A newer, but growing, trend in American sports and athletics is the advent of women's league and professional football. This joins boxing and baseball (hardball) in a percentage of male-dominated sports entered into and executed with some success by women. Males have succeeded in formerly considered female sports as well (fast pitch softball, rhythmic gymnastics and the like), so some slosh-over, one to another, is just fine.

Take Laila Ali. She can box as well as dance. In high school sports, some of my town's top suburban teams have used female quarterbacks and place kickers for abut 15 years. Inner city kids have had their sports stripped by the school system and its deficits. With funding cuts, girls and boys a like may leave the fields. The suburban schools charge youth up to $700 or more a year to play football.

Whether it's football, soccer, rugby, baseball, boxing, hockey, or Kick the Can, girls have spilled over into men's sports and it's OK, via Tile IX and open minds. Several States in the Union of America are host to women's league and professional football in the 21^st century. In my Hubs related to Top Jobs in each state, I list the sports teams, including women's football in the Sports Opportunities box. A list of women's associations and some are shown below, and there are more coming up every day. Our home team in Central Ohio is called The Columbus Phantoms.

While football and boxing are two activities in which I do not indulge, I think it's OK for girls and women to do them if they want. I prefer a flying kick through a flaming hoop to break a few boards lined up, but that has suited to my temperament. A certain proportion of women are geared toward contact sports and theri fanbase is increasing.

Just like the boys, the women need to follow safety rules and all will be (mostly) well. I've seen pee wee football that combines girls and boys and I think that particular sport needs some more organization, at least here - I tell people to take their kids to The Little Gym until they are 7 or 8 years old and receive some physiologically sound movement training and sports by certified professionals at not too high a cost.

Aroun Central Ohio, most kids and teens go to the city gyms for basketball and fitness after school and on weekends and those activities serve them well. However, if high school sports funding could be increased, more high school men and women could be trained to qualifiy for college and pro teams.

In addition, some of our local peewee leagues in baseball and football are often closed early in the season because of parents fist fighting and betting. Team sports are based on the phenomenon of war, and these parents surely show it, but that's another story. Basketball is king here for youth, although OSU Football, high/middle school football for any gender, elementary football, and even Pee Wee taken together make an impressive body of achievement.

Some generous retired pros are reaching out with a new organized foundation for injured football players in order to help them attain financial stability. These young injured men are crippled from the game and for some reason have been denied disability benefits and can't work. Age in their 40s is one drawback to gaining disability compensation. Some of these gentlemen can hardly move. I don't want to see women in the same shape from a contact sport, so I wish them well and bid them use a measure of caution and enjoy the game.