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Title IX report: Gender gap persists in high school and college sports

(Mercedes Oliver/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)

A new report published by the Women’s Sports Foundation has found that almost 50 years after the enactment of Title IX, girls still have fewer opportunities to participate in high school sports than boys.

Additionally, the number of opportunities for girls still falls below the number of opportunities available to boys in 1972. At the time of Title IX’s enactment, boys had just over 3.6 million high school sports opportunities. In 2018-19, girls had 3.4 million opportunities, while boys had 4.5 million opportunities.

Just 60 percent of girls are participating in high school sports compared to 75 percent of boys.

A report from Sport England’s Women in Sport in 2019 lends some insight into that statistic. The study found that 64 percent of girls will have quit sports by the time they finish puberty at age 16 or 17. Part of the reason, the study finds, is that seven out of 10 girls are afraid to fail and avoid trying new things. Six out of 10 said that failing during puberty led them to want to quit.

There are also other barriers, such as lack of confidence due to body image and appearance, feelings of physical and emotional vulnerability during puberty (for instance, 42 percent of 14-16 year olds said that periods stopped them from taking part in sport while in school), and feeling as though only those with talent have value.

There’s also the fact that the proportionally equitable opportunities that women and girls are supposed to receive under Title IX still lag behind. While women account for nearly 60 percent of all college students, only 43.9 percent of college sports opportunities are awarded to women.

Women also lag behind in scholarships by $252 million.

“We should absolutely celebrate the fact that girls’ participation in high school sports is nearly 12 times higher than it was when Title IX was passed, but we cannot rest on it,” WSF founder Billie Jean King said. “The mere existence of Title IX does not ensure equal opportunities unless it is enforced for everyone, particularly among girls and women of color, those with disabilities, and the LGBTQ+ community – where the gap is consistently the widest.”

In high schools with majority Black and/or Hispanic students, girls receive 67 percent of the opportunities that the boys do. At predominately white schools, that number sits at 82 percent.

Recently, Republican-backed legislation has taken aim at targeting the exclusion of transgender youth in the name of protecting women’s sports.

As a result, the WSF recommends that the U.S. Department of Education “issue specific policy guidelines confirming that Title IX should be interpreted to provide opportunities to transgender and nonbinary students to participate in sports in a manner consistent with their gender identities” and that state policymakers implement “inclusive policies for transgender and nonbinary athletes.”

Additionally, the WSF recommended the development of a new federal reporting system to better monitor Title IX compliance and encourage colleges to hire more women and nonbinary individuals into positions in administration.

‘Sports Are Fun!’ Digs Coach Emma Hayes’s Unpredictable USWNT Player Pool

Cover image for Sports Are Fun! podcast featuring USWNT captain Lindsey Heaps.
This week's "Sports Are Fun!" tackles the state of coach Emma Hayes's USWNT. (JWS)

Welcome to another episode of Sports Are Fun!

Every week on Sports Are Fun! presented by Amazon Business, co-hosts soccer legend Kelley O'Hara, sports journalist Greydy Diaz, and JWS intern BJ serve up their hottest takes on the biggest women's sports headlines.

This week, the Sports Are Fun! team is joined on the couch by hit women's soccer-focused social media and podcast duo Alanna Locast and Shannon Fay of SoccerGrlProbs to talk — what else? — the state of head coach Emma Hayes's ever-evolving USWNT.

Firstly, they get to work hashing out the US national team's 3-0 win over China PR — and which USWNT player they think has a shot to make the 2027 World Cup roster.

"We're going to start with women's national team winning 3-0 against China on Saturday," O'Hara introduces. "They won with goals from Cat Macario, Sam Coffey, and Lindsey Heaps — not
Horan, I'm starting to get that right."

"It's not a major tournament year, so this is just a friendly," she continues. "I'm curious if anybody has initial thoughts from this game?"

"It's very fun to see the unpredictability watching them play," says Locast. "We've seen the style that the US plays and you expect where certain players are going to be. I'm watching, and the creativity and just how unpredictable they are, I would not want to mark those three forwards."

"I agree," says O'Hara. "It's very clear that Emma is laying the foundation in a way that everybody understands what their total shape should look like at any point during the game, not just where they specifically should be. Which I think is a really important part of the evolution of the team."

"It's fun to watch. The player pool is so deep now," echos Fay. "I know she wants to have an idea on the team by June, so what's going to happen? I don't know."

Along with the recently USWNT friendlies, the Sports Are Fun! crew also tackles NCAA softball's Women's College World Series, US stars dominated the French Open, the recent Grand Slam Track event, and so much more.

'Sports Are Fun!' intern BJ digs up a spicy Pride month throwback

Before the Sports Are Fun! regulars get into all things USWNT, however, intern BJ gifts everyone a very special throwback social media clip in honor of LGBTQ+ Pride month.

"You guys, I want to say happy Pride month," BJ says to the group. "Specifically happy Pride month to Kelley, because a listener DM'd me yesterday and shared a fun little memory of Abby Wambach and Sydney Leroux on the US national team a couple years ago..."

"This wasn't a couple years ago!" says O'Hara, squirming. "This was 10 years ago."

"You know what? I was being generous," quipped BJ. "But it's y'all checking a coach of another team."

"Wooow, Kelley," laughs Diaz.

"For those who are listening, it's a series of gifs of Abby, Kelley, and Sydney Leroux. And the coach walks by and they're like, 'She's kind of hot,'" BJ says as the crew cracks up. "They're full, like, dogs are barking."

"Oh my God," laughs O'Hara. "I've seen this before pop up on the socials. And I didn't remember this happening, but then when it came up again, obviously this did happen. And I do think that is what we were saying. I'd need to call Abby to confirm."

