As a young child, my parents enrolled me in many different sports. I went from running around the soccer field chasing the ball with the other five year olds to traveling around the Midwest for weekend tournaments. Although I don’t play anymore, I still love the game and am ecstatic the United States Women’s soccer team once again was able to defend their World Cup title.
The 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup took place between June 7 and July 7 in nine cities across France, consisting of 24 national teams and 52 matches. On July 7, the United States defended its 2015 title with a 2-0 victory over the Netherlands.
Not only did the women celebrate, but they celebrated with ice-cold bottles of Budweiser beer in their hands. Budweiser then announced a multi-year partnership to become the first official beer sponsor of the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL).
“Budweiser has supported the U.S. Women’s National team for three decades,” said Monica Rustgi, vice president of marketing for Budweiser, in a statement. “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.”
The deal makes Budweiser one of the biggest sponsors of the NWSL, with 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 company says.
Budweiser also will activate the sponsorship locally, with support of the teams and stadiums throughout the country, even offering NWSL players immersive training on the business side of sports from Budweiser executives in the off-season, it adds.
With an example like this, I hope other women’s sports also can secure partnerships from big-name brands to support our female athletes.