April 28, 2026 • 36 mins
With season two of Canada's Northern Super League (NSL) kicking off, league president Christina Litz and Ottawa Rapid FC star DB Pridham join Sarah to discuss their biggest takeaways from year one, growing and evolving the league's voice and point of view, DB’s decision to leave Europe to help launch the NSL, and how the PWHL helped change the landscape for all women’s sports in Canada. Plus, someone is cutting onions, Paige Bueckers speaks out, and consider us California dreamin’.
- You can watch Paige Bueckers’ full statement here
- Read Annie Costabile’s full report on Natasha Cloud remaining unsigned here
- Check out DB’s custom clothing brand – BAiE Designs – here
- Want to know how to watch the NSL on any given day? Call 1-833-NSL-LIVE
- The full NSL schedule is here
- Read about Maddy Brown’s WNBA math class here, and follow her on Instagram here or TikTok here
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to Good Game with Sarah Spain, where we're hastily
attempting to trademark Sacramento Monarchs and Charlotte Sting just in
case we could be looking at a future payday like
the folks sitting on the Houston Comets name. It's Tuesday,
April twenty eighth, and on today's show, we're joined by
President of the Northern Super League Christina Ltz and Ottawa
Rapid FC star dB Pridham. We talk about season two
(00:23):
of Canada's first ever Pro Women's Soccer League, DB's decision
to leave Europe to sign with the upstart Canadian Endeavor
and how the PWHL helped change the landscape for all
women's sports in Canada. Plus who's cutting onions it's been
a while, and consider us California Dreaming.
Speaker 2 (00:41):
It's all coming up right after this welcome back. Here's
what you need to know today, Starting with soccer.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
Sofia Wilson has made a solid return to the NWSL
and the US women's national team after taking time off
to have her first child, and on Sunday night, she
solidified her comeback with her first goal of the year
in the Portland Thorns two one win over Angel City FC.
Wilson found the back of the net and stoppage time
with a left footed shot into the side netting, and
it was a counter attack off in Angel City free
(01:16):
kick attempt no less.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
As Wilson hugged her.
Speaker 1 (01:18):
Teammates, she shed a tear or two and tbh we
weld up a little as well, so did Trinity Rodman,
who was reacting live on Instagram, watching in support of
her friend and fellow Triple Espresso star Cute Wilson. School
was her first since November twenty twenty four, when her
last name was still Smith. She took the entire twenty
twenty five NWSL season off as part of her maternity leave.
(01:40):
Also on Sunday night, Utah Royals FC traveled to Washington
State and shut out the Seattle.
Speaker 2 (01:45):
Rain three nil.
Speaker 1 (01:46):
The first goal came in the very first minute from
captain Paige Cronin, who was making her first start of
the season after recovering from a preseason injury, way.
Speaker 2 (01:53):
To come out of the gates swinging.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
The victory marked the largest away winning club history and
Utah's first roadbick over Seattle since twenty nineteen.
Speaker 2 (02:02):
The result also lifted the Royals.
Speaker 1 (02:03):
Into the top three of the league standings for the
first time since twenty nineteen. As for Seattle, the loss
was bigger than just one game, as veteran Jess Fishlock
had to be stretchered off the field after suffering what
appeared to be a serious ankle injury when she was
struck in the leg by a teammate shot. Earlier this week,
Fishlock announced she'll retire at the end of this season.
We'll keep you updated on our status more soccer. Gotham
(02:25):
FC is partnering with New York City mayors or on
Mom Donnie to make tickets to an upcoming game more affordable.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
In a fun social.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
Media video on Sunday, Mayor Mom Donnie don dea Gotham
kit and announced one thousand tickets for just five bucks
each for Gotham's May ninth home game versus the Boston Legacy.
The tickets reportedly sold out in less than an hour,
but if you're local to the New York New Jersey area,
standard price tickets are still available to the WNBA. At
the Dallas Wings media day Monday, Paige Becker's used the
(02:53):
start of her press conference to address her relationship with
newly drafted Wings player and former Yukon teammate Asyfud. The
topic of their relationship has been fodder for a lot
of think pieces and podcast chats, as the two publicly
announced that they were dating last year, but haven't been
posting to social media or speaking openly about each other
in a romantic way in quite some time. During her
introductory press or, Fud was actually asked if they're still
(03:15):
dating and if she'd spoken to other WNBA players about
managing a relationship with the teammate, But you remember, wingspr
stepped in and redirected questions before she could answer.
Speaker 2 (03:25):
While on Monday, Becker's took the mic to share a
statement with the press. Here's part of what she had
to say.
Speaker 3 (03:30):
Quite frankly, I believe Me Aisy's personal relationship is nobody's
uses but our own, and what we choose to share
is completely up to us. But as media members, I
understand you guys have a job to do and you
guys have to ask questions about the basketball aspect of it.
Speaker 4 (03:46):
So that's what I will be addressing today.
Speaker 3 (03:49):
Me and Asy have always been the most professional. We've
always conducted ourselves as such. We'd never let anything that
happens off the court, Carrie onsome court. We continue to
do as are not new to this. We've been doing
this for a long time. We have talentless reps at it.
We have a lot of experience with it, so we
will continue to use that experience to show up and
(04:11):
be professionals, right teammates, right leaders, the hardest workers, and
continue to so can do our job and help the
Dallas Wings win basketball games. To add on to that,
asy Fudd was a no more draft pick because she
earned it and it had nothing to do with me
and everything to do in who she is as a
human being, who she is the basketball player, her resilience,
her strength, and her career best year at Yukon.
Speaker 1 (04:34):
Becker's added that she only plans on addressing this once
and if they're asked about it again, they'll refer back
to this statement or deflect and use the opportunity to
talk about their teammates. We'll put a link to the
full video of Becker's in the show notes. Speaking of
the Wings, with opening night in the WNBA approaching, some
fan favorites are already seeing their time in training camp
come to an end. The Wings have already wived several
(04:56):
popular college players new draftees Texas standout Kylo Olday Baker,
Tennessee forward z Spearman, and Northwestern's Grace Sullivan. They also
waved former Maryland standout Chiant Sellers, who was drafted but
waived by the Valkyries last season and got a look
from Atlanta but didn't stick, so she ended up playing
last season in Israel.
Speaker 2 (05:14):
More WNBA.
Speaker 1 (05:15):
As these new, very different lineups come together after a
wild free agency period, one player we still haven't seen
on the court, we're even on a team roster is
Natasha Cloud, who was with the New York Liberty last season.
Now we've brought this up a couple times on the show,
but the veteran guard remains unsigned. With less than two
weeks before the start of the w's thirtieth season, friend
of the Show Annie Costable, who's now in her new
(05:35):
role with the Athletic, reported on Sunday that multiple sources
within the league deny the social media rumors speculating that
Cloud has been quote unquote blackballed due to her activism.
Per Constable's reporting, multiple teams have expressed interest in the
point guard. We'll link to that story in the show notes.
As for rejoining the Liberty Team, GM, Jonathan Cole, who
publicly backed Cloud's talent in light of reports alleging she
(05:57):
was not a good culture fit, said at a press
conference on Sunday that New York's decision came down to
roster and salary cap constraints. He added, quote, there's a
lot out there that I'd just like to dispel. She's
an awesome human being. She's a phenomenal basketball player. She
belongs in the WNBA.
