Pinterest stakes out space in growing sports lifestyle economy with NY Liberty partnership

The GIST: Yesterday, social media giant Pinterest announced its entry into the sports space with a groundbreaking, multiyear NY Liberty partnership. Driven by the rising popularity and influence of WNBA athletes, Pinterest has reimagined what sports sponsorship can look like with its multifaceted brand integration. Very pinteresting…

The details: Pinterest is planning to capitalize on the Liberty’s influence with a content series, community outreach, in-arena activations, a dedicated account for the team on the app, and online experiences to connect fans with players. The brand noted that W athletes are quickly becoming powerful influencers in the lifestyle space and that fans are craving content beyond the game itself.

The why: This isn’t the first time a social media app has turned to sports, although it’s newer for women’s sports. TikTok has NFL, MLS, and MSE partnerships, while Meta has NBA, UFC, and Wrexham AFC deals. And although women comprise about 56% of TikTok accounts and 47% of Instagram users, Pinterest’s user base is estimated to be 70% women and girls.

• Pinterest has observed a spike in WNBA interest on the app, with searches for “WNBA tunnel outfits” up over 2,000%, along with notable increases for terms like “Sabrina Ionescu shoes pink” and "WNBA aesthetic."

• And singling out the Liberty makes sense: The team has quickly become a magnet for beauty and lifestyle brands new to sports, like Fenty Beauty, Away, and Offwhite. And Liberty branding is already carrying cultural cache — even Ellie the Elephant is nabbing brand deals.

Zooming out: Unlike TikTok and Instagram, Pinterest doesn’t allow video content — it’s effectively a virtual vision board. So, after seeing that users consider W players aspirational figures with cultural influence, it found a way to get sporty without the game highlights.

• That’s something brands in the lifestyle space are quickly learning: You don’t have to be directly sports-related to reap the benefits of teaming up with pro teams and athletes. For the Barbiecore fans.