Recommendations to achieve gender equality in sport

15 members of the HLG were appointed in December 2020, and work on the report started in February 2021, concluding at the end of the year. The meetings of the members focused on six areas of engagement, as identified by the experts.

The HLG was established by Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, and consists of former top athletes, politicians, members of European and international sport federations as well as distinguished academics

Scientists and practitioners shared findings of their research and good practices to improve gender equality in sport.

Recommendations from the report have been addressed to the European Commission, EU Member States, national and international sports bodies as well as grassroots organisations.

Six thematic areas

The HLG proposed recommendations in the following six thematic areas:

1. Participation
2. Coaching and officiating
3. Leadership
4. Social and economic aspects of sport
5. Media coverage
6. Gender-based violence

Eight transversal topics

In addition, the report highlights eight topics to consider when developing actions related to any of the themes. These include:

• Gender mainstreaming: All stakeholders must integrate a gender perspective into their actions
• Intersectionality: It is integral to take an intersectional approach to understand the overlaps between inequalities
• Gender budgeting: Sports organisations must dedicate budgets towards gender equality
• Policy monitoring and evaluation, research: To ensure that policy remains up to date, it should be monitored and evaluated periodically
• Education: It is vital that educational tools explain the importance of gender equality policies
• Communication: It must be ensured that the report is used as a reference document for policy implementation
• Coordinators for gender equality: Equality strategies must be duly implemented and monitored, overseen by the coordinators
• Men as allies: Those men who are in decision-making positions must be engaged to create change

To read the report

• Read the full report
• View a report factsheet