Yahoo Sports AM: Business is booming in women’s sports

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🚨 Headlines

🏀 Upsets galore: Three ranked men’s college basketball teams were in action on Thursday, and they all lost to unranked teams. Minnesota beat No. 20 Michigan (via buzzer-beater!), Oregon State took down No. 16 Gonzaga, and Temple beat No. 18 Memphis.

⚾️ HOF voting update: Ichiro Suzuki (100% of the vote), C.C. Sabathia (93.3%), Billy Wagner (84.7%) and Carlos Beltran (80.4%) are trending towards Hall of Fame induction with just over 40% of ballots publicly known. The final results will be announced on Tuesday.

🏒 Ovi makes history: Alex Ovechkin scored the game-winner in OT to lift the Capitals past the Senators and break the NHL record for most goaltenders scored on (179). He also moved within 21 goals of passing Wayne Gretzky for most all-time.

🏀 Thunder get revenge: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (40 points) and the Thunder destroyed the Cavaliers in OKC, 134-114, in a battle of the NBA’s two best teams. This comes a week after the Cavs beat them in Cleveland.

💔 RIP, Bob: Bob Uecker, the longtime voice of the Brewers also known for his iconic role in “Major League,” passed away on Thursday at 90 years old. He was “the soundtrack of our summers,” the team said in a statement. Rest easy, legend.

📈 Women’s sports: Business is booming

It wasn’t long ago that the WNBA struggled to draw viewers. Now, there’s a big enough appetite for women’s basketball that an entirely new league is launching today with record salaries,* big name backers, blue chip sponsors and a $100 million media rights deal.

The future is now: Unrivaled, the new 3-on-3 league featuring 36 WNBA players, is a direct reflection of how much has changed in a few short years. Women’s sports is no longer merely “on the rise” or “a space to watch”; it’s a thriving industry where surging fan engagement is driving sponsorship dollars, athlete earnings and investor interest through the roof.

Building on a huge year: Thanks in no small part to the rising tide that is Caitlin Clark, the women’s sports boom leveled up in 2024 (and the first few weeks of 2025) across just about every category.

1. Valuations and earnings: Angel City FC was sold for a women’s sports record $250 million, pushing the average NWSL franchise valuation over $100 million (up 57% YoY). The world’s 15 highest-paid female athletes earned $221 million in 2024 (up from $174 in 2023). The WTA and LPGA awarded historic prize money, and women’s basketball teams will earn performance pay during this year’s March Madness due to the tournament’s surging media value.

2. Media and investment: The WNBA’s new $2.2 billion broadcasting deal is worth 6x its current deal, and Netflix signed a “landmark” deal with FIFA to secure the U.S. rights for the next two Women’s World Cups. Washington Spirit owner Michele Kang pledged $30 million to U.S. Soccer to grow the women’s game (plus $4 million to fund women’s rugby), and Whoopi Goldberg launched the All Women’s Sports Network.

3. Viewership and attendance: The NCAA women’s national championship (featuring Clark) was ESPN’s most-watched college basketball game ever (18.9M viewers), and the WNBA Finals were the most-watched in 25 years (1.6M). The NWSL had record attendance (11,250 per game) and viewership (5x jump from 2023), UConn women’s basketball reported more ticket sales ($3.25M) than 75 public men’s programs, and the PWHL on Sunday set a U.S. women’s hockey attendance record (14,108).

4. Expansion and creation: The NWSL added two expansion teams (Bay FC, Utah Royals) and announced a third (Denver**), while the WNBA added one expansion team (Golden State Valkyries) and announced two more (Portland, Toronto). Three new leagues debuted (PWHL, USL Super League, League One Volleyball), and three were announced (Women’s Lacrosse League, Women’s Professional Baseball League, Major League Volleyball).

But wait, there’s more: The Paris Olympics were the first ever to achieve full gender parity, the NWSL’s KC Current opened the world’s first stadium built specifically for a women’s pro team, both Time (Clark) and Sports Illustrated (Simone Biles) named women as their Athletes of the Year, and bars dedicated to women’s sports continue to open across the country.

