Everyone Watches Women's Sports, So Why Don't Brands?

In a world where women's sports participation and viewership are at an all-time high, it's puzzling why brands continue to lag in their support. According to a 2022 study by Nielsen Sports, women's sports viewership has grown by 85% in the past five years, with nearly 40 million Americans tuning in to watch women's sporting events each week.

Despite these impressive numbers, women's sports still receive only a fraction of the media coverage, sponsorship dollars, and overall attention compared to men's sports. This disparity is not only unfair but also a missed opportunity for brands looking to connect with a growing and engaged audience.

Benefits of Sponsoring Women's Sports

For brands, there are numerous benefits to sponsoring women's sports. These include:

• Reaching a large and diverse audience: Women's sports have a global reach, with fans in every demographic group. By sponsoring women's sports, brands can tap into this vast and diverse market.
• Building brand loyalty: Women are more likely to be loyal to brands that support their interests. When brands sponsor women's sports, they are showing that they are committed to gender equality and that they value women as consumers.
• Improving brand perception: Sponsoring women's sports can improve a brand's perception in the eyes of consumers. Consumers view brands that support women's sports as being more socially responsible and progressive.
• Generating positive media coverage: Women's sports generate a lot of positive media coverage. When brands sponsor women's sports, they can benefit from this coverage by being associated with something that is viewed in a positive light.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

When sponsoring women's sports, it's important to avoid making some common mistakes. These include:

• Treating women's sports as a novelty: Women's sports are not a novelty. They are a serious and competitive sport that deserves to be treated with respect. Brands should avoid using language or imagery that suggests otherwise.
• Focusing only on the top tier: While it's important to support elite women's athletes, it's also important to remember that there are many talented women's athletes at all levels. Brands should not only focus on the top tier of women's sports.
• Using outdated stereotypes: Brands should avoid using outdated stereotypes about women's sports. For example, they should not portray women's athletes as being less skilled or competitive than men's athletes.

Why it Matters

The lack of support for women's sports is not only a missed opportunity for brands but also a disservice to women's athletes. Women's athletes deserve the same level of support and recognition as men's athletes. By increasing their support for women's sports, brands can help to level the playing field and create a more equitable sporting landscape for all.

FAQs

• What are some of the biggest challenges facing women's sports?
• Lack of funding
• Lack of media coverage
• Lack of sponsorship opportunities

• Stereotypes and biases

  

  

• What can be done to increase support for women's sports?

• Brands can sponsor women's sports teams and events.
• Media outlets can provide more coverage of women's sports.

• Consumers can attend women's sporting events and watch them on TV.

• What are the benefits of increasing support for women's sports?

• Women's athletes will have more opportunities to compete and succeed.
• Brands will be able to reach a larger and more diverse audience.
• Society will benefit from the positive role models that women's athletes provide.

Call to Action

Brands have a responsibility to support women's sports. By doing so, they can not only reach a growing and engaged audience but also make a positive impact on society. If you're a brand looking to increase your support for women's sports, here are a few things you can do:

• Sponsor a women's sports team or event.
• Purchase advertising time during women's sporting events.
• Create marketing campaigns that feature women's athletes.
• Speak out against sexism and inequality in women's sports.

By taking these steps, brands can help to level the playing field for women's sports and create a more equitable sporting landscape for all.

Additional Resources

• Nielsen Sports
• Women's Sports Foundation
• espnW

Tables

Table 1: Growth of Women's Sports Viewership

Table 2: Benefits of Sponsoring Women's Sports

Table 3: Common Mistakes to Avoid When Sponsoring Women's Sports