Welcome to episode 265 of Sports Management Podcast.
Women's sports are growing rapidly, but should they be built using the same playbook as men's sports?
In this episode of Sports Management Podcast, Marcus Filipsson speaks with Sascha Malas, Head of OT Select and Director of Content Operations at Overtime, about the future of women's sports, Gen Z fandom, NIL, sponsorship and athlete branding.
Sascha explains why Overtime deliberately chose not to copy its men's basketball model when creating OT Select, how listening to young athletes shaped the product, and why she believes women's basketball is still only at the beginning of its commercial growth.
We also discuss how Overtime became one of the most influential sports brands for Gen Z, why brands like Adidas, Google, Gatorade, Target and State Farm are investing in young female athletes, how NIL is turning teenagers into businesspeople, and why women's sports need more specialized investment rather than being treated as one single category.
In this episode:
- Why women's sports need their own business models
- How Overtime built an audience with Gen Z
- The rise of OT Select
- Why women's basketball is still early in its growth
- How NIL is changing athlete branding
- Why major brands are investing in teenage athletes
- The commercial opportunity in women's sports
- How Sascha built her career in sports
- The importance of networking, mentors and communication
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Time stamps:
00:00 Introduction
00:21 Sascha's Role at Overtime
01:26 How Overtime Built a Gen Z Sports Brand
03:39 Why Overtime Beat Legacy Media on TikTok
05:04 Building OT Select
05:35 Why Women's Sports Need a Different Model
06:48 What Elite Female Athletes Actually Wanted
07:55 Why "Women's Sports" Is Too Broad a Category
08:50 The Caitlin Clark Effect and Athlete Fandom
09:36 Is Women's Basketball Still Just Getting Started?
11:37 How NIL Is Changing Young Athletes
13:15 Are Female Athletes Better at Personal Branding?
14:15 Why Major Brands Are Investing in Women's Basketball
16:34 The Purchasing Power of Young Female Fans
17:28 The Future of Overtime Women's Sports
18:14 Overtime's UConn Partnership
19:29 Sascha's Career Journey
21:56 How She Became "The Women's Sports Person" at Overtime
23:32 Creating Your Own Luck in Sports
26:04 Career Challenges and Building OT Select
29:05 Advice for Women Entering Sports
31:20 Why Communication Skills Matter More Than Ever
32:13 Final Thoughts
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