On the latest episode of La Previa, Asli Pelit and Boris Gartner speak with Ana Drucker, the SVP of finance and operations of Athletes Unlimited, and Natalia Valentin-Anderson, one of the best professional volleyball players in the AU league and the captain of Puerto Rican national team.
First, the hosts discuss the dynamics of women’s sports in the U.S., with 2023 being a landmark year for the sector thanks to record-breaking audiences, broadcast deals and team sales.
“There is a lot of money entering the ecosystem; second, there is growing interest from brands to associate themselves with women’s sports; and third, there are media contracts,” Gartner said. “Because women’s sports have bigger audiences, they have become a coveted product both for streaming services and traditional networks.”
Athletes Unlimited is one of those sports properties. Founded in 2020 by Jon Patricof and Jonathan Soros, AU is a network of four professional women’s sports leagues—softball, lacrosse, indoor volleyball and basketball.
“I think the first important decision was to focus on female athletes,” Drucker said. “Jon and Jonathan saw it a long time ago that the biggest opportunity was in professional women’s sports. How to do it differently was the challenge.”
AU designed its five-week-long athlete-focused tournaments to enhance the fan experience. AU reshuffles the teams within its leagues weekly and determines the season winner based on a player points leaderboard.
“It’s different; it’s a league that focuses on the athlete and understands our needs to play at a higher level,” said Valentin-Anderson, who joined AU in 2022 year after playing professionally since 2010 with 10 different teams in Puerto Rico, Italy, France, Azerbaijan and Poland. “They support us in everything, also outside the field. They treat us well not only because we are players but also as a person, and for me, that’s very much worth it.”
AU also gives its athletes a voice in the governance of the league and an opportunity to participate through a profit-sharing program, so they are staked in the league’s success today and in the future.
In addition to its non-traditional structure, AU’s platform model enables the league to be efficient, as it uses the same staff across four sports leagues. These efficiencies help each league be less capital-intensive and more attractive for broadcasters and advertisers. Last month, ESPN and AU signed a multiyear rights renewal agreement that included all four AU sports properties for the first time. The partnership began with ESPN’s AU Pro Basketball League coverage. The 40-player roster features Olympians, WNBA All-Stars and WNBA champions.
AU’s basketball season will wrap on Saturday. Lacrosse and softball leagues will kick off at the end of July, and volleyball in mid-October.
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