Speaker 2 (06:12):
End quote.
Speaker 1 (06:13):
As for Cloud herself, she took to the social media
site threads on Sunday night and wrote, quote, I have
yet to speak. That's intentional and my power. I've just worked,
no sulking, no whining work, and I will continue to
work as I always have, proving myself.
Speaker 2 (06:27):
Right year after year after year. Eleven.
Speaker 1 (06:29):
To be exact, I know who I am, I know
my value, slash worth and ain't nothing traditional end quote.
To water polo, The University of Southern California is the
women's water polo national champion after beating UC Berkeley on
Sunday ten to nine. The wind marks the USC Trojans
seventh national title, but the first since twenty twenty one.
The Bears were chasing their first ever national title, and
(06:52):
they put up a good fight, but they never enjoyed
a lead against the Trojans in the final. Fun fact
no team from outside the state of California has ever
for one in NCAA women's water polo National Championship makes sense.
Kelly is the undisputed hub of the sport and there
must be something in the water out there to Tennis
athletes at the Madrid Open are navigating tough opponents and
(07:13):
an even tougher stomach bug. As we mentioned yesterday, American
Coco Golf said she felt better after throwing up on
the court mid match on Sunday and going on to win,
but on Monday she lost her round of sixteen match
to check player Linda Noskova. The stunning upset was Noskova's
first top ten win of twenty twenty six and her
first win ever against Golf. With the loss, Goff is
expected to lose her world number three ranking to Egos Fiontec. Meantime,
(07:37):
another American found herself on the right side of an
upset on Monday. Hailey Baptiste, ranked thirtieth in the world,
beat number eleven, Belinda Bencic, advancing to her second consecutive
WTA one thousand quarter final.
Speaker 2 (07:49):
She made her first at the Miami Open just last month.
Speaker 1 (07:51):
Baptiste will play world number one Arena Sablenka today at
two pm Eastern.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
We got to take a break.
Speaker 1 (07:59):
When we come back, headed North with Christina Litz and
d b Pritdham.
Speaker 2 (08:10):
Joining us now.
Speaker 1 (08:11):
She's the president of the Northern Super League, Canada's first
professional women's soccer league. Before joining the NFL, she held
senior roles at spots including CFL, Woodbine Entertainment and most
recently True North Sports and Entertainment. A proud Manitoban and
a University of Manitoba Faculty of Law graduate mom of two,
she's the number one hype woman for her kid Archer,
who's a drummer and a band and her kid Cameron,
(08:32):
who codes.
Speaker 2 (08:32):
It's Christina Litz. Hi, Christina Hi, Sarah, thanks for being
on joining her.
Speaker 1 (08:38):
She's a forward for the Ottawa Rapid and was the
NFL Season one Player of the Year Forward of the
Year in Golden Boot winner with twenty goals in twenty
seven appearances.
Speaker 2 (08:46):
She earned her first call up to.
Speaker 1 (08:48):
The Canadian national team last year and made her international
debut at this year.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
She believes Cup. She played her college.
Speaker 1 (08:53):
Soccer for Santa Clara and did previous pro stops in
Iceland and Sweden. Born in Cali, but she's got dual
citizenship with Cama. She's got her own clothing brand, Bay Designs,
including custom jeans and painted denim jackets.
Speaker 2 (09:05):
It's dB Pridham Hidb.
Speaker 4 (09:08):
Hey, how are you? Thank you for having me?
Speaker 2 (09:10):
Well, thanks for coming on the show. So exciting.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
Season two of the NFL just got underway this past weekend.
We're going to get into all the excitement around a
fresh start, but I do want to recap last year's
inaugural season a bit first. So Christina, what were some
of the big wins for the league last year?
Speaker 5 (09:25):
Yeah, well, first of all, great to be here. Just
getting through the season in a way should be a
big win.
Speaker 4 (09:31):
I mean, this was still a.
Speaker 5 (09:32):
Startup, through and through, started by former national team player
and your friend Diana Matheson, and you know, the culmination
of the dream of so many Canadians.
Speaker 6 (09:44):
Who have played this game at such a high level.
So we just had to get it out there.
Speaker 5 (09:48):
But the great news was it was a fantastic season.
You know, some of those business metrics that we look at,
including attendance. We had the third highest attendance on average
for a women's pro league in the world, top ratings
here in Canada with over a million fans watching that
final in Toronto. But more to the point with dB
(10:08):
here some incredible football and new stars emerging just like dB.
So it's just set the foundation for a really exciting
season two.
Speaker 1 (10:18):
Yeah, last time we talked to Diana, they were releasing
the documentary that followed her along the creation of the
league and how at moments it did feel like, oh,
we're in real startup mode and this might all fall apart,
but it ended up being so fantastic. What were a
few of the challenges that did come up as the
season went on that maybe were unexpected or weren't the
things you were worried about.
Speaker 5 (10:38):
When you're doing what we did, you're building the plane
while you're flying it.
Speaker 6 (10:42):
We had to be out.
Speaker 2 (10:43):
The time was now, as.
Speaker 5 (10:45):
You can see both in the movement in women's sports
in North America and Canada in particular, and then just
seeing what was coming down the road on the football
calendar with that little tournament happening here in North America
this summer and then going into Women's World Cup, we
had to be out there, but it just meant that,
you know, throughout the year, clubs were still staffing up,
(11:06):
we were still learning how to get better. You know.
Speaker 6 (11:09):
I think the biggest thing that we're.
Speaker 5 (11:12):
Facing right now, which we sort of knew but felt
at real time, is infrastructure and facilities. We need better
training centers, we need more midside stadiums. So we really
started that work here discussions with both our investors and government.
We're so inspired with what we see happening in the NWSL,
we're bullish that that can happen here too, and so
(11:34):
that's what we're working on right now.
Speaker 1 (11:36):
Yeah, as an American, that was an interesting thing to
think about, was like, oh, yeah, the US has a
ton of places you can use for soccer. If they're
used for football, it doesn't work the same way for
hockey and being able to use all your existing facilities
for soccer. So it is a different challenge in terms
of existing spaces to play.
Speaker 5 (11:52):
Yeah, and it really can impact business metrics, I think,
you know, in light of you know, you're the second
or third tenant and a lot of the buildings that
you're playing in the stadium that dB plays in, which
is a fantastic environment, and they do an incredible job.
But you have to wait till the CFL finishes their schedule.
You have to wait till hockey finishes their schedule, because
(12:12):
sometimes it's on the same grounds and uses the same staff.
So that means that you're waiting to sell tickets, You're
waiting to finish that with your broadcasters. So to finish
the year with those positive metrics is a testament to
what our clubs did and what our players did in
terms of providing the entertainment on the pitch. But long
term is something we have to fix.
Speaker 1 (12:33):
Yeah, I mean that's the problem for women's sports across
the space. I remember the NWSL was so late in
getting its schedules out because of being the final tenant
in so many spaces that there were literal shirts asking
the one full time reporter, Meg, is the schedule out
yet imploring Meg linehand to tell us when we could
start planning our games. You know, DBU had an incredible
first season. Were you all in on joining the league
(12:54):
from the start or did it take some convincing.
