Accelerate Equity

No one comes to watch the referees. But in the WNBA, they’re the story | Bryan Armen Graham As the league rides record crowds and viewership into the finals, inconsistent refereeing fueled by structural gaps has become the game’s dominant subplot

👀 Refs in the WNBA get paid far less than in the NBA 🏀
WNBA per game pay range ~$1,500 - $,2600
NBA per game pay range ~$2,000 - $7,333
This needs to change!

www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/o...

#payequity #WNBA #NBA

📣 The Golden State Valkyries are the first expansion team to make the playoffs!
👀 W/ 397,408 fans they set an WNBA season attendance record
So proud and excited! Go Valks! 💜

#WNBA #GoldenStateValkyries

⁉️ What took you so long MLB? ⚾ Watch this weekend as Jen Pawol makes history as the first female MLB referee, in the Marlins - Braves series. She'll be behind home plate on Sunday.

#womenssports #MLB #NBA #NFL

Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Saves College Sports SAVING COLLEGE SPORTS: Today, President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order to protect student-athletes and collegiate athletic scholarships and

The EO prohibits booster type pay-for play. It is unclear how aspects aimed at protecting so-called non-revenue sports would be enforced. It also aims to protect the NCAA and schools from antitrust lawsuits. Many aspects will likely be challenged in court. #NCAA
www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/...

The EO prohibits booster-club type pay-for play. It is less clear how other aspects, aimed to protect so-called non-revenue sports would be implemented. Also, unclear if it will protect the NCAA and schools against antitrust lawsuits. Many aspects will likely be challenged in court.

Graph shows that SFA provided women with only 211 roster spots in 2023 - 2024, when they should have provided women with 668 roster spots.

Beach volleyball players filed a Title IX lawsuit in response to Stephen F. Austin State U. cutting the team. SFA has shortchanged women athletes for years, recently by over 400 roster spots !

See how any college is doing ➡️ accelerateequity.net/gender-equit...

Thanks for reading @rodneyfort.bsky.social !

Thanks so much for the kind words @lfn.bsky.social !

Steelers Reload with Ramsey & Smith, SGA’s $285M Payday, and Title IX Fallout Podcast Episode · SportsIQ with Larry Smith · 01/07/2025 · 52m

Thrilled to join Sports IQ with Larry Smith to talk about the impact of the House settlement on women's sports. Segment starts at 25:33.
#NCAA #sports #TitleIX #TitleIX

podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/s...

Guest Post: What the House settlement gets wrong about women's sports Using math from past discrimination is only going to make future problems worse

⚖️ The NCAA v House settlement uses historical discrimination to justify future discrimination. I'm grateful to @mattbrown.bsky.social for letting me share the story of how the NCAA prevents women's tournaments from bringing in sponsors and revenue.

www.extrapointsmb.com/p/guest-post...

Graph shows recruiting dollars spent for men's and women's college teams. $307 million is spent on men's teams, while only $118 million is spent on women's teams.

When it comes to recruiting, the gap is wider. Only 38 cents is spent on recruiting for women's teams for every dollar spent on men's teams.
#NCAA #TitleIX #womenssports

Graph shows spending on men's and women's college teams. $11.7 billion is spent on men's teams, while only $6.3 billion is spent on women's teams.

Here is new data on how spending compares for college men's and women's teams. The law does not require equal spending. But schools are required to offer the same quality of benefits and services.
For every dollar spent on college men's teams, only 53 cents is spent on women's teams.

Thank you @sarahspain.com for lifting up Accelerate Equity's Gender Equity Dashboard so folks can see how fairly any college treats women athletes.
accelerateequity.net/gender-equit...

compares roster spots women get (lower line) with those that they should get (upper line)

How is Title IX doing on its anniversary? Schools are supposed to provide roster spots for women equal to the percentage of students who are women. But there is still a gap of over 219,000 roster spots nationwide.
See how any schools is doing
accelerateequity.net/gender-equit...

Opinion | How Underpaid Are W.N.B.A. Players? It’s Embarrassing.

Economist Claudia Goldin analyzed WNBA and MNBA salaries. She found that the avg WNBA salary is 1/80 of the avg. MNBA salary - $127,000 v $10,000,000. But based on a player's value to sponsors, the avg. WNBA salary should be around 1/4 to 1/3 of the men's.
#WNBA

www.nytimes.com/2025/06/06/o...

