Doubling Down On Women's Sports

New report shows ad spending on women’s sports more than doubled last year

March 12, 2025

Ad Spending on Women’s Sports More Than Doubled Last Year
In a report released Tuesday and covered by CNBC, EDO found that TV advertisers spent $244 million on women’s sports in 2024, a year-over-year increase of 139%, with basketball receiving the most investment of any sport. That corresponded with a 131% year-over-year increase in women’s sports TV viewership, according to EDO’s estimates.
^CNBC

Eagles Set to Visit White House, President Donald Trump to Celebrate Super Bowl Win in April
Yahoo Sports’ Ryan Young writes, “While visiting the White House to celebrate a championship with the president is a longstanding tradition in the United States, that fell off significantly during President Donald Trump’s first stint in office. The Golden State Warriors, for example, decided not to visit after winning NBA titles in 2017 and 2018.

“The Eagles did not visit the White House after their win in Super Bowl LII. Trump said he withdrew their invitation and claimed that was due to the team remaining in the locker room during the national anthem that season, however there were no known instances of players doing so that season.”
^{Yahoo! Sports}

The NBA’s Southeast Division is Struggling. There’s Still Hope for the Hawks, Magic and Heat
AP News’ Tim Reynolds writes, “This fall will mark the 10th anniversary of the NBA changing its playoff rules and not guaranteeing a division champion a top-four seed regardless of record. This season’s Southeast Division is a good reason why that change was necessary.

“In NBA history, there’s never been a division with a worst won-loss record than the Southeast this season. Entering Monday, the five teams in the Southeast — Atlanta, Orlando, Miami, Charlotte and Washington — had a combined record of 113-200, that winning percentage of .369 set to be the worst of any division ever.”
^{AP News}

Celtics Sale Progress: Next Round of Bids Due Friday
Sportico’s Scott Soshnick and Eben Novy-Williams write, “The next round of bids is due by end of day Friday, said the people, who were granted anonymity because the details are private. It’s the next step forward in a sale that many are closely watching as an indication not just of how the market currently values top-tier NBA teams, but also how it values a team that doesn’t own its arena and has only a small stake in its local media partner.”
^Sportico

Yankees Set Franchise Mark for Ticket, Suite Sales
The Yankees reported a franchise-record $411.7M “in sales for tickets and luxury suites” for the 2024 season, which includes “a boost” of $101.9M from the postseason. The Yankees lost the World Series to the Dodgers in five games, but the postseason run “resulted in seven sold-out home games.” Thirty percent of the $101.9M is “subject to refund or credit to ticket-holders because three potential postseason home games were paid for in advance but were not played.” The filing “does not include other revenue, such as television and radio rights and purchases of merchandise or food and beverages at the stadium, and does not include the team’s expenses.”
^{Newsday via Sports Business Journal}

Shohei Ohtani Becomes First MLB Player Available in Fortnite
He is the first MLB player available in the video game and will be part of the "Icon Series," which includes outfits and emotes, among other items, based on real people. Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James was announced as a member of the series in July 2021.
^ESPN

How ‘Around the Horn’ Beat Doubts Inside ESPN to Become an Icon
FOS’ Ryan Glasspiegel writes, “Similarly to how PTI’s Michael Wilbon and Tony Kornheiser were affiliated with the Washington Post, Around the Horn worked with newspapers like the Boston Globe, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Sun-Times, Denver Post, and Dallas Morning News to get writers like Bob Ryan, Jackie MacMullan, Bill Plaschke, T.J. Simers, Jay Mariotti, Woody Paige, and Tim Cowlishaw to appear on the show. The logos of their newspapers appeared on glass behind them on the screen. 

“‘What we knew we wanted is—sports is argument,’ [former ESPN programming chief Mark] Shapiro said. ‘Look at the power and success of sports radio. We wanted that on TV…so we built it backwards.’”
^{Front Office Sports}

Nebraska Hires Patriots Pro Personnel Director Pat Stewart to Oversee Recruiting and Retention as GM
Pat Stewart, the New England Patriots’ director of pro personnel the past two seasons, will join Nebraska coach Matt Rhule’s staff as general manager, the school announced Tuesday. Stewart, who was player personnel director for the Carolina Panthers when Rhule coached them from 2020-22, will oversee the Cornhuskers’ roster management and player acquisition, including high school and transfer portal recruiting, evaluation and retention.
^{AP News}

A New Pitch to Fix Penn Station: Move Madison Square Garden
The New York Times’ Stefanos Chen and Patrick McGeehan write, “Nearly two years after New York’s governor, Kathy Hochul, vowed to fast-track the long-overdue redesign of Pennsylvania Station, little has changed for the Manhattan transit hub that she once called a ‘hellhole.’

“Now, an influential interest group is proposing a different approach: Move Madison Square Garden, which sits on top of the station, across the street and replace it with a much bigger train hall and a park.”
^{The New York Times}

Manchester United Reveals Plans for the ‘World’s Greatest’ Soccer Stadium to Replace Old Trafford
AP News’ James Robson reports: “A proposed 100,000-seater arena, costing around 2 billion pounds ($2.6 billion), would be built next to United’s current Old Trafford home and surpass Wembley Stadium as the biggest in the United Kingdom. Work could begin as early as this year, with completion by the 2030-31 season, the club said.

“[Part Owner Jim] Ratcliffe, who is one of Britain’s richest people, said the new venue could be a tourist attraction in the manner of the Eiffel Tower.”
^{AP News}

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West Virginia Coach Rich Rodriguez Bans Team From Dancing on TikTok: ‘It Ain’t Quite the Image of our Program I Want’
The Athletic’s David Ubben writes, “So you think you can dance? Not in West Virginia’s locker room. At least not on camera. Mountaineers coach Rich Rodriguez told reporters on Monday he banned his team from filming and posting themselves dancing on TikTok.

“‘We try to have a hard edge, whatever. And you’re in there in your tights, dancing on TikTok. It ain’t quite the image of our program I want,’ Rodriguez said in response to a question about whether or not he had a social media policy in his program.”
^{The Athletic}

🏀 In Hoops Tourney News… 👇🏼

WBB: Teams Vying for No. 1 NCAA Seeds Stated Their Cases and Now it’s Up to Selection Committee to Decide
MBB: Several Once-Highly Ranked Teams Enter Conference Tournament Week in Need of Wins to Make NCAA Field

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