Scholars studying team-licensed fan apparel have begun to surface the meanings communicated through fan clothing, particularly focusing on its gendered nature. This study extends upon this previous research by examining children’s sport fan apparel via a social semiotics theoretical framework. The authors collected 377 items from 14 teams in seven major leagues in the United States. Merging a feminist lens with multimodal critical discourse analysis methodology, they uncovered how discourses and meanings in the marketing of these materials communicate organizational practices and structures. The study determined that the marketing presented discourses of gender segregation and (false) gender neutrality, as well as discourses of good parenting that legitimized the consumption of merchandise as a reflection of parenting ideologies. Organizations must address internal gendered practices to produce marketing materials and artifacts supporting gender equity and inclusivity.

研究球队授权球迷服装的学者已经开始揭示通过球迷服装传达的含义，特别是关注其性别本质。本研究通过社会符号学理论框架对儿童运动迷服装进行了研究，从而扩展了之前的研究。作者收集了来自美国 7 个主要联盟 14 支球队的 377 项内容。他们将女权主义视角与多模态批判性话语分析方法相结合，揭示了这些材料营销中的话语和含义如何传达组织实践和结构。该研究确定，营销呈现了性别隔离和（错误的）性别中立的话语，以及良好养育的话语，使商品消费合法化，作为养育意识形态的反映。组织必须解决内部性别歧视做法，以制作支持性别平等和包容性的营销材料和制品。