Athletes' spouses growing in popularity, in part to social media, researchers say

CBC

2 days ago

A new business in a historic downtown Edmonton building is generating some major buzz.
Several social media influencers recently walked a red carpet leading into Bar Trove and the Trove Living furniture showroom for a media tour ahead of its June 6 opening. They ate oysters and sipped cocktails as a DJ played music and security guards stood outside.
The woman behind the venture, seen at the event clad in a glittery pink dress, is Lauren Kyle McDavid, the wife of Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid.
"To have this star's wife putting money into our city and investing in our city is really special," said Quinn Phillips, a spokeswoman for the Edmonton Downtown Business Association and a former sports reporter.
"Everything is kind of buzzing now in downtown."
WATCH | Lauren Kyle McDavid bringing new life to historic building:
Lauren Kyle McDavid bringing new life to historic building
4 months ago
Duration 1:14
For the past year, downtown Edmonton's historic Canada Permanent building has been undergoing a major renovation. Lauren Kyle McDavid is the owner of Kyle and Co. Design. She and her business partner Brittany Schulz are running a French-inspired bar called Bar Trove on the main floor and a furniture and design business, Trove Living, on the second floor.
Kyle McDavid was not immediately available for an interview, but she is one of several modern WAGs — an acronym for wives and girlfriends — making names for themselves.
Judy Liao, who teaches sociology of sport and gender studies at the University of Alberta, says the buzz Kyle McDavid's business has been getting online shows how much of an interest people take in the lives of athletes' significant others.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, sports wives saw their social media followers go up as they began posting more, Liao says. The popular streaming service Netflix has also created shows following the lives of WAGs in recent years.
"The resurgence of WAGs is really because of social media."
Liao says the WAG trend first became popular in the early 2000s.
"[Soccer star] David Beckham is a key person to think about in this phenomenon because his wife is Posh Spice," she says, referring to British singer Victoria Beckham of the Spice Girls.
"After they started dating, they officially entered their pop culture celebrity status. Posh Spice was already a celebrity. They became so iconic, recognizable, so visible, it becomes not just about soccer or football anymore."
Demand for more details on their lifestyle went up as tabloid magazines chased them around and gathered details that made the couple prime subjects of media gossip, Liao said.
"It was the modern fairy tale. The story is so enticing," she said.
The era was different from today, she says, as the Beckhams didn't release details about their lifestyle on their own.
Fast-forward to 2025, and WAGs are gaining visibility with social media and online content created by the influencers themselves, Liao says. Most of the resurgence has been in the United States, but Canada isn't immune to the trend.
Stephanie LaChance, who is married to Toronto Maple Leafs star forward Mitch Marner, is often the subject of headlines.
In the United States, pop star Taylor Swift has been labelled the ultimate WAG in news headlines for her relationship with Kansas City Chiefs football player Travis Kelce.
Liao says some sport sociologists have been calling Swift the "Yoko Ono of the NFL" because of how many women she has attracted to the game.
Unlike the Beckhams, Liao says modern WAGs can control their narratives and tend to blend social media posts about sports with entries about their lives.
"Social media is a really important place to construct and show people themselves as a person, not just a profession," she says.
Young fans of McDavid who are avid social media users are happy to follow WAGs, she adds.
Cheri Bradish, director of the Future of Sport Lab, says Kyle McDavid's fame is an interesting case study.
"Lauren is very active on social media," Bradish says. "There were many videos of her wedding, which Vogue covered."
She has also posted about the interior design firm she founded, Kyle & Co Design Studio, and regularly shares photos of the apparel she develops for Sports Club Atelier with Oilers branding.
Bradish says Kyle McDavid's ties to the NHL have helped her monetize her work.
"Social media has really created opportunities, and it's not surprising," Bradish says. "She's a part of this whole community and whole industry of influencers."
Bradish also saw the WAG resurgence really take off during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"The sports industry, and athletes in particular, needed to figure out ways to speak with fans and consumers," she says.
But Brandish has mixed feelings about how trendy they've become.
Some WAGs like Kyle McDavid have used their relationships as leverage, but Brandish says she should also be commended for her personal identity and professional background in interior design and business.
"The bigger picture here, in an authentic way, is that social media has really created opportunities. This interest from consumers in the WAG story is really powerful."