Womens World Cup and Russians playing in Bikinis?

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So back state side and scanning the news I've missed over the past week. Dodgers declared bankruptcy, NBA lockout becomes official, TechCrunch gets nasty on Groupon, Serena Williams has emotional win at Wimbledon, etc....

While in Europe for the past week, all the sports hype was on the Womens World Cup being hosted in Germany. Upon my return to Florida I'm reminded that soccer or futbol means very little in the states. In fact, if ESPN wasn't forcing it down peoples throat by airing it on it's premiere ESPN 1.0 channel then the three week tourney known as, "FIFA Womens World Cup" would pass with little if any fan fare here in the states. Obviously, Womens Soccer needs improvement in their marketing plan and a Russian Club team may have found the answer. (Disclaimer: I'm not sexist I'm just a mediator of the world me live in).

The three time Russian Women's Premier League Champions have promised that they'll play their next match in Bikinis. Their goal? To fill the seats of course. If your not aware, Womens soccer is increasingly popular throughout Europe yet the rapid development and growth hasn't filled seats in Russia. Busted Coverage provided a blurb from a representative of the club:

"I think that our soccer players are beautiful and attractive woman, brilliantly holding the ball, no way inferior to the well-known tennis players and gymnasts, – says Sergey Zhuravlev." According to head coach Tatiana Egorova, "the experience contributes to the promotion of women’s football, and the athletes themselves are starting to feel more confident."

My two cents......If the Lingerie Football League or the World Bikini Football League can establish itself in the United States then the Russians could be on too something.

I'd go as far to say that if womens soccer adapted a similar format in the US it would triple its attendance in less than a year. If not better! Is this demeaning for women? Absolutely, especially for professional athletes. Will the sport ever make it if it adapts this format? Not in the US where Women are valued much higher than other countries in the world. However, if there was ever a business opportunity that dropped on your lap then bikini soccer is it. Reality TV at it's best.

Pictures and story via Busted Coverage