Speaker 7 (12:56):
Yeah, I mean at my age at the time, I
was twenty eight or twenty seven, and you know, at
that point in your career, it's a big risk to
join a new league that's starting fresh. But obviously the
opportunity to be a part of something historic, be a
part of an inaugural season that you know, I don't
think I would ever have the opportunity to do that,
and then not only to be in the home, like
(13:18):
to be able to play in front of my family
who had never seen me play, just the combination of
all of those and then having an amazing call with
Auto a rapid and really feeling that poll and that
feeling in my gut that this was the right decision.
Speaker 4 (13:31):
You know, it all came together and.
Speaker 7 (13:32):
Clicked like this is this is what I'm meant to do,
and I'm meant to come to the Northern Super League.
Speaker 1 (13:37):
Tell me about your background, because you grew up in California.
Where's the Canada come in.
Speaker 4 (13:40):
Yeah, so my parents both born and raised in Canada.
Speaker 7 (13:43):
My dad in Toronto and my mom and fort Airy,
my two brothers were also born in Toronto. My dad's
work brought us out to California and it was only
supposed to be for a few years. I was born
in those few years and then it turned into longer.
But my entire family lives in Canada ever since I
was born. You know, I've gone twice a year to
(14:03):
Canada to visit my family, be around my family. So
Canada is my home as well. Although I was born
and raised in California, my roots are Canadian. My family,
my upbringing is all Canadian forms.
Speaker 2 (14:15):
So your accent is Canadian.
Speaker 4 (14:19):
Yeah, I mean I've had that like my entire life.
Speaker 7 (14:21):
Every time I would go to Canada, Like my friends
at school in California would be like, oh.
Speaker 4 (14:27):
In Toronto. Yeah, yeah, exactly.
Speaker 1 (14:30):
Well that's so fun then, so you get to go
play in this place that you have this incredible foundation
and these roots, but also you get to be the
first in so many things. So how special is it
that you know, you're this like trivia fact forever.
Speaker 2 (14:43):
You're the league's first ever Player of the Year, first
ever Golden Boot winner, among other honors.
Speaker 4 (14:48):
Yeah, I mean, it's funny you say.
Speaker 7 (14:50):
I haven't really like thought of it in that way
of being like the first ever. I think just I'm
just super grateful that this has become an opportunity to
have those awards like so much thanks to Christina, Diana Mathieson,
Christine Seclaire, everyone who put in the hard work.
Speaker 4 (15:05):
To make this happen.
Speaker 7 (15:06):
And you know, to have that opportunity to be able
to come to Canada and inspire future generations, to be
able to be that figure that you know, younger generations
can look up to and be like I can be
the Golden Boot winner, I can be the Player of
the Year one year and in the Northern Super League
is just an immense privilege that you know, I see
more of instead of being like the first ever, it's
(15:26):
more of like I've created this dream that Canadians can
look up to and I'm really grateful for that.
Speaker 2 (15:33):
Just to build on that.
Speaker 5 (15:35):
dB is the reason this league is important to Canada.
Like while I would say people understand on the national
team that existed before this league, you know, we know
who those great Canadians are. And to have her story
come up this year I think was somewhat unexpected until
you saw her play literally in that first game, but
(15:57):
then to go through that season and realize there's Canadian
talent like this that we just would never have known
about until this league exists, and to have her finish
the Golden Boot whenner and then to have those call
ups to the national team, Like every young Canadian girl
is watching her story right now and realizing that now
(16:18):
they can be seen and have a place to play pro.
Speaker 1 (16:20):
Yeah, I want to talk about that later because I
know that's something Diana had talked about in the lead
up to the league, like what was so important to
her about creating this space in Canada for Canadian players.
But I'm curious, like Christina just said, you show up
and you're dominant. Was the NWSL on your radar? Was
that somewhere you wanted to go and they just didn't
see in you? What was very clear from this first
season in the NFL.
Speaker 7 (16:40):
Yeah, I mean the NWSL has always like been on
my radar, but I've never had that inclination to like
jump into the NWSL. And also just you know, I'm
a person that, obviously, like any player, like wants to
feel wanted and if I don't have that feeling from
a club, like I'm I'm going to go to what
feels right in my gut. And that's what Ottawa Rapid
game to me. And the chance to be at home
(17:03):
and plan front of my family.
Speaker 4 (17:04):
Was just it was a no brainer.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
Yeah.
Speaker 7 (17:06):
And then obviously to be in the domestic country to
be able to be seen by the Canadian national team,
like Christina said, was also an amazing opportunity for me
to take advantage of that.
Speaker 1 (17:17):
Yeah, Christina, what did you see in terms of fan
engagement and growth over the course of the season, from
the supporters groups to maybe casual fans who became season
ticket holders.
Speaker 2 (17:27):
How did you.
Speaker 1 (17:28):
Really engage once the play actually began.
Speaker 5 (17:31):
First of all, there was such a strong fan base
for women's soccer in this country before we existed because
of that incredible national team.
Speaker 6 (17:39):
So in a way, those.
Speaker 5 (17:40):
Supporters groups, they were there, organized, waiting to go and
were such a driver for the early success of the league.
Speaker 6 (17:48):
But I think what.
Speaker 5 (17:49):
We saw, and you know, it was a really conscious
strategic decision of ours to make sure that this product
was seen by as many Canadians and internationals as possible.
We knew the quality was going to be good, you know,
Other than the players, the single biggest investment our owners
made was in the quality.
Speaker 6 (18:07):
Of the broadcast that we were producing.
Speaker 5 (18:09):
So we did those deals with TSN and CBC ESPN
to ensure that that product was getting out and when
we started seeing some of those early ratings come in,
we knew it was hitting and we knew that we
were really starting to do what we thought should happen.
And that's just led to you know, extensions everywhere. You know,
(18:30):
all of our teams did incredibly well on the merchandise,
They did such great designs, there's such personality and style
and everything that was built, and so there was a
significant amount.
Speaker 6 (18:42):
Sold at the club level.
Speaker 5 (18:44):
On merch and then we just see what is happening
on social lots of people interacting with our players and
following them and the league as well. So that's just
been growing, you know, more and more over the year.
Speaker 2 (18:55):
We have.
Speaker 5 (18:55):
We have such good support from our corporate partners too,
some top tier partners who without seeing us exist, believe
that this was important. So those Canadian Tires, Toyota's cokes Bemo,
who from the get go said this is important and
we're going to support it, and they really use their
platform door Dash, Oh my gosh, they keep on buying
ad time everywhere in Canada with all the women's leagues
(19:19):
that exist up here, and that just gives an opportunity
to use their important platforms to get this out there,
and it just keeps growing.
Speaker 1 (19:29):
You know, dB, when you look at the role of
players in building a league from the ground up, you're
more than just athletes. You're not just the excitement on
the field, but your brand ambassadors. You're a connection point
for fans. How did you and your teammates talk about
or embrace, or maybe even sometimes push back on the
idea that you were expected to be ticket sellers and
promotional voices and everything else as well as playing.
Speaker 4 (19:51):
Yeah, now that's a great question, I think.
Speaker 7 (19:53):
You know, it's interesting you say that we didn't really
talk about it much, but we did feel the sportance in.
Speaker 4 (20:00):
You know, just being ourselves.
Speaker 7 (20:02):
And I think a big part of the inaugural season
was connecting with our fan base. And one thing that
our club does which I don't think any other club
in the league does, but we have a designated time
after a game win our loss, where the fans come
down to the field, surround this inclose table that we
are all inside of and we just signed jerseys, sign cloths,
(20:23):
sign arms, sign balls, signed shoes, like sign everything. And
you know, it just shows how important it is. To
continue that inspiration for the future generations. And I think
the importance of just being ourselves and really connecting to
the people that you know, have helped make this league possible.
