In case you haven’t heard, there are women’s football leagues too!  The Independent Women’s Football League (IWFL) is one such association and my local squad, the Southern California Breakers, is the newest addition to this national group.  Not in California?  There are teams nationwide with some of the country’s most dedicated athletes.

I had a chance to talk to the Breakers’ head coach, Anthony Bartley, and ask him a few questions about the game:

1.  How long have you been coaching football?  Do you have playing experience yourself?  Why did you decide to coach women?

I have been coaching football for 14 years now, off and on. Pretty much when I was not playing myself, I was coaching. My playing experience started in high school, went on to play in NFL Europe with the Frankfurt Galaxy in 1996, and later the German-American Football League Dilligen Steelhawks later that year in ‘96. After that, I played in the semi-pro level for 4 seasons, 2 with the Ventura County Cardinals, Long Beach Lions, and the Compton Jaguars. The reason why I decided to coach women is because I wanted to try something new, a chance to make history.

2. Are coaches in women's football mostly men?  How many other women are involved behind the scenes?

 I would have to say about 98% of the coaches at this level are men; some women are making the breakthrough to the coaching world. Most of the teams are owned by women.

3. How big do you think the market is in Southern California for women's football?  What are you and the IWFL doing to bring people to the stands?

 The market is huge! But the public needs to be made aware that women are playing football and are playing it well! We are trying to become more community oriented. This means really going out into the public and introducing ourselves and giving them an idea on how the game is played. The main thing is to let them know that the speed of the game is comparable to the men, but its women. A lot better than the WNBA, faster paced, and very hard hitting action. That is the reason why we love football so much.

4. Why do you think women's sports are not as popular as men's with spectators?  What do you think will change that?

 People don’t think that women can play the sport on a fast pace level as the men. I beg to differ! If they have an open mind and look at it on a smaller scale, they will be impressed. I have seen a lot of people change their views once they see a game live. The only way to change is to keep teaching the game of football the way it supposed to be played and spreading the word.

5. Where can fans get more information?

For the Breakers, they can refer to www.socalbreakersfootball.com for all of our information.