1 00:00:00,840 --> 00:00:03,360 Speaker 1: Welcome to Good Game with Sarah Spain, where we're scouring 2 00:00:03,400 --> 00:00:06,520 Speaker 1: the Volleyball Championship Challenge brackets to see which of y'all 3 00:00:06,559 --> 00:00:09,240 Speaker 1: slices we're looking up at and who we've got bragging 4 00:00:09,280 --> 00:00:12,480 Speaker 1: rights over. It's Monday, December night. On today's show, I 5 00:00:12,520 --> 00:00:16,000 Speaker 1: talked to Caroline Fitzgerald, CEO and founder of Goals Sports 6 00:00:16,239 --> 00:00:19,000 Speaker 1: and host of the Business Case for Women's Sports podcast. 7 00:00:19,239 --> 00:00:21,119 Speaker 1: We talk about the moment she knew she needed to 8 00:00:21,120 --> 00:00:24,000 Speaker 1: start her own marketing and consultancy business for women's sports, 9 00:00:24,239 --> 00:00:27,200 Speaker 1: what she's learned from connecting brands and leagues, and more. 10 00:00:27,560 --> 00:00:30,360 Speaker 1: Plus a brick wall with a magic hand enters the 11 00:00:30,360 --> 00:00:32,639 Speaker 1: Good Game Hall of Fame. It's all coming up right 12 00:00:32,680 --> 00:00:39,800 Speaker 1: after this Welcome Back Slices meiche has got your need 13 00:00:39,880 --> 00:00:43,519 Speaker 1: to know today, Take it away, Mesh. 14 00:00:43,880 --> 00:00:45,120 Speaker 2: Thanks Sarah. 15 00:00:45,159 --> 00:00:48,920 Speaker 3: In WNVA News on Friday, the Golden State Valkyrie selected 16 00:00:48,960 --> 00:00:51,839 Speaker 3: eleven players in the league's first expansion draft since two 17 00:00:51,840 --> 00:00:54,080 Speaker 3: thousand and eight. The draft was held at the San 18 00:00:54,120 --> 00:00:57,720 Speaker 3: Francisco Museum of Modern Art in golfer Michelle Wee west 19 00:00:57,800 --> 00:01:01,280 Speaker 3: Rapper E forty in former MMBA Golden State Warrior Baron 20 00:01:01,360 --> 00:01:03,760 Speaker 3: Davis announced the picks at the podium. We'll link to 21 00:01:03,800 --> 00:01:06,440 Speaker 3: the fullest of Hooper selected in our show notes. Head 22 00:01:06,440 --> 00:01:09,800 Speaker 3: coach Natalie Nicasse told ESPN viewers before the selections were 23 00:01:09,840 --> 00:01:11,760 Speaker 3: made that she wants her team to hang its hat 24 00:01:11,760 --> 00:01:15,120 Speaker 3: on the defensive end and be composed of true competitors. 25 00:01:15,560 --> 00:01:17,479 Speaker 3: If you take a look at the fullest of selections, 26 00:01:17,600 --> 00:01:20,679 Speaker 3: the Valkyrie shows a lot of underrated glue players like 27 00:01:20,720 --> 00:01:24,640 Speaker 3: twenty twenty four WNBA champ Kaylea Thornton, Monique Billings, and 28 00:01:24,680 --> 00:01:26,480 Speaker 3: Temmy Fak Benley who fit. 29 00:01:26,360 --> 00:01:27,360 Speaker 2: The bill perfectly. 30 00:01:27,959 --> 00:01:31,240 Speaker 3: And there's one other important piece I want to note. 31 00:01:31,360 --> 00:01:35,119 Speaker 3: The Valkyries did not select a player from the Seattle Storm. Now, 32 00:01:35,160 --> 00:01:37,200 Speaker 3: in case you missed our brief rundown on how the 33 00:01:37,240 --> 00:01:40,720 Speaker 3: draft worked, each of the twelve WNBA teams chose six 34 00:01:40,800 --> 00:01:44,280 Speaker 3: players to protect, meaning Golden State could not select them 35 00:01:44,280 --> 00:01:47,600 Speaker 3: in the draft. Now, we don't know officially who Seattle 36 00:01:47,680 --> 00:01:50,080 Speaker 3: chose to protect, but I'd bet my car that two 37 00:01:50,120 --> 00:01:53,559 Speaker 3: time WNBA League Champ Jewel Lloyd was in that mix. 38 00:01:54,200 --> 00:01:56,920 Speaker 2: Just last week, though, Lloyd requested a trade. 39 00:01:56,640 --> 00:01:59,600 Speaker 3: Out of Seattle following an investigation into claims of bullying 40 00:01:59,640 --> 00:02:03,920 Speaker 3: and herne against the coaching staff. The investigation found no violations. 41 00:02:04,520 --> 00:02:07,320 Speaker 3: Putting two and two together, it's possible to Storm and 42 00:02:07,400 --> 00:02:10,600 Speaker 3: Valkyries could be in cahoots manufacturing a trade that would 43 00:02:10,639 --> 00:02:13,080 Speaker 3: send Lloyd's south to the Bay for something in return, 44 00:02:13,320 --> 00:02:15,760 Speaker 3: because if I were an exec, I wouldn't want to 45 00:02:15,760 --> 00:02:18,640 Speaker 3: give her up for nothing in an expansion draft. Lloyd 46 00:02:18,720 --> 00:02:20,960 Speaker 3: still has a year left on her contract with Seattle 47 00:02:21,000 --> 00:02:22,799 Speaker 3: and is one of the highest paid players in the 48 00:02:22,840 --> 00:02:26,200 Speaker 3: WNBA will keep you updated on how the Valkyrie's franchise 49 00:02:26,320 --> 00:02:31,320 Speaker 3: and its roster evolve. In college soccer, the NCAA College 50 00:02:31,360 --> 00:02:34,960 Speaker 3: Cup Championship is tonight. It all comes down to a 51 00:02:34,960 --> 00:02:38,960 Speaker 3: battle of number two seeded ACC in state foes Wake 52 00:02:39,040 --> 00:02:43,200 Speaker 3: Forest and UNC at seven pm Eastern on ESPNU and 53 00:02:43,280 --> 00:02:47,200 Speaker 3: streaming on ESPN Plus. This is wake Forest's first National 54 00:02:47,280 --> 00:02:51,000 Speaker 3: Championship match ever. In just their second College Cup appearance ever, 55 00:02:51,400 --> 00:02:53,640 Speaker 3: the Demon Deacons will try to cap off a historic 56 00:02:53,680 --> 00:02:56,919 Speaker 3: regular season. They became the first team in NCAA history 57 00:02:56,960 --> 00:02:59,160 Speaker 3: to beat the top two teams in the country back 58 00:02:59,200 --> 00:03:02,480 Speaker 3: to back with wins over Uva and Stanford. It was 59 00:03:02,520 --> 00:03:04,440 Speaker 3: a one nil win over the cardinal in the semi 60 00:03:04,440 --> 00:03:07,359 Speaker 3: finals on Friday that punched Wake's ticket to the championship. 61 00:03:07,800 --> 00:03:11,440 Speaker 3: North Carolina, however, is no stranger to this stage. This 62 00:03:11,480 --> 00:03:14,440 Speaker 3: will be the Tar Hills twenty eighth national Championship match. 63 00:03:14,720 --> 00:03:18,079 Speaker 3: The program maintains the record across all D one sports 64 00:03:18,200 --> 00:03:20,760 Speaker 3: for the most national titles, with twenty two in total, 65 00:03:21,280 --> 00:03:25,320 Speaker 3: but they haven't won one since twenty twelve. In College 66 00:03:25,360 --> 00:03:28,640 Speaker 3: Hoops News, we got a sneak peek at Star LSU 67 00:03:28,680 --> 00:03:30,840 Speaker 3: guard Flage Johnson's Player Edition. 68 00:03:30,680 --> 00:03:31,720 Speaker 2: Sneaker over the weekend. 69 00:03:32,160 --> 00:03:35,280 Speaker 3: Johnson, who has an nil deal with Puma, debuted the 70 00:03:35,320 --> 00:03:37,920 Speaker 3: shoe on her video podcast Best of Both Worlds with 71 00:03:37,920 --> 00:03:40,320 Speaker 3: Flage and gave away a pair to one of her 72 00:03:40,360 --> 00:03:43,480 Speaker 3: biggest fans. We'll link to that video in the show notes. 73 00:03:43,600 --> 00:03:46,400 Speaker 3: It was such a sweet interaction and the shoe looks 74 00:03:46,600 --> 00:03:49,960 Speaker 3: super dope if I do say so myself. The design 75 00:03:50,000 --> 00:03:52,640 Speaker 3: includes her number four in a camouflage pattern in honor 76 00:03:52,680 --> 00:03:55,040 Speaker 3: of her late father, the Rapper camouflage. 77 00:03:55,240 --> 00:03:56,240 Speaker 2: It also has her. 78 00:03:56,120 --> 00:03:58,920 Speaker 3: Big four celebration on the tongue and two quotes from 79 00:03:58,920 --> 00:04:02,640 Speaker 3: her mom, raised the Beast and we worked on this. 80 00:04:03,040 --> 00:04:05,360 Speaker 3: To top it off, There's also a hand written note 81 00:04:05,400 --> 00:04:06,480 Speaker 3: on the inside of the shoe. 82 00:04:06,760 --> 00:04:08,320 Speaker 2: It's a tribute to her brothers. 83 00:04:09,080 --> 00:04:12,240 Speaker 3: In college vibes, We're entering the third round of the 84 00:04:12,360 --> 00:04:14,960 Speaker 3: NCAA Tournament, and of course we couldn't get here without 85 00:04:15,000 --> 00:04:18,560 Speaker 3: some upsets. This weekend had a few, including number seven 86 00:04:18,600 --> 00:04:21,760 Speaker 3: seeded Missouri's three to one win over number two seed SMU, 87 00:04:21,960 --> 00:04:25,159 Speaker 3: Number six Florida's three to two victory over number three Kansas, 88 00:04:25,360 --> 00:04:27,520 Speaker 3: and six seeded Texas A and M's three to one 89 00:04:27,560 --> 00:04:30,640 Speaker 3: win over number three seed Arizona State. Round three of 90 00:04:30,680 --> 00:04:34,880 Speaker 3: the tournament begins on Thursday. In Pro Women's Hockey League news, 91 00:04:34,960 --> 00:04:39,480 Speaker 3: the PWHL is in the game EA Sports NHL twenty 92 00:04:39,560 --> 00:04:40,400 Speaker 3: five video game. 93 00:04:40,440 --> 00:04:43,800 Speaker 2: That is. Season two of the game includes a holiday. 