Trying to be cool
From The GIST Sports Biz (hi@thegistsports.com)
Leveling The Playing Field
It’s been a minute!
Since we’re here bright and early, let’s talk about framing, especially in the context of Olympic champions. So much has been written about the elite athlete mindset, which helped freestyle skiing queen Eileen Gu handle a reporter’s poorly-framed question. Gu reminded the world that winning two silvers isn’t anything to be ashamed of — she’s still at the top of her game.
- This is exactly the kind of mindset that fosters champions, whether on the slopes or in the boardroom. Here’s to women athletes, executives, and journalists rewriting how we talk about women’s sports. And here’s to Gu for always rising above.
Olympics
❄️ Trying to be cool
The GIST: Americans dig the Winter Olympics. Last week, the first five days of the Winter Olympics wrapped with 26.5M viewers across NBC platforms, a 93% increase over a comparable period at Beijing 2022. This has been followed with record-breaking global audiences fueled by digital and social growth: Social engagement has doubled since Beijing 2022, with Olympic digital platforms surpassing 100M users.
- Powered by social media, streaming, and the “cool factor,” NBC — and other companies, especially TOP sponsors — are fully unlocking the power of the Winter Olympics. Let’s review how a few leading brands are seeking opportunities in the snowy Dolomites. Andiamo.
🏠 Worldwide Olympic partner Airbnb is defining hospitality at Casa Airbnb, the brand’s hub at the Games. The space gives cozy hygge vibes as people congregate around food, cooking workshops, and even DJ sets. In addition to this hangout, the brand has turned to several women athletes to push its new Experiences feature at the Games.
- British freestyle skier Zoe Atkin led a waffle-making class to share her fave pre-competition meal, while on the slopes, Airbnb Experience customers watched the men’s halfpipe finals with pro snowboarder Jamie Anderson. That’s not the only way it’s being hospitable: Every Olympic and Paralympic athlete banks $500 in travel grant through its Airbnb500 program.
👕 NOC Competition Uniform Support Programme allows fashion brands to do good while making athletes look good. National team kits are expensive, especially for countries just developing their winter sports offerings. This program connects countries that don’t have the full resources to provide adequate equipment with brands able to offer national team kits and gear.
- Established in Rio 2016, the program helped over 1K athletes by 2022, and it’s working with another 27 athletes from 12 nations at these Games, including Albania, Bolivia, Eritrea, Malaysia, and the Philippines. This year, Adidas, Decathlon, Oakley, Odlo, Mizuno, and Under Armour are pitching in.
🥇 Brands are lining up to amplify their Paralympic presence. While Toyota and Bridgestone were established players in the space, more recent partners like Delta, Airbnb, and Comcast are working with Olympians and Paralympians. German insurance brand Allianz is one of the biggest TOP sponsors zeroed in on the Paralympics, while Procter & Gamble has also stepped up to the plate.
- There’s still room for newcomers, even those outside TOP partnerships. Respondents in a UK study cited TikTok’s 2024 ad as one of the most influential Paralympic campaigns for Paris 2024, 68% felt positively about Paralympic sponsors, and 42% thought health and wellness brands have a prime opportunity in Para sports. A healthy investment.
Presented By Unrivaled
🔥 Another day, another edition of The Heat Check, our weekly segment spotlighting the can’t-miss Unrivaled matchups. There are only two weekends remaining in the regular season, meaning the battle for playoff positioning is heating up.
👻 Phantom BC at 👟 Laces BC — Tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. ET — TNT
- The weekend slate tips off with a showdown between the league’s top two teams. And the last time Phantom and Laces battled it out? It was an instant classic, with the Laces’ Brittney Sykes knocking down a three-point shot to secure the 76–75 win. Pop that corn.
💸 Unrivaled hauls in millions ahead of $40M revenue expectations in 2026
Unrivaled’s first out-of-town stop in Philadelphia two weeks ago was so worth. The league reportedly banked $2M in revenue from the game, including $1M in ticket sales and $400K in merchandise. The league expects to earn more than $40M in revenue this year after almost breaking even with $27M in 2025.
- Like the PWHL, Unrivaled is seeing the value of taking its show on the road. Its March 2nd semifinal games have been moved to 17.5K-seater Barclays Center in Brooklyn, and it’s planning four to six tour stops in 2027, including WNBA fan hubs like Nashville and Kansas City. In their Taylor era.
💼 PWHL names Oak View Group as its exclusive sponsorship sales partner
On Tuesday, the PWHL entered a partnership with Oak View Group (OVG), a hospitality provider that manages numerous U.S. and Canadian arenas. Through the deal, OVG will manage national, regional, and local sponsorships for the league and its teams, starting with a multiyear agreement with Global Industrial Company in its first-ever sports league partnership.
🥊 Netflix doubles down on action sports success with women’s MMA bout
Women’s boxing did so well on Netflix in 2024 that the streamer brought it back for a rematch, and seems to be extending that strategy into other action sports. On Tuesday, Netflix announced its first-ever livestreamed MMA event will be headlined by a match between Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano, who are both technically retired from the sport.
🚫 Wasserman founder Casey Wasserman has been urged to step down as LA28 organizing committee chair and is expected to sell agency after his ties to Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell were revealed.
👀 After several rejected bids, Warner Bros. Discovery is finally reopening negotiations with Paramount Skydance after it upped its takeover bid, which could thwart Netflix’s bid. Drama.
🏀 WNBA star Breanna Stewart re-signed with Turkish Euroleague club Fenerbahce through April as WNBA CBA negotiations continue, which could delay the season.
⚽ Women’s Super League 2 club Birmingham City was sold to its ownership group, Shelby Companies Limited, with former England soccer star Karen Carney and retired WTA tennis player Kim Clijsters acquiring a small share.
🎙️ The Olympic Broadcasting Service (OBS) is promoting gender equity at Milano Cortina 2026 — 54% of OBS commentators are women, outnumbering men for the first time. Giving them a voice.
🏆 Six women’s hockey players currently hold the distinction of the “Triple Gold Club,” which would jump to nine if the U.S. wins gold today.
📱 Snapchat is testing a new feature that allows creators to monetize content by earning income directly from fans as the company hopes to expand revenue beyond advertising.
🥤 Gatorade is promoting its Gatorade Lower Sugar launch nationally with Caitlin Clark, who also requested the brand to bring back its Rain Berry flavor. We’ll drink to that.
⛸ What to read
“Defining Me” by Alysa Liu. In The Players’ Tribune, Team USA figure skater Alysa Liu reflects on falling out of love with skating during COVID — and how redefining her relationship with the sport brought her joy back ahead of the Olympics. A powerful mindset shift.
🛂 What to renew
Your passport. ICYMI, the NFL will play regular-season games in France, Spain, Brazil, Germany, and Australia during its 2026 season.
🏂 What to check out
How Maddy Schaffrick went from pro at 14 to plumber at 21. The Athletic chronicles how Madeline Schaffrick stepped away from snowboarding entirely before returning as an Olympic medal contender at 31. Sometimes the long road is the right one.
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