This week the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) will begin its tenth season, with a new commissioner leading the way. Jessica Berman took the reins last week, joining the NWSL after serving as Associate Commissioner for the National Lacrosse League, and as Vice President at the NHL prior to that. We asked Berman to catch us up on all things NWSL as the season starts.

Berman on the opportunity for the NWSL as a business opportunity: We will unlock the potential of the NWSL. Whether you’re an ownership group or prospective one, a current partner or a company evaluating where to invest your marketing resources, or quite frankly, a world-class player deciding where to compete, the NWSL is the most attractive sports property in the world from a growth perspective. We are confident in our value proposition and are inviting partners to join us.

On the lessons learned at the NHL and NLL:I’m so grateful for my time with both the NHL and the NLL. At the NHL I had the opportunity to learn from Gary Bettman and Bill Daly during pivotal years in the league’s history. They taught me how to run a professional sports league, while managing a growing and matrixed business. At the NLL I was able to take many of those lessons from the NHL and apply them in the context of a challenger property. I also had the opportunity to learn from Nick Sakiewicz as we focused on expansion and the commercial business. The combination of those two experiences has made me uniquely prepared for this opportunity.

On why now is the right time for brands to invest in women’s sports: I’d argue that it has always been the right time for brands to invest in women’s sports, and I’m certainly happy to see so many great companies doing just that. We’ll continue to provide our partners with opportunities that just aren’t available elsewhere, and in doing so, will no doubt increase the number of partners who want to be part of making the NWSL a household name in the U.S. and around the world.

On the impact a new group of ownership at many clubs is bringing to the American sports landscape: The NWSL is positioned for growth thanks to the long-term investment from ownership, from the league’s earliest days all the way through to the recent expansion in Louisville and Kansas City in 2021 and LA and San Diego this year. Our owners are committed to building the type of league our players deserve and feel proud to play in. On top of what was already in place in 2021, our owners have collectively committed to an incremental investment of more than $100m over the course of the next five years and I’m thrilled to see how far we can take the NWSL in the years ahead.

On the value of NWSL as a property on the global sports stage: The game continues to expand and it’s exciting to see the rise of women’s leagues all over the world. We believe we have the best players in the world playing here in the NWSL and look forward to pushing the boundaries of what’s possible to cement our place among the premier soccer leagues around the globe.

PROGRAMMING

The NFL Draft will have three late round picks announced from locations around the world. From Las Vegas on Saturday, a Brazilian celebrity dressed in Dolphins gear will announce one of the team’s late-round picks from Rio. Other remote picks will include Nick Mangold at The Shard, a giant London office tower, to announce the next Jet rookie while the Panthers, Chiefs and Bucs will have picks from Munich, and the Steelers, Cardinals, Texans from Mexico.

The NFL is also planning its first Christmas Day triple-header, with Dec. 25 on a Sunday. The NBA annually plans five nationally televised games for Christmas Day. The full 2022 NFL schedule will be released on May 12.

For the first round of the NFL Draft on Thursday, VSiN will broadcast live from its Las Vegas studios to give sports betting fans a unique pick-by-pick analysis during the first round of the draft from its team of football experts. The sports betting
network’s 2022 Draft BetCast will kick off at 7 p.m. ET/ 4 p.m. PT and air through midnight ET/9 p.m. PT (or until the first round draft is complete) and air live on both VSiN.com and VSiN’s YouTube Channel.

The WNBA Minnesota Lynx signed a multiyear deal with Bally Sports North that will see the network carry 32 Lynx games this year on the main network or Bally Sports North Extra.

FAST Studios announced partnerships with four key leagues and sports organizations to expand the programming slate for the upcoming Women’s Sports Network (womenssports.com). The Women’s Sports Network will add content from Athletes Unlimited, in professional softball, volleyball, lacrosse and basketball. The Women’s Football Alliance joins as a league partner in addition to previously announced Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA), U.S. Ski and Snowboard and World Surf League (WSL). Octagon will deliver social content featuring their roster of talent; quattro media, the adventure and action sports company, also joins the Women’s Sports Network’s team of collaborative partners: Sports Innovation Lab, GoodSport and Empower Onyx.

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SPONSORSHIP & PROMOTION

Angel City FC signed four L.A.-area athletes: UCLA gymnast Jordan Chiles, USC golfer Amari Avery, skateboarder Bryce Wettstein and wheelchair basketball player Luzi Skye as brand ambassadors. They will represent the team at community and service events, attend home games, post on social media to drive awareness of the team via Instagram and TikTok, appear in team-produced content and participate in select external media opportunities. They will also have the opportunity to intern with the club or team partners.

Also on the NWSL side, The Chicago Red Stars have announced a multi-year kit sponsorship deal with the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC). The agreement, which kicks in from the start of the 2022 season on 29th April, designates CIBC as the official bank of the NWSL franchise and the CRS Cares Foundation. As well as gaining front of jersey branding, the Canadian bank will receive promotion across the Red Stars’ marketing assets.