94 00:04:43,440 --> 00:04:46,520 Speaker 3: Update that makes all six p WHL teams selectable in 95 00:04:46,560 --> 00:04:49,320 Speaker 3: a few of its different modes, and in Season mode, 96 00:04:49,480 --> 00:04:52,520 Speaker 3: players can even compete for the Walter Cup. This is 97 00:04:52,520 --> 00:04:55,799 Speaker 3: a result of the PWHL's multi year partnership with EA, 98 00:04:55,920 --> 00:04:59,920 Speaker 3: otherwise known as Electronic Arts Incorporated, forged back in November. 99 00:05:00,279 --> 00:05:03,120 Speaker 3: We'll link to visuals of the PWHL and NHL twenty 100 00:05:03,120 --> 00:05:05,040 Speaker 3: five in our show notes and to where you can 101 00:05:05,080 --> 00:05:07,160 Speaker 3: purchase it for yourself or the gamer you love. 102 00:05:07,200 --> 00:05:12,359 Speaker 2: This holiday season. Thanks Misha, We got to take a break. 103 00:05:12,400 --> 00:05:13,080 Speaker 2: When we come back. 104 00:05:13,120 --> 00:05:16,000 Speaker 1: We talked the business Case for Women's Sports, with Goals 105 00:05:16,000 --> 00:05:18,160 Speaker 1: founder Caroline Fitzgerald. 106 00:05:22,279 --> 00:05:22,920 Speaker 2: Joining us now. 107 00:05:22,960 --> 00:05:26,200 Speaker 1: She's the CEO and founder of Goals Sports, a marketing 108 00:05:26,200 --> 00:05:29,640 Speaker 1: and sponsorship consultancy focused on growing women's sports. She's the 109 00:05:29,680 --> 00:05:32,200 Speaker 1: host of the Business Case for Women's Sports podcast and 110 00:05:32,240 --> 00:05:35,320 Speaker 1: a contributing writer at Forbes dot com. Recently named a 111 00:05:35,320 --> 00:05:38,640 Speaker 1: Sports Business Journal twenty twenty four power player in Women's Sports. 112 00:05:38,720 --> 00:05:40,680 Speaker 1: She's got a BA from Penn State and a master's 113 00:05:40,680 --> 00:05:41,360 Speaker 1: from NYU. 114 00:05:41,560 --> 00:05:42,840 Speaker 2: She's a former hoops coach, an. 115 00:05:42,800 --> 00:05:45,799 Speaker 1: Avid runner, and the Rad Neon sign in her office 116 00:05:45,920 --> 00:05:49,279 Speaker 1: inspired the Rad good Game sign I've got behind me. 117 00:05:49,480 --> 00:05:51,640 Speaker 2: It's Caroline Fitzgerald. What's out? Caroline? 118 00:05:51,760 --> 00:05:53,960 Speaker 4: Hi, Sarah, thank you for having me and your neon 119 00:05:53,960 --> 00:05:54,640 Speaker 4: looks amazing. 120 00:05:54,800 --> 00:05:55,159 Speaker 2: Thank you. 121 00:05:55,200 --> 00:05:56,880 Speaker 4: Nothing but good things to say about it. 122 00:05:57,080 --> 00:05:58,919 Speaker 1: Uh, love it, love it. I want to start with 123 00:05:58,920 --> 00:06:01,120 Speaker 1: your sports background. Tell us all about the sports you 124 00:06:01,120 --> 00:06:01,840 Speaker 1: played growing up. 125 00:06:02,040 --> 00:06:04,919 Speaker 4: Yeah, Sarah, So, I think, like a lot of people 126 00:06:05,240 --> 00:06:08,120 Speaker 4: that a lot of women in women's sports and a 127 00:06:08,160 --> 00:06:10,679 Speaker 4: lot of women that grew up playing sports. I didn't 128 00:06:10,680 --> 00:06:13,080 Speaker 4: have a ton of opportunity growing up to play the 129 00:06:13,120 --> 00:06:16,600 Speaker 4: sports I loved on teams with all other girls. So 130 00:06:16,880 --> 00:06:20,159 Speaker 4: my first team sporting experience was I was the only 131 00:06:20,240 --> 00:06:23,080 Speaker 4: girl on an all boys baseball team. And it's funny 132 00:06:23,120 --> 00:06:26,240 Speaker 4: now that I share this story, I hear so many 133 00:06:26,279 --> 00:06:28,640 Speaker 4: other women saying, like, that's how that happened to me too, 134 00:06:28,720 --> 00:06:30,320 Speaker 4: And they all have their own story of this. But 135 00:06:30,640 --> 00:06:32,520 Speaker 4: I'll just give you my quick kind of I call 136 00:06:32,600 --> 00:06:34,840 Speaker 4: this my villain origin story, if you will, of how 137 00:06:34,880 --> 00:06:37,640 Speaker 4: I got into this line of work. It happened at 138 00:06:37,640 --> 00:06:39,600 Speaker 4: the age of seven. Again, I was the only girl 139 00:06:39,600 --> 00:06:41,680 Speaker 4: on an all boys baseball team. It was me and 140 00:06:41,720 --> 00:06:44,040 Speaker 4: my brother Tanner were just signed up to play on 141 00:06:44,080 --> 00:06:47,120 Speaker 4: the boys team in the neighborhood. And I remember getting 142 00:06:47,120 --> 00:06:49,960 Speaker 4: there on our first day and almost immediately all the 143 00:06:49,960 --> 00:06:52,800 Speaker 4: boys on the other team started teasing us and taunting us, 144 00:06:52,839 --> 00:06:55,839 Speaker 4: saying things like girls can't play baseball. We're gonna crush 145 00:06:55,839 --> 00:06:57,839 Speaker 4: this team. They have a girl playing in the infield, 146 00:06:57,839 --> 00:07:00,839 Speaker 4: and we're gonna get them. And I was determined to 147 00:07:00,880 --> 00:07:03,599 Speaker 4: prove those boys wrong. So we took the field in 148 00:07:03,640 --> 00:07:05,840 Speaker 4: the first inning and I couldn't have scripted this better. 149 00:07:05,920 --> 00:07:09,159 Speaker 4: Sarah every the first three boys on the other team 150 00:07:09,200 --> 00:07:11,000 Speaker 4: all hit ground balls right to me, and I threw 151 00:07:11,040 --> 00:07:14,720 Speaker 4: them all out on grounders, and I walked off the 152 00:07:14,720 --> 00:07:18,600 Speaker 4: field at the age of seven, which such confidence and swagger, 153 00:07:19,240 --> 00:07:21,680 Speaker 4: just with this feeling like never again was anybody going 154 00:07:21,760 --> 00:07:24,280 Speaker 4: to tell me that I couldn't do something, especially in sports, 155 00:07:24,320 --> 00:07:27,360 Speaker 4: because I was a girl and I was just hooked 156 00:07:27,560 --> 00:07:31,160 Speaker 4: from there. I loved sports, played every single sport beyond baseball. 157 00:07:31,520 --> 00:07:35,080 Speaker 4: Basketball ended up becoming my main sport. I still run, 158 00:07:35,160 --> 00:07:36,960 Speaker 4: like you mentioned, to this day. I spent a lot 159 00:07:36,960 --> 00:07:39,520 Speaker 4: of time working in the running industry as well, but 160 00:07:39,560 --> 00:07:41,560 Speaker 4: basketball has always been the core sport. I still play 161 00:07:41,600 --> 00:07:44,280 Speaker 4: basketball every Wednesday night and in all women's league here 162 00:07:44,560 --> 00:07:47,840 Speaker 4: fun where I'm based, and it's just a lot of fun. 163 00:07:47,920 --> 00:07:50,920 Speaker 4: Sports have been with me for a long time and 164 00:07:51,000 --> 00:07:52,720 Speaker 4: hoped to keep playing as long as possible. 165 00:07:53,360 --> 00:07:56,200 Speaker 1: So you worked in sports and a number of capacities 166 00:07:56,240 --> 00:07:59,320 Speaker 1: before you decided to launch your own shop. So what 167 00:07:59,520 --> 00:08:01,920 Speaker 1: was the pivot point or the moment that you recognized 168 00:08:01,960 --> 00:08:03,240 Speaker 1: that there was a need for goals? 169 00:08:04,520 --> 00:08:07,280 Speaker 4: Yeah, it was pretty clear. It was kind of an 170 00:08:07,280 --> 00:08:11,720 Speaker 4: AHA moment. During the twenty twenty WNBA Wubble season and 171 00:08:11,800 --> 00:08:14,960 Speaker 4: seeing what the women of the WNBA did that season 172 00:08:15,160 --> 00:08:18,640 Speaker 4: for racial and social justice while they were also playing 173 00:08:18,680 --> 00:08:23,000 Speaker 4: the best basketball in the world under some pretty tough 174 00:08:23,040 --> 00:08:26,240 Speaker 4: conditions during the global pandemic, being the second pro sports 175 00:08:26,320 --> 00:08:29,720 Speaker 4: league to return to play during you know, those really 176 00:08:29,840 --> 00:08:33,040 Speaker 4: unprecedented times, and I was really just blown away what 177 00:08:33,200 --> 00:08:35,200 Speaker 4: those women were doing, like I said, both on and 178 00:08:35,240 --> 00:08:37,280 Speaker 4: off the court. And you know, I think, like a 179 00:08:37,280 --> 00:08:39,960 Speaker 4: lot of people during the global pandemic, I certainly am 180 00:08:40,040 --> 00:08:42,800 Speaker 4: very privileged and was able to work from home and 181 00:08:42,880 --> 00:08:45,560 Speaker 4: keep my full time job working for the Dick Sporting 182 00:08:45,559 --> 00:08:48,920 Speaker 4: Goods Pittsburgh Marathon at the time. But I just did 183 00:08:49,400 --> 00:08:52,079 Speaker 4: some soul searching, if you will. And I've always in 184 00:08:52,120 --> 00:08:55,480 Speaker 4: my life knew that my north star was to do 185 00:08:55,559 --> 00:08:59,559 Speaker 4: something professionally at the intersection of sports and business and feminism. 