Soccer wouldn't be anything without the fans, and we're really
grateful that they're showing up. And to continue that connection
(20:47):
to our fan base and set it up for future generations.
For Ottawa Rapid to be a historical club as the
years go on, and to continue building that fan base
is really important for the club.
Speaker 4 (20:58):
I think in.
Speaker 7 (20:59):
Terms of just being really proud of, you know, wearing
the Autawa Rapid jersey and being a person that represents
the Northern Super League is something that we don't take
for granted and we all have that mindset and the team.
Speaker 2 (21:11):
Yeah, I mean, it's amazing to think about.
Speaker 1 (21:13):
You get to be the childhood memories for some kids
who grow up later and say, oh, I've been going
to Rapid games my whole life. Now I'm going to
take my kid and teach them about how long I've
been going. And the memories a lot of us have
for men's pro leagues that now exist for younger people
with women's leagues.
Speaker 2 (21:28):
It's so cool you know, Christina.
Speaker 1 (21:29):
When I hosted the first DESPNW summit in Toronto back
in twenty twenty three, Canada was quite behind when it
came to women's pro sports. But in a very short time,
the country now has several PWHL teams. The first WNBA
team tips off in two weeks, and of course the
NSL is now in its second year. The US had
a major head start, and yet the last few years
have still felt like a rocket ship down here. How
(21:53):
has the women's sports boom felt up there?
Speaker 6 (21:55):
It's incredible.
Speaker 5 (21:57):
Four years ago, five years ago, there was nothing, and
you know, a lot of our league staff, you know,
we were all working for pro men's teams or leagues
and watching the starts of things kind of come together.
And then I think for me, the turning point in
Canada was the p WHL draft. And again, those who
(22:19):
are close to them, and we're all very close uppere
in Canada. It's a really tight knit community in a way.
Not surprised, but when you saw that come to life
and you saw the engagement, that was the thing that
propelled the business really quickly. And yes, you know, the
knock on effect of Angel Rees and Caitlin Clark and everything.
Speaker 6 (22:41):
That some people will say was the fuel that let.
Speaker 5 (22:44):
The whole engine that played up here as well, But
it was that p WHL draft that did it. And
so as soon as they came out, we knew that
we had to make this happen quickly and more than
ride a wave because we don't want to speak in
those terms anymore, but be a part of this movement
and really recognize that, you know, this is it.
Speaker 6 (23:06):
We're we're not going back. And so yeah, it has
felt like that. That being said, I also don't.
Speaker 5 (23:13):
Want us to get complacent because this is really hard
and all of us have significant challenges ahead to make
the commercial model keep up with our fans, like we'll
do our job and make the product great, you know,
along with players like dB.
Speaker 6 (23:31):
And the fans are going to come. But we still
need investors.
Speaker 5 (23:35):
We still need broadcasters who are going to be you know,
thinking about their media rights ecosystem. And the men's leagues
have had one hundred years set start on us, but
their media rights fee keeps going up and up and up.
Speaker 6 (23:48):
You know, something's got to give and change. And same
thing with sponsors.
Speaker 5 (23:52):
I think there's still some sitting on the sidelines waiting
to see where this goes and not fundamentally reevaluate their
portfolios right now. And it's and it's hard because it's
still going to take time for those metrics to catch
up on women's sports.
Speaker 6 (24:08):
But so it's happening.
Speaker 5 (24:10):
It's exciting, but we can't take our foot off the
gas and we can't pretend like we're done here.
Speaker 1 (24:17):
Completely agree, you know, dB, your play in the NFL,
as we talked about, is a big part of you
getting the call up to the first national team beyond
helping change the face of women's sports in Canada. That's
something Diana Matthison talked about in founding the NFL, not
just that she was creating a space for folks to play,
but also for them to be seen and play outside
(24:38):
of Canada to make the Team Canada team stronger and better.
Speaker 2 (24:42):
You had dual citizenship.
Speaker 1 (24:43):
How did you decide to play for Team Canada and
then tell us what that call up meant?
Speaker 7 (24:48):
I mean, I've wanted to play for Team Canada ever
since I was young. I vocalized that I was in
kind of talks with the youth Canadian national team a
little bit, but never got like an official call in
and you know, as I said, like I was born
and raised California, but you know I would I'd be
representing like my friends and maybe like where I went
to school and where I was raised, but everything else
(25:12):
is Canadian. My blood's Canadian, how I was raised is Canadian.
My whole family is Canadian. So I would be representing
my family, my roots, my blood. So it was a
no brainer for me. And to have the NFL as
an opportunity to come and then play in front of
Canadians and my family and then to get maybe that
(25:32):
extra eyes on me for the Canadian national team was
a big reason why I came to the NSL. And
like I said, it was a big risk for me
in my stage in my career, twenty seven years old,
and to make that jump was big, especially while I
was playing in Europe, and you know, I had thoughts
of staying in Europe, but I was like, you know
(25:52):
what this feels right in my gut. This could be
my chance to be in front of my family and
also for Casey Stony to see me play more. And
that risk came high toward and and yeah paid off
and it was the best risk I've ever taken in
my life.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
And I'm so grateful and.
Speaker 7 (26:10):
So happy that i made that decision because it was
it was a lot to go all in on it,
and and I'm really happy that I made that decision
to come.
Speaker 6 (26:19):
Here and to build on that.
Speaker 5 (26:21):
It's it's not only you know, the chance to be seen,
it's it's the minutes, right And coach Tony has said
that time and time again.
Speaker 6 (26:29):
You could possibly, you know.
Speaker 5 (26:31):
Player like dB could sign with a better club, but
if you're not getting those those minutes to improve your
game and to get better and to have that live
match experience.
Speaker 6 (26:41):
It's just not the same.
Speaker 5 (26:42):
And there are only certain number of international spots on
an NWSL roster, and so those are things that I
think we look to as a benefit for this league
to get the chance.
Speaker 2 (26:52):
To have the call up for sure.
Speaker 1 (26:54):
Well, season two just started. Y'all kicked it off with
a really killer campaign called Built to Thrill that actually
involves a player, So tell me about it, Christina.
Speaker 6 (27:03):
Yeah, built a thrill our season two campaign.
Speaker 5 (27:07):
Sort of late last year, we were approached by Halifax
Tide player Tiffany Cameron, who said to us, I'm a
hip hop artist. I'd love to do something with you
sometimes and you hear those things and you're kind of like, Okay,
that's interesting.
Speaker 6 (27:21):
We should we should look at this.
Speaker 5 (27:23):
But then she actually wrote the theme song and all
of us in the office heard it and said, oh
my gosh, I think that's our campaign song.
Speaker 2 (27:32):
And so she.
Speaker 5 (27:33):
Went in with a JUNO nominated hip hop artist here
who helped with the track and recorded the track that
is in all of our brand spots and did a
full video and gosh, the players are so all of
our players are so great in front of the cameras.
So we had our media day and put some visuals
to it and it's been really really well received.
Speaker 2 (27:53):
Really cool.
Speaker 1 (27:54):
Yeah, I love discovering when world class athletes are also
world class singers. It really doesn't make me feel like
no talent loser at all. It definitely does wonders for
the ego.