"You don't need to call anyone, because your lips are saying exactly those words," says Locast.

Sports Are Fun! podcast graphic featuring Kelley O'Hara.
'Sports Are Fun!' places Kelley O'Hara at the intersection of women's sports and fun. (Just Women's Sports)

About 'Sports Are Fun!' with Kelley O'Hara

'Sports Are Fun!' is a show that’ll remind you why you fell in love with women's sports in the first place.

Join World Cup champ, Olympic gold medalist, and aspiring barista Kelley O'Hara as she sits down with sports journalist Greydy Diaz and a revolving cast of co-hosts and friends. Together, they're talking the biggest, funnest, and most need-to-know stories in the world of women’s sports.

From on-court drama to off-field shenanigans, to candid (and silly) chats with the most important personalities in the space, this show screams "Sports Are Fun!"

Subscribe to Just Women's Sports on YouTube to never miss an episode.

USWNT Honors Retired Captain Becky Sauerbrunn Ahead of Jamaica Friendly

USWNT attacker Catarina Macario celebrates scoring in a 2025 friendly.
Catarina Macario and the USWNT will face Jamaica on Tuesday night. (Bailey Hillesheim/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

The world No. 1 USWNT is gearing up to take on No. 40 Jamaica on Tuesday night, capping the two-friendly international break with a match spotlighting both the past and future of the program.

After opening the stretch with a 3-0 Saturday win over No. 17 China PR in St. Paul, Minnesota, major roster rotations are expected in St. Louis, Missouri, on Tuesday as US head coach Emma Hayes continues evaluating fresh and familiar on-field combos.

"I want to make sure that, whether you start, whether you come into the game [off the bench], it shouldn't alter our level," Hayes told media this week. "If anything, we should keep finding other levels in us."

Plenty of young firepower will feature on Tuesday's pitch, but the clash will also celebrate a recently retired USWNT great.

Two-time World Cup champion, Olympic gold medalist, and St. Louis product Becky Sauerbrunn will take center stage, with Energizer Park even doling out bobbleheads in the standout center back's likeness.

"I've got a locker room — not just the senior players, but less experienced players — that talk about [Sauerbrunn] in the highest esteem, both as a leader and as a human being," said Hayes of the longtime USWNT captain. "I don't think you could want anything more than that in life, to have people talk about you like that."

How to watch the USWNT vs. Jamaica friendly on Tuesday

The USWNT will take on the Reggae Girlz at 8 PM ET on Tuesday in St. Louis, Missouri, with live coverage on TNT.

2025 WNBA Commissioner’s Cup Tips Off with Conference Rivalries

New York Liberty guard Natasha Cloud high-fives teammate Rebekah Gardner during a 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup game.
The New York Liberty opened their 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup run with a 48-point win over Connecticut. (Catalina Fragoso/NBAE via Getty Images)

The WNBA Commissioner's Cup is back with its 2025 edition, as the annual in-season tournament raises both stakes and incentives across the league.

Winning percentage, point differential, and head-to-head records all factor in as both Eastern and Western Conference teams battle it out for a shot at the competition's $500,000 prize pool.

Launched in 2021, the Commissioner’s Cup runs concurrently with the regular season, drawing on in-conference matchups to build a team's overall Cup record.

The 2025 competition opened on June 1st, tipping off three straight weeks of conference play that will culminate in a July 1st championship final between the Eastern and Western Conference winners.

Last season's final foreshadowed the eventual WNBA Finals, as the Minnesota Lynx topped New York to lift the 2024 Commissioner's Cup before the Liberty enacted revenge by taking the 2024 Championship a few months later.

Hoping to lift both trophies this season, New York started the 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup party with a 48-point statement win over the Connecticut Sun last Sunday.

How to watch Tuesday's 2025 WNBA Commissioner's Cup games

Every WNBA game on Tuesday will have Cup stakes, starting with the Washington Mystics' visit to the Indiana Fever at 7 PM ET on NBATV.

Then at 8 PM ET, the Minnesota Lynx will host the Phoenix Mercury, airing on ESPN3, before the Dallas Wings close out Tuesday's slate in Seattle against the Storm at 9:30 PM ET on ESPN.

WNBA Rosters Add Hardship Contracts to Offset Injury Reports

Phoenix Mercury roster addition Haley Jones drives to the basket during a 2025 WNBA game.
Haley Jones signed a rest-of-season WNBA hardship contract with the Phoenix Mercury this week. (Harry How/Getty Images)

With injuries mounting across the WNBA, several teams have started stocking up on recently waived free agents, bolstering their depleted rosters with hardship signings as they head into a busy stretch of the 2025 regular season.

With both guard Kahleah Copper and forward Alyssa Thomas sidelined, the Phoenix Mercury signed former Atlanta Dream guard and 2023 first-round draft pick Haley Jones to a rest-of-season hardship contract on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the Fever picked up ex-LA Sparks guard and 2021 first-rounder Aari McDonald on Sunday, with Indiana looking to boost their backcourt depth in light of injuries to guards Caitlin Clark, Sophie Cunningham, and Sydney Colson.

These hardship signings come in clutch to keep benches stocked and WNBA teams in action.

However, the longevity of these early-season additions remains uncertain as teams attempt to balance league-maximum 12-player lineups with restrictive salary caps.

Hardship contracts allow teams to temporarily expand the salary cap, but when injured players return, so do tough roster calls — much to the dismay of front office decision-makers.

"More bodies would be good," Fever president Kelly Krauskopf told reporters with a wry laugh ahead of McDonald's signing.

Roster limitations will likely be a key issue when CBA negotiations rev up, with this week's emergency signings only adding fuel to the fire.

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