Presented by Harvard Business School Executive Education
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Good morning! Biden’s new proposal would make over-the-counter contraception covered by insurance, over 100 female soccer players signed a letter protesting FIFA’s sponsorship deal with a Saudi oil company, and a historic WNBA championship is followed by a historic decision. Have a lovely Tuesday!
– Play ball. On Sunday night, the New York Liberty won the team’s first-ever WNBA championship in 28 seasons. Team owner Clara Wu Tsai took advantage of that historic moment to remind viewers what made that achievement possible: investing in female athletes.
“When we bought the team four years ago, they were playing at Westchester County Center to a crowd of 2,000,” Wu Tsai said during the trophy presentation by commissioner Cathy Engelbert. “And the first thing we wanted to do was bring the team to Barclays Center so that they could have a bigger stage. And then we wanted to give them facilities and performance and nutrition and everything that they deserved because they’re such elite professional athletes.” Her point was echoed by ESPN reporter Holly Rowe, who has covered the league for years. “This is what women’s sports can be,” Rowe told the sold-out arena of more than 18,000 people.
So it was perfect timing for the WNBA’s players yesterday to announce some major news: the players’ association, known as the WNBPA, said they’re opting out of their collective bargaining agreement with the league two years early. While every metric for the WNBA has risen over the past season—attendance, TV viewership, merch sales, and more, as I explored in a recent Fortune magazine feature profiling the commissioner—players were locked into a negotiated contract that didn’t allow them to earn more money as part of their official salaries. Superstar Caitlin Clark’s rookie salary was about $75,000 while the top-paid players earn around $250,000. The league, too, is waiting for more revenue to come in with a renegotiated media rights deal set to begin with the 2026 season.
Players and the league were both permitted to opt out by a November 2024 deadline, and the players chose to announce their decision the day after championships—seemingly for maximum impact. Nneka Ogwumike, the Seattle Storm player who serves as president of the WNBPA, said: “Opting out isn’t just about bigger paychecks—it’s about claiming our rightful share of the business we’ve built, improving working conditions, and securing a future where the success we create benefits today’s players and the generations to come. We’re not just asking for a CBA that reflects our value; we’re demanding it, because we’ve earned it.”
The WNBA is a high-growth product, and players want the league to think creatively about how to better compensate them; as Ogwumike noted, salaries aren’t the only way to do that. “Working conditions,” as Ogwumike mentioned, include practice facilities like Wu Tsai provided for the Liberty, as have the Seattle Storm, Las Vegas Aces, and other teams; the league could play a role in making other teams catch up to the new standard.
With one year to reach a contract, there’s the possibility of a WNBA work stoppage if the two sides can’t come to an agreement. With all eyes on women’s basketball over the past year, fans will be rooting for a deal good enough to ensure the game goes on. Read more about what led to this moment in my feature here.
Emma Hinchliffe
emma.hinchliffe@fortune.com
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- No prescriptions, no cost. The Biden administration is proposing that over-the-counter contraception, like Plan B and condoms, are available without prescriptions and at no cost for patients. This rule would affect 52 million American women who are of reproductive age and have private health insurance. New York Times
- Players protest. More than 100 women’s soccer players signed an open letter in protest of FIFA’s sponsorship deal with Aramco, Saudi Arabia’s national oil company. “The safety of those women [imprisoned in Saudi Arabia], the rights of women, LGBTQ+ rights and the health of the planet need to take a much bigger priority over FIFA making more money,” said Becky Sauerbrunn, former U.S. national team captain. AP
- Reported raise. Mira Murati, OpenAI’s former CTO, is reportedly raising capital for her new AI venture. While Murati’s representative declined to comment, sources said that the company will develop AI products based on proprietary models and that the startup could raise more than $100 million in funding. Reuters
- Network rework. Chief, the self-described “largest network of senior women executives,” has laid off staff as it restructures the company; the layoffs were mostly for administrative and technology roles. Chief, which raised $100 million in Series B funding in 2022, laid off 14% of staff in 2023 and had to close its London offices in January. Business Insider
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CONTENT FROM HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL EXECUTIVE EDUCATION |
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Fanatics Commerce appointed Jen McKeehan as COO. Previously, McKeehan was SVP of supply chain at Walmart.
New Wave Group, a growth company for corporate promo, gifts, and home furnishings brands, named Anna Gullmarstrand CFO. She most recently served as financial manager at Wallenstam AB.
Foresters Financial, a life insurance provider, appointed Andrea Frossard as chief commercial officer. Most recently, she was SVP, Par Insurance Solutions at Canada Life.
enGene Holdings, a genetic medicines developer, named Joan Connolly chief technology officer. Previously, she was CTO at Albireo Pharma.
Gen Phoenix, a recycled leather developer, named Lisa Conway chief revenue officer and LaTres Jarrett chief strategy officer. Most recently, Conway was VP of global market sustainability at Interface and Jarrett was executive director, Bridgestone Canada at Bridgestone Americas.
Match Group chief communications officer Justine Sacco will be stepping down from her role at the beginning of the year; she has been at the company for seven years.
H.B. Fuller, an adhesives provider, appointed Terry Rasmussen as chair of its board of directors. Rasmussen is president and chief executive officer of Thrivent.
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Behind many powerful women on Wall Street: a doting ‘househusband’ Wall Street Journal
The tight-knit world of Kamala Harris’s college sorority New Yorker
How L’Oréal’s Barbara Lavernos is reimagining the future of beauty WWD
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