WNBA

Victory+ Loses Partners, Replaces CEO Amid Missed Payments

Victory+, a free sports streaming platform, has lost three major partners in a span of weeks — the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL), the Texas Rangers, and the Anaheim Ducks — and its founding CEO Neil Gruninger was removed. Reporting links the partner departures to missed rights payments. The NWSL terminated its media-rights agreement with Victory+ and moved matches to its own service; the Rangers pulled their games effective July 15 and shifted to BZZR; the Ducks informed Victory+ they intended to terminate their agreement. The company’s board installed Jon Spencer (a TriWest Capital Partners managing partner) as CEO as Victory+ attempts to stabilize while several teams (including the Dallas Stars, which hold equity) remain on the service.

Streaming Platforms Chase Daily TV Gaming Habit

Streaming services and TV manufacturers are increasingly experimenting with cloud-based, low-friction games on televisions to drive daily engagement. LG announced a partnership with cloud-gaming startup Phynd to offer free, console-quality games on LG smart TVs using smartphones as controllers; Phynd plans to monetize via brief pre-rolls and sponsored in-game rewards. Netflix has repeatedly experimented with gaming—moving from mobile apps and white-label offerings to a cloud-first TV gaming strategy that emphasizes phones-as-controllers and no extra subscription cost—and recently partnered with FIFA to launch a cloud-based FIFA World Cup game. Samsung’s Gaming Hub has shown strong user growth, reinforcing the idea that casual, free TV gaming can attract repeat viewers. The shift represents a potential new CTV ad surface and monetization model for the streaming ecosystem.

Women’s Sports Ad Inventory Scarce; New Index Launched

Advertiser demand for women’s sports is rising, but inventory remains scarce due to limited mainstream media coverage and measurement gaps. In response, sports marketing agency Deep Blue partnered with data analytics company Mondo Metrics to launch the Women’s Sports Index, powered by MondoTrends, which benchmarks social media analytics (including TikTok and YouTube) and measures engagement signals to help advertisers plan campaigns and track brand lift. The article cites studies showing women’s sports receive far less coverage than men’s, notes high social engagement for athletes (e.g., Angel Reese), and describes Deep Blue’s broader efforts creating content and IP to expand women’s-sports-adjacent inventory.