Demanding Our Fair Shot
#OurFairShot
The stark disparity between women’s and men’s college athletics became blatantly clear during the 2021 NCAA Division I Basketball Championships.
This inequity must end. The Women’s Basketball Coaches Association is calling for change – not only from the NCAA, but from its governing board of university leaders and others in academia involved in college sports. Our women’s basketball student-athletes are setting new audience records and attracting more TV viewers than some professional sports that are fixtures on network television. Let’s seize this moment and together elevate women’s basketball to the next level.
We Deserve
OUR FAIR SHOT.
Give us OUR FAIR SHOT to compete on a level playing field on and off the court.
Give us OUR FAIR SHOT by providing commensurate sales, marketing and promotional muscle so our women student-athletes get the visibility and recognition for their talents, competitive play and championships they deserve, which will fuel their ability to inspire and serve as role models.
Give us OUR FAIR SHOT by providing female Student-Athletes the same state-of-the-art resources, training facilities, amenities and branded courts as the men.
Give us OUR FAIR SHOT by giving coaches the same tools for recruitment and other incentives that allow us to identify and nurture the superstars of tomorrow.
Give us OUR FAIR SHOT by recognizing the superior achievements of our female student-athletes when they outperform academically, ascend to leadership roles after graduation and achieve positive life outcomes.
Side-By-Side • You Decide
Women's
Men's
| Top NCAA women’s basketball executive does not report to NCAA president | Top men’s basketball executive reports directly to NCAA president |
| 10-year history of funding and staffing cuts to women’s basketball | Decades-long financial investments to grow franchise |
| Primary focus on cost structure and ROI; little focus on growth strategy or investment | Fully developed long-term strategy to aggressively align NCAA media and marketing resources for MBB growth |
| Staff less than half the size of the men’s | Staff is twice the size of the women’s |
| Limited third-party resources to support Division I Championship activation | Extensive vendor and third-party support resources to support Division I activation |
| No payment to conferences for championship wins | Payments of more than $200 million to conferences for championship wins |
| Division I championship budget is half the size of the men’s | Division I championship budget twice the size of the women’s |
| No sales of premier WBB marketing assets (Wade Trophy, Coaches’ All-America team, Coach of the Year, NCAA/WBCA Coaches’ Trophy) with NCAA as exclusive marketer | Millions of sponsorship dollars for the sale of premier marketing assets |
| Anemic on-court branding of Division I Championship courts, labeled “Women’s Basketball” until Final Four | Professional-quality branding of all championship courts and updated branding for Sweet 16, Elite Eight, and Final Four |
| Final Four sponsorships sold as an add-on to Men’s Final Four Corporate Champions sales, an afterthought | Final Four sponsorships packages given priority to any men’s sales to avoid channel conflict |
| No live streaming or sponsors on an app built from a template with scant features, functionality, or opportunities for monetization | App with live streaming and extensive custom features and functionality to drive sponsorships, cross-platform activation and monetization opportunities |
| No use of March Madness brand including on social media | Fully leveraged use of March Madness brand on and off the court, with extensive sponsorship and social media opportunities |
| Championship branding uses “Women’s” qualifier | Championship branding makes no mention of gender |
| No photos in NCAA digital media hub prior to Sweet 16 | Thousands of images in NCAA media hub throughout the championship |
| No postgame interview transcripts until Sweet 16 | Postgame interview transcripts for all men’s games in championship |
| No pre or postgame lead-ins or follow-up on broadcast | Regular pre and postgame lead-ins and follow-ups to game programming for analysis on broadcast |
| 93% graduation rate for Final Four teams | 83% graduation rate for Final Four teams |
| 8 of the top 10 social media influencers among student-athletes advancing to the Elite Eight are women | 2 of the top 10 social media influencers among student-athletes advancing to the Elite Eight are men |
| Antigen COVID testing at Division I Championship | PCR COVID testing at Division I Championship |
| One rack of hand dumbbells in training facility at Division I Championship | State-of-the-art weight room in training facility at Division I Championship |
| Pre-packaged cold meals consisting of two boiled eggs and an apple for pregame breakfast | Fully loaded hot buffets for pregame breakfast with meats, eggs, fruits, pastries |
| Skimpy Swag bags/gift suite | Over the top quality swag bags/gift suite with designer and premium goods |