Building a One-Stop Women’s Sports Marketing Empire

Softball was the foundation of Athletes Unlimited’s four-league, mini-empire of women’s sports. But sports fans’ increased interest gave the company marketing riches far beyond the softball diamond. The company was co-founded in 2020 by former Soros Fund Management executive Jonathan Soros and ex-New York City FC president Jon Patricof. The idea behind Athletes Unlimited was simple: give women’s softball players a place to play professionally in the United States. Executive and player ranks grew quickly. Former National Pro Fastpitch commissioner Cheri Kempf was brought in as a vice president. Rosters expanded with top-tier talent including Olympic gold medalist Cat Osterman. Almost overnight, Athletes Unlimited positioned itself as an alternative to Japan Softball League and other overseas options. When Adweek last checked in on Athletes Unlimited in August, it had just added both volleyball and lacrosse leagues. Coverage of its events came through a patchwork of CBS and Fox broadcasts. Streams on YouTube and Facebook rounded out its reach. In October, it started a women’s basketball league to give WNBA players and others a place to play and earn more money—without flying over an ocean and showing their passport. Athletes Unlimited joined the Marshall Plan for Moms organization’s National Business Coalition for Child Care to provide benefits and services to athletes with children. In total, it now has more than 200 athletes playing across four leagues. It established itself as a Public Benefit Corporation (PBC), eliminated sports team owners, gave athletes a voice in league affairs through player executive committees and amplified the stories of BIPOC athletes. https://twitter.com/AUProSports/status/1539352709295271937 Jennifer Davis, CMO at college sports marketing company Learfield, notes that more than 50% of college softball fans are women. According to Davis, women who follow college softball are more likely to be college educated than the average, are more likely to have household incomes over $150,000 a year, are typically younger and have a higher engagement on social media. The AU has provided fans a chance to take their passion—and buying power—to the next level. As a result, Athletes Unlimited has fostered partnerships with major brands including Gatorade and GEICO—and landed a media rights deal with ESPN as they realize the purchasing power of the women’s sports audience. Today, on the 50th anniversary of the Title IX education amendment of 1972 prohibiting federally funded schools from discriminating based on sex, Athletes Unlimited’s AUX Softball league will be the only women’s sport that ESPN televises nationally. As its leagues draw more fans and its purpose becomes clearer, it makes a strong pitch to marketers seeking undervalued audiences. “We made a big investment in creating a really world class professional league that would take care of the athletes and ensure a great experience for them—but also deliver games to fans and provide them with a lot of different experiences,” Patricof said. “So we've now done that for two years, and I think people are taking notice.” Softball Shows Off Its Marketing Power and Potential A growing game According to USA Softball, roughly 40 million people play softball in the U.S. each summer, making it the No. 1 team sport in the country. Each year, USA Softball annually registers over 83,000 youth girls' fastpitch softball teams, comprising over 1.2 million girls. With women controlling upwards of 80% of consumer purchasing decisions, Davis noted that NCAA softball partners, including Capital One, Coca-Cola, Aflac, Buffalo Wild Wings and Buic,k have recognized the softball audience’s spending might. That’s led to an expanded brand presence at softball events. “If you think about that household income, you want these fans experiencing your products,” Davis said. https://twitter.com/AUProSports/status/1538907273996779526 That fanbase is also watching the game in large numbers. The last game of this year’s Women’s College Softball World Series (WCWS) final between Oklahoma and the University of Texas drew an average of 1.7 million viewers on ESPN, with viewership peaking at 2.1 million. The championship series averaged 1.6 million, with the entire World Series tournament averaging 1 million viewers per game. By comparison, ESPN averaged roughly 1.1 million viewers per game for the National Hockey League post season through the WCWS. The French Open women’s final averaged 1.05 million viewers, with U.S. player Coco Gauff in the mix, while the men’s final averaged 1.49 million for Rafael Nadal’s win. ESPN Sunday Night Baseball ratings throughout the WCWS averaged 