How glamorous

The GIST: While luxury retail brands have long been drawn to sports with affluent fanbases like tennis and golf, the industry is now seeing opportunities in women’s sports leagues like the WNBA and NWSL. Let’s take a closer look at two recent sponsorships that illustrate why it's smart to target women’s basketball and soccer fans.

The basketball fan: The league attracts a young, diverse, and digitally-savvy audience: The age 18 to 34 bracket comprises 47% of all WNBA fans. And while we know Gen Z fans love basketball, they also love luxury brands: By 2035, the generation will account for 40% of the global personal luxury goods market.

The soccer fan: Historically, footy fans have been predominantly male and white, but the sport’s fandom is increasingly becoming more diverse. Notably, women soccer fans’ average household income is $80K and 47% have graduated college, aligning with the traditional demographics of affluent sports like tennis and golf.

The partnerships: On Monday, Coach announced that as part of its multiyear deal with the W as its official handbag partner, it would sponsor five WNBA draftees on the orange carpet, including No. 1 pick Paige Bueckers. Jewelry brand Kay Jewelers also activated around Bueckers at the draft.

• And yesterday, California-based accessible luxury jewelry brand Gorjana announced a partnership with the USWNTPA to specifically team up with USWNT athletes Ally Sentnor, Sam Coffey, and Gisele Thompson. The sponsorship also includes athlete styling for the NWSL Players’ Ball in July. How glamorous.

Zooming out: While there’s still plenty of luxury brands catering to sports with traditionally affluent fandoms, sports like tennis and golf still struggle with diversifying their fanbases. The NWSL and WNBA appeal to broader demographics — and considering the growing purchasing power of Black Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Gen Z, it’s time luxury brands start investing in reaching them.

• As these companies shift their strategy, they should consider teaming up with new leagues, teams, and athletes to get in front of loyal women’s sports fans who are primed to spend in their industry. They should also creatively amplify their partnerships through other media, like the many brands that have dressed Angel Reese in Vogue. It’s always been both.

The GIST: On Monday, the Dallas Wings drafted UConn star Paige Bueckers first overall, and she’s expected to bring comparable economic impact as fellow W star Caitlin Clark did when she was drafted by the Indiana Fever last year. Let’s review how Clark boosted the local economy and elevated the Fever to one of the league’s most coveted brands. Ready for takeoff.

💰 $36M: The estimated economic impact Clark brought to Indianapolis during her first season with the team. She was also credited with generating 27% of the league’s economic activity last season.

📈 1,193%: The YoY increase in Fever jersey sales at the midway point in Clark’s first season, with the team reporting a 265% YoY boost in home game attendance.

🏟️ 340,715: Total home attendance for the Indiana Fever during the regular season, which blew the previous league record (250,565) out of the water. Interestingly, only 5% of those fans also attended Indiana Pacers games, and a third were from outside Indiana.

🤝 90: The number of active sponsorship deals the Fever had last season, which led the WNBA and marked a 43% YoY jump in partnerships for the team.

📱 415%: The YoY increase in the Fever’s social media followers during the 2024 season. Its YouTube growth was particularly stark: The team went from fewer than 5K subscribers in 2024 to over 100K after drafting Clark, with its channel leading all North American pro sports teams in views and engagements for most of 2024.

Zooming out: Similar to the Fever prior to Clark’s arrival, the Wings are a poor-performing (and therefore less marketable) team that is expected to be transformed by the Bueckers pick. Beyond a clear correlation in rising ticket sales and social media activity, selecting Bueckers should have a ripple effect that will be tough to quantify.

• The Fever are building a $78M practice facility, signing top free agents, and hosting 2025 WNBA All-Star Weekend — economic uplift that can all be tangentially attributed to Clark. Similarly, the Wings were one of two WNBA teams to get a sizable investment from financial services brand Albert earlier this year. Coincidence? We think not.

Want to show off your support for women in sports? We thought so. And with The GIST’s capsule collection, you can. The pieces are sporty, bold, and playful…just like our GIST community.

Speaking of, this collection truly has something for everyone: Basketball-specific threads for hoops fans, “leveling the playing field” looks if you love making a statement, and tennis tees if you want to, ahem, serve.

But don’t just take our word for it, check it out for yourself. Happy shopping!