186 00:09:00,120 --> 00:09:03,719 Speaker 4: And when I graduated from college in twenty twelve, there 187 00:09:03,760 --> 00:09:06,720 Speaker 4: wasn't a super clear career path of what that could 188 00:09:06,720 --> 00:09:09,320 Speaker 4: look like. So I put myself on a path to 189 00:09:09,320 --> 00:09:12,880 Speaker 4: become a marketer and sell sponsorship sales and work in 190 00:09:12,920 --> 00:09:15,960 Speaker 4: sports if I could, and you know, all of my 191 00:09:16,280 --> 00:09:20,840 Speaker 4: experiences just kind of came together, and when I had 192 00:09:20,880 --> 00:09:24,720 Speaker 4: that aha moment, just being blown away by the twenty 193 00:09:24,880 --> 00:09:29,520 Speaker 4: WNBA Leble season. You know, I just decided kind of 194 00:09:29,520 --> 00:09:32,160 Speaker 4: to go all in. It didn't happen quite like that. 195 00:09:32,800 --> 00:09:37,000 Speaker 4: The whole concept and business model of goals evolved. But 196 00:09:37,080 --> 00:09:38,680 Speaker 4: the first thing that I decided to go all in 197 00:09:38,720 --> 00:09:41,920 Speaker 4: on was creating a podcast, The Business Case for Women's Sports. 198 00:09:41,960 --> 00:09:45,640 Speaker 4: And it really was sparked from this curiosity. I saw 199 00:09:45,640 --> 00:09:48,599 Speaker 4: everything happening with the WNBA, and I really wanted to 200 00:09:48,679 --> 00:09:50,640 Speaker 4: learn more about it. I wanted to listen to a 201 00:09:50,679 --> 00:09:53,960 Speaker 4: podcast that talked about the state of the women's sports 202 00:09:54,000 --> 00:09:57,640 Speaker 4: industry and kind of break down why the gender gaps 203 00:09:57,960 --> 00:10:01,199 Speaker 4: in's professional sports are. So I don't need to tell 204 00:10:01,200 --> 00:10:03,240 Speaker 4: you all these stats, Sarah probably don't need to tell 205 00:10:03,240 --> 00:10:06,120 Speaker 4: your listeners, but things like four percent of media coverage 206 00:10:06,120 --> 00:10:08,920 Speaker 4: at the time, one percent of sponsorship dollars. Don't get 207 00:10:08,920 --> 00:10:11,160 Speaker 4: me started on the pay gaps and women's sports and 208 00:10:11,200 --> 00:10:14,120 Speaker 4: men's sports. So, you know, I wanted to understand, like, what, 209 00:10:15,040 --> 00:10:18,479 Speaker 4: why are we not treating women's sports like a business 210 00:10:18,600 --> 00:10:22,160 Speaker 4: like this? Look at this business of men's sports. What 211 00:10:22,280 --> 00:10:25,240 Speaker 4: is going on that we're not that we're ignoring women 212 00:10:25,280 --> 00:10:28,360 Speaker 4: and we're not treating this like the industry that it 213 00:10:28,480 --> 00:10:31,760 Speaker 4: is so anyway, that's that's kind of how Goals came 214 00:10:31,800 --> 00:10:33,480 Speaker 4: to be. That's how I got into this. But it 215 00:10:33,520 --> 00:10:35,480 Speaker 4: really did that I think, like a lot of people, 216 00:10:36,040 --> 00:10:38,800 Speaker 4: I mean Power of a Dream watch the documentary, A 217 00:10:38,840 --> 00:10:40,920 Speaker 4: lot of people were inspired by that season. But that 218 00:10:41,040 --> 00:10:42,320 Speaker 4: was really a big catalyst for me. 219 00:10:42,720 --> 00:10:44,560 Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean, I think, first of all, there was 220 00:10:44,640 --> 00:10:47,400 Speaker 1: so much that was thought provoking and inspiring that came 221 00:10:47,440 --> 00:10:52,160 Speaker 1: out of that twenty twenty summer, that initial global pandemic shutdown. 222 00:10:52,720 --> 00:10:56,679 Speaker 1: That is, there's clear lines there of watching and experiencing 223 00:10:56,720 --> 00:10:59,120 Speaker 1: for the first time some of the racial reckonings, some 224 00:10:59,200 --> 00:11:01,160 Speaker 1: of the ways that some of these folks had to 225 00:11:01,240 --> 00:11:04,080 Speaker 1: balance their job, and then standing for something in a 226 00:11:04,120 --> 00:11:05,559 Speaker 1: moment when we were all shut down and. 227 00:11:05,480 --> 00:11:06,520 Speaker 2: We had all eyes on them. 228 00:11:06,800 --> 00:11:08,440 Speaker 1: But I think there's also something we need to be 229 00:11:08,440 --> 00:11:11,679 Speaker 1: thoughtful about, which is that people had time, and during 230 00:11:11,720 --> 00:11:14,800 Speaker 1: that time, so many people came up with their life's passion, 231 00:11:14,840 --> 00:11:17,360 Speaker 1: their life's work made a big change. We are such 232 00:11:17,360 --> 00:11:19,880 Speaker 1: a hustle culture that unless we are literally forced to 233 00:11:19,880 --> 00:11:21,679 Speaker 1: stay in our homes, we will not look at all 234 00:11:21,720 --> 00:11:23,560 Speaker 1: of the research and all of the language that tells 235 00:11:23,640 --> 00:11:26,400 Speaker 1: us shutting it down, slowing down giving ourselves time to 236 00:11:26,400 --> 00:11:28,920 Speaker 1: be creative and thoughtful will actually be effective for us. 237 00:11:29,200 --> 00:11:31,439 Speaker 2: So every time I get another guest done, that's as well. 238 00:11:31,480 --> 00:11:33,679 Speaker 1: It was the summer of twenty twenty, and that's when 239 00:11:33,679 --> 00:11:34,960 Speaker 1: they came up with this big thing. I'm like, oh, 240 00:11:35,000 --> 00:11:36,719 Speaker 1: I gotta be reminded of that because I'm so bad 241 00:11:36,760 --> 00:11:37,400 Speaker 1: at slowing down. 242 00:11:37,840 --> 00:11:39,680 Speaker 2: Okay, So tell me more about the company. 243 00:11:40,200 --> 00:11:42,240 Speaker 1: How you work on behalf of women's sports teams, how 244 00:11:42,240 --> 00:11:44,800 Speaker 1: you sort of organize to use these value aligned corporate 245 00:11:44,840 --> 00:11:47,000 Speaker 1: sponsors to meet them with their matches. 246 00:11:47,400 --> 00:11:50,440 Speaker 4: Yeah, totally. So at the core of what we do 247 00:11:50,840 --> 00:11:54,080 Speaker 4: is we try to demonstrate the social and economic value 248 00:11:54,080 --> 00:11:57,200 Speaker 4: that comes along with investing in women's sports. So we 249 00:11:57,280 --> 00:12:00,959 Speaker 4: do that mostly in two big buckets. Soh Like I said, 250 00:12:01,360 --> 00:12:05,200 Speaker 4: goals started as a podcast. Truly, I never podcasted before, 251 00:12:05,600 --> 00:12:07,680 Speaker 4: but I wanted to listen to a podcast about the 252 00:12:07,720 --> 00:12:10,240 Speaker 4: business side of women's sports that made the business case 253 00:12:10,280 --> 00:12:12,720 Speaker 4: for why we need more money into women's sports. So 254 00:12:12,760 --> 00:12:15,240 Speaker 4: I created the podcast. Maybe it was a little self serving, 255 00:12:15,280 --> 00:12:17,960 Speaker 4: but I also thought the industry could benefit from hearing 256 00:12:17,960 --> 00:12:21,960 Speaker 4: some of those conversations. So we are a media company 257 00:12:22,200 --> 00:12:24,840 Speaker 4: at our core. So the podcast and you know. I'm 258 00:12:24,840 --> 00:12:27,280 Speaker 4: a trained marketer, so I knew I just couldn't create 259 00:12:27,280 --> 00:12:30,959 Speaker 4: a podcast without having some marketing channels to market the podcast. 260 00:12:31,040 --> 00:12:33,400 Speaker 4: Otherwise it would only be my mother and my father 261 00:12:33,480 --> 00:12:36,319 Speaker 4: and my siblings listening to it. So created the brand 262 00:12:36,320 --> 00:12:39,439 Speaker 4: goals to ultimately house the podcast and create content that 263 00:12:39,480 --> 00:12:41,679 Speaker 4: would align with those conversations that we were going to 264 00:12:41,760 --> 00:12:44,960 Speaker 4: have on the air again around making the economic and 265 00:12:45,040 --> 00:12:48,720 Speaker 4: social case for investing in women's sports. So when you 266 00:12:48,760 --> 00:12:51,880 Speaker 4: come to our channels, you're going to find the data, 267 00:12:52,000 --> 00:12:56,920 Speaker 4: the facts, the stats, the anecdotal stories, all the evidence 268 00:12:56,960 --> 00:12:59,720 Speaker 4: that you need to make the business case either internally 269 00:12:59,720 --> 00:13:03,400 Speaker 4: at company for investing in women's sports, or if you're 270 00:13:03,920 --> 00:13:06,040 Speaker 4: just a person that goes through their daily life and 271 00:13:06,160 --> 00:13:09,440 Speaker 4: finds themselves having to defend women's sports to people in 272 00:13:09,480 --> 00:13:11,760 Speaker 4: their lives. We're going to give you the data to 273 00:13:11,960 --> 00:13:15,400 Speaker 4: arm you to tell people that actually, everybody does watch 274 00:13:15,440 --> 00:13:17,880 Speaker 4: women's sports and a lot of people care about women's sports. 