Time To Face The Future, Nike.

So I feel it is no secret that I have a slight enamoration with a certain foxy Chelsea player who looks quite tantalizing in orange. This obsession resulted in being directed to the Chelsea online store, where the away kit is on sale. The women's away kit:

Nice, huh? Not too long. Has a slight nip in the waist to keep a female fan not feeling as though she's wearing a blanket. But it's not like some MLS soccer kits I've seen, which seem to believe that the ladies simply want to show their cleavage and the entirety of their arms. This one is just subtle, but actually made for a woman.

Why am I spending time on a Villa website exulting the qualities of a Chelsea kit? Because, my little Villans, Aston Villa do not offer a women's kit. For women, we are given jumpers with diamante, baby teeshirts in powder pink, even a cuddly little pink robe.

Come on. We're women, not fragile tiny girls wearing ribbons and sparkles. It's quite possible to make clothing that will fit a woman without dying it pink to make it palatable.

But it's not just Villa that don't offer women the option of representing their team in style. I spent some time on Nike's website today, checking out Arsenal and Manchester United. Yes, it was difficult. Anyway, Nike offers no kits made for a woman--at least, none that are readily apparent to the US shopper. In a fun twist, there's no way to tell that Nike deigns to lower itself enough to make kits for the tiny little club Aston Villa, either.

In another interesting twist, after tweeting about not being able to find Villa gear via Nike's online shop, Shana (@TheUpstart13) contacted me to let me know that there is no way to buy a women's national team jersey. Not a women's fit of the USMNT jersey--there is no way to buy a jersey for the other half of the US national team.Shana's been trying to buy one since they debuted back in February, and has contacted the US Soccer online store--who haven't gotten back to her, of course. I took a quick look on Nike Football. Under national teams? USMNT. If women want something, try this sexy little number.

Shame on you, Nike. Have you not already angered enough women by implying, via your "I am the future" ads, that women are not a valid part of soccer in the United States? You would think that somewhere, amongst your thousands of employees, there might be one with half a brain. One that says, hey, women are a legitimate part of the soccer fanbase. Women play soccer. Perhaps it would be excellent business sense to, I don't know, market products to them? Women do spend money, after all. Should you want to earn as much of it as possible (and quite frankly, Nike, you seem as though you'd like to earn as much of it as possible) it might be a smart decision to look outside the male population and remember that there's a huge chunk of soccer fans that you are actively ignoring.

I guess I shouldn't expect anything more from a company that decided to launch the USMNT kits via a spread in Playboy.