Women’s sports executives weigh in on parity, media and NIL

Renie Anderson, executive vice president and chief revenue officer for the NFL: The obstacle, or really the opportunity, for today is to continue to amplify the spectacular athleticism of these women. Rather than be shocked and surprised that women are spectacular at sport, we need to do a better job of weaving in the message of greatness when highlighting the greatness in men’s sports. It’s there. It just doesn’t get the attention it deserves.

Jessica Berman, commissioner of the National Women’s Soccer League: Because the world has woken up to women’s sports, the expectations on how fast this can grow, from all stakeholders, is really challenging. We’re 100 years behind men’s sports, and so it’s not to say that we should move slowly. It is to say that it is challenging to sort of build the plane as quickly as so many stakeholders expect it to be built — and to do it in a way that’s sustainable and commercially viable.

Cathy Engelbert, commissioner of the Women’s National Basketball Association: One of the obstacles is the undervaluation of our assets. Whether it’s a patch on the uniform or an ad buy on a broadcast, we need to change the model. It’s based on decades-old spreadsheet models that are tailored to men’s sports and in those models, a lot of things that companies are now supporting in women’s sports aren’t being accounted for like their diversity, their community, the fact that they are not the “one and done” type.

Katrina Adams, former pro tennis player and ex-CEO of the United States Tennis Association: I think what the Women’s Tennis Association has done for many years, is shown other professional sports what can be achieved if they use your voice and their talent, that they can survive. When you look at the players of today — you know, we talk about the [Caitlin Clark types] and Sabrina Ionescu and Coco Gauff, who was the highest paid athlete last year — there’s so many opportunities for these young women to use their platform to really speak up and speak out on what it means to be on a level playing field week in and week out.

Berman: I think we have to go from these being moments to being part of a movement, so that we get out of the default of having these reference points be episodic, or transactional or in isolation, so that it can translate to more sustainable growth and investment. I think the more we can demonstrate and talk about some of those consistent data points that show that the business is actually being built in a more consistent way, the easier it’ll be to debunk the narrative that these are one-off success stories.

Adams: I think it’s an opportunity for our women to finally be recognized and actually make a living. The men, they’ve had this opportunity for years, for decades, “under the table,” if you will, now the women are able to do it legally with the NIL. For them to make a little money and really grow the sport in their communities, in their cities in their college towns, etc. I think it’s great. They’re learning how to become entrepreneurs at a younger age, and they’re doing extremely well.

Anderson: I think NIL helps likely a small few through their social media. I’m not sure outside of a handful of amazing athletes/influencers it’s going to be spread out throughout college sports for women, like it is for football for men. But I guess we wait and see. I don’t think it hurts, but for those few women that do benefit, it’s an opportunity for them to lift up other women.

Duckworth: NIL opens doors for female athletes to build their own brands in ways that weren’t possible before. Why shouldn’t a female athlete make money the same way her male counterpart can? Money equals independence in my book. Kudos to major sports stars like Angel Reese or Caitlin Clark on showing young women just what can be built. 

Hefford: The positive impact of NIL on women’s college athletics has reverberated throughout women’s sports, creating a scenario where all boats rise. As more female athletes become household names, the investment in women’s sports is likely to increase, encouraging more young girls to start — or continue participating in — sports.

Rosen: On paper, it’s great and we should celebrate anything that helps women athletes grow their brand and monetize their talents. There are obviously still some details that need to be ironed out, especially when it comes to team dynamics and the potential for NIL deals to force players into taking the short-term profit at the cost of their long-term development.