Written by Lindsey Darvin, Ph.D., Assistant Professor in the Department of Sport Management
At Syracuse University’s Falk College of Sport, students are encouraged to understand sport as a powerful social and cultural space, including its ability to expand opportunity for girls and women. Recently, the growth of the women’s sports industry has been on full display. Professional leagues are breaking viewership records, women college athletes are building valuable personal brands through name, image, and likeness (NIL) opportunities, and girls are seeing more examples of women leading, competing, and succeeding across the industry.
In that vein, National Girls and Women in Sports Day (NGWSD) provides a perfect moment to celebrate how far women’s sports have come, while also reflecting on why participation in sport continues to matter so deeply for girls and women across all stages of life. Importantly, this growth did not occur overnight and it certainly was not at random. The current status of the industry is the direct result of years of steady investment, intentional leadership, and a belief in the value of women’s sports as a valuable business segment. As students study the sport industry during their time in Falk College, they are taught to look closely at these patterns and understand how decisions made by leagues, media organizations, and institutions shape who is seen, who is supported, and who feels welcome in sport spaces.
Celebrating the Wins on NGWSD
In the essence of NGWSD, celebrating the wins across the sports industry can be centered around objective and tangible growth patterns. This growth across women’s sports is often best reflected in recent attendance and viewership data, with women’s basketball leading the way. During the 2025 season, the WNBA drew more than three million fans into arenas across the league, averaging nearly 11,000 spectators per game. This interest extended beyond the arena, as national broadcasts on ESPN networks averaged approximately 1.3 million viewers per regular-season game.
A similar pattern of growth is currently unfolding in women’s professional hockey. As of late January 2026, the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) surpassed 527,000 total fans through the first 61 games of the 2025–26 season. That momentum was especially clear in January, when the league set a new record with an average of 9,087 fans per game across 28 contests. Several milestone moments followed, including a U.S. record crowd of 17,228 at Capital One Arena on January 18, a previous league record of 16,014 at Climate Pledge Arena in November, and a weekend attendance record of 47,858 fans across January 17–18.
At the collegiate level, women athletes are experiencing similar rates of momentum as they continue to navigate a new industry landscape that is now shaped by name, image, and likeness (NIL) opportunities. Early expectations suggested that NIL would favor men’s revenue sports, yet women athletes quickly emerged as leaders in this space. Many women athlete across a variety of revenue and non-revenue sports have built strong personal brands through authenticity and creativity while connecting consistently with fans. For girls growing up, seeing women athletes compete in sold-out arenas (and headlining national broadcasts) helps to normalize women’s place in sport. This visibility reinforces that women’s sports are worth watching and supporting and it also shapes how girls see themselves as athletes. These images help girls imagine a future in sport and believe that their participation belongs in that same spotlight.
Representation is also expanding in digital sport spaces for women and girls. In sports gaming and esports, recent updates to major basketball video games have integrated WNBA players into core gameplay modes using the same performance standards as men. These design choices matter, and my previous research has shown that virtual environments influence perception of women and girls across sport in real life (IRL). When women athletes are presented as equally capable and competitive, they reinforce the idea that women belong in every sport space.
These numbers depict a clear shift in how women’s sports are valued and presented. Women’s sports will continue to grow when they are treated as a central part of sport programming rather than a separate category. Importantly, women leaders across the sport industry have played a critical role in strengthening the decisions that have helped drive this growth. At Disney and ESPN for example, where Syracuse University alumni are well represented, women’s sports have been emphasized as part of a broader and intentional strategy for several decades. Over time, patterns of consistent scheduling, strong storytelling, and visible investment have created the foundation for the current levels of sustained fandom and audience growth.
What Girls Gain Through Playing Sports
As we celebrate the growth of women’s sport on NGWSD, it is also important to note that the impact of sport begins long before women reach elite levels of competition. For girls, sport is one of the most meaningful spaces to learn skills and leadership competencies that will end up lasting well beyond playing years. Through practices, games, and shared team experiences, girls learn how to work with others, manage pressure, respond to setbacks, and persist through challenge. These lessons take shape over time and often become part of how girls understand themselves and their capabilities.
Research from the Women’s Sports Foundation helps explain why these experiences are so influential. Their Play to Lead report released in 2024 collected data from women between the ages of 20 and 80 and resulted in a clear connection between sport participation and leadership development. Women who played sports frequently during their time growing up identified teamwork, learning from mistakes, handling pressure, and pushing personal boundaries as key skills developed through their early sport participation. Nearly half credited their sport experiences with shaping their leadership abilities, and more than two-thirds reported carrying those lessons into adulthood.
These skills continue to show up long after competition ends. Women often describe how the confidence they built through sport becomes the confidence they bring with them as they navigate leadership roles. Experiences working within teams translate into effective collaboration in professional settings and learning how to recover after a tough loss supports resilience during moments of uncertainty. As a result, it becomes clear that sport participation generates a foundation that women can draw upon as they navigate their careers and leadership opportunities.
Why National Girls and Women in Sports Day Matters
As women’s sports continue to grow across professional leagues, collegiate athletics, and emerging spaces, education plays an important role in shaping what comes next. Programs housed within the Falk College of Sport help to equip students with the tools needed to succeed in these evolving environments. By studying women’s sports through research, data, media strategy, organizational and leadership development, as well as policy and theoretical application, students are able to gain a much deeper understanding of how sport organizations grow audiences in addition to how the industry influences our broader culture. As women’s sports continue to grow and career opportunities in this space continue to increase, these targeted educational opportunities will play an important role in preparing the next generation of leaders so that we may sustain this momentum.
National Girls and Women in Sports Day is our reminder that thoughtful leadership and informed, diverse decision-making processes will play a key role in whether this growth is sustained. Ultimately, sport has the power to shape confidence, develop leaders, and shift dated societal expectations for girls and women. When girls are given the opportunity to play, and when women’s sports are studied, supported, and valued, the impact reaches far beyond any court, field, rink, or track. National Girls and Women in Sports Day reminds us that celebrating women’s sports is also about preparing the next generation to lead with knowledge, purpose, and a strong belief in what women’s sport can be.