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50 years after Title IX, women's soccer is surging thanks to brand deals boosting visibility

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50 years after Title IX, women's soccer is surging thanks to brand deals boosting visibility

With two World Cup wins, an Olympic bronze medal, and experience in multiple pro leagues around the world, Christen Press is one of the most prolific soccer players of the time. But fans would be hard-pressed to find digital evidence of her early career highlights from when she competed in Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS), the precursor to the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) that folded in 2012.

“If you go back and try to find highlights from my first years as a pro, you can’t,” Press told Marketing Brew. “You can find US Women’s National Team (USWNT) highlights always, but that’s what you’ll find. It was like that was my only job.”

Now, highlights of Press—or, really, any other pro women’s soccer player—are abundantly available, just one indication of just how much the landscape of women’s sports has shifted in the last few decades. More than 50 years after the passage of Title IX made it possible for more girls to succeed in sports in grade school, the talent pool of women athletes is deeper than ever, media outlets are showing women’s sporting events in prime time to record-breaking audiences, and major brands are funneling sponsorship dollars into the ecosystem.

Sport to sport, it’s not exactly clear what should be credited with kicking off the boom. But does it matter? Thirteen years after the founding of the NWSL, women’s professional soccer seems here to stay in more ways than one, with two of the biggest revenue drivers in sports—media rights and sponsorships—abundant enough to prop up two pro properties.

Ready for prime time

One of the biggest changes in the women’s soccer ecosystem in recent years has been media coverage of the sport. In the days of the WPS, and even more recently, fans often struggled to find games on TV aside from international tournaments like the World Cup and the Olympics every couple of years.

“When I started playing in the WPS and my first days of the NWSL, I was playing in front of a couple hundred people on bleachers in high schools and colleges,” Press remembered.

It wasn’t until 2022 when CBS Sports aired the NWSL Championship in prime time for the first time, but when it did, the game became the most-watched NWSL match in history, with 915,000 viewers, a 71% increase from 2021, per CBS. (The 2024 Championship beat that record, averaging 967,900 viewers, according to the NWSL.)

The deal for prime-time coverage in part came about thanks to Ally Financial, a years-long sponsor of the NWSL and many other women’s sports properties, which played a key role in conversations with the league and the network.

“You’ve got this vicious cycle that’s never going to be broken unless the brands jump in and kind of force systemic change,” Ally CMO Andrea Brimmer told Marketing Brew at the time. “It takes the brands sitting at the table to demonstrate that they’re willing to come in, that they’ve got the money to invest, but that they need the networks to think differently about the way that they’re selling media and the way that they are giving women’s sports timeslots and the platforms that they deserve.”

The NWSL’s current four-year media rights deal, signed in 2023, indicates a much different approach from networks and streamers, spanning coverage across CBS Sports, ESPN, Prime Video, and Scripps Sports; it’s reportedly worth $240 million. As of the mid-point of the current NWSL season, livestreams of matches were up 34% year over year, with 1.2 billion minutes viewed, according to the league. Women’s soccer fans can also watch pros play on Peacock, which holds the media rights to the Gainbridge Super League, a new pro women’s soccer league that kicks off its second season on August 23.

New media

While major media outlets play a big role in whether women’s soccer is widely available to audiences, the ecosystem has also been thriving thanks to athletes taking matters into their own hands, leveraging channels like social media and podcasts to increase visibility of the sport.

“Social media completely changed the landscape for women’s sports in a really powerful way, because before, you had all these legacy media channels that really acted as middlemen,” said Tobin Heath, an NWSL and USWNT icon who announced her retirement in July. “Once a year you’d get this terrible window, never prime time, and always it was through a lens of what the patriarchy wanted to see in women’s sports, which was obviously extremely narrow and really didn’t represent our sport’s culture at all.”

That frustration led Heath and Press, who are married, to found Re—Inc, a sports media company that publishes newsletters and podcasts meant to represent “gal culture,” which Heath described as an answer to “bro culture.” Their podcast, The Re—Cap Show, joined the Audacy network for distribution and global ad sales in July, part of a larger wave of growing interest in women’s sports podcasts.

Heath and Press aren’t the only soccer icons who have carved out their own media channels. Former USWNT co-captain Alex Morgan has Togethxr, the media and commerce company she started with Olympic snowboarder Chloe Kim, Olympic swimmer Simone Manuel, and basketball legend Sue Bird. Bird also founded production company A Touch More alongside her partner, Megan Rapinoe, another retired USWNT co-captain.

