💸 Making it Reign
Seattle Sounders and Carlyle Group agree to purchase Seattle Reign FC for $58M
Private equity (PE) giant Carlyle Group and MLS' Seattle Sounders agreed to purchase Seattle Reign FC for $58M, up from the NWSL club’s $49M October valuation. After the surprise sale of the San Diego Wave for $120M, this makes Reign FC the second NWSL team sold within a week, with both fetching more than their previous valuations.
March 20, 2024
💰 Need a Minute?
Minute Media acquires Sports Illustrated publishing rights for 10 years
On Monday, international media conglomerate Minute Media (MM) struck a multiyear licensing deal with Sports Illustrated (SI) owner Authentic Brands Group for digital and print rights over the next 10 years. While financial terms were not disclosed, Authentic Brands obtained equity stake in MM through the deal.
March 20, 2024
⚽ For angels to fly
Angel City FC reportedly exploring sale of controlling stake in club
The NWSL is selling like hot cakes — within the last week, two of its highest-valued franchises have put up the ‘for sale’ sign. A day after the San Diego Wave announced its impending $120M sale, Sportico reported that Angel City hopes to sell a controlling stake amid ownership friction.
March 18, 2024
📈 Nothing but (cutting) net
NCAA women’s basketball tournament sees exponential growth since utilizing the March Madness branding
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This year’s women’s March Madness is expected to outperform the men’s across a variety of metrics, in large part thanks to Sedona Prince’s whistleblowing in 2021 that shed light on the gender disparity between the men’s and women’s tournaments. Here’s how the competition has grown in the years since.
March 18, 2024
🎾 Meeting their match
Saudi Arabia reportedly makes push to merge ATP, WTA with proposed PIF Tour
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According to The Telegraph, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) wants to merge the WTA and ATP tennis tours with a limited-time, $2B offer that expires in 90 days. The rebranded PIF Tour would reportedly replace the proposed Premium Tour, a joint WTA–ATP circuit that’s been in development since January.
March 15, 2024
📈 Eye on the tiger
NCAA women’s basketball tournaments net record viewership and attendance highs
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The 2023-24 NCAA women’s basketball season was one for the books, and it’s not even over yet. Leading up to March Madness, women’s collegiate conference tournaments shattered records across the board, with the Big Ten and SEC tournaments drawing viewership in the millions.
March 15, 2024
⚽ Primed for success
NWSL expands use of Amazon’s suite of services with extensive multiyear partnership
Commerce behemoth Amazon is expanding its recent NWSL media rights deal through a multiyear partnership with the league that involves Amazon Prime and Amazon Web Services (AWS). Additionally, the deal makes Amazon the exclusive retail partner of the NWSL and an official licensee.
March 13, 2024
📈 She’s got next
New data explores advertising trends for women’s sports in 2023
A new report by EDO — a marketing platform that measures the effectiveness of TV ads — offers metrics about 2023’s women’s sports viewership. It shares meaningful insight on ad engagement trends in sports like tennis and basketball, with data supporting the marketability case for rising stars like Coco Gauff and Caitlin Clark.
March 13, 2024
📈 Driving women’s sports forward
Canadian Tire shares results of Women’s Sports Initiative after one year
Canadian Tire (CTC) is leveraging its unparalleled brand power to become a changemaker in Canadian women’s sports sponsorship. CTC’s AVP of Community Impact & Sport Partnerships Ashley Curran recently spoke with The GIST about the company’s efforts to transform the women’s sports landscape in Canada through its Women’s Sport Initiative.
March 11, 2024
🏟️ Elevate her pitch
WSL attendance is on the rise as clubs continue to break records
The Women’s Super League (WSL) is enjoying a 43% attendance boost YoY, with Arsenal leading the way in proving that the league deserves a bigger stage. While popularity and crowd sizes do vary among clubs, the overall numbers show upward trends across the board.
March 11, 2024
⚽ 24K magic
24 Hour Fitness becomes founding partner of Angel City FC through multiyear deal
24 Hour Fitness is bulking up its existing NWSL ties. After renewing and expanding its year-long sponsorship of San Diego Wave FC last month, the gym brand signed a multiyear deal yesterday to become a founding level partner of Angel City FC.
March 08, 2024
🏆 Fancy a cuppa?
UK expresses interest in hosting FIFA Women’s World Cup in the 2030s
As the UK further invests in expanding its women’s soccer footprint, governmental agency UK Sport shared its ambitions to host the country’s first-ever FIFA Women’s World Cup (WWC) in the 2030s.
March 08, 2024