275 00:13:17,920 --> 00:13:19,800 Speaker 4: So that's what you're gonna get from us on the 276 00:13:19,840 --> 00:13:23,240 Speaker 4: media side. The other side of our work is consulting work. 277 00:13:23,360 --> 00:13:26,120 Speaker 4: So for the last three years, we've had a consulting 278 00:13:26,160 --> 00:13:29,319 Speaker 4: practice that's rooted in brand partnerships, so trying to link 279 00:13:29,679 --> 00:13:33,439 Speaker 4: professional women's sports teams and leagues with values aligned brand 280 00:13:33,440 --> 00:13:36,400 Speaker 4: partners that sponsor them and can derive that value from 281 00:13:36,440 --> 00:13:40,400 Speaker 4: associating with women athletes and women's sports properties. And then 282 00:13:40,440 --> 00:13:43,520 Speaker 4: we also do a variety of growth growth strategy work, 283 00:13:43,600 --> 00:13:48,600 Speaker 4: so basically working with brands, teams, leagues, media networks that 284 00:13:48,720 --> 00:13:51,200 Speaker 4: want to get into the business of women's sports and 285 00:13:51,320 --> 00:13:54,679 Speaker 4: need some help figuring out how to optimize those investments 286 00:13:54,679 --> 00:13:57,760 Speaker 4: and how they should show up in the women's sports space. So, 287 00:13:58,200 --> 00:14:01,280 Speaker 4: you know, our business certainly has evolved since the women's 288 00:14:01,320 --> 00:14:04,720 Speaker 4: sports industry evolves pretty much every single week. As we're growing, 289 00:14:04,840 --> 00:14:07,280 Speaker 4: we're very much in startup mode. We know how startup 290 00:14:07,840 --> 00:14:11,120 Speaker 4: culture and action plans shift all the time. I see 291 00:14:11,120 --> 00:14:14,200 Speaker 4: the women's sports industry still very much in startup mode. 292 00:14:14,320 --> 00:14:17,360 Speaker 4: So we're a startup operating within a startup, So we 293 00:14:17,440 --> 00:14:19,920 Speaker 4: shift as well to meet the needs of the industry. 294 00:14:19,960 --> 00:14:21,720 Speaker 4: But at the end of the day, we're really here 295 00:14:21,800 --> 00:14:24,320 Speaker 4: to serve the industry. We want to help bring more 296 00:14:24,360 --> 00:14:27,440 Speaker 4: money into women's sports and help people go out and 297 00:14:27,520 --> 00:14:30,800 Speaker 4: get more money into their respective parts of women's sports. 298 00:14:30,840 --> 00:14:33,560 Speaker 1: It's so necessary because to your point, when you first 299 00:14:33,600 --> 00:14:35,520 Speaker 1: looked at the landscape and thought, why are we not 300 00:14:35,520 --> 00:14:37,960 Speaker 1: treating this like a business. This is so strange, And 301 00:14:38,000 --> 00:14:41,320 Speaker 1: I think the comparison to men's sports always created this 302 00:14:42,000 --> 00:14:45,760 Speaker 1: wrong idea that it was a charity, where As if 303 00:14:45,800 --> 00:14:48,400 Speaker 1: it had been in any other business, any other industry, 304 00:14:48,440 --> 00:14:50,320 Speaker 1: making the money that it did, showing the potential that 305 00:14:50,400 --> 00:14:52,760 Speaker 1: it did, we would be clamoring to get involved. 306 00:14:52,800 --> 00:14:54,920 Speaker 2: But because of the giant gap. 307 00:14:54,720 --> 00:14:57,280 Speaker 1: Between men's and women's we saw it as this little 308 00:14:57,320 --> 00:14:59,600 Speaker 1: thing instead of this really powerful thing. And part of 309 00:14:59,600 --> 00:15:02,480 Speaker 1: that also so was when brands would get involved, they 310 00:15:02,520 --> 00:15:04,520 Speaker 1: would not operate in the way that they would in 311 00:15:04,600 --> 00:15:07,800 Speaker 1: any other space. They didn't do the research, They copypasted 312 00:15:07,840 --> 00:15:11,640 Speaker 1: from the men with completely different demographics, completely different market research, 313 00:15:11,960 --> 00:15:13,200 Speaker 1: and then they said it didn't work. 314 00:15:13,080 --> 00:15:14,200 Speaker 2: So it must be the product. 315 00:15:15,920 --> 00:15:18,560 Speaker 1: So frustrating, right, So that's why what you do is 316 00:15:18,960 --> 00:15:21,000 Speaker 1: just so important. You keep saying, Wei, is there a 317 00:15:21,040 --> 00:15:24,040 Speaker 1: WI now at goals or just you still yeah? 318 00:15:24,120 --> 00:15:26,360 Speaker 4: We I use the Royal WI a lot. How our 319 00:15:26,400 --> 00:15:28,360 Speaker 4: business model is set up so I'm the only full 320 00:15:28,400 --> 00:15:31,800 Speaker 4: time person, but I tap into a number of consultants 321 00:15:32,160 --> 00:15:33,840 Speaker 4: on various projects all the time. 322 00:15:33,920 --> 00:15:36,440 Speaker 5: So there is a Wei, but I am still the 323 00:15:36,480 --> 00:15:39,800 Speaker 5: only the Royal weed and sometimes the Royal Wii. Yeah, 324 00:15:39,840 --> 00:15:43,840 Speaker 5: exactly what was that economic opportunity that you saw and 325 00:15:43,880 --> 00:15:46,760 Speaker 5: you thought most others weren't seeing or taking advantage of, 326 00:15:47,040 --> 00:15:49,720 Speaker 5: especially when it comes to sort of just a little 327 00:15:49,720 --> 00:15:50,920 Speaker 5: bit of resource and investment. 328 00:15:51,240 --> 00:15:55,960 Speaker 4: I mean, yeah, for me. You know, at the time, 329 00:15:56,080 --> 00:15:59,880 Speaker 4: I was working in a full time job that candidly 330 00:15:59,880 --> 00:16:03,760 Speaker 4: I absolutely loved. I was the senior vice president of 331 00:16:03,920 --> 00:16:07,360 Speaker 4: Sponsorships at the Dick Sporting Gets, Pittsburgh Marathon and P 332 00:16:07,480 --> 00:16:10,640 Speaker 4: three r were essentially they are the organization that put 333 00:16:10,720 --> 00:16:13,440 Speaker 4: on every major road running race that happens in the 334 00:16:13,480 --> 00:16:17,560 Speaker 4: greater Pittsburgh area. And I loved that job. I was 335 00:16:17,880 --> 00:16:21,240 Speaker 4: thriving in that job. I was doing really well. But 336 00:16:21,720 --> 00:16:25,960 Speaker 4: I starting to look at the women's sports industry. I 337 00:16:26,000 --> 00:16:30,440 Speaker 4: just saw this absolute plethora of white space, and people 338 00:16:30,560 --> 00:16:35,080 Speaker 4: were quite frankly, just ignoring all the untapped potential of 339 00:16:35,120 --> 00:16:38,720 Speaker 4: an entire industry. I think because of misogyny and you know, 340 00:16:38,800 --> 00:16:43,520 Speaker 4: some really antiquated beliefs about the capabilities of women athletes 341 00:16:43,560 --> 00:16:45,920 Speaker 4: both on and off their respective field of play. And 342 00:16:45,960 --> 00:16:48,720 Speaker 4: I thought, oh my gosh, I need to create a 343 00:16:48,840 --> 00:16:52,160 Speaker 4: business to serve this industry right now, because all of 344 00:16:52,200 --> 00:16:55,320 Speaker 4: the data, all of the numbers, everything says that this 345 00:16:55,480 --> 00:16:58,720 Speaker 4: is just going to keep growing and everything happening, you know, 346 00:16:58,920 --> 00:17:01,920 Speaker 4: just with women outside to sports. During twenty twenty, in 347 00:17:01,960 --> 00:17:06,880 Speaker 4: the pandemic, social justice and especially gender equity. Racial justice, 348 00:17:06,880 --> 00:17:10,760 Speaker 4: social justice and gender equity really came into the global 349 00:17:10,800 --> 00:17:13,639 Speaker 4: conversation in a way that we hadn't seen it in 350 00:17:13,680 --> 00:17:18,360 Speaker 4: a few years. And just the way women have been 351 00:17:18,560 --> 00:17:21,560 Speaker 4: using the power of social media and just you know, 352 00:17:21,840 --> 00:17:26,160 Speaker 4: coming in and saying we are here and we demand 353 00:17:26,400 --> 00:17:30,679 Speaker 4: to have equal rights and access and opportunities. It just 354 00:17:30,800 --> 00:17:33,720 Speaker 4: only made sense to me, as a feminist scholar and 355 00:17:34,160 --> 00:17:36,760 Speaker 4: you know, somebody who was looking at what was going 356 00:17:36,760 --> 00:17:39,280 Speaker 4: on in the sports industry, that women's sports would naturally 357 00:17:39,760 --> 00:17:42,840 Speaker 4: continue to grow. So I just thought, this is the 358 00:17:42,920 --> 00:17:45,679 Speaker 4: time I bet big on women's sports when I started 359 00:17:45,680 --> 00:17:48,719 Speaker 4: this business four years ago, and I'm glad I did. 360 00:17:48,760 --> 00:17:51,040 Speaker 4: At the time, a lot of people see me as 361 00:17:51,080 --> 00:17:54,959 Speaker 4: an early adopter of the women's sports industry, which is 362 00:17:55,040 --> 00:17:57,800 Speaker 4: so funny to think about because I see early adopters 363 00:17:57,840 --> 00:17:59,880 Speaker 4: of women's sports as people like Billy Jean. 364 00:18:00,160 --> 00:18:01,720 Speaker 2: Yeah, that was fifty years ago. 365 00:18:01,760 --> 00:18:03,760 Speaker 4: What are we talking about, like women's sports are not 366 00:18:03,800 --> 00:18:04,320 Speaker 4: a new guy. 367 00:18:04,400 --> 00:18:06,879 Speaker 1: There was this big pivot point for four or five 368 00:18:06,960 --> 00:18:09,080 Speaker 1: years ago, and you're a part of that. You know. I, 369 00:18:10,040 --> 00:18:13,240 Speaker 1: by virtue of the PSA that I did more than 370 00:18:13,320 --> 00:18:16,360 Speaker 1: me talking about the online treatment of women in sports, 371 00:18:16,520 --> 00:18:18,920 Speaker 1: I've ended up having to speak on the topic of 372 00:18:19,080 --> 00:18:21,560 Speaker 1: engagement on social media for years and years, and it's 373 00:18:21,560 --> 00:18:23,640 Speaker 1: something I'm happy to talk about. And also because I'm 374 00:18:23,680 --> 00:18:27,000 Speaker 1: sort of was previously known for my troll clapbacks, I 375 00:18:27,040 --> 00:18:28,680 Speaker 1: don't really do it as much anymore because I don't 376 00:18:28,720 --> 00:18:32,399 Speaker 1: want to incentivize or add value