PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Just when you thought there couldn’t be any more Barbie news, Mattel has unveiled its 2023 career of the year dolls, highlighting careers in sports.
Barbie has inspired girls around the world to dream big and break glass ceilings, which is what this new Women in Sports collection is designed to do. It features a general manager, coach, referee and sports reporter.
Beth Devine, executive director of the Philadelphia Youth Sports Collaborative, says seeing these dolls is very meaningful to them right now, as they are running a citywide initiative called “Philly Girls Got Game.” The organization will also hold a Women in Sports summit on Nov. 1.
“We're working with rec centers, schools, our Division I women's sports programs, the professional teams to just provide new and more opportunities for girls to engage in sport and physical activity across the city,” she said.
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“A coach or a referee or somebody who works in the front office at a professional team,” she added, “there's so many opportunities in sport for young people and there's no reason why girls shouldn't have those opportunities as well.”
Devine says girls are encouraged to think about achieving those high level sports positions, like coaching or management. She believes Mattel’s Barbie, which is riding high on its blockbuster movie success, hits on a great point: the importance of investing in young women who want to pursue these pathways.
“It's really timely because one of the things we always talk about is if you love sport, you know, and you love to play, but it's not gonna be something that you make a career of, you can still make a career of sport,” she said.
“I think we're seeing that right now and for Barbie to kind of elevate that conversation is really important.”