Keep pulling the thread on Major League Baseball.
HS&E committed to paying participating women's college basketball teams, including the University of Connecticut, appearance fees equivalent to those paid to men's teams for similar early-season tournaments.
WNBA players Brianna Stewart, Nafisa Collier, and Alex Bazel founded the Unrivaled league to create a high-paying, domestic alternative for players during the WNBA offseason, allowing them to avoid playing overseas.
All players participating in the Unrivaled basketball league receive an equity position in the league and are paid salaries comparable to what they could earn playing overseas.
In its 28-year history, no team in the WNBA has been profitable, and the league itself has not made money.
Media rights for women's sports currently offer a very good return on investment (ROI) for media companies and sponsors, based on the television ratings they are delivering.
Shark Beauty signed a three-year agreement to become the title sponsor of the Women's Champions Classic (WCC), indicating a trend of non-traditional brands entering sports sponsorship.
The speaker's agency, HS&E, is actively pursuing sponsorships for the women's basketball league Unrivaled from brands like Sephora and Wayfair, which have not traditionally sponsored sports.
The speaker's agency, HS&E, strategically avoided entering the NBA and NFL markets because they are dominated by established agencies such as CAA, IMG, Endeavor, and Wasserman Group.
The speaker's agency, HS&E, has identified pickleball, Formula One, and women's sports as key strategic areas for growth, believing them to be less saturated by major competing agencies.
HS&E identified a market opportunity for a premier, early-season women's college basketball tournament to be broadcast in primetime on a major network like Fox.
University of Connecticut coach Geno Auriemma required that the new women's college basketball tournament be held in New York City and played on an NBA court as conditions for his team's participation.
The speaker believes the Unrivaled league's offseason model would not be viable for the NBA, as top players are too highly compensated to participate in a three-month supplemental league.