When it comes to the increasing popularity of women’s sports, one of the biggest advertising agencies is putting its money where its mouth is.
According to Variety, media-buying consortium GroupM has pledged to double its clients’ spending on women’s sports in 2024. Additionally, the WPP-backed ad-buyer is seeking “to create a dedicated marketplace for the programming genre,” beginning with the industry’s next “upfront” negotiation period.
Per Variety, GroupM has has already secured interest from clients such as adidas, Ally, Coinbase, Discover, Google, Mars, Nationwide, Unilever and NBCUniversal’s Universal Pictures. As a part of its efforts, GroupM will “seek to create new broadcast sponsorships and other types of content packages, as well as pacts with leagues and even athlete-owned entertainment companies.”
“There is a business opportunity for women’s sports, and we can feel it,” Denise Ocasio, executive director of investment for GroupM’s U.S. operations, told Variety.
GroupM’s announcement comes amid one of the most highly touted NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournaments in recent memory, which features several star players and high profile teams. That interest has been reflected in the ratings with Iowa and superstar Caitlin Clark’s second-round victory over West Virginia on Monday averaging 4.9 million viewers for ESPN, making it the largest pre-Final Four audience in women’s tournament history, per Sports Media Watch.
“Over the last few years, we have seen increased attention, increasing ratings and increased presence,” Martin Blich, executive director of sports and live investment for GroupM U.S., said.
With the National Women’ s Soccer League building on the popularity of the United States Women’s National Team and the WNBA both growing in popularity and standing to benefit from the current state of the women’s college game, it’s academic that the advertising dollars would follow. Last fall, consulting firm Deloitte predicted that women’s elite sports will generate global revenues of $1.28 billion in 2024, marking the first time such totals have topped $1 billion.
And that momentum doesn’t appear to be slowing down anytime soon.
[Variety]
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.