Speaker 6 (28:05):
Well, and have you seen DB's fashion line.
Speaker 1 (28:08):
Well, you've brought me to my next question, because dB,
in addition to being the nsl's best player last.
Speaker 2 (28:15):
Year, you're also a designer. So how long have you
been interested in fashion?
Speaker 4 (28:19):
Honestly, my whole life.
Speaker 7 (28:21):
I remember when I was young, I would put on
the most random outfits.
Speaker 4 (28:25):
I'd wear like a.
Speaker 7 (28:27):
Tinker Bell dress and then wear cowboy boots and just
do whatever I wanted. And that came from just getting
that like confidence and just like excitement for my mom
just being like, you got it, that looks good.
Speaker 4 (28:38):
Let's go, like never doubting.
Speaker 7 (28:39):
What I put on, and that just made me feel
really confident in what I was wearing on a daily basis.
And then my mom's an interior designer and my dad's
also into fashion, and in school, I was loving art
classes and my I think it was my sophomore year
of university at the time, it wasn't allowed where I
could make money outside of soccer, so with n rule,
(29:00):
so I was just painting on my teammates shoes and
when they were dirty or run down, and then someone
else on another team saw it, like a basketball player.
One of my friends was like, oh, please paint my
basketball shoes, and then I painted his, and then another
player wanted something, and it just kind of like spiral
affected and I was like, whoa, this is actually kicking off,
like maybe after university I can start making this something,
(29:21):
and I just kept doing it.
Speaker 4 (29:22):
People wanted custom.
Speaker 7 (29:23):
Apparel, custom designs, and it just kind of blew up,
and it's a way for me to kind of turn
my brain off from soccer because it's constantly spinning with
the sport.
Speaker 4 (29:33):
So it's been an amazing balance.
Speaker 7 (29:36):
For me to express my creativity in another way and
express myself in another way and have that kind of
pause on the soccer side of my life and really
just dive into art and fashion.
Speaker 1 (29:50):
You made some really cool Autawa rapid painted denim jackets,
but my favorite is the fit with the blue button
down crop and the jeans that you painted the white jeans.
Oh yeah, Oh my god, that's the sickest fit.
Speaker 4 (30:04):
The first look.
Speaker 2 (30:04):
Yeah, I was so think it good things. So the
name is Bee b ai E, which is your middle name.
Speaker 7 (30:11):
So it's my first name. Yeah, I have two parts
my first name. My parents can decide between calling me delaye.
Your bay Bay is actually named after George and Bay,
which our family has a house on and it's French,
so it's called be ai E. And the eye is
lowercase because my bay, like it's a play on words
of before anyone else, and an eye is lowercase to
(30:33):
express the individual style is before anyone else. So you
wear what you feel true in and what you feel
your best in. And I think there's a lot of
pressure in society to wear like what's in or what's cool,
But I think the real style is just wearing what
feels cool to you and what you feel like most
confident in. And that's why I do a lot of
(30:54):
custom designs, because I like to collaborate with people to
kind of feel what they're feeling and make something that
makes them feel like themselves rather than what others might
want them to wear.
Speaker 1 (31:05):
So it's all custom right now, right the average person
can't go buy anything yet from your designs. No, not yet, Okay,
you know, Christina, On a previous show we mentioned the
NSL hotline. You had Diana reading off all the games,
matchups and channels for the week.
Speaker 2 (31:18):
So fun have there.
Speaker 1 (31:20):
Been conversations behind the scenes about brand voice and messaging,
because it sure feels like this year you're stepping into
a more curated and intentional branding and voice for the league.
Speaker 5 (31:29):
With the success of our first year, it's allowed our
owners and investors to have the confidence to invest more. So,
not to put too fine a point on it, but
last year we really didn't have a marketing budget. We
were going off the tailwinds of this incredible story of
the league coming together and you know, folks like you
talking about us. This year, we had a little bit
(31:51):
of more time and budget to really think this through.
Speaker 6 (31:54):
But this is Kelly Shouldeye.
Speaker 5 (31:56):
This was all done in house with some free las.
We have an incredibly talented group of creators.
Speaker 6 (32:03):
At the league.
Speaker 5 (32:04):
You know, I've worked both on the entertainment side of
media and then the sports side, and I think there's
still so much fertile ground for sports to have a
lot more fun and be more entertainment focused and be
much more part of the pop culture.
Speaker 2 (32:20):
Right the zeitgeist.
Speaker 1 (32:21):
It feels like it that's very intentional, and it's really
smart when brands do that. We've noticed it over here,
particularly with something like Unrivaled that again is something out
of nothing, but everyone's in instantly because they made it
so clear what their perspective was, that they were similar
to NSL run by a female athlete.
Speaker 2 (32:37):
It's been fun to watch the league sort of develop.
Speaker 1 (32:40):
Anything else new and different for season two that you're
excited about or that we should know about.
Speaker 5 (32:44):
Yeah, I mean, i'd quite everybody to our new YouTube
show that is going to be kind of like our
version of Manning Cast. The first one is in May
coming up, but hosted by Kate McKenna, but also the
very flat no personality era cloud Sarcasm, and we're going
(33:04):
to have special guests. Maybe we can get you Sarah
on We would love to, and it's just going to
be watching the match. Signal will still be that they're
doing the great play by play, but this is our
chance to kind of lean back, have an interactive experience
and watch the game through a lens that was built
for that platform.
Speaker 6 (33:20):
So that's something we're really excited about that we'll be
launching in the coming weeks.
Speaker 1 (33:24):
And then a seventh club set to join in twenty
twenty seven, so expansion already on the brain dB for
this season two. Is there any big name athlete or
celeb you'd most want to see pitch side at one
of your games?
Speaker 4 (33:35):
Oh that's a great question. I mean we've already had
to go of course, Christine Sinclaire pretty big deal.
Speaker 1 (33:41):
Drake would be sick. I knew you were going to
say that. It's the most Canadian answer ever. What about Kendrick?
Are your team Drake?
Speaker 2 (33:49):
Do you have to be?
Speaker 4 (33:51):
I love Drake?
Speaker 2 (33:52):
It feels like you'd have to be Yeah.
Speaker 4 (33:55):
I mean that would be sick, especially like when we play.
Speaker 7 (33:58):
Away against AFC at BMO, Like if he's just in
a box, that'd be sick.
Speaker 2 (34:03):
Thanks so much for joining us.
Speaker 1 (34:05):
So excited to chat with you and excited for the
second season to be getting underway.
Speaker 4 (34:09):
Good luck, dB, Thank you, Sarah, Thanks for having me, Thanks.
Speaker 1 (34:11):
Sarah, Thanks again to Christina and dB for hanging out
with us.
Speaker 2 (34:17):
And don't forget.
Speaker 1 (34:17):
You can now watch full length Good Game interviews on
the Iheartwomen's Sports YouTube channel, so go subscribe. We got
to take another break when we return. Finally a math
class that adds up. Welcome back, Slaces. We love that
you're listening, but we want you to get in the
(34:38):
game every day too, So here's our good game play
of the day.
Speaker 2 (34:41):
Watch the NFL.
Speaker 1 (34:42):
We'll link to the schedule and that NFL hotline one
eight three three NSL live again in today's show notes.
Also check out DB's custom clothing brand, Bay Designs. We'll
link to the Instagram in our show notes as well.
