Keep Portland weird
From The GIST Sports Biz (hi@thegistsports.com)
Leveling The Playing Field
Hello!
The month began with shocking international turmoil and many civilians caught in the crossfire, including some international athletes. This includes F1, tennis, and women’s professional basketball players, such as former South Carolina Gamecocks and pro women’s basketball players Tiffany Mitchell, Mikiah Herbert Harrigan, and Destiny Littleton, who are stranded in Israel.
Women's sports
📺 Portlandia
The GIST: Last week, the NWSL’s Portland Thorns and the WNBA’s Portland Fire announced that the organizations — both owned by the Bhathal family — will create a local women’s sports channel in Portland, OR, to showcase content from both teams on Fox 12 Plus. The Fire are also partnering with streaming platform Kiswe to create a dedicated team app.
- It’s the latest example of the Bhathals capitalizing on unique opportunities through joint ownership, which remains rare in women’s sports, and further illustrates how Portland’s culture is famously hospitable to the industry. Let’s dive in.
The city: PDX will definitely have places to air this channel, especially since the first bar dedicated to women’s sports (The Sports Bra) was established there. It also has the first co-shared women’s sports training facility: A repurposed Nike facility that’s undergoing $150M in renovations to accommodate both sports, notably easier under shared ownership.
- Portland has been hailed as a women’s sports epicenter. For years, the community has passionately supported local collegiate teams and the Thorns, which helped its stadium generate $187M in economic output in 2024 and averaged over 18K fans last season. And after finally securing a W bid in 2025, the city landed one of AUSL’s six franchises in January.
The context: No other city has a local channel dedicated to local women’s sports like this, nor a joint women’s sports facility, and shared ownership certainly makes this easier. But seeing the Bhathals unite these leagues through these projects shows that doubling up has so many benefits, especially in a market with broad interest in women’s sports.
- We saw this play out with the W’s Golden State Valkyries, which are owned by Warriors owners Joe Lacob and Peter Guber. Early on, the Valkyries shared resources with the Warriors, including its marketing team and Chase Center venue. The Valkyries even renovated the Warriors’ former Oakland headquarters into a dedicated practice facility.
The opportunity: Sponsors should flag any opportunities through connected franchises, which allow them to reach overlapping but distinct fanbases — especially in Portland, where fans enthusiastically support women’s sports. This is likely the thought behind Kaiser Permanente’s recent deal as the Thorns-Fire practice facility’s naming partner and exclusive medical provider.
- In the basketball-loving Bay Area, the Valkyries’ valuation skyrocketed in year one thanks to fan and brand buy-in. Kaiser Permanente, Chase, and Rakuten extended Warriors deals to cover the Valkyries, and the W team became so popular it reciprocated: Sephora first teamed up with the Valks, then extended its deal to the Warriors. Love to see it.
🏀 WNBPA, WNBA trade CBA proposals as March 10th deadline nears
According to Front Office Sports, the players’ union sent the league a counterproposal Friday that included changes to the revenue share percentage and team housing requests, with players going from asking for 27.5% of total team and league revenue to 26%.
- On Sunday night, the league responded with another proposal that would allow young players to enter a maximum contract by their fourth year, affecting stars like Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers, though Bueckers has expressed concern about the slow pace of developments. Back and forth.
⚽ Ida Sports hosts webinar with Washington Spirit goalkeeper, connecting Michele Kang investments
Dedicated women’s athletic footwear brand Ida Sports — supported by Kynisca founder Michele Kang — is hosting a live virtual webinar celebrating Women’s History Month this afternoon with Washington goalie and Ida Sports Pro athlete Kaylie Collins. It’s worth noting that Kang also owns the Spirit, underscoring how she is able to integrate and connect properties across her portfolio.
🏛️ Duke’s women’s basketball program flagged as potential risk for unionization
Duke University hired a law firm to evaluate the risk for unionization among its collegiate sports programs, and the results are in. Yesterday, Sportico reported the teams that were the greatest concerns were Duke’s football, men’s lacrosse, and women’s basketball programs, all of which are popular and prestigious institutions at the university.
- The memo expressed concern that women’s basketball head coach Kara Lawson’s calls for gender equity could prompt calls for broader equity via unionization, writing “perceived or actual disparities between the men’s and women’s basketball team could be a trigger for unionization. ” Don’t underestimate her.
💎 The Golden State Valkyries gifted hip-hop star Cardi B a custom bedazzled jersey ahead of her concert at the Chase Center. Came through drippin’.
👀 Eileen Gu and Caitlin Clark were front row at Prada’s show in Milan, with media outlets covering their offseason as women athletes continue driving culture through fashion.
🏟️ The PWHL shattered the U.S. women’s hockey attendance record (again) when 17,335 fans watched the Seattle Torrent battle the Toronto Sceptres. Unfazed.
📺 U.S. women’s hockey team captain Hilary Knight joined other Team USA hockey players on Saturday Night Live this weekend — ICYMI, you can also catch the women at our event with Flavor Flav this summer in Las Vegas, hosted by MGM Grand.
🏐 Major League Volleyball named former NFL and USA Volleyball executive Jaime Weston as the league’s first-ever commissioner.
💼 NBC Sports, USA Sports, and the PGA of America extended their media rights agreement through 2033, which includes coverage of the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.
💰 Paramount is declaring victory in its bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, though not everyone is sold. If it goes through, though, it will own basically all U.S. sports rights.
🏓 What to look out for
A24 Is Dropping a Marty Supreme Ping Pong Table. The indie studio behind the Timothée Chalamet–led awards contender is expanding its cult-favorite merch playbook with branded paddles, balls, and now a full table. When marketing becomes a lifestyle.
🤝 Who’s teaming up
NBC News and OffBall are partnering on original NBA lifestyle programming. The short-form content will spotlight players’ partners and off-court passions, tapping into the league’s return to NBC and growing demand for culture-forward sports storytelling.
🎓 Who to know
These Olympians who switched sports after college. From basketball to speed skating and track to bobsled, the NCAA highlights athletes whose paths to Team USA weren’t exactly linear. Proof that pivots can pay off.
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