Sundial Media and Technology Group (SMTG) — the media and live events company behind Essence, Afropunk, and Refinery29 — finalized a unique partnership with Grand Slam Track (GST), a new track and field competition that kicked off this year. SMTG will facilitate media coverage of GST in addition to improving track day experiences for fans.

As interest in women’s sports grows, so does the enthusiasm for content surrounding the women’s game. After seeing Netflix benefit from cult faves Drive to Survive and Full Swing, documentaries that converted new fans to F1 and golf, fellow streamers are considering how to leverage storytelling to win over young, more casual sports fans.

Unlike the limit, the perfect women’s sports brand marketing strategy does exist — at least according to Parity, who released its latest research report yesterday about the business of women’s sports.

Last Friday, the $2.8B lawsuit settlement that will remake the business of college sports, House v. NCAA, was officially approved. This will usher in a new era where athletic departments can share up to about $20.5M of revenue per year directly with student-athletes via name, image, and likeness (NIL) deals.

This week, data insights platform SponsorUnited (SU) shared new intel with The GIST about revenue generation in the WNBA and NWSL. After comparing revenue and existing deals, the findings illustrate the leagues’ immense YoY growth while still underlining the remaining gap when compared to men’s sports.

Yesterday, Portland-based women’s sports bar The Sports Bra named the first four cities for its forthcoming expansion. Since opening in 2022, The Sports Bra has spurred a movement of independent women’s sports bars popping up across the U.S. and is now looking to become a multi-city franchise of its own.

We’ve seen makeup brands go big in women’s sports lately, including E.l.f.’s support of the PWHL and Overtime Select. But the brand’s decision to rev up its investment in NASCAR, coupled with previous NFL activations, shows that catering to women who follow men’s sports is a unique and effective way to reach a historically overlooked demo.

Sports-focused FAST channel Fubo recently launched its Women's Sports Zone while touting highly-customizable ad campaigns for brands. Inspired by viewers’ interest in women’s sports, Fubo found a way to activate in the space without having any direct media rights for a major league.

This week, The GIST debuted a new report in partnership with NYC agency Barbarian that explores the proven interest and investment potential in women’s sports. The report delineates the paradigm shift in how the category is considered, the intense audience engagement among women’s sports fans, and identifies trends to keep an eye on.

Last week, broadcast networks and streamers shared a glimpse into current strategies during the 2025 Upfronts in NYC. Companies like NBC, Amazon, Netflix, and Disney all observed the same trend: It’s smart to double down on live sports because of the impressive engagement the industry generates, both from viewers and advertisers.

A new data report from Sky Sports — the UK’s largest investor in media rights across women’s sports properties — proves women’s sports are very mainstream, with 80% of UK fans expressing interest in at least one women’s sport.

The overlap between luxury fashion and women’s sports continued this week with two designer-driven deals that recruited popular women athletes. On Wednesday, Coach revealed its athlete roster for its latest sneaker campaign, while New Balance (NB) furthered its Miu Miu collab the same day by debuting a Coco Gauff collection.