1.2 million viewers. Speaking from the WCWS in Oklahoma City, ESPN senior director of programming and acquisitions Dan Margulis said he saw the AU as a way for his network to build on its success with women’s college sports. “We spend so much focus on the two sports, softball and women's lacrosse, that it’s a natural match: like the IQ test of partnerships,” Margulis said. Sustainability brand Aspiration sponsors Athletes Unlimited and has its patch on the league's basketball uniforms. Sustainable coverage This year, Athletes Unlimited upgraded softball and lacrosse media coverage in a multi-year rights deal with ESPN. Fans will have access to 160 live games on ESPN platforms through 2023, with 90 events televised on ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU. https://twitter.com/AUProSports/status/1519308130399801345 “It's always great when you walk into a bar or restaurant and see something besides the traditional NBA, NHL, MLB, NFL game on,” ESPN’s Margulis said. “That increases the amount of women's sports coverage that gets beyond just your televisions at home.” Athletes Unlimited’s growth and increased presence has created opportunities for marketers. Gatorade, Geico, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Nike and AU’s “Innovation Collective” of start-up companies (including Healium, Clicktivated and TaskHuman) are among the companies supporting the leagues. A selection of products from Athletes Unlimited's Innovation Collective of sponsors. Athletes Unlimited also recently signed a long-term contract with sustainability firm Aspiration. Its new partner is charged with assessing the company’s carbon footprint, a sign that eco-conscious marketing is key to attracting brands and fans. Aspiration will also help Athletes Unlimited use in-game promotions like Trees for Threes in basketball, which promises that the Athletes Unlimited will plant 10 trees for every successful three-pointer. “What we’re showing is that challenges as big and seemingly intractable as climate change can be addressed,” said Aspiration CEO Andrei Cherny. “The opportunity to bring that to life in a home run—and bring that to life in a three-point shot—takes something that is so huge and brings it down to a level that is clear for people out there enjoying the game.” Once again, softball leads the way. ESPN announcer Beth Mowins heralded University of Oklahoma slugger Jocelyn Alo as the No. 1 softball draft selection by Athletes Unlimited. This year, the company supplemented its single-site summer league in Rosemont, Illinois with its AUX Softball season earlier this month in San Diego immediately following the Women’s College Softball World Series. “[Athletes Unlimited] provides the next step for softball so that it doesn't end with the Women’s College World Series,” ESPN’s Margulis said. “It continues through June and July with the two series they have—and it just gets us closer to year-round coverage of softball in some form.” The next steps Learfield’s Davis noted that a combination of college name, image and likeness (NIL) deals, televised women’s games and on-campus marketing has given collegiate women’s sports wider access to fans. As Adweek’s Mollie Callihane pointed out, women’s sports viewership on ESPN has surged 26% to more than 72 million viewers. This year’s NCAA Women’s Division I tournament, the first to use March Madness branding, drew an audience for its selection show 160% larger than last year’s. The championship between UConn and South Carolina reached 4.9 million viewers, up 18% year-over-year. Ads sold out more than a month before the tournament, with Google and State Farm among the sport’s partners. https://twitter.com/AUProSports/status/1505376260415004677 ESPN’s networks will have more than 12,600 live women’s sporting events. With its AUX Softball league broadcasting on ESPNU during Title IX’s anniversary, the AU serves as not only a step forward for collegiate athletes, but as a vital connection between those athletes, their fans and the brands who want in on the experience. “We're out there saying to partners, ‘Listen, if you want to find a way to get your message out, across a number of players, you can come to Athletes Unlimited. Talk to us and we will help you find the athletes within our 200-plus athletes that are interested in doing it and may be a good fit,” Patricof said. “There's a lot of power in that.” Twitter Marks 50th Anniversary of Title IX

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Building a One-Stop Women’s Sports Marketing Empire

It’s the 50th anniversary of Title IX and Athletes Unlimited is celebrating with brand support

Jason Notte

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Jason Notte