Dan Levy started his career representing female athletes in 1999, when he was the agent to Women’s World Cup and Olympic gold-medal winner Mia Hamm. Today, as head of Olympics and women’s sports for Wasserman Media Group, he represents seven members of the U.S. women’s national soccer team, including Alex Morgan and the recently retired Abby Wambach.
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2015 was an unprecedented year for women’s sports, not just for the impact the women had in various sports, but for society. Young girls have a whole new set of role models to look up to and [can] hold their heads higher when they go to school each day. In 2015, you had incredible success, whether it was Serena Williams, Ronda Rousey’s ride [or] the Women’s World Cup and the incredible popularity of that team.”
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Photo by: MARC BRYAN-BROWN
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On social media and content creation: One of the trends which is really important for us is that athletes are starting to create their own content and be entrepreneurs. They can be their own writer, director and producer by connecting with their fans on a daily basis, so athletes are creating their own content and delivering it through their own social channels, whether it be Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. It enables them to communicate directly with their fans, and brands are able to tap into a very authentic voice.
On Alex Morgan’s Beats by Dre campaign: Alex’s World Cup campaign with Beats was truly authentic to her in the imagery on her social channels. … The content she created was true to herself — the elements that she worked out in and the intensity she brings to the table: She’s working out, she’s running through the woods, she’s lifting weights.
On changing times: As someone who has been in the business of women’s sports since the 1999 World Cup, life has changed dramatically for us. We no longer have to wait for our athletes to show up on television once in a while. The opportunity to follow women’s sports daily via social media or in the digital world enables fans to connect with their athletes and have a greater passion for following their athletes.
On challenges: The biggest challenge in representing women athletes is [that] the business is almost all marketing. There are not big player contracts to negotiate. Each and every athlete needs to be treated separately. A strategic plan is important so that you can create business opportunities for them off the field and rely on what they do on the field.
On the future: It’s always been a challenge for women or any Olympic athlete to get paid a lot to play their sport, but we need to continue to push the boundaries and make the case that it is good business to support women’s sports, not just the right thing to do.
