In 2014, former WNBA player Becky Hammon made NBA history as the first full-time female coach, stepping into a new role as the San Antonio Spurs’ new assistant coach. Hammon’s role sparked a shift in professional sports, opening doors for women to take leadership positions in a field traditionally led by men.
Ten years later, fans are seeing this change across multiple different leagues. Specifically, the National Football League (NFL), has seen a lot of progress in hiring female coaches. During the 2024-2025 season, more than 10 teams will see 15 women coaching —, double the number from 2022. The Baltimore Ravens are leading the charge, with the largest female staff representation of any team. The Ravens also sponsored high-school girls’ flag football in MCPS this fall season, contributing to their progressive agenda. Ravens Assistant Coach and Defensive Assistant Megan Rosburg explained her perspective in an NBC News interview.
“I’m about to stand in this room in front of these 300-pound men and just talk ball, [and] motivate them,” Rosburg said. “That was just such a cool moment for me. Just seeing how we can impact them while being ourselves, I think it’s the most powerful thing.”
Contrary to popular belief, the incentive to hire these women as coaches is far from just reaching diversity and inclusion quotas — for many head coaches, the new talent and successes that come from female perspectives are what they find necessary. Jessica Campbell, the first and only female coach in the National Hockey League (NHL) perfectly represents this. Joining the Seattle Kraken, Campbell brings experience from playing in the NCAA, Canadian Women’s Hockey League and on Canada’s national team. Krakens’ Head Coach, Dan Bylsma, touched on this in an NHL interview.
“Over the last two years, Campbell’s work with Tye Kartye Shane Wright and Ryker Evans has clearly been evident,” Bylsma said. “She’s been able to develop those players, develop them as people and, most importantly, as hockey players.”
Although these are commendable milestones for women across the sports spectrum, women still battle resistance, biases and discrimination within the leagues.
For many female coaches, earning respect in their league can be an uphill battle, and the real fight for equity begins once they’re hired. They struggle with the pressure to show expertise in ways male coaches don’t need to, and feel the constant need to prove qualifications and authority. However, female coaches have found ways to show optimism and strength despite the disrespect from their male counterparts. In 2019, Rachel Balkovec was hired by the New York Yankees as the first full-time female hitting coach in the minor leagues. Balkovec spoke on this in an interview with ABC News.
“With some perspective, I just always say, being an underdog is an advantage, and I’m glad that I had a longer path,” Balkovec said. “It’s a gift when someone doesn’t respect you upfront and you have to earn it because it means that much more when you do earn their respect.”
Although the number of women in sports is increasing annually, the percentage of leadership positions they hold is still substantially small compared to men. The number of male coaches still overpowers female coaches, even in women-dominated sports like volleyball, field hockey and softball. Brittni Donaldson is one of six female assistant coaches in the NBA and is honored to have that position. Still, she recognizes that progress must occur.
“About three percent of all coaching jobs in the NBA are occupied by women,” Donaldson said. “This is something I’ve taken upon myself to make sure that I contribute in a positive way to making that number shift.”
Despite the obstacles women face, their growing presence in coaching has provided a hopeful future for professional sports. With ongoing support from organizations and a commitment to diversity, the next generation of female coaches will shape the future of sports in a new way.