Through these platforms, the players can bypass legacy media companies and engage directly with fans on their own terms, which wasn’t always an option for athletes. Brandi Chastain, whose penalty kick delivered the USWNT the World Cup in 1999 and who went on to work with brands including Nike, Gatorade, and Bud Light, said she sometimes thinks about what her sponsorship roster could have looked like had she been playing in 2025.

“In terms of brands and branding, gosh, I think there’s a part of me that wishes that there were all these resources that existed,” she said.

Brand ball

As the audience for women’s soccer has grown, so too has its list of sponsors. This year, the NWSL kicked off its 13th season with 13 sponsors, including first-time brands E.l.f. Beauty and Alex Cooper’s Unwell Hydration. E.l.f.’s involvement represents a broader trend of beauty brands, which haven’t historically invested much in sports, leaning into sports sponsorship opportunities across leagues, including the NFL and WNBA. In August, E.l.f. further upped its investment in women’s soccer by signing NWSL players Melanie Barcenas, Abby Dahlkemper, Lo’eau LaBonta, and Jaedyn Shaw to its talent roster.

For brands, women’s sports are particularly compelling because the audience tends to encompass different consumers than men’s sports audiences, Super League President Amanda Vandervort told Marketing Brew. In pro basketball, for example, only 5% of Golden State Valkyries season-ticket holders also have Warriors season tickets, despite the teams sharing both an arena and a sport, a standout stat for founding partner JPMorganChase.

“There’s so many communities who haven’t had access to women’s pro soccer, and when you add that to the growing interest, the demographics and behaviors of our fans, and the opportunity for brands and sponsors to get in front of a whole new audience, it just makes business sense,” Vandervort said. “Now, we’re having real conversations about the return on the investment in women’s professional soccer.”

This year, the Super League announced Gainbridge had purchased the league’s naming rights, and it’s only seen an uptick in inbound interest since then, according to Vandervort. The league also has several endemic sponsors, including kit provider Capelli Sport and ball manufacturer Select.

In the NWSL, jersey sponsorships are breaking records at breakneck speed. Last year, Bay FC reportedly had the biggest back-of-jersey deal in the league with Trader Joe’s, and in February, Gotham FC and Dove reportedly broke the record again. Days later, the Portland Thorns and Ring were said to have agreed to the biggest deal in league history, exceeding $2.6 million.

“It’s not just about the dollars,” Matt Soloff, SVP, partnerships and business development at the NWSL, told us. “It’s about leaning into brands that want to lean into us at the highest level.”

Amazon, for instance, has a wide-ranging relationship with the NWSL that includes streaming rights to Friday night games and a playoff match on Prime Video, as well as an exclusive retail sponsorship for Amazon and the presenting sponsorship of the league’s Best XI Awards for Amazon Prime. The company also worked with the league and other media partners, including Togethxr, for a docuseries about the 2024 season.

It was the “rabid fanbase and the growth” of the league that made it stand out to a sponsor as big as Amazon, according to Deb Curtis, global director of marketing for Amazon Prime.

“The growth and the excitement around women’s sports, and obviously the NWSL, is incredibly energizing,” Curtis said. “Fandom fuels growth, and so we see our role as being able to go deeper. People know our brand, so how can our brand help to enhance that experience?”

Brand sponsorship dollars can also be invested back into the leagues, creating a virtuous cycle for women’s soccer.

For some players who have seen the industry shift in real time, it feels like vindication.

“What’s been proven is people love women’s sports,” Heath said. “That’s just the truth, and also, they love women’s athletes as people. Brands love women’s athletes. They’re more approachable. They’re better at marketing.”

This report was originally published by Marketing Brew.

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Florida’s Season Concludes in NCAA Second Round After Falling to No.2/7 SMU

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December 7, 2025

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DALLAS, TX – The University of Florida volleyball team’s 2025 campaign came to an end on Saturday night, falling to the No. 2 seed and No. 7 ranked SMU in three sets (11-25, 21-25, 24-26) in Moody Coliseum.

On top of making the program’s 35th-consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance, first under new leadership of Head Coach Ryan Theis, the Gators concluded the 2025 season with an 16-11 overall record. Additionally, Florida posted a 9-6 record in SEC play, matching its preseason projection with a fifth-place finish.

Offensively, Florida registered more kills than SMU, 44-41, but totaled 25 hitting errors for a .156 hitting clip to the Mustangs’ .370 clip, as they recorded only seven attacking errors.

Setter Alexis Stucky dished out 40 assists and led three Gators to double digits offensively. Jordyn Byrd led the way with a team-high 14 kills for her fifth-consecutive match in double digits, while Aniya Madkin recorded her third-straight with 11.

