Inside the business of women's sports (with Sarah Spain) | Rapid Response
About Sarah
- Emmy and Peabody Award-winning sports journalist.
- Host of iHeart's first daily women's sports podcast, "Good Game with Sarah Spain."
- 14+ years with ESPN as host, producer, and writer, focusing on espnW and women's sports.
- Former minority owner of the Chicago Red Stars, NWSL.
- Cornell University graduate; track & field team co-captain and heptathlete.
| 33:17
Sports business has never had higher stakes — for every league, every team, every streaming service, and every player. Sarah Spain, host of the podcast Good Game with Sarah Spain, longtime ESPN personality, and sports journalist, joins Rapid Response to unpack the complexities behind the WNBA’s mainstream moment, the future of ESPN’s streaming, and the looming legal settlement that could transform college athletics forever. She argues that the men’s playbook isn’t the way forward for pro women’s leagues and breaks down how culture is key to any winning strategy — from the locker room to the C-suite.
Chapters
00:00 Introducing Sarah Spain
01:31 Inside the WNBA’s big moment
07:12 Can the NWSL unlock a mass audience?
10:46 How fans of women’s sports differ from men’s?
13:14 The dark side of increased attention
16:30 ESPN’s new streaming service
20:24 How a legal case might reshape the NCAA
24:52 The politics of trans inclusion in sports
29:01 How athletics provide lessons for the business world
