While wage gaps between male and female athletes generally persist, brand deals are leveling the playing field.
This year, deals for female leagues and teams were up 21%, while deals with athletes were up 18%, per SponsorUnited.
One reason?
Female athletes are proving they can engage an audience better than their male counterparts.
- In professional tennis, women players engaged 53m followers with branded posts, compared to 38.5m for men.
- In college sports, women athletes generated 4x the engagement of men with less than half as many brand partnerships.
Financial, apparel, and non-alcoholic beverage companies signed the most deals, and it’s likely only a matter of time before other sectors get in on the action.
Topics:
Sports And Esports
