Women's sports, global uncertainty, and the ad dollars in between

Women's Sports Are Booming — But Is Your Brand Keeping Up?

This week on the WPP Media Intelligence Podcast, hosts Kate Scott-Dawkins, Jeff Foster, and Nidhi Shah are joined by special guest Denise Ocasio, Executive Director and Head of Investment at WPP Media, to unpack three of the biggest conversations shaping media and advertising right now.

First, they dive deep into women's sports — still on a record-breaking trajectory despite a quieter 2025 calendar. Denise shares why authentic storytelling, the creator economy, and smarter holistic video strategy are the keys to unlocking this still-undervalued media asset.

Then, as geopolitical tensions in the Middle East ripple through energy markets and newsrooms, the team examines what it means for advertisers — from out-of-home disruption in MENA to cable news preemptions in the US — and how brands navigate uncertainty without pulling back.

Finally, they break down the 2025 Top 50 Global Ad Sellers leaderboard — who climbed, who slipped, and what the rise of commerce media players like Uber, Netflix, and Reliance Industries signals about where the industry is headed.

Timestamps:

• 00:00 – Intro & episode overview
• 00:41 – Welcome: Denise Ocasio, Head of Investment, WPP Media
• 01:45 – Women's sports viewership trends: 2025 in review
• 03:13 – The power of athlete storytelling (Caitlin Clark effect)
• 04:31 – Brand authenticity in women's sports sponsorship
• 06:11 – Navigating fragmented video: reach vs. engagement
• 07:25 – The creator economy as the "new Hollywood"
• 08:27 – Are athletes exhausted by content creation demands?
• 10:51 – Sports rights fragmentation & the future of leagues
• 12:00 – AI, new platforms, and where sports media is headed
• 15:52 – Geopolitical tensions: economic and advertising impacts
• 17:31 – Energy prices, inflation, and central bank pressures
• 20:06 – MENA advertising: OOH, news demand, and cautious messaging
• 21:37 – US market signals: EVs, gas prices, cable news preemptions
• 24:08 – Versant Q4 earnings: $6.7B revenue, 9% ad decline
• 25:52 – 2025 Top 50 Global Ad Sellers leaderboard breakdown
• 29:05 – New entrants: Uber, Netflix, Reddit, Reliance, Globo
• 30:34 – Who fell: legacy TV broadcasters and newspapers
• 32:36 – Commerce media's growing dominance (9 of top 50)
• 34:10 – International Women's Day: female CEO & board representation
• 35:10 – What the team is watching next week