Civil rights advocates say debate about transgender athletes ignores chronic violations of Title IX Critics say the movement to ban transgender athletes from girls' sports doesn't have anything to do with fairness.

The widespread lack of equitable opportunities to play sports, in violation of #TitleIX, impacts so many more girls and women than transgender athletes do @mainepublic.org story here - AE comes in a 2:37
www.mainepublic.org/politics/202...
Thanks Patty Wight for the story

How well is your favorite college doing in living up to Title IX's promise of equal opportunity and scholarships? Find out with our Gender Equity Dashboard.

We’re 8 days out from the 2025 WNBA season! Whether you’re getting into the W for the first time this year or you’ve been watching since the beginning, we’ve got you covered with team-by-team previews leading up to opening night.

Starting with the Liberty & Sun:
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/g...

🏀 👀 Watch Paige Bueckers and the Dallas Wings kick off the WNBA preseason against the Las Vegas Aces tonight at 7 pm EDT. You can watch for free on the WNBA app or on ION. 🌟 100% of WNBA pre-season games will be broadcast for the first time!
#WNBA # womenssports

This graph shows that women got $5.9m in athletic aid in 22-23, when they should have received $6.5m.

The University of Oregon is also not providing women with proportional athletic scholarships, as required by #TitleIX. They got $5.9m in 22-23, when they should have received $6.5m.

See how all colleges do in providing fair athletic aid to women.
accelerateequity.net/gender-equit...

Graph shows that at the U. or Oregon, in 2022-23 women got 308 roster spots. If they had been given proportional opportunity, as Title IX requires, they would have had 408 roster spots.

Oregon should be giving women 100 additional opportunities to play varsity sports, based on offering proportional opportunity, which #TitleIX requires.

See how any schools is doing at Accelerate Equity's Gender Equity Dashboard
accelerateequity.net/gender-equit...

A federal court ruled that the Title IX lawsuit against U. of Oregon can move forward, The lawsuit was brought by members of the beach volleyball team and club rowing team, based on lack of opportunities to play, lack of scholarships, and inequitable treatment, including access to NIL opportunities.

South Carolina Signs Dawn Staley to Record Contract Extension South Carolina boss Dawn Staley inked a $25 million+ deal last week, becoming the highest-paid coach in NCAA women's basketball history.

Dawn Staley is now the highest paid coach in college WBB! She will earn $4m/yr and $25.25m through 2030.

However, there are 16 coaches in college MBB who make more. This reflects the undervaluation of coaches of women's teams and women in general.
#womenssports #NCAA #WBB #collegesports #NCAA

Payments are tied to the value of media rights. Last year the NCAA negotiated for increased, but still fairly low media rights for WBB -- up to $65m, from $6m/yr, compared to ~$ 1.1 B /yr on the men's side. So payments on the women's side will be much lower, but at least they will get something.

Finally! WBB teams that play in the NCAA tournament will be awarded $15m in payments by the NCAA, increasing to $20 million in 2026, and $25 million in 2027.
In 2024, around $250m was awarded on the men's side.

#NCAA #WBB #basketball #sports #womensports #collegesports #genderequity

🤼‍♀️ As we kick off 2025, it's great to see E.L.F. BEAUTY sponsoring high school girls' wrestling. Kudos to e.l.f Beauty for having the vision to see the opportunity in this partnership. 👏

#wrestling #womenssports #sports #cosmetics #marketing

52 years after Title IX was passed, over 84% of colleges still don’t provide women athletes with the opportunities to play or athletic scholarships that the law requires. Check out any college on our Gender Equity Dashboard.
accelerateequity.net/gender-equit...

Colleges can solve the revenue gap between men’s and women’s sports While women’s professional sports are soaring with new viewers and sponsors, women’s college sports are often seen as charity cases. The dichotomy is striking and the belief that women’s college sport...

While women's pro sports are soaring, women's college sports are at risk of being cut due to budget pressure from impending revenue sharing. I explain how we wound up here and what can be done.
www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Articles/202...
#womenssports #NCAA #WNBA #NWSL #collegesports