and actual money in 377 00:18:32,400 --> 00:18:34,639 Speaker 1: the pockets of said trolls anymore, the way that Twitter 378 00:18:34,680 --> 00:18:36,520 Speaker 1: is now set up. But one of the things that 379 00:18:36,680 --> 00:18:41,119 Speaker 1: really got me thinking about was how social media removed 380 00:18:41,119 --> 00:18:43,840 Speaker 1: gatekeepers and so, as terrible as it is, what we 381 00:18:44,000 --> 00:18:48,080 Speaker 1: often had was the same decision makers as editors of papers, 382 00:18:48,400 --> 00:18:52,440 Speaker 1: program directors at television and radio stations, predominantly being middle 383 00:18:52,440 --> 00:18:54,840 Speaker 1: aged white men, deciding for people what they should be 384 00:18:54,880 --> 00:18:57,080 Speaker 1: interested in. And if you brought them a story idea, 385 00:18:57,200 --> 00:18:58,760 Speaker 1: or if you wanted to talk about something on a 386 00:18:58,840 --> 00:19:01,119 Speaker 1: radio show, you first had to get through those people 387 00:19:01,359 --> 00:19:04,360 Speaker 1: who were deciding what they thought mattered, and with social media, 388 00:19:04,400 --> 00:19:07,640 Speaker 1: when those gatekeepers were removed, there were content creators, individuals 389 00:19:07,640 --> 00:19:09,600 Speaker 1: who said, this is something I care about, I'm going 390 00:19:09,640 --> 00:19:12,080 Speaker 1: to make it and then watch the people flock to it. 391 00:19:12,280 --> 00:19:14,240 Speaker 1: And the same goes for what you just said about 392 00:19:14,320 --> 00:19:17,560 Speaker 1: athletes and brands and leagues saying we can create something 393 00:19:17,600 --> 00:19:21,159 Speaker 1: here that I don't have to buy TV right space 394 00:19:21,200 --> 00:19:23,919 Speaker 1: for the way that you know the digital marketplaces, you 395 00:19:24,040 --> 00:19:26,600 Speaker 1: just make something and put it there, and it lives 396 00:19:26,600 --> 00:19:27,600 Speaker 1: there whether anyone. 397 00:19:27,359 --> 00:19:28,040 Speaker 2: Shows up or not. 398 00:19:28,080 --> 00:19:29,960 Speaker 1: And what we saw was so many people showed up 399 00:19:30,200 --> 00:19:32,560 Speaker 1: and so as terrible as the Internet is and as 400 00:19:32,640 --> 00:19:34,960 Speaker 1: much as I am trying to spend less time on it, 401 00:19:34,960 --> 00:19:38,520 Speaker 1: it has also been incredibly powerful in democratizing the stuff 402 00:19:38,560 --> 00:19:40,679 Speaker 1: that people care about, and when you can prove that 403 00:19:40,720 --> 00:19:43,399 Speaker 1: they do care, like with this year's WNBA season that 404 00:19:43,440 --> 00:19:47,520 Speaker 1: had more social engagement than the NBA season, those data 405 00:19:47,520 --> 00:19:50,840 Speaker 1: points and those numbers really allow you to push investment 406 00:19:50,880 --> 00:19:52,520 Speaker 1: and really allow you to push growth in a way 407 00:19:52,520 --> 00:19:56,760 Speaker 1: that subjective opinions didn't four years. So I guess thank 408 00:19:56,800 --> 00:20:00,919 Speaker 1: you Internet for some shit, but not most of it. 409 00:20:02,000 --> 00:20:03,720 Speaker 2: I saw you do an interview with. 410 00:20:04,240 --> 00:20:06,520 Speaker 1: Someone and you talked about how a quote from WNBA 411 00:20:06,560 --> 00:20:09,600 Speaker 1: Commissioner Kathy Engelbert kind of gave you this light bulb moment. 412 00:20:09,720 --> 00:20:11,800 Speaker 1: She said, if these two facts are right, eighty four 413 00:20:11,800 --> 00:20:14,639 Speaker 1: percent of sports fans are interested in women's sports, and 414 00:20:14,720 --> 00:20:18,159 Speaker 1: women control eighty five percent of US spending power, we 415 00:20:18,200 --> 00:20:20,119 Speaker 1: should be able to transform the way. 416 00:20:20,000 --> 00:20:22,960 Speaker 2: Women's sports are valued. Why did that strike you so much? 417 00:20:23,000 --> 00:20:24,280 Speaker 2: What was the light bulb moment there? 418 00:20:25,400 --> 00:20:27,280 Speaker 4: You know, I think for a long time, Sarah, we've 419 00:20:27,320 --> 00:20:30,800 Speaker 4: had this missing data problem around women's sports, where we 420 00:20:30,960 --> 00:20:35,440 Speaker 4: haven't had the information necessary to make the business case 421 00:20:35,480 --> 00:20:38,320 Speaker 4: for investing in women's sports. And that has changed a 422 00:20:38,359 --> 00:20:41,119 Speaker 4: lot over the last four years. We have incredible reports 423 00:20:41,160 --> 00:20:43,840 Speaker 4: like the Fan Project that have come out that talked 424 00:20:43,880 --> 00:20:47,600 Speaker 4: about women's sports fan behavior for the first time ever 425 00:20:47,680 --> 00:20:50,720 Speaker 4: where we have this comprehensive report. The collective at Wasserman 426 00:20:50,760 --> 00:20:53,240 Speaker 4: has done a tremendous amunt of research, Parody has done 427 00:20:53,320 --> 00:20:56,480 Speaker 4: great research. Nielsen's coming out with great research. But at 428 00:20:56,480 --> 00:21:00,520 Speaker 4: the time when Kathy said that, Commissioner Engelbert, I I 429 00:21:00,560 --> 00:21:03,280 Speaker 4: hadn't seen a lot of data that was stacking up 430 00:21:03,320 --> 00:21:06,400 Speaker 4: to make the business case for women's sports. So, you know, 431 00:21:06,480 --> 00:21:08,800 Speaker 4: That was just one of those moments where to me 432 00:21:09,320 --> 00:21:12,360 Speaker 4: it made sense where I'm like, oh, okay, this many 433 00:21:12,359 --> 00:21:16,480 Speaker 4: people care about women's sports and women control consumer spending. 434 00:21:17,000 --> 00:21:19,919 Speaker 4: Certainly together that's going to help us make the business 435 00:21:19,920 --> 00:21:22,400 Speaker 4: case for women's sports. So to me, that was the 436 00:21:22,440 --> 00:21:26,040 Speaker 4: start of this quest to find the data, to find 437 00:21:26,040 --> 00:21:28,639 Speaker 4: the information to help people. Again, I keep saying it, 438 00:21:28,680 --> 00:21:30,280 Speaker 4: but make the business case for women's sports. 439 00:21:30,520 --> 00:21:33,800 Speaker 1: It's so smart, and yeah, that absence of data is 440 00:21:33,880 --> 00:21:36,080 Speaker 1: across the board. I remember Sue Bird writing a Player's 441 00:21:36,080 --> 00:21:38,800 Speaker 1: Tribune column about how if they didn't get advanced statistics 442 00:21:38,840 --> 00:21:43,640 Speaker 1: in the WNBA, it prevents people from having better barroom conversations, 443 00:21:43,720 --> 00:21:46,080 Speaker 1: media and TV conversations because we don't know who the 444 00:21:46,080 --> 00:21:48,920 Speaker 1: best corner three shooter is because we don't have that data. 445 00:21:48,960 --> 00:21:51,240 Speaker 1: And the same goes for so much of the business 446 00:21:51,280 --> 00:21:54,640 Speaker 1: side too. And I remember being in meetings at ESPN 447 00:21:55,200 --> 00:22:00,560 Speaker 1: company wide, you know, town halls, where the only data 448 00:22:00,600 --> 00:22:03,480 Speaker 1: they had was men eighteen to forty five, and I'm like, wait, 449 00:22:04,119 --> 00:22:06,400 Speaker 1: what about all the other people? What if there's millions 450 00:22:06,440 --> 00:22:09,160 Speaker 1: of people in a different data set listening, watching, viewing. 451 00:22:09,200 --> 00:22:10,720 Speaker 2: You don't want to monetize that. You don't want to 452 00:22:10,760 --> 00:22:11,159 Speaker 2: track that. 453 00:22:11,200 --> 00:22:12,840 Speaker 1: You don't want to know how that's working for you, 454 00:22:13,119 --> 00:22:15,359 Speaker 1: And it was incredibly frustrating, particularly for shows that I 455 00:22:15,400 --> 00:22:16,200 Speaker 1: was doing where I'm. 456 00:22:16,040 --> 00:22:18,280 Speaker 2: Like, wait, what about the women? Are there women paying 457 00:22:18,280 --> 00:22:19,159 Speaker 2: attention and listening. 458 00:22:20,119 --> 00:22:22,119 Speaker 1: What has surprised you the most about the work of 459 00:22:22,119 --> 00:22:23,359 Speaker 1: connecting brands and teams? 