From representation to building an audience: How are women-centric sport faring in 2022
To a fence-sitter, 8th March 2020 was an average International Women’s Day, but to a women’s sports fan, it was a day when history was created - with the Indian women’s cricket team taking on archrival Australia in the Final of ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020.
To a fence-sitter, 8th March 2020 was an average International Women’s Day, but to a women’s sports fan, it was a day when history was created - with the Indian women’s cricket team taking on archrival Australia in the Final of ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2020. Although the nail-biting finale resulted in India’s loss, it was women’s cricket that emerged victorious that day, as the last battle of the tournament witnessed a mammoth viewership of 1.78 billion viewing minutes (in India), which was 59 times more than the final of the tournament’s 2018 iteration. This feat has opened doors for multiple women-centric sporting events, and with the world bouncing back from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, 2022 seems to be a year for women’s sports to reach new heights.
Below are the few pointers on how women in sports will take over 2022:
Equal Status:
The fight for gender equality has been a long haul for women, and finding a level playing ground in the sports ecosystem came at a very late stage. However, the advances women’s sports have made in the last decade has been commendable. Women's sports currently generate somewhere around £350m (in the UK) per year - through ticketing, broadcast rights & sponsorship deals - and the newer categories are estimated to generate more than £1bn per year by 2030. With the inaugural women’s competition of The Hundred breaking viewership and attendance records, ECB recently announced to double their female players' salaries in the second season of the tournament. The move by ECB will send a ripple of changes in the sports industry.
Building an audience:
After building a foundation of equal status, the subsequent step for any tournament should be to attract an audience. Irrespective of their scale, a league should find a platform that brings the sport to the viewers. While sports is said to be connecting the masses, its accessibility is still difficult - with high entry barriers for viewing and engaging - especially in the non-metros, where linear broadcast (TV only) takes the lead. Additionally, with content limitations of the linear setup, sports broadcasting is limited to just the big/commercial sporting events. To address the accessibility challenges, platforms like FanCode come into the picture. While local tournaments such as the Kerala T20 (KCA Pink Challengers Trophy), the Odisha Women’s T20, the Jharkhand Women’s T20, are a platform for the players to showcase their talent to a larger audience, it is players like FanCode, that bring these talents to the limelight. The FanCode app became one of the leading broadcasters to stream women's cricket matches, including the exclusive broadcast of The Hundred Women, ICC Cricket World Cup Women's Qualifiers, WI vs PAK (Women’s bilateral), Cricket Australia's Women's National Cricket League, and even non-exclusive rights to key events like Women's Big Bash League.
Gauging advertiser’s interest:
While providing a level playing ground and a platform to showcase women’s talent is important, it is also imperative to focus on the business aspect of the sport. In a recent report, Nielsen estimates there was a 146% year over year rise in unbundled sponsorship investment in women’s sports (UEFA, FIFA, World Rugby) compared to a 27% rise in 2020. With more women’s sports now being televised, there are increased sponsorship opportunities specific to women’s sport, which means that many brands are effectively tapping into consumers that weren’t previously tapped into through sponsorships in men’s sport. The steady growth in sponsorship has emerged as a beacon of hope for all women-centric sports and encourages women to go out and play.
