Business as usual
From The GIST Sports Biz (hi@thegistsports.com)
Happy Wednesday!
It seems everyone had a ball at the 77th Met Gala on Monday night, especially attendees hailing from the sports world. Chicago Sky star Angel Reese and gymnastics legend Simone Biles stunned as members of the host committee, while three NY Liberty vets — Breanna Stewart, Sabrina Ionescu, and Jonquel Jones — stole the show alongside Liberty owner Clara Wu Tsai.
- With NBA superstar LeBron James as honorary co-chair, the gala raised the largest amount in the event’s history ($31M). Tailored to perfection.
Women's rugby
🏉 Locked in
The GIST: Last Friday, 10.5K fans showed up at Kansas City’s CPKC Stadium to watch the USA Rugby women’s 15s take on Team Canada. While the bout resulted in a loss for the Americans, the game set a new U.S. attendance record for the sport fueled by its recent surge in popularity.
- With American fans finally joining the scrum, marketers should stay tuned in to major tentpole events like the upcoming 2028 Olympics and the 2033 Rugby World Cup. Front and center.
The Olympics: While global interest in women’s rugby is rising, Paris 2024 was a turning point for its U.S. contingent, giving the country’s national team a bigger spotlight than ever. Plus, the tournament was met with intense fan excitement across the board: The first day of women’s sevens events in Paris fielded a record 67K crowd, followed by 69K for the quarter-finals.
- The sport is also getting wider cross-channel exposure thanks to American rugby and TikTok star Ilona Maher, who facilitated unprecedented growth by winning over social media followers. She brought those fans with her when she began her three-month stint with UK’s Bristol Bears, which led to record ticket interest and attendance.
Women’s Elite Rugby (WER): Following the Olympics, the first U.S. pro women’s rugby league launched this spring and sits atop the U.S. professional rugby pyramid. Founded by former executives of the previous Women’s Premier League (WPL), the league anticipated the sport’s popularity and is hoping to capitalize on it through the new league.
- With WER building towards a Series A funding round, it’s been bolstered by partners like Pinto Capital LLC, Ida Sports, and DAZN, which is offering live (and free) global coverage as the exclusive channel for the league.
Zooming out: Maher is certainly a star in the sport, landing big-ticket sponsorships with Adidas and several beauty brands. But she’s not the only draw: Rugby interest overall is growing, and the national team’s attendance record and WER’s launch proves there’s interest in the game here and abroad.
- U.S. marketers are missing out if they’re not considering rugby right now, especially leading into international tournaments like the World Cup in the UK this summer. And when brands do activate around the game, they should focus on an in-arena presence and social media campaigns — that’s where rugby’s newest fans are showing up. Might as well try.
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Start writing your 26.2 story by signing up for Every Woman’s Marathon in Scottsdale, AZ, on November 16th. Move quickly — spots are filling up.
📺 WNBA makes viewership case for preseason packaging
ESPN proved the WNBA preseason is worth activating around, especially when Caitlin Clark is involved. Sunday’s matchup between Clark’s Indiana Fever and Brazil’s national team averaged 1.3M viewers and peaked at 1.6M, up 13% from the network’s 2024 regular-season average. ESPN’s pregame show WNBA Countdown also averaged 571K viewers — 71% more than 2024’s regular-season average. It’s showtime.
🏒 PWHL sees sizable YoY attendance boost powered by Takeover Tour
The PWHL managed to top 2024’s historic attendance with even bigger crowds in year two. The league drew 653K fans across 90 games, a 50% increase over the 392K fans that showed up across 72 games in 2024. Average attendance per game shot up 29% to 7.2K and almost a fifth of these fans showed up outside PWHL markets during its first-ever Takeover Tour.
- The interest is pushing the PWHL to consider expansion, with the league announcing two new teams after its nine-city tour. This women’s hockey growth is paying off for the PWHL’s early investors, like the nearly 50 corporate sponsors who joined the league last year.
📈 New Axios numbers illustrate meteoric rise in women’s sports media rights values
With media rights widely considered one of the most essential parts of growing women’s sports, Axios’ latest numbers prove the most popular women’s sports entities in the U.S. got the bag in recent media rights negotiations. In the WNBA, NWSL, and NCAA, media rights skyrocketed by 300%, 3,900%, and 900%, respectively, between previous and current contracts. Only way is up.
🐦 Vox Media is partnering with WNBA legend Sue Bird to launch a new basketball podcast, Bird’s Eye View, as Bird is expected to land an Olympic-sized job in the coming days. Eye on the ball.
📺 Scripps Sports announced its programming slate for the 2025 WNBA season, confirming it would air the most regular-season games of any linear network this season.
👟 Investment firm 3G Capital acquired sneaker company Skechers for $9.4B this week.
⛳ Women’s golf legend Michelle Wie West became the first athlete to invest in Togethxr since it was founded and plans to expand the platform’s women’s golf coverage. Everyone watches women’s sports golf.
💼 Angel City FC and Justworks CEO Michael Seckler are hosting a sports business–focused panel at Angel City’s Santa Monica office.
🏆 Yesterday, global investment bank and LPGA sponsor Mizuho Americas announced Epson Tour champ Yana Wilson would join the aforementioned West and Rose Zhang as its newest brand ambassador.
🎟️ Vivid Seats stock fell 39% on Tuesday following company earnings that reflected a dwindling interest in live events such as sports and concerts.
👀 People are watching newfronts next week as companies move forward with advertising spend despite worsening business headwinds, per Axios. Business as usual.
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Recs from our roster
🔥 What’s in
Sweating it out, UK sauna style. Saunas are booming across the pond as Gen Z enjoys the health benefits and the hang.
👜 Who to welcome
Coach to the WNBA. ICYMI: They just became the league’s first-ever handbag partner, just the latest in a long list of fashionable crossovers in women’s sports.
🛍 Where to shop
At Davines. Their high-quality, sustainable hair care products are perfect for achieving healthy, beautiful hair while positively impacting the planet. A win-win.
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