We always love to hear from you, so hit us
up on email. Good Game at wondermedianetwork dot com or
leave us a voicemail at eight seven two two O
(35:02):
four fifty seventy and don't forget to subscribe, Rate and review.
It's easy watch a college class devoted to w stats,
rating one of one math class. I'd actually be excited
to attend review. I know, I know I shouldn't feed
into the math is hard stereotypes, but y'all.
Speaker 2 (35:21):
For some people, math is hard. I like the words, but.
Speaker 1 (35:26):
I might be convinced to give numbers another go if
I had the chance to take Communicating Mathematics through Sports Data,
a course developed by University of Washington math doctoral student
Matti Brown. Shout out to slice leanne a UW alumna
herself for alerting us to Mattie's class and Matty's TikTok
and insta, which are full of fun quick videos diving
into WNBA statistics. We'll link to a great story about
(35:48):
Matty's course, which ended with a field trip to a
Seattle Storm game, and also tour TikTok and Instagram in
the show notes. Now it's your turn, y'all, Rate and review.
Thanks for listening. See it tomorrow. Good game, Christina, good game,
dB you how easy it is to slip up between
NSL and NWSL, different leagues, very different countries, but I'm
(36:10):
still stumbling.
Speaker 2 (36:17):
Good Game with Sarah Spain.
Speaker 1 (36:18):
Is an iHeart women's sports production in partnership with Deep
Blue Sports and Entertainment. You can find us on the
iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Production by Wonder Media Network, our producers are Alex Azzi
and Bianca Hillier. Our executive producers are Christina Everett, Jesse Katz,
Jenny Kaplan and Emily Rudder. Our editors are Emily Rudder,
Lucy Jones, Britney Martinez and Gianna Palmer. Production assistants from
(36:42):
Ady Loftus and I'm Your Host Sarah Spain
Welcome to Good Game with Sarah Spain, where we're hastily
attempting to trademark Sacramento Monarchs and Charlotte Sting just in
case we could be looking at a future payday like
the folks sitting on the Houston Comets name. It's Tuesday,
April twenty eighth, and on today's show, we're joined by
President of the Northern Super League Christina Ltz and Ottawa
Rapid FC star dB Pridham. We talk about season two
(00:23):
of Canada's first ever Pro Women's Soccer League, DB's decision
to leave Europe to sign with the upstart Canadian Endeavor
and how the PWHL helped change the landscape for all
women's sports in Canada. Plus who's cutting onions it's been
a while, and consider us California Dreaming.
Speaker 2 (00:41):
It's all coming up right after this welcome back. Here's
what you need to know today, Starting with soccer.
Speaker 1 (00:56):
Sofia Wilson has made a solid return to the NWSL
and the US women's national team after taking time off
to have her first child, and on Sunday night, she
solidified her comeback with her first goal of the year
in the Portland Thorns two one win over Angel City FC.
Wilson found the back of the net and stoppage time
with a left footed shot into the side netting, and
it was a counter attack off in Angel City free
(01:16):
kick attempt no less.
Speaker 2 (01:17):
As Wilson hugged her.
Speaker 1 (01:18):
Teammates, she shed a tear or two and tbh we
weld up a little as well, so did Trinity Rodman,
who was reacting live on Instagram, watching in support of
her friend and fellow Triple Espresso star Cute Wilson. School
was her first since November twenty twenty four, when her
last name was still Smith. She took the entire twenty
twenty five NWSL season off as part of her maternity leave.
(01:40):
Also on Sunday night, Utah Royals FC traveled to Washington
State and shut out the Seattle.
Speaker 2 (01:45):
Rain three nil.
Speaker 1 (01:46):
The first goal came in the very first minute from
captain Paige Cronin, who was making her first start of
the season after recovering from a preseason injury, way.
Speaker 2 (01:53):
To come out of the gates swinging.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
The victory marked the largest away winning club history and
Utah's first roadbick over Seattle since twenty nineteen.
Speaker 2 (02:02):
The result also lifted the Royals.
Speaker 1 (02:03):
Into the top three of the league standings for the
first time since twenty nineteen. As for Seattle, the loss
was bigger than just one game, as veteran Jess Fishlock
had to be stretchered off the field after suffering what
appeared to be a serious ankle injury when she was
struck in the leg by a teammate shot. Earlier this week,
Fishlock announced she'll retire at the end of this season.
We'll keep you updated on our status more soccer. Gotham
(02:25):
FC is partnering with New York City mayors or on
Mom Donnie to make tickets to an upcoming game more affordable.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
In a fun social.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
Media video on Sunday, Mayor Mom Donnie don dea Gotham
kit and announced one thousand tickets for just five bucks
each for Gotham's May ninth home game versus the Boston Legacy.
The tickets reportedly sold out in less than an hour,
but if you're local to the New York New Jersey area,
standard price tickets are still available to the WNBA. At
the Dallas Wings media day Monday, Paige Becker's used the
(02:53):
start of her press conference to address her relationship with
newly drafted Wings player and former Yukon teammate Asyfud. The
topic of their relationship has been fodder for a lot
of think pieces and podcast chats, as the two publicly
announced that they were dating last year, but haven't been
posting to social media or speaking openly about each other
in a romantic way in quite some time. During her
introductory press or, Fud was actually asked if they're still
(03:15):
dating and if she'd spoken to other WNBA players about
managing a relationship with the teammate, But you remember, wingspr
stepped in and redirected questions before she could answer.
Speaker 2 (03:25):
While on Monday, Becker's took the mic to share a
statement with the press. Here's part of what she had
to say.
Speaker 3 (03:30):
Quite frankly, I believe Me Aisy's personal relationship is nobody's
uses but our own, and what we choose to share
is completely up to us. But as media members, I
understand you guys have a job to do and you
guys have to ask questions about the basketball aspect of it.
Speaker 4 (03:46):
So that's what I will be addressing today.
Speaker 3 (03:49):
Me and Asy have always been the most professional. We've
always conducted ourselves as such. We'd never let anything that
happens off the court, Carrie onsome court. We continue to
do as are not new to this. We've been doing
this for a long time. We have talentless reps at it.
We have a lot of experience with it, so we
will continue to use that experience to show up and
(04:11):
be professionals, right teammates, right leaders, the hardest workers, and
continue to so can do our job and help the
Dallas Wings win basketball games. To add on to that,
asy Fudd was a no more draft pick because she
earned it and it had nothing to do with me
and everything to do in who she is as a
human being, who she is the basketball player, her resilience,
her strength, and her career best year at Yukon.
Speaker 1 (04:34):
Becker's added that she only plans on addressing this once
and if they're asked about it again, they'll refer back
to this statement or deflect and use the opportunity to
talk about their teammates. We'll put a link to the
full video of Becker's in the show notes. Speaking of
the Wings, with opening night in the WNBA approaching, some
fan favorites are already seeing their time in training camp
come to an end. The Wings have already wived several
(04:56):
popular college players new draftees Texas standout Kylo Olday Baker,
Tennessee forward z Spearman, and Northwestern's Grace Sullivan. They also
waved former Maryland standout Chiant Sellers, who was drafted but
waived by the Valkyries last season and got a look
from Atlanta but didn't stick, so she ended up playing
last season in Israel.
Speaker 2 (05:14):
More WNBA.
