Bar down
From The GIST Sports Biz (hi@thegistsports.com)
Welcome back!
And Happy New Year! We’re expecting a record-setting one in the world of women’s sports business. From a continued spike in volleyball growth to increased gender parity for Paris 2024, we’re betting 2024 will look like a billion bucks.
- But first, we have to shout out the PWHL for scoring major wins three days into its inaugural season, including the largest crowd in pro women’s hockey history. More reasons to celly-brate.
PWHL
🏒 A new hope
The GIST: The PWHL dropped its first puck on New Year’s Day, and the new women’s pro hockey league is already seeing early ROI thanks to fans, sponsors, and media partners showing up for its inaugural season. A break out start.
The partnerships: Unsurprisingly, Canadians are leading the way in the PWHL craze, but it’s not just the league’s Toronto-based fans — high-profile Canadian brands are backing the league remarkably early. Air Canada became the league’s first premier partner and the first official airline for all six PWHL teams, a major power play considering the WNBA’s ongoing charter flight saga.
- Air Canada will cross-promote the league on its own platforms and feature as PWHL Montréal’s jersey sponsor. This extensive partnership adds to prior deals with CCM Hockey and Canadian Tire Corporation, which became the league’s first founding partner last September. Rollin’ with the changes.
The media partners: A new league means new media partners, as many faithful NHL networks plan to air the PWHL. After the league shared its intention to air all 72 games on traditional linear platforms, it has inked broadcasting deals with leading Canadian sports networks TSN, Sportsnet, and CBC, along with regional networks NESN and MSG Networks in the U.S.
- Plus, Bally Sports North announced on Monday that it will air 24 regular season PWHL Minnesota games through its partnership, starting with tonight’s game against PWHL Boston.
Zooming out: Pro women’s leagues like the WNBA and NWSL spent decades working up to major broadcasting partners and sponsors, but the PWHL represents the new wave of women’s sports — one where investors are signing on early and expecting immediate returns. From record crowds to transformative partnerships, everyone is leaning into the PWHL’s product. Going bar down.
🏛️ College sports landscape will be reshaped by NIL law changes
Last year saw plenty of upheaval in college sports’ NIL landscape, with schools, brands, and athletes battling for a bigger piece of the NIL pie. While many complicated NIL dealings are still tied up in court, the move toward professionalism for student-athletes is expected to continue in 2024.
- NCAA president Charlie Baker recently called an audible with a plan for DI schools to pay athletes for their NIL rights, but the NCAA still staunchly defends its amateurism model. No matter what, expect more conference realignments and financial opportunities for women athletes — increased NIL support plus already high engagement will mean even more deals.
💼 2023 was the year of the sports media layoff
Although 2023 saw a masterful maneuvering of reducing inflation without spiking unemployment, not everyone came away unscathed. Front Office Sports noted how layoffs reshaped sports media in 2023, chronicling the New York Times’ historic sports desk closure and Disney’s directive to cut 7K jobs that resulted in shocking ESPN layoffs.
- General media trends — from dwindling resources for local reporting to the proliferation of AI — mean there could be a not-so-happy new year ahead. And an expected rise in unemployment will make the market tough for journalistic job-seekers, but small and medium companies should still be hiring.
🏓 Racquet sports expect continued growth in 2024
Pickleball may have been America’s fastest-growing sport in 2023, but this year, padel could rival pickleball’s success. After the sport launched the PPL, North America’s first pro padel league, new franchises are selling in the seven-figure range, meaning some original PPL owners are enjoying a 5x increase in value.
- There are already 300 padel courts in the U.S., and that number is expected to double in 2024. As pickleball focuses on leveraging its grassroots explosion into a sustainable (and profitable) pro sport, padel can learn from its familia. Hitting the sweet spot.
📺 Paramount and Comcast reached a renewal on their carriage agreement before it caused a College Football Playoff (CFP) and NFL content blackout from America’s largest cable provider.
💸 Sportico’s sports stock index closed out 2023 with 10% growth YoY, thanks to a surge in American sports betting.
🏟️ Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils co-owners Josh Harris and David Blitzer spent $10M on a majority stake in the ForeverLawn Sports Complex at the NFL’s HOF Village as they look to invest in youth sports and expand NFL ties after purchasing the Washington Commanders.
🐭 Disney reported its advertising inventory as nearly sold out for the CFP semifinals and next week’s championship.
🇬🇧 British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe purchased 25% of Manchester United with the intention to upgrade the club’s infrastructure and further invest in United’s women’s team. Jolly good.
⚽ Manchester City announced a new multiyear partnership with Kellogg’s, making it the club’s official breakfast cereals partner for the men’s and women’s teams.
💼 Jennifer Ogden-Reese was appointed CMO for On Location and IMG’s events division, which will produce 2024 festivities like Super Bowl LVIII and Paris 2024.
📱 ESPN promoted Kaitee Daley to SVP/social media, content optimization and ESPN Next, the company’s leadership development program. Trending up.
Here’s what has The GIST team currently hyped:
🏈 What's going global
Football. The NFL’s global expansion continues, and it could mean more action-packed Sundays on our screens.
📺 What to watch
The Dads. Dwyane Wade’s touching documentary celebrates LGBTQIA+ families in a love letter from fathers to their trans kids. Grab the tissues.
👥 Who to know
Aaron and Andre Eanes, the brothers and management duo behind Travis Kelce’s successful business ventures.
Today's email was brought to you by Aryanna Prasad. Fact checking by Bonnie Lee. Editing by Lindsay Jost. Operations by Elisha Gunaratnam and Lisa Minutillo. Ads by Lauren Tuiskula, Dee Lab and Alexis Allison. Managing edits by Molly Potter and Ellen Hyslop.