460 00:22:23,840 --> 00:22:27,679 Speaker 4: Yeah, Sarah, And you know, I'm generally a very positive person, 461 00:22:27,680 --> 00:22:30,199 Speaker 4: but the thing that has surprised me the most here 462 00:22:30,560 --> 00:22:34,280 Speaker 4: has been kind of negative. It's still that it's taken 463 00:22:35,880 --> 00:22:37,879 Speaker 4: It's taken a long time to get more brands to 464 00:22:37,880 --> 00:22:39,639 Speaker 4: buy in and invest in women's sports. There was a 465 00:22:39,680 --> 00:22:42,439 Speaker 4: report that came out recently that said only six percent 466 00:22:42,520 --> 00:22:46,440 Speaker 4: of Fortune five hundred companies are currently sponsoring professional women's 467 00:22:46,440 --> 00:22:49,760 Speaker 4: sports or athletes. We know the global number that one 468 00:22:49,800 --> 00:22:53,439 Speaker 4: percent of sponsorship dollars are going towards women's sports. I 469 00:22:53,440 --> 00:22:55,840 Speaker 4: haven't heard an updated version of that number for a while, 470 00:22:55,920 --> 00:22:58,040 Speaker 4: but until we have more data, that's the one I'm 471 00:22:58,119 --> 00:23:00,800 Speaker 4: leaning on. So you know, to me me as somebody 472 00:23:00,840 --> 00:23:04,199 Speaker 4: who for the last four years has had over one 473 00:23:04,240 --> 00:23:08,639 Speaker 4: hundred podcast conversations with brilliant leaders like yourself from across 474 00:23:08,640 --> 00:23:11,040 Speaker 4: the women's sports industry, to make the business case for 475 00:23:11,080 --> 00:23:15,160 Speaker 4: women's sports. I can stack up every single data point, 476 00:23:15,359 --> 00:23:19,520 Speaker 4: factual reason why it's good for brands to sponsor women 477 00:23:19,640 --> 00:23:22,720 Speaker 4: athletes and to invest in women's sports, from brand affinity 478 00:23:22,800 --> 00:23:27,320 Speaker 4: to ROI to social good to every single reason, and 479 00:23:27,440 --> 00:23:31,040 Speaker 4: yet we still see that it's so slow for brands 480 00:23:31,119 --> 00:23:33,479 Speaker 4: to come in. And that's not to say it's not changing. 481 00:23:33,520 --> 00:23:35,439 Speaker 4: We have so many great examples of brands that are 482 00:23:35,520 --> 00:23:37,640 Speaker 4: stepping up and they're going in big when they do. 483 00:23:38,320 --> 00:23:41,040 Speaker 4: But I want to see brands invest in women's sports 484 00:23:41,040 --> 00:23:43,840 Speaker 4: like they've invested in men's sports, go all in on 485 00:23:43,880 --> 00:23:47,359 Speaker 4: a whole city, invest in sponsor more than just one 486 00:23:47,440 --> 00:23:51,040 Speaker 4: team or one athlete. And again, I think it's changing, 487 00:23:51,119 --> 00:23:54,639 Speaker 4: But I, as somebody who has all the data and 488 00:23:54,640 --> 00:23:57,240 Speaker 4: all the facts, it has shocked me to see that 489 00:23:57,720 --> 00:24:00,879 Speaker 4: this hasn't happened as fast as I think that it should. 490 00:24:01,119 --> 00:24:03,040 Speaker 1: You are a very positive person, which is why I 491 00:24:03,080 --> 00:24:06,680 Speaker 1: was surprised to discover via your Instagram your recent absolutely 492 00:24:06,720 --> 00:24:10,359 Speaker 1: bitch and purchase of a doormat that says off. But 493 00:24:10,560 --> 00:24:12,840 Speaker 1: I was inspired by that, and I was like, even 494 00:24:12,920 --> 00:24:14,879 Speaker 1: Caroline sometimes needs. 495 00:24:14,640 --> 00:24:16,600 Speaker 2: That energy to get through her life. 496 00:24:16,640 --> 00:24:20,680 Speaker 1: Even positive, shiny Sunny Caroline and it felt relatable. 497 00:24:20,840 --> 00:24:22,159 Speaker 2: So congrats on the purchase. 498 00:24:22,240 --> 00:24:25,600 Speaker 4: Thanks Sarah. Yeah, I needed that every once in a while. 499 00:24:25,640 --> 00:24:26,879 Speaker 2: I need it every once in a while. 500 00:24:27,080 --> 00:24:29,040 Speaker 1: And there are plenty of people right now that I 501 00:24:29,080 --> 00:24:32,600 Speaker 1: absolutely want took off. So if they show up at 502 00:24:32,600 --> 00:24:34,440 Speaker 1: my door, I want them to get that message loud 503 00:24:34,480 --> 00:24:38,280 Speaker 1: and clear. How do we get upper level executives to 504 00:24:38,400 --> 00:24:41,520 Speaker 1: pay attention to the changing data around women's sports, get 505 00:24:41,600 --> 00:24:43,119 Speaker 1: rid of the idea of it being a charity as 506 00:24:43,160 --> 00:24:45,399 Speaker 1: opposed to a good business investment. I have asked this 507 00:24:45,520 --> 00:24:47,879 Speaker 1: question of so many people because it does feel like 508 00:24:48,280 --> 00:24:50,960 Speaker 1: there's so much positive movement around here. You could get 509 00:24:50,960 --> 00:24:54,840 Speaker 1: into these amazing spaces at WNBA All Star, at NWSL Championship, 510 00:24:55,040 --> 00:24:57,679 Speaker 1: at big conferences and be surrounded by people who get it, 511 00:24:58,119 --> 00:25:01,000 Speaker 1: and those people have to go back into space with 512 00:25:01,119 --> 00:25:04,919 Speaker 1: a top brass that isn't putting in the time and 513 00:25:04,960 --> 00:25:07,880 Speaker 1: work to understand the data, and the answer becomes no, 514 00:25:08,080 --> 00:25:11,520 Speaker 1: because they just don't know the business case for women's sports. 515 00:25:11,720 --> 00:25:14,760 Speaker 1: How do we infiltrate the front offices the top spaces. 516 00:25:15,119 --> 00:25:18,560 Speaker 4: That's such a great question, and Sarah, I think it's complicated, 517 00:25:19,240 --> 00:25:21,439 Speaker 4: but I think it's a couple of things. One is, 518 00:25:21,480 --> 00:25:24,520 Speaker 4: I think we need to have more women sitting in 519 00:25:24,520 --> 00:25:28,440 Speaker 4: these leadership and decision making roles. We know one data 520 00:25:28,480 --> 00:25:30,639 Speaker 4: point that we've known for a while about women's sports 521 00:25:30,680 --> 00:25:34,280 Speaker 4: is that ninety four percent of women C suite leaders 522 00:25:34,320 --> 00:25:36,760 Speaker 4: in the US have played sports growing up, and they've 523 00:25:36,840 --> 00:25:39,600 Speaker 4: played at a pretty competitive level. Most of them have 524 00:25:39,640 --> 00:25:42,040 Speaker 4: played in college. And I think if we can have 525 00:25:42,119 --> 00:25:45,200 Speaker 4: more women in those decision making roles, they're going to 526 00:25:45,240 --> 00:25:48,840 Speaker 4: inherently understand the value that comes with investing in women's sports. 527 00:25:49,080 --> 00:25:51,359 Speaker 4: We see example, I love to give the example of 528 00:25:51,400 --> 00:25:56,840 Speaker 4: Andrew Brimmer from ally played soccer in college, is now 529 00:25:56,880 --> 00:26:03,040 Speaker 4: the CMO and chief pr at Allies gone way big 530 00:26:03,080 --> 00:26:06,320 Speaker 4: into women's sports. You know, it's just if we can 531 00:26:06,400 --> 00:26:10,240 Speaker 4: have more Andreas in those roles of companies, I think 532 00:26:10,240 --> 00:26:13,919 Speaker 4: it's going to happen. You Know what I think, Sarah 533 00:26:13,960 --> 00:26:16,600 Speaker 4: is there's a lot of chatter sometimes in the women's 534 00:26:16,600 --> 00:26:19,600 Speaker 4: sports space that we're talking to ourselves that we're in 535 00:26:19,640 --> 00:26:22,520 Speaker 4: a bubble and we're just we have our adopters and 536 00:26:22,560 --> 00:26:25,400 Speaker 4: we just keep going round and round saying the same 537 00:26:25,440 --> 00:26:29,600 Speaker 4: things to each other. But I'm really big on that 538 00:26:29,720 --> 00:26:33,439 Speaker 4: being important. I think we really need to build up 539 00:26:33,480 --> 00:26:39,199 Speaker 4: this raving fan base of women's sports fans of course, 540 00:26:39,280 --> 00:26:43,639 Speaker 4: but also people working in the industry, because people in 541 00:26:43,720 --> 00:26:47,440 Speaker 4: general are so attracted to groups of people that have 542 00:26:47,720 --> 00:26:50,840 Speaker 4: passionate fandom of anything and that are all in and 543 00:26:50,880 --> 00:26:53,600 Speaker 4: when they see somebody with conviction, they want to hear 544 00:26:53,640 --> 00:26:56,280 Speaker 4: about it, they want to learn about it. It's magnetic. 545 00:26:56,440 --> 00:26:58,880 Speaker 4: So you know, to me, I think we just need 546 00:26:58,920 --> 00:27:02,120 Speaker 4: to like keep beating that drum. We need to keep 547 00:27:02,200 --> 00:27:04,720 Speaker 4: saying invested women's sports. We need to keep saying everybody 548 00:27:04,720 --> 00:27:07,959 Speaker 4: watches women's sports, all the taglines, and it's just going 549 00:27:08,040 --> 00:27:10,840 Speaker 4: to keep attracting more people because at the end of 550 00:27:10,880 --> 00:27:14,480 Speaker 4: the day, the product of women's sports is incredible. I mean, 551 00:27:14,520 --> 00:27:17,560 Speaker 4: I don't know anybody who's actually watched women's sports and 552 00:27:17,600 --> 00:27:21,640 Speaker 4: then said that wasn't cool or that was like, it's amazing. 553 00:27:21,680 --> 00:27:26,280 Speaker 1: So if we it's sports, we love sports, so yeah, 554 00:27:26,440 --> 00:27:27,040 Speaker 1: it's good. 555 00:27:27,720 --> 00:27:29,040 Speaker 4: It's sports truly. 556 00:27:29,480 --> 00:27:29,840 Speaker 2: Yeah. 557 00:27:29,880 --> 00:27:32,719 Speaker 4: So if we can just keep like growing that raving 558 00:27:32,840 --> 00:27:35,680 Speaker 4: fan base, casual fans are going to be attracted to it, 559 00:27:35,680 --> 00:27:37,199 Speaker 4: and it's just gonna go from there, and that's going 560 00:27:37,240 --> 00:27:39,800 Speaker 4: to filter into decision makers on and on and on. 561 00:27:39,920 --> 00:27:42,800 Speaker 4: So it's so Smar just got to keep beating the drum. 562 00:27:42,720 --> 00:27:44,119 Speaker 2: And I think that's so true. 563 00:27:44,600 --> 00:27:46,920 Speaker 1: Yes, of course, get outside of the bubble and try 564 00:27:46,920 --> 00:27:49,280 Speaker 1: to change the minds of people who have not already agreed. 