Source: Forbes
Women’s elite sports is poised to generate over $1 billion in global revenue for the first time in 2024, driven by surging interest (Deloitte). In April, the Women's Basketball Championship drew 18.9 million viewers, surpassing the men’s tournament (Deadline). The 2023 Women’s World Cup final attracted 13.21 million viewers in the UK alone (Fifa). The year-on-year growth in viewership suggests we are just scratching the surface of its potential.
The rapid development of new leagues has made investing in women’s sports increasingly more attractive and full of opportunities. Now, more than ever, women’s sports are on investors’ radars, with its status as one of the fastest-growing industries making the market especially enticing.
Women’s sports are increasingly profitable. The 2023 Women’s World Cup exemplifies this success, generating over $570 million in revenue and breaking stigmas around women in sports.
Revenue in women’s sport primarily comes from commercial channels, including club sponsorships, partnerships and merchandising sales) (Deloitte). This contrasts with men’s sports, where revenue is mainly driven by broadcasting rights, highlighting a significant growth area and economic potential for women’s sports.
The value of sponsorship in women’s sport is skyrocketing. For every $1 dollar spent by a corporate sponsor in women’s sports, more than $7 is generated in “customer value for that organisation” (Change our Game). The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup garnered $308 million in net sponsorship revenue, and sponsors of the Ladies Professional Golf Association reported up to 400% return in media value on their investment (LPGA). Brands backing women’s sports are often associated with female empowerment and gender parity, enhancing consumer perception (Women’s Sport Trust). As visibility in women’s sports rises, sponsorships become increasingly valuable and an attractive investment for brands.
This new era of women’s sport is also driving investments in new teams and leagues.
Many women's major leagues have emerged in the last decade, with some sports still missing from the lineup. For example, the Women's Hockey League in North America launched its inaugural season in 2023. Newcomers have tried to innovate in this space such as Women’s Sports Network and Athletes Unlimited. Athletes Unlimited was established in 2020 with the aim to create an alternative model to the current league system by making it more player-centric. It operates four different sports leagues, with each league being led by a player executive committee and where athletes share the profits of the business.
Today, women’s sports are primarily focused on football, basketball and tennis. Moreover, the US is leading in the revenue-generating market followed by Europe (Deloitte). In so, there is still a lot of growth potential within women’s sports with many sports still to be supported and established in new geographies.
New and innovative ways of structuring teams have been developed to build women’s sports in a way which would enable the market to truly flourish. Sofia Jorgenson, partner at Gunnercooke, highlights that there are increasingly opportunities available “for women’s sports teams to determine a new paradigm for structures and models for their success and growth, challenging traditional ownership and investment models. Women’s teams, leagues and their stakeholders understand this and are rewriting the narrative; seeking access to sophisticated financial, legal and technical professionals to support growth and to give competitive edge”.
Angel City FC was established in 2020 and is LA’s first women’s professional football team since 2010. It is backed by notable investors like Natalie Portman, Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian. It has quickly become a prominent team in the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) and has set new standards in women’s professional football. Valued at over $180 million in 2024, it is the most valuable NWSL team (Sports Pro). The team’s success stems, in part, from its innovative revenue models which includes unique sponsorship structures and a commitment to community investment.
In 2023, Michele Kang created the first global, multi-club ownership model dedicated to women’s football adding Olympique Lyonnais Feminin (France) football club and London City Lionesses (UK) to her portfolio alongside the Washington Spirit (US) (Sports Pro). Like in the men’s game, the multi-club model not only fosters synergies between teams but also enables ecosystem-wide investment, and supports the commercial development of women’s sport in emerging markets enhancing both the quality and revenue potential of women’s football.
With such strong teams and leagues employing innovative approaches, valuations for women’s sports are set to soar. Several teams are projected to exceed $100 million in value by 2024.
When pricing investments in sports, the methodology of revenue multiples is used by calculating the enterprise value ('EV') of a club as a multiple of its revenue (EV/Revenue).
Men’s football clubs average valuation revenue multiples to 2023 were 2.01x (BDO). In 2024, the implied multiple for the top 10 clubs ranges from 4.3x to 6.5x with Manchester United FC having the highest multiple at 6.5x (Football Benchmark).
In comparison, last year the average NWSL team was worth an average valuation multiple of 8.1x (Sportico). More recently, Chelsea Football Club’s Women’s was valued at $200 million implying a multiple of 20x to 25x (Bloomberg).
Men’s European football team valuations tend to plateau at around 5-6x multiples . In contrast, women’s football teams, still in their early growth phase, offer a different risk profile with substantial upside potential. It’s no surprise that several Premier League clubs are seeking private equity investment in the Women’s Super League (Bloomberg).
Some investors have already started to identify this growth opportunity and have decided to support women’s sports in its early stages. Mark Affloter, partner at Ares Management who co- leads their Sports, Media and Entertainment strategy, stated that youth, amateur and women’s sport are sectors which “share some of the same attractive demand drivers as professional and men’s sports, they have significant growth in participation and lack correlation to the broader macroeconomic environment” (Business Insider).
Leading private equity firm, Sixth Street, acquired a majority stake in women’s football team Bay FC from the NSWL in 2023. The firm has placed Bay FC in its highly successful portfolio which includes FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, and the Spurs (NBA). Sixth Street’s decision to buy a NWSL team is a significant validation for both the league and the growth potential of women’s football in the US. It also highlights the calibre of investors prepared to invest in women’s sports.
Other important investments include Carlyle’s (PE firm) recent investment in Seattle Reign FC in 2024 for close to $58 million alongside Ownership Group of Seattle Sounders FC (Sounders FC), Levine Leichtman acquisition of the San Diego Wave selling for a record of $113 million (making it the largest sell in NWSL history), as well as co-Founder of Angel City FC, Kara Nortman, launching a women’s sports-focused private equity firm, Monarch Collective, in 2023. Monarch Collective’s goal is to be a catalyst for driving investment in women’s sports in the future.
These aren’t mere acquisitions; they mark the beginning of a surge in financial interest in women’s sport. Deloitte predicts that as the market expands, it will become common for institutional investors, PE funds and high net worth individuals to invest in this space.
A team’s most valuable asset is its player. Therefore, teams will increasingly invest into products and software to gain a competitive edge. In so, start-ups will look to bridge this gap and serve to innovate in a market ripe for growth. Understanding this is crucial for investing in one of the most profitable and impactful emerging industries.
As the General Partner of Goddess Gaia Ventures, we have dedicated this fund to investing in startups which are creating solutions for health issues which solely, disproportionately or differently affect women. We’ve made investing in women’s sport a key focus of our fund as we understand that to have a true impact in women’s sports, athletes must be given the correct tools to optimise their performances and improve their long-term well-being.
The future of women’s sports is promising. While the market is still in its infancy, significant progress has been made and significant progress certainly lies ahead. Although the exact trajectory is uncertain, the future of sports is undeniably female.
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By Priya Oberoi
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