At the net, Jaela Auguste and Alec Rothe each had two blocks, with Auguste added 12 kills and a team-best .273 clip and Rothe chipped in six kills.

In her final match wearing the Orange and Blue, senior Emily Canaan led the Gators backcourt with 10 digs. Freshman Libero Lily Hayes and Kira Hutson each finished with six digs, while both Stucky and Ella Vogel recorded five. After subbing in during the third set, Bella Lee contributed three digs.

Behind the service line, Hayes and Stucky recorded Florida’s two aces.

SMU’s Kennedi Rogers led the Mustang’s offense with 14 kills and a .440 hitting clip.

Records:

Florida (16-12, 9-6 SEC)

No. 2/7 SMU (27-5, 17-3 ACC)

 

All-Time Series record:

0-0 (0-1 under Theis)

3-set: 0-1, 4-set: 0-0; 5-set: 0-0

Home: 0-0; Away: 0-1; Neutral: 0-0

 

How It Happened

Set 1

  • After opening the set 0-4, a kill from Byrd put the Gators on the board, but SMU’s block allowed for a 2-8 lead and forced an early Florida timeout. Out of the huddle, the Mustangs strung together four points, but back-to-back kills from Byrd and Rothe helped cut the deficit to 4-12. The Gators continued to struggle to find any rhythm offensively and was unable to make the comeback, falling 11-25 in the first set.

  • Set 1 Team Stats | .000 Hitting %|10 Kills | 9 Assists | 13 Digs | 0.0 Blocks | 0 Aces

  • SMU Stats | .483 Hitting %| 14 Kills | 14 Assists | 15 Digs | 5.0 Blocks | 0 Aces

Set 2

  • A kill from Madkin put Florida first on the board, but the Mustangs responded with three straight to take a two-point lead. Back-to-back kills from Madkin and Auguste notched it up at five, as the two teams exchanged points until a block from Auguste and Vidacic followed by a kill from Vidacic gave the Gators a 13-10 lead and forced an SMU timeout. Out of the huddle, an ace from Hayes kept the momentum going, but the Mustangs tied it up at 17. With the race to 25 inching near, SMU went on an 8-4 scoring run to take a 25-21 second-set win and a 2-0 match lead.

  • Set 2 Team Stats | .222 Hitting %| 14 Kills | 12 Assists | 8 Digs | 2.0 Blocks | 2 Aces

  • SMU Stats | .333 Hitting %| 13 Kills | 13 Assists |12 Digs |4.0 Blocks | 3 Aces

Set 3

  • The Gators started set three with back-to-back kills from Madkin and Auguste, as the middle blocker recorded two more kills to give the Gators a 5-3 lead. The Mustangs went on a 3-0 scoring run to take a one-point lead, as the teams have five tied scores until the Gators strung three points behind attacks from Madkin and Auguste to head into the media timeout with a 15-12 lead. Following the break, two kills from Madkin stretched Florida’s lead to four (17-13), but SMU responded with another 3-0 run to inch back within one. Points from Byrd allowed the Gators to be the first to 20, but back-to-back kills from Kennedi Rogers allowed the Mustangs to clinch it up and take a 22-20 lead. With the race to 25 inching near, an attack from Rothe followed by a block from her and Hutson evened the score at 22, as the teams battled for points until SMU clinched the 26-24 victory.  

  • Set 3 Team Stats | .224 Hitting %| 20 Kills | 20 Assists | 16 Digs |2.0 Blocks | 0 Aces

  • SMU Stats | .306 Hitting %| 14 Kills |14 Assists |17 Digs | 6.0 Blocks | 1 Ace

Hear from Head Coach Ryan Theis:
“Congratulations and good luck to SMU… they earned it. I thought being down 0-2 on the road, I really enjoyed our spirit in the third set. It was fun to see Aniya get going for a little bit. We scored 20 and were in it in the end and obviously didn’t finish.”  

On his first year as Florida’s Head Coach…

“Transition is hard. This is my third time doing it and all of them have had challenges. Really a lot of my energy and time is spent making sure they are having a good time, a good experience and they are in a good space. It was difficult, but will continue to move forward.”

Outside Hitter Jordyn Byrd on her first year playing collegiate volleyball and her first year being a Gator…

“This season was definitely very special. We have talked about the changes this past year, so being able to do all of that with this group of girls was special to me. Coming from a different program, having everyone welcome me with such open arms meant a lot to me.”

Setter Alexis Stucky on her four years as a Gator…

“I am just super grateful. I had a wonderful experience and had such great coaching staff, such great teammates. Gainesville has given me a lot of great times and a lot of hard times. It has made me push through a lot of adversity and I am just really, really grateful for the people I have done it with.”

