The best athletes in the world have never attracted so much attention. The creation and expansion of certain women’s sports circuits have contributed to this phenomenon. The first season of the Professional Women’s Hockey League (LPHF) was a resounding success. A new attendance record was broken almost every month.
“It’s a breath of fresh air. There is a paradigm shift in the sports world with the new leagues,” said Sébastien Vézina, lawyer and head of the sports and entertainment law team at Lavery.
Fans of women’s sports answered the call during the LPHF’s inaugural season. (Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press)
In administrative offices, the financial data is impressive. According to the renowned firm Deloitte, anticipated revenues for elite women’s sport in 2024 exceed one billion dollars. That’s an increase of more than 300% since 2021. Soccer and basketball account for almost all of the revenue. Territorially, North America dominates the market with more than half of the overall gains.
“When we talk about accelerated growth, that’s exactly it,” Vézina emphasized. It’s going to be a new model. Women’s sport will accomplish it, but in a different way than the men’s side.
Of the 1.28 billion, nearly 700 million comes from derivative products and commercial agreements.
Women’s sport is very attractive to big brands who want to jump on the train before it reaches cruising speed. In addition, the women’s section is much less controversial than the men’s.
“There is very high risk management at the reputational level. Big brands will want to partner with talent who are less at risk and that’s what women’s sport is all about. It’s because of morals, habits and history.”
Sébastien Vézina, lawyer and head of the sports and entertainment law team at Lavery law firm. (Cabinet Lavery)
Important choices
Its associations are of great importance for the survival and sustainability of a league, especially for those which are in their first steps such as the LPHF and the Super Ligue du Nord au soccer which will begin its activities in 2025. “I I have no doubt that the big brands will be there and will partner with its talented athletes.”
The choice of partners also becomes essential in order to convey the right message or even pass one on. The WNBA recently partnered with the maker of Opill, the first-ever non-prescription daily birth control pill in the United States. Toronto will also have its training in the American circuit from 2026.
“We are a long way from the time when the image of women was used to sell beer or cola. The image of a WNBA team is now being used to sell birth control pills. Is this a political gesture? Without a doubt. In fact, it goes hand in hand with the values of women’s sport.”
Caitlin Clark (right) became the face of the WNBA. Interest in women’s basketball has never been greater since its arrival on the circuit. (Abbie Parr/AP Archives)
Molson is one of the LPHF’s partners of choice. The beer company went there with a bang on International Women’s Day by launching its ‘Make Your Name’ campaign» which consists of reversing the names of the players with that of the company on the team jerseys. Usually positioned at the top of the jersey, the name is often camouflaged by the players’ hair, so it ended up at the bottom during a match.
“It was unheard of. It was a new way to promote a brand with a strong message. Molson didn’t want to sell you a beer, the company wanted to sell you the message that it supported the women’s league.
This is probably just the beginning of creative advertising like this. “This type of message has the potential to reach a very large audience. We are seeing a breakdown of the target audience very typical of advertisements. It will create a domino effect among creatives.”
Netflix recently began broadcasting live sporting events and the pace is only expected to increase over the coming years. (AP Archives, Jenny Kane/AP Archives, Jenny Kane)
Diffusion
Broadcast partners represent more than $300 million in revenue for sports in 2024, according to Deloitte. This number is expected to continue to increase as more non-traditional broadcasters like Apple, Amazon and even Netflix join the sports broadcasting game.
“We are currently in a perfect storm for women’s professional sports. There is an increase in broadcasting platforms and it is certain that this will be detrimental to women’s professional sport.”
Vézina even made a prediction that several experts second.
“Soon it will no longer be women’s sport. It will simply be sport. There will be no more gender separation. People will say they’re going to watch a hockey game, that’s all. The younger generation already no longer differentiates between high-level men’s and women’s sport.”
— Sébastien Vézina
Shane Pinto, wearing two stickers from the online betting site Bet 99 on his helmet, was suspended for 41 games for violating the NHL’s sports betting policy. (The Law, Patrick Woodbury/The Law, Patrick Woodbury)
Sports betting
On the male side, sports betting is omnipresent. Impossible to watch a match without observing an advertisement from some company. It’s only a matter of time before it’s the same for women. “It has become inevitable,” confirmed Sébastien Vézina.
However, several incidents have taken place in recent months. Several athletes have been accused and convicted of betting on matches. There have been cases in the NFL, the NHL with Shane Pinto of the Ottawa Senators and in the NBA with Jontay Porter of the Toronto Raptors who was banned for life from the circuit. For Sébastien Vézina, everything involves regulations and education in order to avoid getting into trouble.
“People consume sport while wanting to have fun and sports betting makes it possible. Inevitably, there will be a public health issue. People will put pressure on the political class in order to put in place a legislative framework like there is elsewhere in the country and in the United States. This activity is really not going to stop any time soon. Once the activity is supervised, we can educate people, much in the same way as we did with alcohol.”
