MLB invests in Athletes Unlimited Softball League ahead of June debut

NBC News

2 days ago

Major League Baseball is investing in Athletes Unlimited to support its softball league that will debut next month, marking the first time MLB will have a comprehensive partnership with a professional women's sports league.
MLB said Thursday it was making a strategic investment in the Athletes Unlimited Softball League of an undisclosed amount for operational costs and a commitment to help it gain visibility in various ways, including assistance with content, marketing and sales, events, distribution, editorial, and digital and social platforms. That includes marketing the AUSL and its athletes during MLB's All-Star Game and throughout the postseason.
"This is something we're really excited about," MLB commissioner Rob Manfred told The Associated Press. "We studied the space hard. We think it's a real opportunity and we're excited to be involved."
Athletes Unlimited has featured softball since 2020, when it unveiled a unique format that crowned an individual champion. The company will launch a league with a traditional, team-based format starting June 7 and will keep its individual format for the AUSL All-Star Cup that follows.
Manfred noted that interest in women's sports had "escalated significantly" in recent years and his league had been looking for ways to get more involved, including the possible launch of its own softball league. He said Athletes Unlimited's overall success and its strong infrastructure helped make the decision to collaborate easier.
"We thought rather than starting on our own and competing, that finding a place where we could invest and grow a business was a better opportunity for us," Manfred said.
Kim Ng, a former Major League Baseball executive, signed on as an adviser with the AUSL and was promoted to commissioner in April. Ng is the former general manager of the Miami Marlins, the first female GM in any of the major U.S. pro sports leagues, and has three World Series rings from a combined 21 years in the front offices of the Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers.
"As the process moved forward and it looked like we were going to make an investment, they hired Kim, and we had a long relationship with Kim, and it just added additional comfort to the idea of making the investment," Manfred said.
Athletes Unlimited co-founder Jon Patricof said MLB's commitment to increasing the AUSL's visibility is as important as the financial investment.
"They're committed to really elevating the AUSL," he said. "It's probably about one of the most difficult things for any sports league to do which is to get visibility and break through to new audiences, and I think MLB is already doing that for the AUSL, and there's going to be a lot more to come."
Women's pro softball leagues and independent teams have come and gone over the years, but none have offered a consistent option for women to have a stable future in the sport.
It appears that might change, with the help of softball greats Cat Osterman, Jennie Finch, Jessica Mendoza and Natasha Watley as AUSL advisors. On June 7, the Bandits and Talons will open with a three-game series in Rosemont, Illinois, and the Blaze and Volts will start off with a three-game series in Wichita, Kansas. The four teams will play 24 games this season as touring properties that will play games in 12 cities. The top two teams will compete in the AUSL Championship, a best-of-three series July 26-28 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
Patricof said the league plans to expand to six teams next season and be city based.
MLB already supports several women's softball and baseball initiatives, including a partnership with USA Softball and operation of the MLB Develops girls baseball pipeline. It is not involved with the upstart Women's Professional Baseball League, which plans to launch in 2026 as the first pro baseball league for women since the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League — of "A League of Their Own" fame — folded in 1954.
Manfred said he sees a bright future ahead for AUSL.
"I fully expect that they will expand, and we hope that we will end up with a league that is sustainable on its own, a good investment for us, and a partner in growing diamond sports internationally," he said.
Patricof said the partnership with MLB and the already existing relationship between the Athletes Unlimited and USA Softball combine to help give the AUSL stability.
"As we announce MLB coming into the fold formally into what we're doing with the AUSL, you really see a full alignment of this sport behind this league, and that I think is exciting for everyone," Patricof said. "People who have sat on the sidelines or maybe have watched pro softball from a little bit of distance — everybody's now jumped in, and I think that is an exciting moment for people who've been around this sport."