By Mark Seavy

Brand recognition is on the rise as the buzz continues to grow around professional sports once considered secondary for licensing when compared to the likes of the NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB.

In particular, the licensing prospects for the female athletes in the Women’s National Basketball Association, Women’s National Soccer League, and the  Professional Women’s Hockey League have gained ground in recent weeks.

This has, in part, been driven by the increased broadcast and streaming of games and tournaments. Additionally, in the case of the WNBA, the arrival of former University of Iowa star Caitlin Clark has resulted in significant publicity. And with this heightened profile has come the potential for expanded brand licensing.

The National Women’s Soccer League, for example, secured a $240-million television and streaming deal late last year with CBS-TV, ESPN, and Scripps. And, according to a licensing executive, at least one licensee is nearing an apparel deal with the league.

The WNBA, meanwhile, landed several licensing deals recently, including Dick’s Sporting Goods carrying player and team jerseys. And since Clark started to play, WNBA games are averaging viewership of 1.3 million per game (marking the highest total in 26 years), well above 2023’s average of 462,000. The WNBA, which launched in 1996, has a licensing program run by the NBA and One Team Partners.

In addition to the licensees focused on the future of women’s sports, many are also looking back into history. For example, the Negro League was formed in 1920 but play ended after 38 seasons as more Black baseball players broke the color barrier and entered the MLB. Current licensing efforts inspired by the League include licensee Stall & Dean, which provided uniforms while the league operated and is now supplying streetwear. And, with the MLB’s recent decision to recognize the League’s statistics, it’s possible the licensing program will expand. For example, that decision resulted in slugger Josh Gibson displacing the late Detroit Tigers star Ty Cobb as the all-time career batting leader with a .372 average. Now, Gibson’s estate is examining new potential for licensing deals.

Licensees looking to take launch new products inspired by growing and historic sports leagues, however, must also take into account the shelf space available at retail.

“It’s a question of whether there is a home for the products,” a sports apparel licensing executive said. “We can get a license but that is only worth as much as you can sell against it—you need a home for it, and if retailers aren’t supporting it that is a challenge. I think there will be [more space at retail], and it is only going to grow over time.”

But as these leagues work to build out their licensing programs and as retailers make adjustments to their product mix, manufacturing partners looking to work with these leagues may have fewer assets to work with.

The Professional Women’s Hockey League, for example, launched its inaugural season this year without team logos, something that is typically key fodder for licensing. Instead, the league used home city names.

“There are decisions you can make that are fast and if you make an error in your judgment on that decision, it’s easy to walk back, or you can learn from it and move on” Amy Scheer, SVP of Business Operations at PWHL, told The Athletic. “From a [PWHL] team name perspective, it was just better off slowing the process down. When you come out with a team name, you want to have a full brand story, why the imagery and the logo, why the colors, why the name. And I just didn’t feel that we should rush it because you can’t walk back from it.”

And while buzz continues to build around these growing sports leagues, executives say it’s crucial to think strategically about which products are launched and when in order to make new fans into lifelong fans.

“There is interest from the public in these sports and people are talking about them more and attendance is up, but a lot of these people are still very casual fans,” said another sports licensing executive, whose company is a WNBA licensee. “From a licensing standpoint this doesn’t mean there is [currently much] interest in spending money on products beyond core categories [ like t-shirts or hats]. I don’t think retailers are going to support these brands until they are more mature.”