It’s heartbreaking: A very loyal Boston PWHL player has announced his sudden retirement, sending a powerful statement and bidding the team and supporters a heartfelt farewell.
During the inaugural Professional Women’s Hockey League Draft in Toronto in September, there was a distinct atmosphere and enthusiasm.
Maybe the simplest way to describe it is to take a spin on the most well-known slang term in the sport
In fact, there’s something about this version of a women’s hockey league that feels more distinct and certain. This time, it seems like the company will survive.
The general manager of the Ottawa squad, Mike Hirshfeld, stated, “I think it was fragmented before.” Since there were two leagues, best on best was not an option.
“This time, there is funding available and support for carrying it out correctly.”
Mark Walter, an American businessman and the CEO of Guggenheim Partners, a multinational financial services company with assets of over $305 billion (USD), is in charge of that money. His personal sports holdings include Chelsea FC, the Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA, and the Los Angeles Dodgers.
This consistency offers the PWHL a realistic chance of long-term success. It is anticipated that the first season will start in early January, with each team participating in a 24-game schedule.
While it is not the pioneer of women’s professional hockey in North America, the sport hopes to be the next to benefit from the rapid growth of women’s team sports.
The New York Liberty and Las Vegas Aces are currently playing in the Women’s National Basketball Association Finals. The 27th season of the WNBA will end after this. Globaldata.com projects that the league will earn more than $860 million in sponsorship revenue by 2023, with companies like Nike, PepsiCo, Microsoft, and Google setting the bar high.
As per the GlobalData research, “this affiliation allows the WNBA to leverage the NBA’s popularity and maximize its revenue potential, at least in terms of apparent value, but these figures are inflated due to the NBA’s broader commercial appeal.”
In 2023, the National Women’s Soccer League shattered attendance records, according to The Huddle Up newsletter. The NWSL saw an 87% rise in sponsorship income last year, with an average team having 37 sponsorship agreements.
The 2022 Portland Thorns vs. KC Current championship game drew in about a million viewers. Significantly, the PWHL signed its first-ever collective bargaining agreement, which was deemed necessary from the outset.
The significance of collective bargaining
The Toronto Star reports that PWHL players will make between $35,000 and $80,000 (USD) annually. When combined with a CBA, these earnings will place female hockey players in a competitive professional setting for the first time in North America.
Gina Kingsbury told The Toronto Star, “After reading the CBA, I realized that these owners are really serious about doing it right.” Kingsbury, who became a builder in the women’s league, left her position as Vice President, Hockey Operations at Hockey Canada to take on the role of General Manager for the Toronto team. “A professional league with a very long lifespan is going to exist.”
The question will be how to produce revenue, just like with every start-up company. According to Stan Kasten, a member of the PWHL Advisory Board, teams hire personnel to handle business operations in addition to expanding their player squads.
He released a statement saying, “Roles in sales, ticketing, and marketing at the league and team level will help connect with our growing fan community and our family of partners.”
A sponsor intervenes
With a multi-year deal, Canadian Tire became the league’s first finance partner. Prior to the partnership terminating due to Hockey Canada’s treatment of previous sexual assault claims, the corporation was one of the organization’s top sponsors.
By 2026, Canadian Tire plans to donate a minimum of 50% of its proceeds from sports sponsorships to women’s professional sports.
The next generation of girls participating in sports will have a better life in Canada thanks to this, according to Kim Saunders, Vice President, Environmental, Social, and Governance Strategy and Community Impact at Canadian Tire Corporation.
Two weeks ago, the Twin Cities Pioneer Press published an article revealing that the Minnesota club would be playing its home games at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. This indicates a possible friendly relationship between the PWHL and its owners and venues, given this was the first public information regarding the games’ locations.
The anticipated revenue for PWHL has not been disclosed. However, The Huddle Up claims that despite the teams earning, on average, $3–4 million annually, NWSL franchises are not yet profitable. Recent $53 million Bay FC expansion fee indicates that near-term profitability is anticipated.
Hockey for women is here.
The teams’ identities will be revealed in the upcoming weeks. The original six sites to host women’s hockey teams have been set: Boston, Montreal, Minnesota, New York, Ottawa, and Toronto.
Sales of tickets will be crucial, and broadcast deals will come after. In order to build the company and promote the league and women’s hockey in general, sponsorship money will be essential.
“Invest in marketing and hire quality staff,” Hirshfeld advised. “It’s fantastic to see women’s sports take up globally.
“The caliber of the players and coaches has truly amazed me.”
There’s no denying the passion that surrounds PWHL and women’s hockey. Numerous signs and people think the company’s growth will undoubtedly accomplish its objectives and reach a lot of targets.
