WNBA viewership across its national television partners — ABC, CBS, ESPN and ESPN2 — this season was up 21 per cent on 2022, while social media views surged by 96 per cent to 373 million, according to the association. Beauty brands have an eye on players’ hyper-engaged online communities and aim to benefit from the buzz around the sport. “The partnership allows us to reach more of our Gen Z community, in an area we now know our consumers are passionate about. Athletes are the kind of people they look up to,” says Diana Valdez, head of consumer engagement for Nyx Professional Makeup US. “[New York] Liberty had a great season and we were present during those games. It’s great to be in a category that’s not so obvious and have such a positive reaction.”

It took a while for beauty brands to respond to the opportunity. “When people think about women’s sports, before, they didn’t think about beauty. They didn’t realise that they go hand in hand,” says Taylor Burner, an agent for the Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA), who works across its spectrum of talents. “[Former All-Star player] Sheryl Swoopes has been wearing red lipstick on the basketball court since the 1990s.”

WNBA players are keen to find brand partners. The highest paid athletes in the WNBA earn a relatively modest $225,000 a year, Burner says, while one brand deal can bring in $300-500,000. (By contrast, the highest paid NBA player, Stephen Curry, made more than $51 million in the 2023 season.) “The good news is that women’s brand deals are often more lucrative than men’s because it’s a story that people want to tell and they drive high engagement,” Burner points out. “The men’s story is kind of played out.”

Players are building loyal followings

To help players secure more deals, the WNBA launched a Player Marketing Agreement programme this year, says Colie Edison, who joined the WNBA in January 2022 as its first chief growth officer. For on-court and off-court deals, brand partners can approach the WNBA directly, committing to pay a certain amount to each player involved. (This doesn’t prevent players from signing their own individual off-court deals.)

Through this programme, Glossier secured Izzy Harrison, a player for WNBA’s Chicago Sky with 200,000 followers across Instagram, X and TikTok. She curated a product set for Glossier and appeared on its social media. On court, alongside her kit and basketball shoes, she wears Glossier foundation, brow pencil and lash extensions. “In the WNBA we love beauty, we love to look our best,” she says. “My followers care about the new sneakers I got from [the] Jordan brand that week, what beauty products I use for dry skin or what outfit am I going to be wearing to the game.”