{"id":803455,"date":"2026-07-15T12:27:26","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T12:27:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/803455\/"},"modified":"2026-07-15T12:27:26","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T12:27:26","slug":"nwsl-added-a-free-to-stream-partner-ahead-of-a-crucial-season-the-deal-was-about-more-than-games","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/803455\/","title":{"rendered":"NWSL added a free-to-stream partner ahead of a crucial season. The deal was about more than games"},"content":{"rendered":"

As the National Women\u2019s Soccer League prepared for a season with 16 teams in 2026, up from 14 the previous year, league executives faced a challenge that would have seemed unimaginable just a few years ago: fitting all 248 matches<\/a> (including an eight-team play-off and the Challenge Cup) into their already fragmented media package.<\/p>\n

With Boston Legacy and Denver Summit joining the league, the NWSL has more matches, more players, more markets and more inventory than ever before.<\/p>\n

At the same time, fans are increasingly navigating a disjointed media landscape where games are spread across CBS, ESPN, Prime Video, ION and team-specific regional broadcasts, most of which require at least some level of subscription payment.<\/p>\n

The addition of Victory+ to the league\u2019s media ecosystem was an attempt to address that challenge.<\/p>\n

The free streaming platform is carrying 57 NWSL matches in 2026, including a dedicated Sunday night package. But, according to the company\u2019s CEO Neil Gruninger, the partnership is about much more than simply airing additional games.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe got to talking about our strategy of being free and ensuring that access is available to all fans, and those barriers of entry through a subscription were removed,\u201d Gruninger said in an interview with The Athletic. \u201cThat got (the league) really excited.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of the biggest criticisms of the NWSL\u2019s record-breaking $240million (\u00a3179m), four-year media package has been accessibility. A fan who wants to watch every NWSL game today needs subscriptions to multiple streaming services and broadcasters. While those deals generate revenue for the league, the bill falls on fans to pay. Gruninger believes removing those barriers is central to expanding the league\u2019s audience.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\n NWSL initially signed a record-breaking $240million, four-year media package and later added Victory+ (Jason Mowry \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

\u201cA quarter of NWSL viewers on the (Victory+) platform have watched six or more matches this season, and the average viewer has tuned in for four games,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust as importantly, engagement is translating into loyalty; viewer retention continues to climb month over month, with 85 percent of fans who watched three or more matches in April returning to watch again in May. These aren\u2019t casual viewers passing through; they\u2019re dedicated fans actively building a habit around NWSL content on Victory+.\u201d<\/p>\n

The company\u2019s philosophy stems from an unexpected place. Before entering sports, Victory+ evolved from a streaming technology company that eventually launched Kidoodle.TV, a child-safe alternative to YouTube and Netflix. Working in children\u2019s media taught the company a lesson that now guides its sports strategy: attention is valuable, but accessibility is everything.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe learned early days in the kids and family space where attention is important,\u201d Gruninger said. \u201cBrands want to be in an ecosystem, and fans want the content.\u201d<\/p>\n

Victory+ arrived with a proposition that differs from many traditional media companies. Rather than placing games behind another paywall, the service is free to viewers and supported by advertising. That thinking resonated with a league trying to convert casual fans into regular viewers.<\/p>\n

What makes Victory+ particularly interesting is that it isn\u2019t competing directly with ESPN or CBS. Instead, the company is betting that digital-first distribution can accomplish things traditional broadcasters cannot.<\/p>\n

Unlike linear television networks, which have limited channel space and scheduling constraints, Victory+ can stream unlimited games simultaneously. That flexibility becomes increasingly valuable as the NWSL expands. With 18 teams competing in 2028, the league needs more broadcast windows and more ways to distribute content.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re digital,\u201d Gruninger said. \u201cYou can have 1,000 games playing at 6 p.m. We don\u2019t have to abide by that linear channel.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"\/<\/p>\n

But the company\u2019s ambitions extend beyond simply carrying games.<\/p>\n

One of the reasons the NWSL was attracted to Victory+, according to Gruninger, was the company\u2019s emphasis on creator-led content. The platform has regularly used \u201calt-casts\u201d, alternative streams featuring former players, including two-time World Cup champion and Olympic gold medalist Kelley O\u2019Hara and ex-New Zealand and Angel City FC captain Ali Riley, as well as influencers and creators discussing games in a more conversational format.<\/p>\n

The concept is designed specifically for younger audiences.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have Gen Zs that typically aren\u2019t watching the full length of a game, and they just want to be in the conversation,\u201d Gruninger said.<\/p>\n