The NFL joined the National Domestic Violence Hotline (The Hotline) and Raliance in unveiling their continued partnerships to coincide with April as Sexual Assault Awareness Month. The NFL said the alliance is part of the its “national and local partnerships that provide year-round resources to educate communities and support survivors is part of the league’s broad commitment that includes more than $50 million in donations since 2014.

Courtyard by Marriott, the official hotel of the NFL, said it would host a “Bistro & Banter” live open event on April 27, the night before the 2022 NFL Draft in Las Vegas (April 28-30). Scheduled to attend is Los Angeles Rams Super Bowl winning QB Matthew Stafford. Courtyard by Marriott is also the the presenting sponsor for the Draft on ESPN (which will also air on ABC and NFL Network). The event is being held in The Library at Marquee inside The Cosmopolitan Hotel.

In celebration of Earth Day, Wilson Sporting Goods Co. launched their Earth Day Tennis Racket Series. The eco-conscious collection, inclusive of three performance rackets, features bio-based and recycled material from Agiplast technology by Arkema and waterborne paints from Sherwin Williams; ultimately decreasing the footprint of each racket produced.

Penske Entertainment announced several new sustainability initiatives lined up ahead of the May 29 Indianapolis 500. They include increased use of Firestone’s Firehawk tire made from a more sustainable form of rubber, plus a collaboration among IMS, Shell and climate tech company CHOOOSE to offset fans’ travel footprint through contributions to the GreenTrees reforestation project.

Tyson Foods will be the title sponsor of the Black College World Series each of the next three years. The ’22 Tyson Foods Black College World Series will be played May 11-15 at Riverwalk Stadium in Montgomery, Ala., involving eight HBCU teams.

Kraft Heinz Canada, in partnership with the National Hockey League and the National Hockey League Players’ Association announced the Top 4 finalists competing for the title of Kraft Hockeyville 2022. Those Canadian communities are (from West to East): Princeton, British Columbia (Princeton and District Arena) Douro-Dummer, Ontario (Douro Community Centre and Arena), Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec (Aréna Marcel-Larocque) and Sydney, Nova Scotia (Canada Games Complex).

DIGITAL, DATA & TECH

Chet Holmgren, expected to be a lottery (and likely No. 1 overall) selection in next month’s NBA Draft launched a partnership with Topps, a limited-edition Chet Holmgren art card set. The cards were created by sports artists Blake Jamieson, Jacob Rochester and Mikael B. There are nine designs in total depicting the 7’1″ WCC Player of the Year, three from each artist.

Candy Digital and the Atlanta Braves announced the 2021 Braves World Series Champions Collection NFTs to commemorate the franchise’s second championship since moving to the Peach State (their fourth overall). For the second consecutive year, Candy is honoring the reigning World Series champs following the first-ever World Series NFTs introduced in 2020 to celebrate the Dodgers win.

The French Tennis Federation has extended its pact with OPPO global technology firm, to include the Paris Roland Garros Grand Slams in 2022 and 2023. The partnership began in 2019.

ESPORTS

Cloud9 has acquired the Russia-based Gambit Esports’ Counter-Strike: Global Offensive squad that just qualified for the PGL Antwerp Major under a different name – Players. The deal was a negotiation between Cloud9 and Norwegian-based Ulti Agency, which now represents the players of Players. Although it’s one of North America’s most storied esports organizations, Cloud9 has not fielded a CS:GO team since March ’21, when it let go of its squad due to logistical problems surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Overwatch League revealed that the start of the 2022 season in the East is being delayed by two weeks due to a rise in COVID cases. The Eastern region’s games will now begin on May 20, but all 21 matches will still be played across two weekends instead of one. The schedule remains unchanged outside of the first few weeks, however, so there should be little disruption as of now. In the West, the league revealed that the Kickoff Clash will be held in Dallas and the Summer Showdown will take place in Toronto. This marks the first time a live OWL event will take place in Canada.

INDUSTRY & ROSTER MOVES

Anheuser-Busch InBev promoted Beyond Beer President Marcel Marcondes to Global CMO.

888 Holdings named former Bleacher Report CEO Howard Mittman President 88 US. He will be responsible for 888’s U.S. operations, including its partnership with Authentic Brands Group.

The Tennessee Titans promoted CRM Manager Tommy Francis to Dir of Business Intelligence.

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ON THIS DAY in
1964: The Boston Celtics beat SF Warriors, 4 games to 1, to win their 18th NBA title.

IN THE KNOW
With the NWSL season beginning, who won the league’s first championship, in 2013? (Email [email protected] with your answer and be sure to include your name, company and city).

Answer to Our Last Sports Trivia Question
In 1996, no quarterback was selected in the first round of the NFL Draft with the first one coming in at pick 42 out of Michigan State. Who was he? Answer: Tony Banks.
Kudos: Roger Furman-Sports Marketing Communications/Greentown, PA; Synda Kollman-Charter Marketing Group/Boca Raton; Jason Brist-Outdoor Sportsman Group/Chicago; Andy Pittman-TAMU/College Station; Tom Moore-Kalt Productions, Los Angeles, CA; Jerry Milani-Milani PR/New Jersey; Terry Lyons-Digital Sports Desk/Boston and David Westberg-SAG•AFTRA Credit Union/Burbank

Cynopsis Team