Why women's sports is like investing in small-cap stocks
Listen and subscribe to Opening Bid on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube, or wherever you find your favorite podcasts.
SANTA MONICA, Calif. — In the world of investing in women’s sports, putting money to work is akin to finding a great small-cap stock.
High risk, but high reward.
“It is smaller valuation than the big men’s teams, which are getting very high and some say maybe starting to ebb and even out in how far they can grow,” Jason Wright, head of investments at Ariel Project Level, told me on Yahoo Finance’s Opening Bid podcast (video above; listen in below) at the Milken Institute Global Conference. “The small caps are women’s sports that are lower valuations with massive growth potential, a very rapid growth trajectory that are undervalued in misunderstood.”
The former Arizona Cardinals running back was the NFL’s first black president, hired in August 2020 to restore a franchise embroiled in toxic workplace controversies under then-controversial owner Dan Snyder. Wright stabilized the team culture and improved ticket sales.
Private equity titan Josh Harris purchased the Commanders from Snyder in 2023 for more than $6 billion.
Wright parted ways with the team in 2024, ultimately joining friend and former Starbucks (SBUX) chair Mellody Hobson at Ariel.
Wright enters the field of women’s sports investing at an important moment, as superstar athletes such as the WNBA’s phenom Caitlin Clark and Olympic great Simone Biles continue to enter new territory with their eye-popping performances.
Project Level is aiming to invest in women’s sports leagues, including infrastructure to support athletic performance.
“Women’s and emerging sports are more akin to venture or growth investments,” researchers at Goldman Sachs wrote in a new report. “They generally have less established infrastructure and may not currently be profitable, meaning the risk is much higher but so is the potential reward if expected revenue and profitability are realized.”
They added, “Women’s sports are on the precipice of a radical transformation.”
To that end, the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) signed a four-year, $240 million contract in 2023 with CBS, ESPN, Prime Video, and Scripps Sports that is 40 times larger than its previous deal, per Goldman. The WNBA will earn $2.2 billion from the 11-year, $76 billion media rights deal signed in July 2024, 233% more than what it previously earned on an annual basis.
Wright said he is looking to put money to work in the space as soon as possible, noting he has already made two investments.
“We are the owners of the Denver NWSL expansion team that will start play in 2026,” Wright pointed out.
Three times each week, I field insight-filled conversations and chats with the biggest names in business and markets on Opening Bid. You can find more episodes on our video hub or watch on your preferred streaming service.
Brian Sozzi is Yahoo Finance’s Executive Editor. Follow Sozzi on X @BrianSozzi, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Tips on stories? Email brian.sozzi@yahoofinance.com.
Click here for the latest stock market news and in-depth analysis, including events that move stocks
Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance