Sports Media Report
Women in Sports and Events (WISE), the leading voice and resource for women in the business of sports, today announced the first-of-its-kind Deepening the Bench campaignfor the organization, which has successfully raised more than $4 million to date from professional leagues, teams and media organizations. The funds, pledged by the organizations listed below, will go to helping women succeed at all levels in the sports industry over the next three – five years.
· Lead Partner: National Hockey League (NHL)
· Championship Partners: National Basketball Association (NBA), NBC Sports, National Football League via the NFL Foundation (NFL), Major League Soccer (MLS)
· Supporting Partners: Chicago Bulls, ESPN, FanDuel
Since its inception 30 years ago, WISE has become the leading professional organization supporting women working in the business of sports. From establishing the prestigious WISE Women of the Year Award presented at the organization’s annual luncheon in NYC, to growing its membership across 25 chapters nationwide, WISE continues to open doors for women. WISE has created leadership training, mentoring and certificate programs to empower women across North America with the professional resources and network to help them excel.
“Women are playing critical roles at all levels of the sports industry across leagues, teams, agencies and organizations. WISE is here to support their career advancement and to continue partnering with these organizations to ensure sports is an industry where women can succeed,” said Kathleen Francis, National Board Chair and President of WISE. “These organizations, along with our WISE corporate partners and some individual contributors, recognize the value and contribution women make and the importance of creating opportunities for them to excel professionally. These investments are not just the right thing to do, they are the profitable thing. When women excel, we all win.”
Through this campaign, WISE is committed to developing ongoing thought leadership initiatives, building the organization’s infrastructure, and enhancing existing programs. WISE will continue to work with leagues, teams, agencies and organizations to create opportunities for women and will support their professional growth through these and other signature programs.
The 27th Annual WISE Awards Luncheon will take place on March 15th at the Ziegfeld Ballroom in New York City. The 2023 recipients are Andrea Brimmer, Chief Marketing and Public Relations Officer, Ally Financial; Jill Gregory, Executive Vice President, General Manager, Sonoma Raceway; Hillary Mandel, Executive Vice President, Head of Americas, IMG Media and Carla Williams, Director of Athletics, University of Virginia. The WISE/R Symposium — a day-long program providing a 360-degree view of working in sports, including sessions featuring leaders from across the industry — will take place on March 14th, at The Times Center in New York City.