Notables

  • The Gators are now 28-6 in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament.

  • In the NCAA Tournament, Florida holds an 85-36 record.

  • UF moved to 6-4 in three-set matches this season and 56-16 in NCAA play.

  • Florida sits 6-7 in away matches during the 2025 campaign and is now 5-10 in the NCAA Tournament.

  • Florida’s record is 1-3 against ACC opponents.

  • When playing on a Saturday, Florida’s record sits 1-1.

  • In the month of December, UF finished with a 1-1 record.

  • Against AVCA Top-25 opponents, Florida’s record is 4-8.  

  • Three names recorded double-digit kills:

  • One Gator finished with double-digit digs:

  • Alexis Stucky ranks 9th for career assists in Program history with 3,047

2025 DI women’s volleyball championship schedule
All times listed in ET

  • Selection show: 6 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 30

  • First and second rounds: Dec. 4-5 or Dec. 5-6

  • Regionals: Dec. 11 and 13 or Dec. 12 and 14

  • Semifinals: Thursday, Dec. 18

  • National championship: 3:30 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 21 | ABC

 
FOLLOW FLORIDA VOLLEYBALL
FloridaGators.com
Instagram | Facebook | X





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Women’s Indoor Track Starts Season at Utica Holiday Classic

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December 7, 2025

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UTICA, N.Y. – The Union College women’s indoor track & field team got the 2025-26 season underway on Saturday afternoon at the Utica Holiday Classic, with a limited squad posting two conference championship qualifiers and two personal bests at the non-scoring meet.
 
First-year Eilis McKenna led three Union runners in the top-eight of the mile, earning a second-place finish with a time of 5:28.56 that qualified her for the Liberty League Championships. Classmates Kate Monaco (5:38.09) and Abbie Goodwin (6:11.12) placed fourth and eighth, respectively, for the Garnet Chargers as well.
 
Sophomore Charlotte Knight started her season with a career-best time in the 800 meters, finishing in 2:38.97 to place fourth out of 10 runners.
 
In the field events, junior Epephanie LaBoy qualified for the conference championship in the weight throw with a top toss of 10.19 meters. Sophomore Lauryn Johnson also competed in the event, posting a career-best mark of 7.75 meters.
 
First-year Leah Scopteuolo-Rosen cleared 1.43 meters in the high jump in her collegiate debut, and Johnson nabbed 37th in the shot put with a top mark of 8.07 meters.
 
The Garnet Chargers will take a few weeks off for winter break before returning to action on January 10 at the Middlebury Snowflake Invitational.
 



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Nebraska vs. Kansas State: 2025 NCAA volleyball second round highlights

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December 7, 2025

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Women’s Volleyball

Dec. 6, 2025

Nebraska vs. Kansas State: 2025 NCAA volleyball second round highlights

Dec. 6, 2025

Watch full match highlights from the second round matchup between No. 1 Nebraska vs No. 9 Kansas State in the 2025 NCAA women’s volleyball tournament.

NOTE: As mentioned in the broadcast, ESPN was experiencing audio technical difficulties.



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Men’s Track and Field Opens Season at Suffolk with Several Strong Performances

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December 7, 2025

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BOSTON, Mass. – The Bentley men’s track and field team began the 2025-26 indoor season at the Suffolk Relays on Saturday and had several strong performances.

Sophomore Michael Eddy won the one mile with a time of 4:32.97 which was almost three seconds better than the second place runner.

Senior Ryan Orr was second in the 800 at 1:56.07. Bentley had three runners in the top-five with William Reiser fourth and Anthony Cronin fifth.

The long distance races saw two Bentley runners have top-three finishes. Steven D’Alessandro was second in the 5000 (15:04.94) and Jeff Warnock was third in the 3000 (9:27.24).

In the field events, Donald Dumont was second in the long jump.

 



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Head Volleyball Coach in Hays, KS for Fort Hays State University

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42 minutes ago

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December 7, 2025

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Details

Posted: 07-Dec-25

Location: Hays, Kansas

Type: Full-time

Categories:

Coaching

Coaching – Volleyball

Sector:

Collegiate Sports

Required Education:

4 Year Degree

Organize, develop, recruit and administer all functions of a D-II Women’s Volleyball program funded for national success.


Volleyball staff includes additional positions for a Full-time Assistant (w/ benefits) and Graduate Assistant.