That strategy has already shown promising results. During one alternative broadcast featuring popular women\u2019s soccer creator Coach Jackie J and former NWSL goalkeeper Brittany Wilson, Victory+ recorded a 51 percent increase in viewership, with roughly 30 percent of viewers having never previously used the platform.<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe that it\u2019s the way to attract people in a business,\u201d Coach Jackie J told The Athletic. \u201cWhen people talk about sports media, what they usually mean is men\u2019s sports media. That\u2019s become the default idea of what sports coverage is supposed to look like. Women\u2019s sports has the chance to rethink that. Instead of simply replicating the existing model, it can build something better.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can still have the traditional broadcast for fans who want that experience, but you can also experiment. Victory+ said, \u2018Jackie was live-streaming games three years ago, why not give her an alternate broadcast where she watches the match and talks fans through it?\u2019 Women\u2019s sports has the opportunity to create new ways for people to experience the game, rather than following the same blueprint that\u2019s always existed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

\n Coach Jackie J is one of the creators Victory+ has tapped to participate in NWSL game alt-casts (Thien-An Truong \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Another strategy Victory+ is focusing on is player storytelling to bring casual fans to the platform.<\/p>\n

Gruninger believes modern sports fandom is increasingly athlete-, rather than team-, centric. Fans want to know players\u2019 stories, follow their lives and engage with them directly.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlayers tell those stories best,\u201d he said. \u201cThere\u2019s no better way into the conversation and storyline than having a player talk about it.\u201d The streaming platform recently rolled out three influencer-led shows centered on NWSL players, part of a broader effort to build player-driven storytelling beyond the live match broadcasts.<\/p>\n

The NWSL has spent years building players into stars whose value extends far beyond 90 minutes on the field. From \u201cTriple Espresso\u201d \u2014 Trinity Rodman, Sophia Wilson and Mallory Swanson \u2014 to Rose Lavelle and Marta, the league\u2019s biggest attractions are its larger-than-life players, driving millions of impressions on social media, landing national endorsement campaigns and helping introduce new fans to the league.<\/p>\n

The league has increasingly recognized that value. Last December,\u00a0it introduced the High Impact Player (HIP) rule<\/a>, a mechanism designed to give clubs additional flexibility to retain elite talent, in a move widely viewed as an effort to help keep one of its most marketable stars, Rodman, in the NWSL amid growing interest from Europe.<\/p>\n

The rule underscored a broader shift in the league\u2019s strategy: star power is no longer viewed as simply a competitive advantage but as a business asset worth protecting at all costs.<\/p>\n

But perhaps the most important element of the partnership is Victory+\u2019s ability to reach viewers who are not already dedicated NWSL supporters but fans of other sports. That cross-pollination is a major part of the company\u2019s idea. A Texas high school football fan may arrive on the platform to watch a local championship game and then discover NWSL content. A hockey fan watching the Dallas Stars may stumble upon women\u2019s soccer.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re a huge basketball fan and you can watch soccer for free, why wouldn\u2019t you take a look?\u201d Gruninger said.<\/p>\n

For the NWSL, those casual viewers represent the next frontier. After a month of the men\u2019s World Cup dominating the North American sports calendar, every sports property will be fighting for audience share. As Gruninger sees it, the future of sports media will not be defined solely by who owns the rights, but by whoever makes those rights easiest to find.<\/p>\n

For a league entering another crucial season, that may be exactly what the NWSL is looking for.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As the National Women\u2019s Soccer League prepared for a season with 16 teams in 2026, up from 14…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":803456,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[440],"tags":[67876,97730,274387,49,48,97720,200622,97725,97721,97726,97722,8081,97724,32765,97727,97728,154264,561,82,575,97729,32763,1418],"class_list":["post-803455","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-soccer","tag-angel-city","tag-bay-fc","tag-boston-legacy-fc","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-chicago-red-stars","tag-denver-summit-fc","tag-gotham-fc","tag-houston-dash","tag-kansas-city-current","tag-north-carolina-courage","tag-nwsl","tag-orlando-pride","tag-portland-thorns","tag-racing-louisville-fc","tag-san-diego-wave","tag-seattle-reign","tag-soccer","tag-sports","tag-sports-business","tag-utah-royals-fc","tag-washington-spirit","tag-womens-soccer"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/803455","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=803455"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/803455\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/803456"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=803455"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=803455"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=803455"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}