Budweiser Sponsorship Reminds People To Watch Women's Soccer The Rest Of The Time, Too
If you haven't yet heard, the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team is a pretty big deal right now. After defeating the Netherlands' team 2-0 on Sunday to capture their fourth World Cup, the USWNT is taking a well-deserved victory lap while also reminding fans that U.S. women's soccer doesn't just disappear for the four years between World Cups.
Since 2012, the National Women's Soccer League—where most of your new favorites from the national team play the rest of the time—has demonstrated continuous growth, both in attendance and in the league itself. Now up to nine teams, the NWSL will look to capitalize on its own developing popularity, and the inevitable boost about to come from the World Cup victory, to further grow its profile. And wherever there's a burgeoning competitive industry, as it now seems, there's also Budweiser, ready to define itself as that industry's official alcoholic beverage.
Accordingly, Budweiser has announced via a press release that it has commenced a "multi-year partnership" with the NWSL, which will see it partnering locally with all nine teams in addition to landing "naming rights to the playoffs, the championship, the MVP trophy, and a newly created 'Most Valuable Supporter' award for the league's biggest fan."
The @USWNT has made us proud. But today is not the end. Today is a new beginning. We #WontStopWatching.#OfficialSupporter pic.twitter.com/srzQCYDC8Z
— Budweiser (@budweiserusa) July 7, 2019
The league's current regular season extends all the way into mid-October 2019, so there'll be plenty of opportunities to ease into the new partnership while the proverbial iron remains scalding hot. And as Vice President of Marketing Monica Rustgi points out in Budweiser's statement, "Budweiser has supported the U.S. Women's National team for three decades... But we realize there is so much more Budweiser can do. Becoming the official beer sponsor of the NWSL is our way of not just supporting the U.S. Women's Team once every four years, but also supporting women's soccer every single day." Hear, hear.
Also, the NWSL boasts one of the more affordable tickets in professional sports right now, and if all goes well, that won't remain the case for long. Get on it.