The WNBA season isn’t over yet, but the league’s regular-season wrap report confirms this year may have been the best one yet. On Friday, the W shared viewership, attendance, and sales data that show the league is in the perfect place for expansion.

Athletes Unlimited (AU) is getting ready to serve up its fourth season of AU Volleyball, the month-long pro league that’s changed the game for the world’s top women volleyball players. While the sport is already highly popular in other countries, new U.S. pro leagues can offer American exposure through media, marketing, and sponsorship.

Last Thursday, women’s track meet Athlos NYC took off at Icahn Stadium in Manhattan, and seemed to be everything founder Alexis Ohanian billed it to be. As we wait for official viewership and attendance numbers, immediate IRL impressions suggest Athlos could be the next major event on the Big Apple’s sports calendar between the US Open and the NYC Marathon.

This week, the European Union’s (EU) top court ruled that some of FIFA’s rules around player transfer fees violate EU law following a successful suit by former Chelsea and Real Madrid men’s player Lassana Diarra. The decision is expected to have far-reaching implications, but one overlooked aspect is its potential effect on the new and improved NWSL market.

Shortly after Sportico confirmed ACFC as the hottest NWSL club on the market, the publication exclusively revealed that a top MLS team also wants in. Los Angeles FC (LAFC) — the league’s highest-valued franchise at $1.15B — activated a tenet of its stadium-sharing agreement with ACFC to acquire a small stake in the women’s side.

Following the first-ever public NWSL valuations released last October, Sportico crunched the numbers again to determine updated 2024 values for the league’s 14 teams. The latest data not only show that the entire league is skyrocketing in value, but also that certain clubs have climbed the rankings thanks to dedicated owner investment.

In an exclusive conversation with The GIST yesterday, pro track competition Grand Slam Track’s (GST) director of athletes and racing Kyle Merber shared that the new league recently signed three Olympic medalists. As the Diamond League raises its prize money and Alexis Ohanian’s Athlos happens tomorrow, GST’s additions prove the sport is ripe for development — it just needs a little repackaging.

When Caitlin Clark declared for the WNBA Draft, interest in the Indiana Fever — one of the WNBA’s worst teams in 2023 — spiked overnight. Now that Clark has a full season under her belt, the regular-season numbers prove just how much she changed the WNBA — and there’s still more to come in the postseason.

Billionaire investor Marc Lasry has put his hat in the ring for NWSL ownership in the past, and he seems to finally have an in. An exclusive Sportico report indicates the former Milwaukee Bucks owner is close to finalizing a deal for a control stake of the NWSL’s NC Courage, which is currently valued at about $108M — more than double the team’s $52M valuation in 2023.

Ion bet early on the WNBA with a media rights partnership, a move that’s paying off more than ever in 2024. The network released historic viewership numbers and advertising sales for the latest WNBA season yesterday that should spur the network to re-sign with the league.

For Soccer, a North American leader in soccer marketing, media, and experiences, released its annual fan insights report on U.S. soccer fans yesterday. Its numbers illustrate that the beautiful game’s American fanbase is becoming more diverse, especially when it comes to women and people of color.

The numbers are finally in for NBCUniversal’s coverage of the 2024 Paralympics, and the athletes weren’t the only ones shattering records. After offering 1.5K hours of coverage this year, the network reached a record 15.4M total viewers, proving there’s an immense audience opportunity for the Games.