Amazon Prime Video isn't waiting until next week's launch of “Upfront” to draw attention to women's sports.
The streaming giant announced a sponsorship deal with AT&T, making it the lead sponsor of 21 WNBA games aired on Prime Video and halftime broadcasts during the service's National Women's Soccer League games. The company plans to be the presenting sponsor of the show. . When Caitlin Clark's home WNBA debut will be streamed on May 16, the first regular season game on Prime Video, AT&T will sponsor the pre-show, post-show and halftime coverage. Viewers will see the company's logo during the basketball game, as well as a “presentation” intro.
“We are able to expand our commitment to women's sports by partnering with brands like AT&T that support meaningful storytelling around female athletes that connects with large audiences.” said Daniel Carney, head of live sports and video sales for Amazon Ads. “Amazon is proud to help these brands continue their influential role in our culture and to help lead new brands to the rise of women's sports.”
Recent surges in viewership for WNBA games and women's college basketball have increased Madison Avenue's profile in sports featuring female competitors. Streaming has allowed advertisers to reduce the amount of linear television programming that traditionally drew large numbers of concurrent viewers. However, live sports continue to prove durable, and this has led to increased interest in leagues and matches that traditionally have not received as much attention.
WPP's leading media investment group, GroupM, has pledged to double the amount its clients spend on women's sports by 2024, and announced in March that it would seek to create a marketplace specifically for the programming genre in advance. . In its advertising sales market, US television companies are trying to sell most of their commercial inventory for the next new programming cycle.
Amazon Prime Video has taken away the rights to women's sports in recent months. In November, the company signed a multi-year deal with the NWSL to stream 27 games each season. In April, Prime Video and the WNBA agreed to a two-year extension to the current rights agreement.
AT&T has more than doubled its media investment in women's sports since 2022, and has supported the LPGA and U.S. Women's National Soccer Team in the past. Marketers believe the fan base is growing, with research showing viewers of women's sports are twice as likely to recall the advertisers sponsoring the games.
“Women's sports have been a defining pillar of our strategy for many years. To continue the incredible growth we've seen over the past few years, we need to value our fans, athletes, teams and leagues as much as we do. We need new, motivated partners who will do that,” said Scott Kratskin, AT&T's AVP of Media. “Our new relationship with Amazon Prime not only builds on what we're already doing in women's basketball and soccer, but also allows us to better collaborate on our shared ambition to grow women's sports.”