Speaker 1 (05:15):
As these new, very different lineups come together after a
wild free agency period, one player we still haven't seen
on the court, we're even on a team roster is
Natasha Cloud, who was with the New York Liberty last season.
Now we've brought this up a couple times on the show,
but the veteran guard remains unsigned. With less than two
weeks before the start of the w's thirtieth season, friend
of the Show Annie Costable, who's now in her new
(05:35):
role with the Athletic, reported on Sunday that multiple sources
within the league deny the social media rumors speculating that
Cloud has been quote unquote blackballed due to her activism.
Per Constable's reporting, multiple teams have expressed interest in the
point guard. We'll link to that story in the show notes.
As for rejoining the Liberty Team, GM, Jonathan Cole, who
publicly backed Cloud's talent in light of reports alleging she
(05:57):
was not a good culture fit, said at a press
conference on Sunday that New York's decision came down to
roster and salary cap constraints. He added, quote, there's a
lot out there that I'd just like to dispel. She's
an awesome human being. She's a phenomenal basketball player. She
belongs in the WNBA.
Speaker 2 (06:12):
End quote.
Speaker 1 (06:13):
As for Cloud herself, she took to the social media
site threads on Sunday night and wrote, quote, I have
yet to speak. That's intentional and my power. I've just worked,
no sulking, no whining work, and I will continue to
work as I always have, proving myself.
Speaker 2 (06:27):
Right year after year after year. Eleven.
Speaker 1 (06:29):
To be exact, I know who I am, I know
my value, slash worth and ain't nothing traditional end quote.
To water polo, The University of Southern California is the
women's water polo national champion after beating UC Berkeley on
Sunday ten to nine. The wind marks the USC Trojans
seventh national title, but the first since twenty twenty one.
The Bears were chasing their first ever national title, and
(06:52):
they put up a good fight, but they never enjoyed
a lead against the Trojans in the final. Fun fact
no team from outside the state of California has ever
for one in NCAA women's water polo National Championship makes sense.
Kelly is the undisputed hub of the sport and there
must be something in the water out there to Tennis
athletes at the Madrid Open are navigating tough opponents and
(07:13):
an even tougher stomach bug. As we mentioned yesterday, American
Coco Golf said she felt better after throwing up on
the court mid match on Sunday and going on to win,
but on Monday she lost her round of sixteen match
to check player Linda Noskova. The stunning upset was Noskova's
first top ten win of twenty twenty six and her
first win ever against Golf. With the loss, Goff is
expected to lose her world number three ranking to Egos Fiontec. Meantime,
(07:37):
another American found herself on the right side of an
upset on Monday. Hailey Baptiste, ranked thirtieth in the world,
beat number eleven, Belinda Bencic, advancing to her second consecutive
WTA one thousand quarter final.
Speaker 2 (07:49):
She made her first at the Miami Open just last month.
Speaker 1 (07:51):
Baptiste will play world number one Arena Sablenka today at
two pm Eastern.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
We got to take a break.
Speaker 1 (07:59):
When we come back, headed North with Christina Litz and
d b Pritdham.
Speaker 2 (08:10):
Joining us now.
Speaker 1 (08:11):
She's the president of the Northern Super League, Canada's first
professional women's soccer league. Before joining the NFL, she held
senior roles at spots including CFL, Woodbine Entertainment and most
recently True North Sports and Entertainment. A proud Manitoban and
a University of Manitoba Faculty of Law graduate mom of two,
she's the number one hype woman for her kid Archer,
who's a drummer and a band and her kid Cameron,
(08:32):
who codes.
Speaker 2 (08:32):
It's Christina Litz. Hi, Christina Hi, Sarah, thanks for being
on joining her.
Speaker 1 (08:38):
She's a forward for the Ottawa Rapid and was the
NFL Season one Player of the Year Forward of the
Year in Golden Boot winner with twenty goals in twenty
seven appearances.
Speaker 2 (08:46):
She earned her first call up to.
Speaker 1 (08:48):
The Canadian national team last year and made her international
debut at this year.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
She believes Cup. She played her college.
Speaker 1 (08:53):
Soccer for Santa Clara and did previous pro stops in
Iceland and Sweden. Born in Cali, but she's got dual
citizenship with Cama. She's got her own clothing brand, Bay Designs,
including custom jeans and painted denim jackets.
Speaker 2 (09:05):
It's dB Pridham Hidb.
Speaker 4 (09:08):
Hey, how are you? Thank you for having me?
Speaker 2 (09:10):
Well, thanks for coming on the show. So exciting.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
Season two of the NFL just got underway this past weekend.
We're going to get into all the excitement around a
fresh start, but I do want to recap last year's
inaugural season a bit first. So Christina, what were some
of the big wins for the league last year?
Speaker 5 (09:25):
Yeah, well, first of all, great to be here. Just
getting through the season in a way should be a
big win.
Speaker 4 (09:31):
I mean, this was still a.
Speaker 5 (09:32):
Startup, through and through, started by former national team player
and your friend Diana Matheson, and you know, the culmination
of the dream of so many Canadians.
Speaker 6 (09:44):
Who have played this game at such a high level.
So we just had to get it out there.
Speaker 5 (09:48):
But the great news was it was a fantastic season.
You know, some of those business metrics that we look at,
including attendance. We had the third highest attendance on average
for a women's pro league in the world, top ratings
here in Canada with over a million fans watching that
final in Toronto. But more to the point with dB
(10:08):
here some incredible football and new stars emerging just like dB.
So it's just set the foundation for a really exciting
season two.
Speaker 1 (10:18):
Yeah, last time we talked to Diana, they were releasing
the documentary that followed her along the creation of the
league and how at moments it did feel like, oh,
we're in real startup mode and this might all fall apart,
but it ended up being so fantastic. What were a
few of the challenges that did come up as the
season went on that maybe were unexpected or weren't the
things you were worried about.
Speaker 5 (10:38):
When you're doing what we did, you're building the plane
while you're flying it.
Speaker 6 (10:42):
We had to be out.
Speaker 2 (10:43):
The time was now, as.
Speaker 5 (10:45):
You can see both in the movement in women's sports
in North America and Canada in particular, and then just
seeing what was coming down the road on the football
calendar with that little tournament happening here in North America
this summer and then going into Women's World Cup, we
had to be out there, but it just meant that,
you know, throughout the year, clubs were still staffing up,
(11:06):
we were still learning how to get better. You know.
Speaker 6 (11:09):
I think the biggest thing that we're.
Speaker 5 (11:12):
Facing right now, which we sort of knew but felt
at real time, is infrastructure and facilities. We need better
training centers, we need more midside stadiums. So we really
started that work here discussions with both our investors and government.
We're so inspired with what we see happening in the NWSL,
we're bullish that that can happen here too, and so
(11:34):
that's what we're working on right now.
Speaker 1 (11:36):
Yeah, as an American, that was an interesting thing to
think about, was like, oh, yeah, the US has a
ton of places you can use for soccer. If they're
used for football, it doesn't work the same way for
hockey and being able to use all your existing facilities
for soccer. So it is a different challenge in terms
of existing spaces to play.
Speaker 5 (11:52):
Yeah, and it really can impact business metrics, I think,
you know, in light of you know, you're the second
or third tenant and a lot of the buildings that
you're playing in the stadium that dB plays in, which
is a fantastic environment, and they do an incredible job.
