WAGs are where it's at

On Friday, Netflix announced it will acquire the streaming and studio divisions of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), now separated under the Warner Brothers (WB) brand, in a $82.7B deal. But in dramatic fashion, Paramount Skydance threatened to finish what it started as it launched a $108.4B hostile bid for the entire company to compete with what was considered a done deal.

Last week, Rival — set to be the first sportsbook built exclusively for women’s sports — shared its plans to be active in three U.S. betting markets by 2026. The platform will include bets across the NWSL, WNBA, NCAA women’s basketball, WSL, WTA, and more, differing from the existing platforms that center men’s sports.

Today, The GIST is exclusively sharing that Pro Athlete Community (PAC) — an organization that supports retired athletes in their post-playing careers — has named WNBA legend Candace Parker as a co-chair on its board of advisors. This is a pivotal move for the org as it recruits more women into its community of over 1.6K retired pro athletes, many of whom are men.

Last week, collegiate NIL platform Opendorse shared data-backed insights on why brands should partner with women athletes. The platform points out only 8%-12% of House vs. NCAA settlement payments are allocated to women athletes across more than a dozen programs, totaling roughly $2M of a $20.5M maximum budget.

On Sunday, India won the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup for the first time ever, doing it on their home turf in front of more than 40K fans. It’s a transformative moment for women’s cricket in the country, which, despite its storied legacy on the men’s side, is just building up its women’s fandom thanks to recent domestic investment and increased exposure.

The stars aligned for women’s sports in the UK this year, with the country hosting international tournaments like the Women’s Rugby World Cup, promoting domestic leagues like the Barclays Women’s Super League, The Hundred, and the Netball Super League, and winning the UEFA Women’s Euro title (again).

Last week, the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift confirmed its 2026 route, which will be the race’s longest course in its four-year history. And rather than beginning immediately after the men’s Tour de France, the women’s race will now begin one week later, with the push for a longer course and a separate schedule fueled by explosive interest in the women’s race.

This week, prominent sports sponsor Ally released survey data on 3K Gen Z, millennial, Gen X, and Boomer sports fans to understand how and where sports fans spend their money. The study illustrates spending differences by generation and gender, including details on the spending profile of women sports fans.