Sports Business | The GIST

WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert to retire at end of the year

ICYMI, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert announced her retirement on Friday after seven years in the position. Her last day on the job is December 31, 2026, with this epic 16 weeks’ notice launching a highly competitive job search that already has the rumor wheel spinning.

September 10, 2026

Minnesota Lynx seek new streaming partner after Victory+ folds

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Things have gone from bad to worse for Victory+ after its parent company announced the dissolution of the Dallas-based streaming service yesterday. Surprisingly, the WNBA’s Minnesota Lynx and Atlanta Dream kept their contracts until the end despite previous partners like the NWSL terminating its agreement earlier this summer.

September 03, 2026

Inaugural season of the Upshot League fills much-needed development gap

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While the NBA, MLB, and NHL have distinct talent developmental systems, the WNBA has…a major gap. To help change this, the Upshot League launched this May in hopes of creating more stateside opportunities for elite players.

September 01, 2026

Refurbished basketball courts breathe new life into community spaces

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With 27 Olympic gold medals between the men’s and women’s teams, USA Basketball knows a thing or two about cultivating talent. So what do they list as the number one value for their youth development program? Fun.

August 29, 2026

Backlash from disturbing golf ad opens door for new brands

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By now, everyone and their mother has probably seen the Callaway and Good Good Golf video where co-founder Garrett Clark shoved fellow golfer Alexis Miestowski to the ground and told her to never touch his new driver. After the ad went viral, the backlash was immediate and continues to grow.

August 27, 2026

Unrivaled reaches $650M valuation following successful Series C fundraise

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It’s Unrivaled’s world, and we’re just living in it. The upstart 3v3 women’s basketball league launched by superstars Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart is thriving, announcing yesterday that it nearly doubled its valuation in just one year.

August 27, 2026

Minnesota Lynx facing ownership changes with playoffs looming

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August 25, 2026

Flag Football World Championships underscore opportunities ahead of LA28

Sports Business

Flag Football World Championships underscore opportunities ahead of LA28

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August 22, 2026

As we wrote in February, flag football participation is surging at the youth level, particularly for girls. There are more opportunities for girls to play flag compared to tackle football, and athletes (and their parents) are drawn to it as a “safer” option. Let’s look at the numbers that support the sport’s grassroots success.

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The GIST of It Podcast

Ep #588

LIV Golf: Bankrupted, but not dead yet

September 10, 2026

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Today, we’re covering the end of an era…maybe. LIV Golf has officially filed for bankruptcy, bringing the four-year battle between the Saudi-backed league and the PGA Tour to an end…kinda. In today’s episode of The GIST of It, co-hosts Ellen Hyslop and Steph Rotzl dive into what LIV’s bankruptcy entails, how much is owed to its players (hint, it’s millions), and what the league’s CEO has in store for the next iteration of LIV Golf. Oh boy.