Fundamental duties include, but are not limited to, coaching, recruitment of student-athletes, commitment to academic and athletic success of student-athletes, as well as student-athlete development, budget and scholarship management, and supervision of support staff. The Head Coach will manage day-to-day team operations, practice/game preparation, and team travel. This position collaborates with intercollegiate athletics staff members, Sports Medicine, academic support, compliance, and institutional partners. The Head Coach must appropriately represent the team, department, and University in public and media appearances. This position reports directly to the Director of Athletics.

  1. Provides leadership, organization, and supervision for all aspects of the women’s volleyball program.
  2. Supervises student-athletes during practices and games, observing and evaluating performance and demonstrating proper techniques.
  3. Hire, supervise, evaluate, and mentor full-time, graduate assistant, and student staff.
  4. Supports and monitors the academic performance of student-athletes in conjunction with the compliance and academic support staff.
  5. Design and implement the overall program recruiting strategy – identification, evaluation, recruitment, and retention of prospective student-athletes. 
  6. Direct oversight and management of the program’s finances and administration of athletic scholarships.
  7. Manages the women’s volleyball program within the parameters of the approved operating budget.
  8. Develops and engages in impactful fundraising activities in conjunction with the Athletics’ External Relations staff as needed.
  9. Represents the university and women’s volleyball program at professional meetings, alumni events, University Foundation events, and other events as necessary.
  10. Enhances the student-athlete experience through team expectations, personal development, and opportunities, such as but not limited to community service, team building, leadership development, etc.
  11. Assists in directing or directs camps and clinics.
  12.  Responsible for scheduling of non-conference competitions and practices, team and recruiting travel arrangements, preseason arrangements, and student-athlete meetings.
  13. Attends and participates in scheduled compliance seminars and complies with all  Athletic Department efforts to monitor compliance with NCAA regulations.
  14. Responsible for compliance with NCAA, MIAA, and institutional rules and regulations, ensuring program compliance.  
  15. Active member of the FHSU Athletic Department and University.
  16. Performs other duties as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS
Relevant, successful coaching experience, preferably at the collegiate level.  Proven ability to teach sport-specific skills and develop successful competitive strategies. Strong communication skills (written and oral), a high level of organization, and attention to detail required.  Public relations skills.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE
Bachelor’s degree in a related field.  Relevant, successful coaching experience is required.  Master’s degree preferred.

https://ncaamarket.ncaa.org/jobs/21888746/head-volleyball-coach



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Men’s track and field wins four events at M City Classic to start indoor season

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December 7, 2025

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MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – The St. Olaf College men’s track and field team had four first-place finishes at the season-opening M City Classic on Friday and Saturday at the University of Minnesota Fieldhouse.

Senior Lance Nemecek, sophomore Jackson Bullock, and senior Kevin Turlington won individual events on the track for St. Olaf, which also had a first-place performance in the 4×400-meter relay. The Oles put recorded five performances that ranked on their all-time top-10 performers’ list at the first indoor meet of the season.

Nemecek, senior Cullen Moore, first year Paxon Myers, and junior Christian Fells all ran top-12 times in NCAA Division III this season in the 800-meter run to post the four fastest times of the day. Nemecek won the event in 1:54.02, followed closely by Moore in 1:54.16, which rank second and third in the country and third and fourth, respectively, on the Oles’ all-time list. Myers edged Fells at the line by one one-hundredth of a second in 1:55.73, as the pair posted the No. 10 and No. 11 times nationally.

Nemecek, Moore, and Myers were joined by sophomore Austin McInturff on the winning 4×400-meter relay, which compiled a time of 3:21.77 to rank second on St. Olaf’s all-time list. That time is just seven one-hundredths of a second off the program record set in 2016 and ranks fifth in the country.

St. Olaf logged the top-three times of the meet in the one-mile run, led by Bullock’s first-place time of 4:23.01. Senior Eli Doran (4:23.04) and junior Alex Bjork (4:23.37) were within half a second of Bullock, with all three Oles posting top-20 times in NCAA Division III to date.

Senior Kevin Turlington added a win in the 5,000-meter run with the fifth-fastest time in NCAA Division III (14:35.39). Fellow senior Gael Manzur Strandlund was third in 15:19.86 as well.

Sophomore Cristian Escobar Pearson bettered his No. 2 time on St. Olaf’s all-time list in the 60-meter dash in both the prelims (7.07) and finals (7.05) to finish eighth in the event. Junior Jesse Olson recorded the No. 8 score on the Oles’ list in the heptathlon (4,153) by registering four personal-bests in the seven-event, two-day competition to take fourth. Olson’s highest finish came in the high jump, where he placed third after clearing 182 meters (5′ 11 ½”).

St. Olaf will be back in 2026 at the Ole Opener at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Jan. 17 at Tostrud Center.

 



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