BBC presenter Clare Balding revealed she refuses to cover men’s football because female pundits suffer ‘vile abuse’ on ‘toxic’ social media.
Balding, 49, has fronted the public broadcaster’s coverage of horse racing, Wimbledon and rugby league as well as reporting from six Olympics.
But the veteran host won’t cover any men’s footy because women suffer ‘vile abuse’ when they offer opinions on men’s matches.
She slammed the disgusting backlash as ‘the worst of tribal behaviour’.
Balding, speaking to the Creative Forum via The Mirror, said: “Any woman who pops up on a football programme offering expertise, or in the role of presenter, will be opening the door to such vile abuse on social media.”
The former Sports Broadcaster of the Year began her career in 1994 and recalled how the opportunities for women on TV were limited.
She added: “It was ‘We have one woman, we can’t have two.’
“You’re fighting another woman for that one chance.”
Broadcasters have attempted to diversify their line-ups in recent years with more women appearing as pundits and commentators on Sky Sports, BT Sport and the BBC’s coverage.
Former England and Arsenal star Alex Scott – capped 140 times by the Lionesses – made history by becoming the BBC’s first female pundit at a men’s World Cup in Russia in 2018.
SunSport columnist Scott, 36, also became the first woman to bag a slot on Sky Sports’ famous ‘Super Sunday’ team, running the rule over the big Premier League games.
Balding – who helps front the BBC Sports Personality of the Year awards – previously spoke about the ‘disrespectful’ lack of media coverage for women’s sport.
In a 2019 interview with the Sunday Post, she said: “In broadcasting and in most newspapers it’s a really rare thing to see coverage of women’s sport.
“I think that is disrespectful. It also misses an opportunity to have an audience and readership who aren’t being provided for.
“Female athletes are really accessible. Look at Dina Asher-Smith, how incredibly eloquent she is, how she understands that promoting her sport is part of her job.
“Sports like women’s football have grown hugely in status and the investment is increasing, but there’s still not enough work done in terms of match previews, match reports, and conversation around Women’s Super League matches.”
Blading explained that vast numbers of people are put off Prem games because of the atmosphere.
She added: “People want more than just Premier League football.
“And there are vast swathes of people who won’t go to a Premier League match because they don’t like the atmosphere, they don’t like the environment and they don’t like what they see on the pitch. It is the attitude and behaviour pattern.”
The TV star suggested a lack of respect for women transcended sport and was a societal problem.
Balding said: “I was having a long conversation with a friend who has three teenage daughters and what they put up with every day, walking through town, or working in a cafe; there is a real issue at the moment with a lack of respect for women.
“If you have a daughter, she is going to have to be really vigilant. I don’t remember ever feeling like that.
“I really hope a better profile for sportswomen can help change that, because it shows women being strong, confident, ambitious and working in teams.
“It shows them being knocked down and getting back up again, celebrating or commiserating together. Those are important visual images for kids to see, but for adults to see too.
“Women’s sport can be part of a solution, but you have to look at the issues and be honest in discussing what is happening in society, and working out other ways in which one can improve it.”
