ESPN Profiles Sheila Johnson During Black History Month

ESPN.com Profiles Sheila Johnson As Part Of Black History Month

Mystics Owner SHEILA JOHNSON, the only female African-American owner in major pro sports, is profiled as part of ESPN.com’s celebration of Black History Month. Johnson, on the difficulties of her job: “The reason why it's so hard is trying to convince corporate sponsors and fans that we've got to support women in sports. It's a very difficult task because for some reason people, and even fans, don't believe in the product. They say they do, but when it comes to putting their money where their heart is, it's not there.” She added, “It's a real complex situation because most of the WNBA teams are owned by NBA owners. Some of them love their WNBA teams and want to help them and then others don't. Those teams that are co-owned tend to have a better situation in the sense that they can share staff with the NBA team and corporate sponsorships.” She said hiring a staff costs $5-6M during the season. WNBA President DONNA ORENDER said Johnson has “brought a great deal to the league.” Orender: Here's a woman who really is in such high demand by so many different industries throughout the world. For her to choose women and women's involvement in sports — particularly the WNBA — I think speaks a lot about what the WNBA has to offer.” Women’s Sports Foundation CEO DONNA LOPIANO: “Unless your team was in the family and your father died and left it to you, you didn't get to be an owner. She's the first generation of women ... who are team owners and who are going to shape a franchise in their own image as opposed to letting the guys do it” (ESPN.com, 2/22).