*Unrivaled money: Players have been given equity in the new league, and their average salary ($222,222) is nearly twice as much as the WNBA’s ($119,500) and the highest among all women’s team sports.

**Consider this: Denver secured the NWSL’s 16th franchise at an expansion fee of $110 million, which is 55x (!!!) the league’s expansion fee just three years ago ($2 million). If that isn’t evidence of explosive growth, I don’t know what is.

🏈 Divisional Round primer

The NFL’s final eight teams will battle it out this weekend in the Divisional Round, which often delivers the best set of games* all year.

Texans (+8.5) at Chiefs (Sat. 4:30pm ET, ESPN/ABC): Kansas City’s road to a third straight Super Bowl begins after a historically strange season. Their +59 scoring differential is 62 points worse than any other 15-win team in NFL history, and was just the 11th-best mark in 2024.

• X-factors: Houston needs star defensive ends Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter (whose 26% pass rush win rate led the league) to bother Patrick Mahomes. KC needs Trent McDuffie to shut down Nico Collins, the Texans’ only remaining truly dangerous receiver.

• A streak and a drought: The Chiefs have made six straight AFC title games (every year since Mahomes became the starter), while the Texans have never made it there in 22 years as a franchise.

Commanders (+9.5) at Lions (Sat. 8pm, Fox): Two long-struggling franchises enjoyed their best season in years (if not ever), as Detroit scored the fourth-most points in NFL history and Washington found increasingly clutch ways to win behind rookie sensation Jayden Daniels.

• Sonic and Knuckles: The league’s best RB tandem is back in action with David Montgomery (knee) rejoining Jahmyr Gibbs in Detroit’s backfield. That’s bad news for Washington, which allowed the third-most rushing yards per game this season.

• Three decades later: The Commanders haven’t reached the NFC Championship since 1991, when they beat the Lions (!) en route to their third Super Bowl.

Rams (+6) at Eagles (Sun. 3pm, NBC): Two of the league’s most electric offensive players — Saquon Barkley (2,005 rushing yards, eighth-most ever) and Puka Nacua (3.7 yards per route run, third-best mark since 2007) — take the field in Philly, where snow is in the forecast.

• Stifling defense: Good luck scoring on the Eagles, who’ve won 13 of their last 14 games and have allowed more than 20 points just twice in that time.

• Wild stat: This will be Rams head coach Sean McVay’s 13th career playoff game and he’s never faced the same team twice.

Ravens (-1) at Bills (Sun. 6:30pm, CBS): The weekend concludes with one of the most tantalizing playoff matchups in recent memory, as MVP favorites Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson square off in Buffalo, where the temperature is expected to feel like 0 degrees.

• Josh vs. Lamar: Jackson leads the regular-season series, 3-1 (including a 35-10 shellacking in Week 4), while Allen won their only postseason matchup four years ago. But something’s gotta give: Josh hasn’t won consecutive playoff games since 2021 and Lamar never has.

• Wild stat: Buffalo and Baltimore had nearly identical seasons. The Bills scored 525 points with a +157 differential, while the Ravens scored 518 points with the same +157 differential.

*Think about it: Wild Card Weekend doesn’t include either conference’s best team, and while the Conference Championships and Super Bowl are obviously both great theater, they don’t actually feature much football. The Divisional Round strikes a perfect balance.

🎾 Another teen wins in Melbourne

19-year-old qualifier Learner Tien knocked out No. 5 Daniil Medvedev in a five-setter on Thursday, becoming the youngest American man to reach the Australian Open’s third round since Pete Sampras in 1990.

The kids are alright: Tien is the third teenager this week to defeat a top-10 opponent, joining Brazil’s João Fonseca (No. 9 Andrey Rublev) and Croatia’s Jakub Menšík (No. 6 Casper Ruud).

Australian Open recap: Day 5

📺 Watchlist: College football’s grand finale

Ohio State and Notre Dame meet on Monday night in Atlanta (7:30pm ET, ESPN) for the first national championship game of the 12-team era.

