The NWSL championship averaged 967,900 viewers in primetime on CBS, up against college football. It marked the league’s most-viewed match in history, an 18 percent increase from the 2023 title match and still six percent more than the 2022 edition and previous record holder. The one million milestone is in reach.
Media coverage of women’s sports has tripled since 2019 from five to 16 percent in 2022 after three decades of stagnation, according to research by sports agency Wasserman in partnership with ESPN Research. We are proud of our women’s sports coverage at but we have room to grow, too.
We are trying to build something special here and we’ve made a few changes and additions to the team to accomplish this.
In January, I moved into the role of head of global women’s soccer. It’s a position created to ensure we continue to bring you the most in-depth coverage of women’s soccer in the United States, Europe and around the world.
After years of dedication, Meg Linehan moved into a new role within the company, contributing invaluable insight into all things women’s sports. You’ll continue to hear her on the Full Time podcast and see her contributions to the newsletter each week, as well as weighing in on the biggest moments.
Sign up here to receive ’s weekly women’s soccer newsletter, Full Time, directly in your inbox.
You can also expect coverage from writers across the soccer team including including Megan Feringa, Charlotte Harpur, Katie Whyatt, Jeff Rueter and Melanie Anzidei. I am also very excited to introduce two new writers to our crew.
Tamerra Griffin is no stranger to , providing her words and voice to various women’s soccer stories since joining us on a freelance basis in for the 2023 World Cup. Asli Pelit, who has reported on soccer since 2013 for TRT Sport, USA Today Sports, VICE and Sportico, is also joining the team. Both journalists have a deep understanding of the game and a hunger to find the “why” in our coverage.
Get ready to join us because we aren’t standing still for long — and you can get to know our newest team members with a quick round of questions here…
We are known for a question around here, so let’s start there. Why did you join The Athletic?
Asli Pelit: In 2010, while covering the devastating earthquake in Chile for CNN, I had a moment of clarity. Just before going live, I caught my reflection on my phone screen and realized I wasn’t meant to spend my career simply reporting the “what.” I was far more interested in the “why,” the “how,” and “what comes next”.
That’s exactly what values — the kind of storytelling that first captivated me as a reader and later pushed me to become a better reporter. Now, as part of this incredibly talented team, I have the opportunity to do just that — dig deeper, challenge assumptions and write stories that go beyond the surface.
Tamerra Griffin: I joined because I want to be known as a writer whose stories help readers make sense of the world through the beautiful game, and who also helps them better appreciate ...
