Semen, stigma, and spectacle: reclaiming the narrative around male reproductive health

Male infertility contributes to nearly half of all cases of infertility worldwide, yet male reproductive health remains under-recognized in research, clinical practice, and public health. Paradoxically, male fertility has recently gained cultural visibility-not through medical initiatives but through spectacle. In 2025, staged 'sperm races' in Los Angeles presented motile spermatozoa as competitors in a sporting contest; online masculinity movements recast declining sperm counts as a symptom of civilizational decline; and, at a recent international reproductive-medicine congress, a sculpture displayed human semen as a multimillion-euro commodity. We argue that these framings, whether fertility as a virile contest or a marketable asset, detach the reproductive body from its clinical, emotional, and relational meaning, entrench stigma, and sit uneasily with the principle that the human body and its parts should not, as such, give rise to financial gain. They also obscure robust evidence. Sperm concentration has declined by roughly 50% since the 1970s, alongside consistent associations between poorer semen parameters and higher all-cause mortality. Together, this evidence positions semen quality as a barometer of men's general health. Meanwhile, men affected by infertility experience shame, delayed help-seeking, and scarce psychosocial support, while services and education remain oriented towards women. Reproductive medicine should reclaim this narrative through male-focused education, the deconstruction of stigma, and early engagement in care, resisting both silence and spectacle while reaffirming the scientific and ethical foundations of reproductive health.