PALMETTO, FLORIDA - OCTOBER 06: Sue Bird #10 of the Seattle Storm passes the ball during the second half of Game 3 of the WNBA Finals against the Las Vegas Aces at Feld Entertainment Center on October 06, 2020 in Palmetto, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
The WNBA has raised $75 million from a group of investors in an effort to revamp the league.
Investors in this largest-ever infusion for a women’s sports property include Nike Inc., businessman Michael Dell, and former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. It’s also the first time the league has raised money through investors.
The revamping includes overhauling the brand to appeal to more fans. Now, the league plans to dedicate more money to marketing players on a global scale.
The funding gives the group of more than two dozen investors an equity stake in the WNBA, which declined to give details on the size of the stake or to divulge how much each investor put in.
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The money raised the combined value of the league to $1 billion. The WNBA signed an eight-year collective bargaining agreement in 2020 that raised the maximum base salary to $215,000, up from $117,500 in 2019.
“Our strategy is to deploy this capital to continue to drive the league’s brand as a bold, progressive entertainment and media property that embodies diversity, promotes equity, advocates for social justice, and stands for the power of women,” said WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert.
Nike has made the WNBA’s game uniforms since 2018.
“Women’s sport is one of the best investments, with great potential to impact and grow the next era of basketball,” said Sonja Henning, Nike VP of North America league partnerships.
Other investors include Laurene Powell Jobs, philanthropist and Steve Jobs’ widow; Micky Arison, Carnival Corp. chairman and Miami Heat owner; Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. co-founder Joe Tsai and his wife, Clara, New York Liberty and Brooklyn Nets owner; former NBA players Baron Davis and Pau Gasol; and former WNBA star Swin Cash.
The WNBA begins its 26th season in May.
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