565 00:27:49,600 --> 00:27:54,639 Speaker 1: But also the louder and prouder and more fun, you know, 566 00:27:55,080 --> 00:27:57,840 Speaker 1: people see us having, the more they want to be 567 00:27:57,880 --> 00:28:00,480 Speaker 1: a part of it. I always think about European soccer 568 00:28:00,520 --> 00:28:04,080 Speaker 1: in that sense that for Americans the game wasn't a 569 00:28:04,119 --> 00:28:05,719 Speaker 1: thing that we loved, but we looked over and we 570 00:28:05,720 --> 00:28:09,760 Speaker 1: were like, wait, they've got chants and scarfs, and they 571 00:28:09,920 --> 00:28:12,480 Speaker 1: do marches to the stadium together, and they fill the 572 00:28:12,520 --> 00:28:14,960 Speaker 1: bars and they're angry enough to like light flares on 573 00:28:15,000 --> 00:28:18,000 Speaker 1: each other. That part we can leave behind. But what 574 00:28:18,119 --> 00:28:20,840 Speaker 1: is it about this thing that they're so obsessed with? 575 00:28:21,119 --> 00:28:24,360 Speaker 1: Let's give it a shot, right, And that's the same 576 00:28:24,400 --> 00:28:27,400 Speaker 1: with women's sports. I think this is another Sue burddhism, 577 00:28:27,400 --> 00:28:29,679 Speaker 1: but I remember her talking about she just felt like 578 00:28:30,040 --> 00:28:32,000 Speaker 1: it was going to be this drip, drip drip until 579 00:28:32,000 --> 00:28:35,360 Speaker 1: one day it became cool, and being cool was going 580 00:28:35,400 --> 00:28:37,960 Speaker 1: to be the flip that was necessary because it had 581 00:28:37,960 --> 00:28:39,880 Speaker 1: been the butt of jokes and there were so many 582 00:28:39,960 --> 00:28:43,360 Speaker 1: men in predominant spaces with a lot of following that 583 00:28:43,440 --> 00:28:45,280 Speaker 1: we're using it as the butt of a joke, or 584 00:28:45,280 --> 00:28:47,800 Speaker 1: that we're unwilling to even allow for the idea that 585 00:28:47,880 --> 00:28:49,960 Speaker 1: it might be entertaining in a good watch and people 586 00:28:50,040 --> 00:28:53,840 Speaker 1: might be into it. And honestly, we could do endless 587 00:28:53,840 --> 00:28:57,680 Speaker 1: research papers about the insecurity of men not just ignoring 588 00:28:57,680 --> 00:29:00,719 Speaker 1: women's sports but deciding to actively try to tank it 589 00:29:01,800 --> 00:29:03,280 Speaker 1: in a way that they don't with other things that 590 00:29:03,320 --> 00:29:05,960 Speaker 1: they're not into. They just leave those things alone. But 591 00:29:06,040 --> 00:29:09,280 Speaker 1: women's sports, let's take our tiny, little fragile egos out 592 00:29:09,320 --> 00:29:11,840 Speaker 1: and try to make sure we can, you know, ruin 593 00:29:11,880 --> 00:29:15,360 Speaker 1: their fun. But that pivot point where it became cool 594 00:29:15,360 --> 00:29:18,240 Speaker 1: to wear the orange w hoodie to where everybody watches 595 00:29:18,280 --> 00:29:20,160 Speaker 1: women's sports shirt to go to the games, to root 596 00:29:20,160 --> 00:29:22,400 Speaker 1: for the players, to know who they are, that's a 597 00:29:22,480 --> 00:29:25,120 Speaker 1: huge important moment. And the more people who talk about 598 00:29:25,160 --> 00:29:27,680 Speaker 1: it and wear the merch and invite their friends to 599 00:29:27,760 --> 00:29:29,960 Speaker 1: games and watch stuff and go to the bars and 600 00:29:30,000 --> 00:29:33,160 Speaker 1: ask for them to put it on, that pushes people forward, 601 00:29:33,280 --> 00:29:35,719 Speaker 1: and even the people in those top C suites end 602 00:29:35,800 --> 00:29:39,920 Speaker 1: up feeling that push. Run out of time here, last two, 603 00:29:40,000 --> 00:29:42,480 Speaker 1: what kind of guests can people expect to hear from 604 00:29:42,480 --> 00:29:45,040 Speaker 1: on your podcast? And what are one or two episodes 605 00:29:45,080 --> 00:29:47,520 Speaker 1: that people should start with who haven't listened before to 606 00:29:47,800 --> 00:29:48,360 Speaker 1: get into it. 607 00:29:48,760 --> 00:29:52,360 Speaker 4: Great question, and the type of guests, you know, leaders 608 00:29:52,360 --> 00:29:57,080 Speaker 4: in the women's sports industry, people that are working, you know, 609 00:29:57,200 --> 00:30:00,600 Speaker 4: starting a company, working for a team, athletes, people that 610 00:30:00,640 --> 00:30:04,640 Speaker 4: are in the industry, working to grow the space. You're 611 00:30:04,640 --> 00:30:09,040 Speaker 4: gonna hear a lot of different types of episodes leaders truly, 612 00:30:09,080 --> 00:30:14,160 Speaker 4: from media to multimillion dollar investments in leagues. You know, 613 00:30:14,280 --> 00:30:19,240 Speaker 4: it's just it covers everything. Two episodes i'd recommend is 614 00:30:19,680 --> 00:30:22,440 Speaker 4: number one, our episode with Sarah Spain, Oh. 615 00:30:22,280 --> 00:30:25,800 Speaker 1: Wow, which was ready for that one? 616 00:30:26,440 --> 00:30:28,160 Speaker 4: You true you set me up for that, but truly 617 00:30:28,200 --> 00:30:29,080 Speaker 4: it's a great episode. 618 00:30:29,120 --> 00:30:29,320 Speaker 2: Sarah. 619 00:30:29,360 --> 00:30:31,080 Speaker 4: I have to say, like it's one of my favorite 620 00:30:31,080 --> 00:30:36,120 Speaker 4: episodes I've ever recorded. You just I'm obviously a super 621 00:30:36,120 --> 00:30:38,760 Speaker 4: fan of yours, but you're just always so real and 622 00:30:39,120 --> 00:30:42,960 Speaker 4: you provided such great insights and knowledge on that episode, 623 00:30:42,960 --> 00:30:45,479 Speaker 4: so I often find myself going back to listen to it, 624 00:30:45,520 --> 00:30:49,040 Speaker 4: So everybody check out that episode. And then my favorite 625 00:30:49,080 --> 00:30:52,640 Speaker 4: episode of all time remains our very first episode, which 626 00:30:52,800 --> 00:30:56,480 Speaker 4: is an interview with EBB Jones who is the person 627 00:30:56,560 --> 00:31:01,240 Speaker 4: behind the WNBA orange hoodie? And I knew when I 628 00:31:01,320 --> 00:31:03,440 Speaker 4: was going to start this podcast that I wanted that 629 00:31:03,520 --> 00:31:05,600 Speaker 4: to be the first story that I told. And so 630 00:31:06,280 --> 00:31:08,560 Speaker 4: I just got on Twitter and I said, does anybody 631 00:31:08,560 --> 00:31:11,320 Speaker 4: know who's responsible for the orange hoodie? And everybody was like, 632 00:31:11,360 --> 00:31:13,120 Speaker 4: you have to talk to Ev, you have to talk 633 00:31:13,160 --> 00:31:19,040 Speaker 4: to eb And nobody had ever asked Ebb before how 634 00:31:19,160 --> 00:31:21,800 Speaker 4: this came about. No one knew the story behind the 635 00:31:21,840 --> 00:31:24,320 Speaker 4: orange hoodie. And eb came on and she told the 636 00:31:24,360 --> 00:31:28,400 Speaker 4: most amazing story of how she built this incredible campaign 637 00:31:28,400 --> 00:31:31,160 Speaker 4: with a zero dollar budget, and she tells the story 638 00:31:31,200 --> 00:31:34,800 Speaker 4: of how she essentially like Kobe, was in the WNBA 639 00:31:35,040 --> 00:31:38,200 Speaker 4: office and she slipped him an orange hoodie for him 640 00:31:38,200 --> 00:31:39,840 Speaker 4: and his family on his way out the door, and 641 00:31:39,840 --> 00:31:42,280 Speaker 4: then he shows up wearing it ye court side the 642 00:31:42,320 --> 00:31:45,640 Speaker 4: next week, and it's just incredible. So I'm always grateful 643 00:31:45,680 --> 00:31:48,320 Speaker 4: to Ev for allowing me a new podcaster who was 644 00:31:48,320 --> 00:31:51,280 Speaker 4: not in the space before she came in and essentially 645 00:31:51,280 --> 00:31:54,800 Speaker 4: like broke that story on my Untested podcast. 646 00:31:54,840 --> 00:31:57,560 Speaker 1: So I'm grateful to her. And it's amazable story. Okay, 647 00:31:57,560 --> 00:31:59,840 Speaker 1: I'm listening to that one. I'm downloading that one right 648 00:32:00,040 --> 00:32:02,840 Speaker 1: after we get off here. All right, last question, are 649 00:32:02,880 --> 00:32:07,800 Speaker 1: there sports leagues areas of growth anything you're particularly excited 650 00:32:07,800 --> 00:32:10,200 Speaker 1: about from your recent research or a recent guest you 651 00:32:10,240 --> 00:32:12,080 Speaker 1: had on Is there something that you're like, ooh, this 652 00:32:12,280 --> 00:32:13,000 Speaker 1: is the next thing. 