GroupM, a key division of the advertising powerhouse WPP, has announced ambitious plans to significantly increase its financial commitment to women’s sports. Additionally, it aims to introduce a specialized platform specifically designed to streamline transactions in this arena.
This strategic move is set to kick off during the 2024-25 upfront season. It will see a diverse array of initial advertisers such as Adidas, Ally, Coinbase, Discover, Google, Mars, Nationwide, Unilever, and Universal Pictures, with expectations for more to join as the initiative progresses.
Deloitte, a leading consulting firm, has forecasted that women’s sports are on track to surpass $1 billion in revenue by 2024. This surge is attributed to various factors, with basketball leading the charge thanks to increased viewership of both NCAA tournaments and WNBA matches.
Matt Sweeney, the Chief Investment Officer at GroupM US, emphasized the substantial but still underutilized impact that investing in women’s sports has demonstrated. He highlighted the upcoming upfront negotiations as a pivotal moment to secure advantageous opportunities for advertisers. This initiative not only aims to change the narrative surrounding investment in women’s sports but also ensures advertisers play a crucial role in this evolving landscape.
GroupM’s strategy encompasses a range of opportunities, from broadcasting partnerships and custom-tailored packages to grassroots efforts with leagues and athlete-run entertainment entities.
Denise Ocasio, GroupM’s Executive Director of Investment, stressed the company’s commitment to enriching the women’s sports advertising space with unique and plentiful opportunities. These initiatives are designed to enhance brand visibility, ad effectiveness, and achieve superior business results. With the growing popularity of women’s sports, advertising in this domain is proving to be highly successful.
Research by the data and analytics company EDO highlighted the effectiveness of advertising in women’s sports, notably that Adidas’ commercials featuring female athletes outperformed the brand’s average ad effectiveness by 69% in 2023.
Martin Blich, GroupM’s Executive Director for Sports and Live Investment, pointed out the historical discrepancies in advertising between men’s and women’s sports. He underscored the growing opportunities in the latter, expressing hope that GroupM’s proactive stance will encourage brands to adopt a more comprehensive and audience-focused investment strategy in sports advertising.
