It’s officially spooky season in the WNBA as CBA tensions rise ahead of the agreement’s Halloween deadline. With the league generating more revenue than ever — it banked an estimated $226M in 2024 and is expected to haul $500M in 2026 — and players want their rightful slice of the pie.

The WNBA Finals are set, meaning the locations and dates are also finally locked in. New data from the W’s official online travel partner Booking.com illustrates a largely untapped opportunity for the travel sector to cash in on women’s sports fandom.

Yesterday, sports data insights platform SponsorPulse (SP) highlighted its recent report that tracks WNBA fan behavior in relation to the beauty industry. This, combined with May data from Sports Innovation Lab (SIL), proves the fascinating overlap between W fans, luxury fashionistas, and makeup lovers.

The Collective — Wasserman’s women-focused data insights platform — published a new study on Monday advising the sports industry on how to engage with women as sports superfans and powerhouse consumers. By 2030, women are set to control 75% of global discretionary spending and lead 85% of household purchasing decisions.

Yesterday, FanDuel partnered with Amazon to become the official odds provider for WNBA and NBA games on Prime Video. The partnership — which will offer real-time odds and in-app bet tracking — capitalizes on the power of gamification across the sports industry as it attracts both avid and casual fans.

This Saturday, England’s Red Roses won the Women’s Rugby World Cup at home, but the wins extend beyond the field. Global interest in women’s rugby is reaching a fever pitch and rising, setting it up as the next Olympic sport ripe for commercialization. But is rugby ready for its close-up in the U.S.?

This week, Sports Business Journal shared details on how USA Volleyball is approaching a key opportunity in the women’s game. Along with Canada, the governing body is reportedly submitting a bid to FIVB to host the 2027 women’s world indoor volleyball championship. If chosen, it would be the first time the tournament has taken place stateside.

The X Games — ESPN’s iconic action sports competition that made sports like snowboarding and BMX mainstream and drove their Olympic inclusion — is ready for its glow-up. After its private equity acquisition in 2022, the X Games unveiled new branding and shared details about its forthcoming X Games League this week.

It seems like everyone has a podcast these days — last week, Front Office Sports pointed out that Billie Jean King, Abby Wambach, Julie Foudy, Sophie Cunningham, and the Williams sisters have all recently launched pods, not to mention Men In Blazers’ expanded slate. But how many is too many? In women’s sports, we may still have a ways to go to reach the peak.

The Red Roses did so much more than trounce France in the Women’s Rugby World Cup semis — they reached a record 3.3M peak audience across domestic broadcaster BBC Sport’s platforms. As the tournament continues in the UK, let’s review the viewership, attendance, and social media wins so far as we consider the women’s rugby opportunity ahead.

This weekend, Las Vegas Aces star A’ja Wilson made WNBA history by winning the league’s MVP award for a record fourth time, shortly after earning her third WNBA Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY) and warranting the first-ever share of the award.

As the NWSL builds toward its future (one commissioner Jessica Berman plans to lead), the league is making key decisions to level up its on-field product, including through its recent digital media partnership with The GIST. Let’s review a few of the NWSL’s moves announced this week, and what they might mean for the league and interested sponsors.