Soccer

More diverse soccer fanbase impacts men’s FIFA World Cup marketing strategies

The men’s FIFA World Cup is right around the corner, and the U.S. is hosting the global soccer tournament (alongside Canada and Mexico) for the first time in 32 years. A lot has changed since then — for starters, the sport’s fanbase is more diverse than ever, especially in younger demographics. Let’s explore soccer’s changing audience and how this tourney is an unbeatable opportunity for brands to reach and engage diverse audiences.

June 06, 2026

How one NWSL team built a regional culture from the ground up

⚽

In March, we interviewed Courage COO Ralph Vuono about winning fans in an atomized regional culture, and how the club plans to further energize Courage Country — and prospective sponsors.

May 02, 2026

Gotham FC teams up with NYC mayor Zohran Mamdani on shared message of affordability

⚽

FIFA men’s World Cup tickets are expensive: Fans know it, Gotham FC knows it, and NYC mayor Zohran Mamdani knows it. So in an initiative to make local soccer more affordable, the NWSL club teamed up with Mamdani to sell 1K tickets for its May 9th home game for $5 each, and they sold out in under an hour — and Gotham’s working to offer another 500 more at this price.

April 28, 2026

The NWSL awards 18th franchise to Columbus, Ohio as league considers marketing power of multi-franchise sports owners

⚽

On Tuesday, the NWSL awarded its 18th franchise to Columbus, Ohio for a record $205M expansion fee, up from Atlanta’s $165M fee in 2025. NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman cited the region’s affinity for soccer as a key factor, but so was the money the ownership group put down: $300M between the expansion fee and a new bespoke training facility.

April 23, 2026

Denver Summit FC arranges a $40M private placement in historic first for women’s sports

⚽

On Monday, Mesirow Capital Markets — an independent, employee-owned financial services firm — arranged a $40M private placement (or private bond financing plan) for Denver Summit FC, the Denver-based NWSL expansion club set to break attendance records at its home opener this weekend.

March 26, 2026

How the Bhathal family is running Portland

⚽🏀

The Bhathals are changing how the women’s sports game is played, from building the first-ever dual WNBA and NWSL practice facility to creating the first local channel dedicated to women’s sports. That synergy is helping the teams become a major draw for high-profile brand deals. This week, we spoke with Bhathal Merage in a rare interview ahead of her appearance at the Power Play Sports Sponsorship Accelerator about the benefits of owning both teams, both from an ownership and sponsorship perspective. As she put it, “one plus one equals five.” The math is mathin’.

March 20, 2026

NWSL COO Sarah Jones Simmer discusses the league’s growth strategy ahead of 2026 season kick-off

⚽

In 2025, everyone wanted in on the NWSL. Average crowds exceeded 10K for the third straight year, including a record 40K at San Francisco’s Oracle Park, while season viewership rose 22% YoY (especially among young women).

March 14, 2026

Kynisca becomes FIFA Women's Champions Cup title partner

Sports Business

Kynisca becomes FIFA Women's Champions Cup title partner

⚽

January 27, 2026

This week, the inaugural FIFA Women's Champions Cup — the sport’s first-ever intercontinental club competition for women — is fielding its final rounds in London, England. The months-long tournament hasn’t exactly received mainstream media coverage, but that may change thanks to Kynsica’s new title sponsorship.

Read Full Story

The GIST of It Podcast

Ep #562

Christine Sinclair reflects on her youth soccer career, as Canadian Tire Jumpstart Charities pushes the game forward

June 09, 2026

Listen on Apple Music Listen on Spotify

Christine Sinclair reflects on her youth soccer career, as Canadian Tire Jumpstart Charities pushes the game forward

Ahead of the biggest soccer tournament ever, we have a special treat. In collaboration with our friends at Canadian Tire Jumpstart Charities, today’s episode of The GIST of It features two thrilling conversations about the state of Canadian soccer and how Jumpstart is expanding youth access to pitches across the country.

First, you’ll hear from CanWNT legend Christine Sinclair, who reflects on how youth soccer programs changed her life, before Marco Di Buono, the President of Jumpstart Charities, discusses findings from the latest State of Youth Sport report. She shoots, we score.