By Mia Hanuska
Look, I’m far from a stranger to men’s clothes. I find the fit of many of their shirts comfier than women’s cuts, and with an older brother, plenty of my clothes are hand-me-downs from him. And it helps that we’ve always supported the same teams—his old Bayern Munich polos now hang in my closet; his jersey, folded on my shelf. But recently, I’ve strayed from the path. In the past couple of years, I’ve become a huge Formula 1 and motorsports fan, specifically cheering on McLaren (and yes, I liked them before they started winning). Unlike me, he’s a Mercedes fan, and regardless, has no merchandise for me to steal. So, I began my search for McLaren merch—for women.
But really, Formula 1 doesn’t quite have merch “for women.” Every time I see a store near me that carries an F1 shirt or jacket, it’s in the men’s section, with men’s sizing. And while I may not mind men’s merch, it would be nice for a shirt to actually fit every now and then! After having so much trouble with McLaren merch, I got curious about other teams. Here’s how the merch on their websites is divided:
| Team | # Mens Items | # Womens Items | # Unisex Items |
| McLaren | 18 | 16 | 9 |
| Williams | 18 | 16 | 0 |
| Mercedes | 22 | 12 | 25 |
| Alpine | 7 | 7 | 1 |
| Visa CashApp Racing Bulls | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| HAAS | 9** | 5*** | 0 |
| Ferrari | 25 | 4 | 80* |
| RedBull Racing | 7 | 0 | 8 |
(Audi and Cadillac are exempted due to being new to the grid this year)
*Nearly all unisex items are hats, shoes, and mini helmets
**7 of the 9 are shirt or top options
***1 of the 5 is a shirt.
I could say I’m surprised, but frankly, it’s quite predictable. Men have 107 options; women, 61. It’s quite disappointing to see, especially from teams who preach equality and have Formula Academy teams, that most Formula 1 team merch lacks the inclusivity teams supposedly support and encourage. Some may argue, “Oh, well there must not be a market for it! Women aren’t really interested in Formula 1.” Put simply, this is just not true. Women already make up over 32% of the Formula 1 workforce and that number is quickly rising. Plus, women’s cuts of shirts and jackets are regularly sold out in each size, showing either incredibly high demand—or teams simply not stocking enough.
Ultimately, this isn’t just a Formula 1 issue. All across sports, women are forced to settle for unflattering cuts and oversized merchandise simply to represent their team. Even in women’s sports, where women are quite literally the target audience, companies resist producing enough merch for enough fans to have the opportunity to buy it. One study showed nearly three in five female fans have trouble finding pieces they wanted, with 80% of respondents reporting they would purchase more merchandise if there were more options and better availability.
Plus, merchandise provides a way to show team loyalty and make women feel more included in the world of sports. As researcher Tim Stroebel puts it, “clothes make the fan.” Through team merch, women are able to feel less ostracized and more legitimate in their fanship for their team and sport.
Ultimately, I, like many other women, just want the opportunity to show my interests and loyalties through my clothing. When will teams and corporations realize the power of female fans??