“We Are Doing a Job” The 1971 Mexican Women’s Soccer Players and the Fight for Professionalism; “Estamos desempeñando un trabajo” Las futbolistas mexicanas de 1971 y la lucha por el profesionalismo

Abstract

This article analyzes the fight of Mexican women’s soccer players for recognition as professionals during the 1971 Mexico World Cup. In this context, they fought to be admitted as professional sportswomen in a field where only male participation was socially accepted. Their demand is founded on the articulation of three aspects: the emergence of the second-wave feminism, the union organization during the government of Luis Echeverría, and the consolidation of Mexican soccer as a sports spectacle. Despite the fact that they did not achieve their goal, the fight of the Mexican women represented an important touchstone in favor of gender equality within the sport. The research was based on newspaper sources and interviews with several of the protagonists.