2023 has marked a meteoric rise in the visibility of professional female athletes.
According to a recent poll, over 70 percent of senior industry executives project the global revenue for women’s sports to increase by more than 15 percent within the next few years.
Brands have also cashed in on that growth to partner with successful women at the top of their games. Here are some of the most exciting athlete-brand linkups you’ll want to follow this year.
Post Contents
Sophia Smith
Instagram: @sophsssmith, Brand: BioSteel
If you’re keeping tabs on the U.S. Women’s National Team campaign for the 2023 World Cup, chances are, you’ve heard the name Sophia Smith.
As a forward for the USWNT and her club, Portland Thorns FC, Sophia is one of soccer’s most formidable young talents.
She has scored 12 goals in international matches, including a hat trick in 2022, and she recently signed on as the newest official ambassador for BioSteel.
This sports nutrition brand will ensure Sophia is all fueled up as she takes the World Cup stage this summer.
Emma Talley
Instagram: @ertalley, Brand: SERVPRO
As a current fixture on the LPGA Tour, Emma Talley is no stranger to above-par quality.
She’s been a professional golfer since 2016, with nine top-10 career finishes and an NCAA Division I Champion title at the University of Alabama.
She even helped start an annual youth golf tournament to introduce more girls to her sport. Both on and off the course, Emma partners with SERVPRO, a nationwide restoration company whose logo she will proudly wear for the LPGA Tour’s 2023 and 2024 seasons.
Kimber Cross
Instagram: @kimberbelle, Brand: The North Face
Alpine mountaineering is extreme, but those conditions suit Kimber Cross perfectly.
As an elite adaptive climber, she is not afraid of challenges — in fact, she’s been overcoming them her entire life.
Kimber was born without a right hand, but instead of allowing this to stop her, she learned how to scale mountains using a prosthetic limb.
Kimber’s mission is to make this sport more accessible to other adaptive climbers, which she now does in conjunction with The North Face’s first-ever Athlete Development Program.
Sunisa Lee
Instagram: @sunisalee, Brand: Crocs
When gymnast Sunisa Lee won a gold medal at the 2021 Olympic Games, she became an instant phenomenon.
In addition to competing in NCAA for Auburn University, Sunisa just announced a return to elite gymnastics in hopes of qualification for the 2024 Olympics.
Her win streak has also caught the attention of high-profile brands, such as Crocs, with which she signed a lucrative NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) deal earlier this year.
So when she’s not acing an uneven bar routine, expect to see Sunisa rocking those Crocs.
Allyson Felix
Instagram: @allysonfelix, Brand: Athleta
She might have retired from her athletic career in 2022, but Allyson Felix continues to leave a mark on women’s sports — and society.
As one of the most accomplished American track-and-field runners of all time, she’s taken home 11 Olympic medals, but her activism makes Allyson a true hero.
She has teamed up with the sportswear brand Athleta to create safer and more inclusive spaces for female athletes entering motherhood (especially Black women, who are more vulnerable to pregnancy complications).
Ons Jabeur
Instagram: @onsjabeur, Brand: Evolve
Last year, tennis sensation Ons Jabeur made history as the first African and Arab player to reach a Grand Slam final.
But this year, she has one goal — to claim that honor for her country Tunisia as she tackles round three of the 2023 Wimbledon tournament.
Ranked top 10 in the world (not to mention chosen by Serena Williams to be her doubles partner in the GOAT’s last match before retiring), Ons is a force on the court.
But her kind, joyful character led to a partnership with fellow tennis star Naomi Osaka’s agency Evolve.
These Women Athletes Are Winning The Partnership Game
It’s a smart business decision to invest in women’s sports — and these female athletes are the proof.
From golf courses and soccer pitches to Olympic arenas and mountain summits, women can perform incredible feats.
So be sure to cheer on the careers of these six prolific talents and the brands who champion their endeavors.
