Abstract des Autors

Never before in the history of the United States has there been a Professional Women's team sport group that has been as successful as the All American Girls Baseball League. For 12 seasons, the All American Girls Baseball League afforded talented women athletes the opportunity to play professional baseball. Over 120 regularly scheduled games were played each season. The All American Girls Baseball League (AAGBL), later known as the All American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL) was extremely popular in small mid-western towns. In 1948, the league drew close to one million paid admissions. Spectator sports historically have been a major feature of America, and attract millions of fans each year. Sports fans experience excitement; invest time, money, and emotion into sports. While a great deal of research and literature is available regarding athletes, little information exists regarding fans. Professional team sports for women have had short-lived success. The purpose of this study is to explore the unique phenomenon of the committed sports fan to the All American Girls Professional Baseball League. A profile of the AAGPBL fan will be established and reasons for the league's success, as noted by the fans, will be identified. Additionally, this study will attempt to establish a potential relationship between the success of the AAGPBL and the lack of success of professional team sports for women in today's society. Verf.-Referat