The CEO of Colts, Carlie Irsay-Gordon, becomes viral. But is it her helmet, or that she is a woman?

The Indianapolis colts won their second match of the NFL season on Sunday – their first departure 2-0 since 2009 – but that is not the only reason why the Internet is in effect on the team.

Because as exciting as their race could be for fans, it is the CEO of the colts, Carlie Irsay-Gordon, who is talking about people at the moment. Irsay-Gordon has been CEO since June, after his father and the owner, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the team team, Jim Irsay, died at 65. It is one of the 10 current NFL owners.

And unlike some other team owners, who sometimes remain in the background, Irsay-Gordon was on the touch of the games, the clipboard in hand and carrying a helmet.

She has already said that she was carrying it to stay in knowledge, saying to the Colts website, it helped her understand how she can support coaches more.

“I need to be able to say:” Is this person full of BS? Do they even know what they are talking about? “” She said in June.

“This comes down to the way we work and how things work and helmets – I suggest it to anyone who has to pay coaches and millions of dollars and millions of dollars. This helps you make a less expensive error.”

Many have praised his practical approach, the caller “powerful” and highlighting his “grain and involvement”, in particular in the light of the recent victories of the team. Others have stressed that if his habit of wearing a helmet is somewhat unique, many owners of male sports teams have been just as practical, and in many cases, even more.

But because it is the Internet, Irsay-Gordon has also been criticized, accused several times of “microgestion” of the touchline and called “unbearable” on X, where some fans also said that she had to leave people “do their job”. Some memes compare it to a “woman waiting patiently to prove you a point”.

“Carlie Irsay-Gordon will microchip her franchise in their disintegration,” someone wrote on X on Monday.

Michele Donelly, an associate professor of management of sport at Brock University, says that she thinks that the attention of Irsay-Gordon is not so much the helmet, because it is the fact that it is unusual in most professional sports leagues of most of the main people to see the presence of a woman on the field as a management or owner.

“A woman in this role will be examined at a much higher degree than a man – the same goes for men of color in property positions,” Donnelly told CBC News.

“There are clear misogynist shades for attention.”

Disturbing football culture

Football has a distinct role in American culture, where it is the spectator’s first sport. And the NFL tends to be historically gendered, with hard and grainy male players that attack each other while ultra-feminine cheerlers are rooted from the key line.

But recently, these stereotypes have been disrupted, whether by the male chefs of the NFL redefining what masculine athletics can look like, or by “the Taylor Swift effect” on football notes, the viewer and sales of goods. The NFL even congratulated Swift for its recent commitments with Kansas City Sight the winger Travis Kelce, publishing emojis Heart and Ring on X.

And in addition, Note Donelly, we see more women assume official roles in male professional sports, whether it be a key report, coaching or officer. Last month, for example, Jen Pawol marked the story as the first woman referee to work a regular season match in the MLB.

But seeing a woman owner on the sidelines is somewhat new, Donelly said. Especially the one who is actively involved. Many owners watch matches of their luxury suites, for example, and some have been accused of having “listened to the media more than their own coaches”.

“Attention on Irsay-Gordon emphasizes the situation without a victory in which many women in sports organizations find themselves,” said Donelly.

“That is to say, she criticized to be actively involved, to share her knowledge and to want to know more; and she would also be criticized if she was not involved, and did not speak about football and her team.”

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Liz Duff, host of the Podcast of the end of the evening, says that the era of the commitment of Taylor Swift “will unlock a whole new side of his artistic talent”. The pop sensation went to Instagram on Tuesday, announcing his engagement to Kansas City, Travis Kelce with legend, “your English teacher and your gym teacher”.

‘Only because she is a woman’ ‘

Jim Irsay’s transition plan for the property called on his three daughters to take care of the club. Last June, the Colts announced that Irsay-Gordon, Casey Foyt and Kalen Jackson would each continue to hold the title of owner, which they have done since 2012, when they were appointed vice-presidents.

Irsay-Gordon became CEO, Foyt was appointed executive vice-president and Jackson became brand director. The three sisters grew up around the colts, just as their father did before taking over as owner after the death of his father, Robert Irsay, in 1997.

Irsay-Gordon represents the colts during various NFL meetings since 2004.

Even in June, Irsay-Gordon and the colts responded to micro-management charges. The Colts website explained that it had started wearing a helmet years ago, and “it does not do it to microgestion coaches, but to better understand the countless subtleties that enter a single game”.

“I think it was very precious, because it also helps us to know where we have to make adjustments, what resources do we need, what should we repair,” said Irsay-Gordon in the article.

Many people have also pointed out online that the Irsay-Gordon helmet does not seem to have a microphone. So, it is probably just watched, not interference.

Finally, a certain number of fans point to the current wins sequence of the colts, saying everything that happens on the key, it works.

“The colts were on fire, which she shows that she cares and who heads for coaching that goes to players,” wrote someone on X. “Calling it microgestion is only because she is a woman, let’s be real.”