What Tennessee and Troy reveal about women’s sports marketing

Good morning,

Thanks for reading NIL Wire today. Hope you enjoy today’s dispatch about the marketing of women’s college sports. It’s an important topic that’s becoming more relevant every year, and something that’s leading to more revenue for athletic departments.

— Kyle

The new playbook for marketing women’s sports.

Women’s athletics at the University of Tennessee is the gold standard. For decades, there was a separate athletic department for men and women, with the Lady Vols becoming a blue-chip brand in college athletics thanks to Hall of Fame coach Pat Summitt. 

Marketing women’s sports at Tennessee isn’t treated as a side project. It’s a long-standing philosophy rooted in tradition, consistency and a belief that every fan experience should feel superior regardless of the sport, shaping everything from tennis to women’s basketball to sold-out softball games.

“We go into all of them thinking, how can we make the game day, the environment, the atmosphere elite?” said Jimmy Delaney, Tennessee’s associate AD of marketing and fan experience. “What that looks like might be different for each sport, but the standard is the same.”

In FY25, Tennessee spent $44,814,400, according to its MFRS report, which is available in the Extra Points Library. That’s an increase of more than $38 million, a difference that remains unexplained by Tennessee. 

Women’s sports continue to have a rapid moment of growth, with TV ad spending rising considerably and universities spending more. Rather than applying a one-size-fits-all model, Tennessee tailors its approach to each program. That often means borrowing ideas. But each program’s identity plays a role in shaping how it is marketed and presented.

“There’s a mindset of, ‘we can do that too,’” Delaney said. “With enough time and effort, we believe we can create those same kinds of experiences.”

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