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August 18, 2023
Little League® Baseball and Softball, the “first and world’s largest organized youth sports program”, has launched a new gender equality campaign. ‘Girls with Game 50’ (#GWG50) celebrates the non-profit’s 50-year journey towards making its programming more accessible for women and girls and the 50th anniversary of the Little League Softball World Series (LLSWS) in 2024.
Founded in 1939, Little League engages millions of players in more than 80 countries. With a mission to build stronger individuals and communities, the league believes in the power of youth baseball and softball to teach and instill important life lessons.
Alongside the campaign, the organization announced new strategic initiatives, programs, research and coaching training centered around women and girls’ participation and inclusion. “To truly be a program for all, we need to be intentional about leading with equity… Our hope is that by 2032, there will truly be equal opportunities for participation among girls in the Little League program,” said Nina Johnson-Pitt, Little League Senior Strategy Executive.
Little League notes an organizational priority to find new ways to inspire, welcome and develop girls and women at every level, from the players to coaches, officials and volunteers. It has therefore committed itself to providing the necessary funding, research and resources to do so. Additionally, it continues to seek supporting organizations and partnerships that align with its goals and values to provide the best possible support system.
Through a partnership with The Center for Healing and Justice Through Sport (CHJS) and DePaul University, Little League is pursuing research on current strengths and weaknesses related to engaging girls and women in the program and to pilot training specific to coaching girls. CHJS is a community of coaches, sport experts, psychologists, scientists and strategists on a mission to make sport healing for all youth, everywhere, through training, consulting and movement building.
“The goal is to measure what is currently working and not working for making Little League Baseball and Softball accessible to girls, measure any differences in different locations where Little League operates related to gender equity and pilot coach training in one location and measure its impact. We look forward to using the results to help guide future decisions to make Little League more equitable for girls and women across all aspects of the program,” said Johnson-Pitt.
Other efforts include implementing initiatives and changes to increase access, offering creative and innovative programming, renovating fields, creating coaching opportunities for women and girls, providing useful resources for fostering an inclusive environment and hosting events to encourage and inspire women and girls’ participation.
#GWG50 builds on the Little League Girls with Game Initiative launched in 2019, which honors all the program’s girls and women “who inspire the future generation of female participants at every level.” Each March, in coordination with National Women’s History Month, Little League celebrates its own women’s history with Girls with Game Month across its social media channels. #GWG50 will expand on this with a year-long celebration. It will encompass an interview series, digital content, feature stories, in-person events and unique activities. The campaign will officially kick off with the league’s 2024 season.
In recognition of the LLSWS’ 50th anniversary, nearly 150 Girls with Game take the field to compete for the title of World Series champion in honor of those who came before them from August 4-11, 2024 in Greenville, North Carolina. As part of an ongoing relationship with Athletes Unlimited, Little Leaguers will have direct access to professional softball players.
Little League will also host a number of special events and activations throughout the year. This includes a strengthened Girls with Game Experience, expansion of the Girls with Game Celebration to officially welcome the participants of the Little League Softball World Series; and the first-ever Girls with Game Baseball event, further helping to encourage females to participate in the Little League Baseball program.
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