The NFL and The GIST, a women-led sports media company, have extended their partnership for multiple years, deepening the league’s focus on female fans. The deal follows a one-year collaboration during the 2025 season and expands access to NFL marks, logos, and major events like the Super Bowl and NFL Draft. It also allows The GIST to collaborate directly with the NFL’s official marketing partners on content aimed at women.
The partnership began midway through last season, with The GIST co-founder Jacie deHoop noting the new agreement provides a full season and extended planning runway. While the scope remains similar, the company can now develop larger activations and build on its first season with the NFL. DeHoop highlighted a steady increase in positive sentiment toward the NFL among female fans, partly due to the league’s efforts to diversify its audience.
“The fact that the NFL is renewing with us for multi-year shows female fandom is not a flash in the pan kind of test,” deHoop said. “It wasn’t just a reaction to Taylor Swift going to a bunch of Chiefs games and what have you.”
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Data supports the NFL’s push. The 2025 SSRS Sports Poll found women made up 47% of the league’s U.S. fan base. The GIST’s own research showed the NFL rose from the second-most popular league in 2025 to the top in 2026 among its U.S. respondents. Additionally, 35% of respondents said they subscribe to The GIST for its female perspective on sports.
DeHoop pointed out that female sports fans have often been treated as an afterthought, sometimes marketed with a “shrink it and pink it” approach that can feel inauthentic. She emphasized that when content isn’t tailored to women, it can backfire. “When something, a piece of content or a partnership doesn’t feel like it’s made with them in mind, they can tell and it can be quite polarizing,” she said.
Under the new deal, The GIST will produce more in-depth regular-season content and return to the Super Bowl media center. Last year’s collaboration included work with NFL partners Toyota and Invisalign on flag football growth, as well as a partnership with Adobe around NFL fandom and content creation.
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The extension signals a long-term commitment to engaging women beyond fleeting trends. While the NFL’s fan base has grown more diverse, the league’s willingness to invest in dedicated partnerships suggests it’s treating female fandom as a core audience—not just a passing opportunity. The question now is whether other leagues will follow suit, or if the NFL’s approach will remain an outlier in sports media.
For now, the partnership’s focus is clear: more content, deeper engagement, and a refusal to treat women as an afterthought. The next step will be proving whether this strategy translates into lasting growth—or if it’s just another experiment in sports marketing.