653 00:32:13,360 --> 00:32:21,720 Speaker 4: So many things emerging sports, Softball, lacrosse, women's baseball, volleyball, 654 00:32:21,840 --> 00:32:24,880 Speaker 4: you know, all these sports that haven't quite reached WNBA 655 00:32:24,960 --> 00:32:28,800 Speaker 4: and WSL level yet. People that look at valuations of 656 00:32:28,960 --> 00:32:31,280 Speaker 4: WNBA teams and think, oh my gosh, I should have 657 00:32:31,360 --> 00:32:34,840 Speaker 4: invested two years ago, or NWSL teams and think I 658 00:32:34,880 --> 00:32:37,840 Speaker 4: should have invested three years ago. This is your time 659 00:32:37,880 --> 00:32:40,719 Speaker 4: to invest now for those emerging sports. They're only going 660 00:32:40,800 --> 00:32:45,120 Speaker 4: to pick up. So lacrosse, softball, volleyball, women's baseball, you 661 00:32:45,200 --> 00:32:46,240 Speaker 4: got to get in right now. 662 00:32:46,560 --> 00:32:47,040 Speaker 2: I love it. 663 00:32:47,160 --> 00:32:50,720 Speaker 1: We're going to start our twenty twenty five with capsule 664 00:32:50,760 --> 00:32:53,959 Speaker 1: episodes for each of the new leagues to like everything 665 00:32:54,000 --> 00:32:55,560 Speaker 1: you need to know. Here's how you get in, Here's 666 00:32:55,560 --> 00:32:57,480 Speaker 1: who you want to root for, Here's how to watch 667 00:32:57,840 --> 00:33:00,800 Speaker 1: because there are so many new properties that are going 668 00:33:00,880 --> 00:33:04,160 Speaker 1: to give people opportunities to watch great women's sports. 669 00:33:04,560 --> 00:33:06,680 Speaker 2: Caroline, you're the best. You're crushing it. 670 00:33:06,720 --> 00:33:10,360 Speaker 1: I've just loved watching you continue to show up all 671 00:33:10,400 --> 00:33:13,120 Speaker 1: over women's sports spaces and really lead the way. 672 00:33:13,200 --> 00:33:15,760 Speaker 2: So congrats on all your success and thanks for joining us. 673 00:33:15,880 --> 00:33:20,360 Speaker 1: Thanks Sarah, Thanks again to Caroline for joining us. 674 00:33:20,520 --> 00:33:21,520 Speaker 2: We got to take another break. 675 00:33:21,640 --> 00:33:24,000 Speaker 1: When we come back, a listen theyer enters the Good 676 00:33:24,000 --> 00:33:32,760 Speaker 1: Game Hall of Fame Welcome back slices. Last week we 677 00:33:32,800 --> 00:33:35,960 Speaker 1: witnessed a Listenayor's final two games and a US women's 678 00:33:36,040 --> 00:33:38,400 Speaker 1: national team kit. So it's a great time to add 679 00:33:38,400 --> 00:33:42,080 Speaker 1: a tale about the legendary keeper and certain future Hall 680 00:33:42,120 --> 00:33:44,760 Speaker 1: of Famer to the hallowed halls of the Good Game 681 00:33:44,840 --> 00:33:49,400 Speaker 1: Hall of Fame. Yes, the Good Game Hall of Fame, 682 00:33:49,440 --> 00:33:52,880 Speaker 1: where we celebrate women's sports lore, the kind of legendary 683 00:33:52,880 --> 00:33:55,560 Speaker 1: stories that we should all know by heart, the same 684 00:33:55,600 --> 00:33:57,880 Speaker 1: way we all recognize the phrase win one for the 685 00:33:57,920 --> 00:34:00,720 Speaker 1: Gipper or shout Kobe when we toss a ball up 686 00:34:00,720 --> 00:34:02,600 Speaker 1: piece of paper into a waste basket from deep. 687 00:34:03,040 --> 00:34:04,080 Speaker 2: We got some catching up to. 688 00:34:04,000 --> 00:34:07,560 Speaker 1: Do in women's sports, so grab another plaque and let's 689 00:34:07,560 --> 00:34:09,839 Speaker 1: find a good place on the wall. Today we've got 690 00:34:09,840 --> 00:34:13,480 Speaker 1: our newest inductee. Now there are countless highlight moments from 691 00:34:13,560 --> 00:34:16,040 Speaker 1: Nahor's career, but the Hall of Fame is for lore 692 00:34:16,480 --> 00:34:20,120 Speaker 1: storytelling that goes beyond x's and o's, and Nayor's lasting 693 00:34:20,200 --> 00:34:23,719 Speaker 1: legacy won't be just as an incredible goalstopper, but as 694 00:34:23,760 --> 00:34:26,399 Speaker 1: a goal scorer too. We don't have to go too 695 00:34:26,440 --> 00:34:29,440 Speaker 1: far back for this lore. Two of her biggest dual 696 00:34:29,480 --> 00:34:33,439 Speaker 1: threat moments both against Team Canada in February of this year. 697 00:34:33,560 --> 00:34:36,440 Speaker 1: In the twenty twenty four CONCACAFF w Gold Cup semi final, 698 00:34:36,800 --> 00:34:41,319 Speaker 1: Nayor bounced CONCACAF rivals Canada by making three penalty kick 699 00:34:41,400 --> 00:34:45,400 Speaker 1: saves and bearing her own shot. The US women's national 700 00:34:45,400 --> 00:34:47,840 Speaker 1: team went on to win the inaugural trophy against Brazil. 701 00:34:48,320 --> 00:34:49,960 Speaker 2: Then the US met Canada. 702 00:34:49,719 --> 00:34:52,359 Speaker 1: Again in the twenty twenty four She Believes Cup and 703 00:34:52,480 --> 00:34:54,960 Speaker 1: Naor did it again. I guess we're calling it the 704 00:34:55,040 --> 00:34:57,920 Speaker 1: Listenair Special. At this point, three saves and a converted 705 00:34:57,960 --> 00:35:01,240 Speaker 1: penalty kick of her own, watching her dive for a save, 706 00:35:01,920 --> 00:35:04,440 Speaker 1: walk out of the goal, calmly bury her shot, then 707 00:35:04,480 --> 00:35:08,040 Speaker 1: walk back into net and make another save legendary. 708 00:35:08,680 --> 00:35:10,600 Speaker 2: Nayor's ability to stack dubs. 709 00:35:10,239 --> 00:35:13,400 Speaker 1: On both sides of penalty kicks is the stuff of legend, 710 00:35:13,440 --> 00:35:16,640 Speaker 1: the stuff of lore. Future goalkeepers, if there are any, 711 00:35:16,840 --> 00:35:19,719 Speaker 1: who can score penalties instead of just saving them, will 712 00:35:19,800 --> 00:35:22,320 Speaker 1: no doubt inspire references to nay Or during the broadcast 713 00:35:22,360 --> 00:35:26,280 Speaker 1: and on socials, And for that reason, the Listenayor Special 714 00:35:26,640 --> 00:35:29,160 Speaker 1: is the latest inductee into the Good Game Hall of Fame. 715 00:35:31,760 --> 00:35:33,560 Speaker 1: We love that you're listening slices, but we want you 716 00:35:33,600 --> 00:35:35,319 Speaker 1: to get in the game every day too, So here's 717 00:35:35,360 --> 00:35:38,120 Speaker 1: our good gameplay of the day. Subscribe to the Business 718 00:35:38,120 --> 00:35:41,160 Speaker 1: Case for Women's Sports podcast and check out those episodes 719 00:35:41,160 --> 00:35:46,000 Speaker 1: that Caroline mentioned, especially mine. Plus follow at Goals Underscore 720 00:35:46,120 --> 00:35:49,600 Speaker 1: sports Underscore on Instagram. You always know we love to 721 00:35:49,600 --> 00:35:51,120 Speaker 1: hear from you, so hit us up on email Good 722 00:35:51,160 --> 00:35:53,440 Speaker 1: Game at Wondermedia Network dot com or leave us a 723 00:35:53,480 --> 00:35:56,240 Speaker 1: voicemail at eight seven two two oh four fifty seventy 724 00:35:56,520 --> 00:35:57,920 Speaker 1: and don't forget to subscribe. 725 00:35:58,080 --> 00:35:59,480 Speaker 2: Rate and review It's. 726 00:35:59,320 --> 00:36:04,160 Speaker 1: Easy watch keeping an open mind, rating five out of five. 727 00:36:04,560 --> 00:36:06,600 Speaker 2: I'll be better for this is review. 728 00:36:07,120 --> 00:36:09,480 Speaker 1: Life can harden us sometimes or make us sort of 729 00:36:09,520 --> 00:36:13,279 Speaker 1: rigid and stuck, and understandably so, the lives we lead 730 00:36:13,440 --> 00:36:15,799 Speaker 1: are long held perceptions. They might cause us to have 731 00:36:15,840 --> 00:36:19,000 Speaker 1: preconceived notions about a lot of things or people or 732 00:36:19,080 --> 00:36:22,560 Speaker 1: experiences before we've even tried, met or done them. And 733 00:36:22,600 --> 00:36:24,879 Speaker 1: of course there are some things you should never keep 734 00:36:24,920 --> 00:36:28,120 Speaker 1: an open mind about, like literally any form of bigotry 735 00:36:28,200 --> 00:36:32,120 Speaker 1: or I don't know, deep fried butter. But sometimes when 736 00:36:32,160 --> 00:36:34,800 Speaker 1: you allow yourself to see outside of what's native to you, 737 00:36:34,800 --> 00:36:36,080 Speaker 1: you could be pretty surprised by. 738 00:36:35,960 --> 00:36:38,880 Speaker 2: The ways the world opens up to you. See not 739 00:36:39,000 --> 00:36:43,040 Speaker 2: that hard. Subscribe, rate and review yourself. Thanks for listening slices. 740 00:36:43,080 --> 00:36:43,880 Speaker 2: We'll see you tomorrow. 741 00:36:44,040 --> 00:36:48,560 Speaker 1: Good game, Caroline, Good game, Melissa, you antiquated ideas about 742 00:36:48,560 --> 00:36:53,520 Speaker 1: the business case for women's sports. Good Game with Sarah 743 00:36:53,520 --> 00:36:56,239 Speaker 1: Spain is an iHeart women's sports production in partnership with 744 00:36:56,280 --> 00:36:58,680 Speaker 1: Deep Blue Sports and Entertainment. You can find us on 745 00:36:58,680 --> 00:37:02,160 Speaker 1: the iHeartRadio app, app, podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. 746 00:37:02,320 --> 00:37:05,680 Speaker 1: Production by Wonder Media Network, our producers are Alex Azzie 747 00:37:05,680 --> 00:37:09,360 Speaker 1: and Misha Jones. Our executive producers are Christina Everett, Jesse Katz, 748 00:37:09,440 --> 00:37:12,720 Speaker 1: Jenny Kaplan, and Emily Rudder. Our editors are Emily Rutterer, 749 00:37:12,719 --> 00:37:15,440 Speaker 1: Britney Martinez, Grace Lynch, and Lindsay Cradowell. 750 00:37:15,600 --> 00:37:18,600 Speaker 2: Production assistants from Lucy Jones and I'm your host, Sarah 751 00:37:18,640 --> 00:37:18,920 Speaker 2: Spain