FashBlog.com

By Melissa A. Popp

Let's face it. We've all seen those pink jerseys. Whether they've been for the Eagles, the Chargers or the Patriots, we've all seen some of the most feminine football fans wearing those pink jerseys emblazoned with their favorite player's name and number. This is a very light pink color which means it captures the eyes immediately. This alone is enough to spark interest and debate over the subject: Are these notorious pink jerseys really necessary?

Those pink jerseys have a dual meaning: One is to appeal to female fans and the other is punishing male athletes. We'll deal with each equally as both have brought up strong reactions from both sides of those who are involved directly, those who wear them and those who just don't see what the big deal is about them. This is a fashion trend in full swing and as such it has brought out much attention from fans, media and dissenters alike.

Let's start with pink jerseys in relation to female fans. This is the primary reason why pink jerseys were created by professional sports leagues, marketed and sold like hot cakes.

It's no surprise that sports jerseys are geared towards men. Dark colors, masculine images and names, as well as the way they are cut and fit, make jerseys something undesirable to most women. They don't want to wear a man's jersey, they want to wear a women's jersey that fits her curves and shape. Most men's jerseys are big, bulky and don't sit right on a woman, which discourages them from showing their support for their favorite team by buying and wearing a jersey.

Thus, such big name sporting leagues like the National Football League and Major League Baseball came up with the idea of designing a women's jersey for women to increase their support for their favorite teams. These jerseys are designed to fit a woman's figure, come in much smaller sizes than a man's jersey and are pink with specific lettering color depending on the colors of their favorite team. For the most part, at least recently, some stores have been offering custom pink jerseys but overall, you can generally just buy very specific – high profile – players from team-related stores.

Once the pink phenomenon hit stores, many girls, especially around the college age began to sport the jerseys around campuses and elsewhere. Most notably, Philadelphia Eagles fans this past Super Bowl, found many female fans attending the game with their pink jersey as well as parties all around the country sporting Terrell Owens or Donovan McNabb pink jerseys. The Eagles went so far as even to produce a pink hat for their team so women could also accessorize their jersey further while wearing it.

Other teams jumped on board and also began offering the pink jerseys for women's fans, and they have been snatched up by diehard football, baseball and basketball fans all across America. It's yet to be seen how far reaching these jerseys are in the international community, as it's highly improbable that soccer fans across the globe will ditch their team colors for pink, even the most feminine among them.

Most girls who wear these jerseys are fanatics on a particular player, which is why sporting leagues cater to certain players, providing fans with the jerseys they want as opposed to opening up the field for all to buy a jersey of their choice. When it comes to marketing, it's genius, because this has brought many girl fans out of the woodwork who you wouldn't normally think supported a professional sports team, especially when it comes to football, and the players that play on those teams. This has given girls, of all ages, the chance to show their support while wearing a color more suited to what they would rather wear.

Keep in mind, though, that not all girls will wear the pink jerseys. Even though they are marketed to girls of all ages, this does not mean that all women are snatching up the jerseys as we speak, instead, it's just opened the door up to women who are less inclined to put up with the "manliness" of regular sporting jerseys. One sport you will see this prevalent in is soccer where women supporters will gladly put on a man's jersey to show their support for a team, nation or player, because of the culture and tradition surrounding the sport. Instead of besmirching their team with a pink jersey, they would rather proudly wear their team's colors of choice to chant and celebrate when they play on the pitch.

Now, let's move on to pink jerseys being used to punish male athletes. This has drawn mass media attention in the United States as teams use them as negative reinforcement for poor performance on the field.

One of the most talked about sports stories of the season revolves around the University of Arkansas' choice to use pink jerseys to punish football players who either weren't up to conditioning, weren't practicing hard enough on the field or who were just goofing off during training. This has sparked a national debate as many breast cancer activists complained that it was demeaning to force someone to wear pink when many associate the color with breast cancer support.

While the Arkansas head coach, Houston Nutt, told the media that he came to the conclusion to stop using the pink jerseys on his own, many are skeptical of his claim. The weeks leading up to him putting a stop the practice, many cancer-related charities, support groups and survivors complained to both the university and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) to step in and do something about the hideous display of a color that brings hope to many breast cancer patients and survivors.

However, the NCAA dodged the bullet and refused to both comment and act, as it was a matter of public relations for the Arkansas team as well as a stamp of approval over political correctness. After all, pink is just a color, a color associated with girls, which is why it was used as a "punishment" in the first place for these men of men on their football team. So, the NCAA stepped aside to let Arkansas, and any other team, develop their own policy, which they are well within their right do so. The NCAA regularly avoids conflict if it's one or two teams, so this is common practice, and shouldn't reflect on the inability of the NCAA to do its job of regulating college athletics across the country.

On the flip side of the coin, many Razorback fans complained to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation about their objection to the use of pink jerseys on the football field. They withdrew support for the charity and threatened not to participate in their local Race for the Cure event that was coming up. The local Komen chapter refused to budge, as did the national chapter, and eventually the team gave up the practice of using pink jerseys as a detriment to poor behavior. Other reports say that the Komen chapter didn’t complain one bit, that it was disgruntle fans that didn't support the Razorback and other feminist-related groups. Either way, Coach Nutt decided to put an end to a practice his Defense Coach put into practice and ending the controversy over a simple way to get players in line.

No offense was meant by the jerseys, he related to the media when making the announcement. Since many Arkansas students take place in the annual Race for the Cure event, nobody thought that controversy would develop from such a hazing procedure that many teams put into place during training and games. It just so happens that not all teams use pink jerseys to show their distaste with playing or failing on the field. This type of negative reinforcement is what upset many cancer patients and supporters of those patients, because by using it in a negative light, it's associated with the negativity of cancer, specifically breast cancer among women.

Now, keep in mind, pink jerseys are most likely used elsewhere for positive and negative reinforcement on the sporting field in many different sports. It just so happens when a big name team gets "caught" using them does a media backlash occur. It all comes down to the current climate of women's thoughts on the matter as well as just how the jerseys are being used in positive and negative reinforcement scenarios.

These pink jerseys have caused a lot of controversy as well as been helpful for sporting leagues. When it comes to fashion trends, there are always positive and negative aspects, and when it comes to something as high profile as sports, even the diehard fan will admit that the pink jerseys aren't all that bad. It all comes down to individual taste, desire and willingness to indulge in pop culture's acceptance that women do watch professional sports with as much fervor as men do when they support their favorite team from the local bar, their local dorm room or even from the stands.