enjoyed producing a story about the Barcelona ‘anti-Olympics’ from 1936 in College, besides having the opportunity to interview Tite [coach of the brazilian soccer team] for TV Cultura and Diego Lugano [head coach of São Paulo Football Club] at the Football Museum”.
Gabriele during the interview with Tite | Image Source: Personal Archive/Gabriele Martinez
The Sports’ Journalism is a place for women, even if in some moments there’s the will to give up. “When I was attending my first college, I thought it was a very far away dream. Because is a very restricted labor market, there were almost no women in sport or they were just accessories on a men’s bench. Even thought, this far dream was always present and I tried to make myself known so that if the day came, I would be ready”, tells Marina Bufon Nunes, 27 years old.
Marina is in the 3rd year of Journalism at the Cásper Líbero College and, currently, works at Gazeta Esportiva, a newspaper focused on sports. But, before that, she was already in this área: “I wrote for some soccer blogs and in the future, when i think about a place to work, GloboEsporte, Trivela and ESPN always come to mind”.
Marina as a reporter on the Gazeta Esportiva | Image Source: Personal Archive/Marina Bufon Nunes
In Gazeta Esportiva, Marina writes stories about all sports, records daily newsletters, presents and comments live TV programs and has been in some soccer team trainings. However, a special one marked her career: “I really liked going to the Palmeiras football club training center, when I covered an important moment for the club (renovation of the current sponsor) and also in a normal training with the whole group of players”