Overwhelming favorite: The Buckeyes (-8.5) are huge favorites over the Irish, whom they have beaten six straight times dating back to 1995.

More to watch:

• 🏈 NFL: Texans at Chiefs (Sat. 4:30pm, ESPN); Commanders at Lions (Sat. 8pm, Fox); Rams at Eagles (Sun. 3pm, NBC); Ravens at Bills (Sun. 6:30pm, CBS)

• 🎾 Australian Open: Third Round, Round of 16, Quarterfinals (Fri-Mon, ESPN+/ESPN2)

• 🏀 NBA: Magic at Celtics (Fri. 7pm, ESPN); Grizzlies at Spurs (Fri. 9:30pm, ESPN); Timberwolves at Grizzlies (Mon. 2:30pm, TNT); Celtics at Warriors (Mon. 5pm, TNT)

• 🏒 NHL: Golden Knights at Hurricanes (Fri. 7pm, NHL); Maple Leafs at Canadiens (Sat. 7pm, NHL); Rangers at Canadiens (Sun. 7pm, NHL); Lightning at Maple Leafs (Mon. 7:30pm, NHL)

• 🏀 NCAAM: No. 4 Alabama at No. 8 Kentucky (Sat. 12pm, ESPN); No. 17 Purdue at No. 13 Oregon (Sat. 3pm, NBC); No. 21 Ole Miss at No. 15 Miss. St. (Sat. 6pm, ESPN2); No. 19 Illinois at No. 12 Michigan St. (Sun. 12pm, CBS)

• 🏀 NCAAW: No. 13 Oklahoma at No. 2 South Carolina (Sun. 3pm, ESPN); No. 7 Texas at No. 8 Maryland (Mon. 5:30pm, Fox)

Plus: The USMNT hosts Venezuela (Sat. 3pm, TNT) and Inter Miami hosts Club América (Sat. 10pm, Apple) in a pair of friendlies; UFC 311 at the Intuit Dome (Sat. 10pm, ESPN+ PPV); The American Express at PGA West (Fri-Sun, ESPN+/Golf); Unrivaled’s opening weekend in Miami (Fri-Mon, TNT/truTV).

🏈 Super Bowl trivia

Four of the eight remaining playoff teams have won at least two Super Bowls.

Question: Who are those four teams? And how many Super Bowls have they each won?

Answer at the bottom.

🏈 Pregame reading: Jeremiah Smith’s path to stardom

Ohio State WR Jeremiah Smith has had such an incredible freshman season that many believe he’d be the No. 1 pick if he were eligible for this year’s NFL draft. And to think: It all started with a snub from a youth football coach.

From Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Eisenberg:

Somewhere in the Miami area is a youth football coach who unknowingly fueled the rise of a record-breaking wide receiver. This is the coach who told Jeremiah Smith he didn’t make the Miami Gardens Ravens after the 7-year-old tried out to play football for the first time.

Much like the high school basketball coach who cut Michael Jordan, the snub ignited a fierce determination to be great within Smith. As he told Fox’s Tom Rinaldi in November, “I was just a whole different type of person from that day forward. It just made a kid more hungry, that’s all I can say.”

The cut also inspired Smith’s father to do more to help his son maximize his talent and achieve his goals. Chris Smith spent endless hours alongside J.J. (as he’s known to family and friends) at the park, the field or the gym, instilling the work ethic that made his son an elite prospect before anyone knew he would grow to become a 6-foot-3, 215-pound genetic marvel.

Hailed as the next great Ohio State receiver when he arrived in Columbus, Smith has achieved feats that even Marvin Harrison Jr., Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Garrett Wilson could not. The cousin of Seahawks QB Geno Smith has smashed Cris Carter’s school records for receptions, yardage and touchdown catches by a freshman.

ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky said Smith would “easily be the No. 1 pick in this year’s draft” if he were eligible for it. NFL Draft analyst Todd McShay has said the same. “The guy is NFL-ready,” Oregon coach Dan Lanning said after the Rose Bowl. “He’s that talented, that special.”

Keep reading.

Trivia answer: Chiefs (4), Commanders (3), Rams (2), Ravens (2)

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