But you have to wait till the CFL finishes their schedule.
You have to wait till hockey finishes their schedule, because
(12:12):
sometimes it's on the same grounds and uses the same staff.
So that means that you're waiting to sell tickets, You're
waiting to finish that with your broadcasters. So to finish
the year with those positive metrics is a testament to
what our clubs did and what our players did in
terms of providing the entertainment on the pitch. But long
term is something we have to fix.
Speaker 1 (12:33):
Yeah, I mean that's the problem for women's sports across
the space. I remember the NWSL was so late in
getting its schedules out because of being the final tenant
in so many spaces that there were literal shirts asking
the one full time reporter, Meg, is the schedule out
yet imploring Meg linehand to tell us when we could
start planning our games. You know, DBU had an incredible
first season. Were you all in on joining the league
(12:54):
from the start or did it take some convincing.
Speaker 7 (12:56):
Yeah, I mean at my age at the time, I
was twenty eight or twenty seven, and you know, at
that point in your career, it's a big risk to
join a new league that's starting fresh. But obviously the
opportunity to be a part of something historic, be a
part of an inaugural season that you know, I don't
think I would ever have the opportunity to do that,
and then not only to be in the home, like
(13:18):
to be able to play in front of my family
who had never seen me play, just the combination of
all of those and then having an amazing call with
Auto a rapid and really feeling that poll and that
feeling in my gut that this was the right decision.
Speaker 4 (13:31):
You know, it all came together and.
Speaker 7 (13:32):
Clicked like this is this is what I'm meant to do,
and I'm meant to come to the Northern Super League.
Speaker 1 (13:37):
Tell me about your background, because you grew up in California.
Where's the Canada come in.
Speaker 4 (13:40):
Yeah, so my parents both born and raised in Canada.
Speaker 7 (13:43):
My dad in Toronto and my mom and fort Airy,
my two brothers were also born in Toronto. My dad's
work brought us out to California and it was only
supposed to be for a few years. I was born
in those few years and then it turned into longer.
But my entire family lives in Canada ever since I
was born. You know, I've gone twice a year to
(14:03):
Canada to visit my family, be around my family. So
Canada is my home as well. Although I was born
and raised in California, my roots are Canadian. My family,
my upbringing is all Canadian forms.
Speaker 2 (14:15):
So your accent is Canadian.
Speaker 4 (14:19):
Yeah, I mean I've had that like my entire life.
Speaker 7 (14:21):
Every time I would go to Canada, Like my friends
at school in California would be like, oh.
Speaker 4 (14:27):
In Toronto. Yeah, yeah, exactly.
Speaker 1 (14:30):
Well that's so fun then, so you get to go
play in this place that you have this incredible foundation
and these roots, but also you get to be the
first in so many things. So how special is it
that you know, you're this like trivia fact forever.
Speaker 2 (14:43):
You're the league's first ever Player of the Year, first
ever Golden Boot winner, among other honors.
Speaker 4 (14:48):
Yeah, I mean, it's funny you say.
Speaker 7 (14:50):
I haven't really like thought of it in that way
of being like the first ever. I think just I'm
just super grateful that this has become an opportunity to
have those awards like so much thanks to Christina, Diana Mathieson,
Christine Seclaire, everyone who put in the hard work.
Speaker 4 (15:05):
To make this happen.
Speaker 7 (15:06):
And you know, to have that opportunity to be able
to come to Canada and inspire future generations, to be
able to be that figure that you know, younger generations
can look up to and be like I can be
the Golden Boot winner, I can be the Player of
the Year one year and in the Northern Super League
is just an immense privilege that you know, I see
more of instead of being like the first ever, it's
(15:26):
more of like I've created this dream that Canadians can
look up to and I'm really grateful for that.
Speaker 2 (15:33):
Just to build on that.
Speaker 5 (15:35):
dB is the reason this league is important to Canada.
Like while I would say people understand on the national
team that existed before this league, you know, we know
who those great Canadians are. And to have her story
come up this year I think was somewhat unexpected until
you saw her play literally in that first game, but
(15:57):
then to go through that season and realize there's Canadian
talent like this that we just would never have known
about until this league exists, and to have her finish
the Golden Boot whenner and then to have those call
ups to the national team, Like every young Canadian girl
is watching her story right now and realizing that now
(16:18):
they can be seen and have a place to play pro.
Speaker 1 (16:20):
Yeah, I want to talk about that later because I
know that's something Diana had talked about in the lead
up to the league, like what was so important to
her about creating this space in Canada for Canadian players.
But I'm curious, like Christina just said, you show up
and you're dominant. Was the NWSL on your radar? Was
that somewhere you wanted to go and they just didn't
see in you? What was very clear from this first
season in the NFL.
Speaker 7 (16:40):
Yeah, I mean the NWSL has always like been on
my radar, but I've never had that inclination to like
jump into the NWSL. And also just you know, I'm
a person that, obviously, like any player, like wants to
feel wanted and if I don't have that feeling from
a club, like I'm I'm going to go to what
feels right in my gut. And that's what Ottawa Rapid
game to me. And the chance to be at home
(17:03):
and plan front of my family.
Speaker 4 (17:04):
Was just it was a no brainer.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
Yeah.
Speaker 7 (17:06):
And then obviously to be in the domestic country to
be able to be seen by the Canadian national team,
like Christina said, was also an amazing opportunity for me
to take advantage of that.
Speaker 1 (17:17):
Yeah, Christina, what did you see in terms of fan
engagement and growth over the course of the season, from
the supporters groups to maybe casual fans who became season
ticket holders.
Speaker 2 (17:27):
How did you.
Speaker 1 (17:28):
Really engage once the play actually began.
Speaker 5 (17:31):
First of all, there was such a strong fan base
for women's soccer in this country before we existed because
of that incredible national team.
Speaker 6 (17:39):
So in a way, those.
Speaker 5 (17:40):
Supporters groups, they were there, organized, waiting to go and
were such a driver for the early success of the league.
Speaker 6 (17:48):
But I think what.
Speaker 5 (17:49):
We saw, and you know, it was a really conscious
strategic decision of ours to make sure that this product
was seen by as many Canadians and internationals as possible.
We knew the quality was going to be good, you know,
Other than the players, the single biggest investment our owners
made was in the quality.
Speaker 6 (18:07):
Of the broadcast that we were producing.
Speaker 5 (18:09):
So we did those deals with TSN and CBC ESPN
to ensure that that product was getting out and when
we started seeing some of those early ratings come in,
we knew it was hitting and we knew that we
were really starting to do what we thought should happen.
And that's just led to you know, extensions everywhere. You know,
(18:30):
all of our teams did incredibly well on the merchandise,
They did such great designs, there's such personality and style
and everything that was built, and so there was a
significant amount.
Speaker 6 (18:42):
Sold at the club level.
Speaker 5 (18:44):
On merch and then we just see what is happening
on social lots of people interacting with our players and
following them and the league as well. So that's just
been growing, you know, more and more over the year.
Speaker 2 (18:55):
We have.
Speaker 5 (18:55):
We have such good support from our corporate partners too,
some top tier partners who without seeing us exist, believe
that this was important. So those Canadian Tires, Toyota's cokes Bemo,
who from the get go said this is important and
we're going to support it, and they really use their
platform door Dash, Oh my gosh, they keep on buying
ad time everywhere in Canada with all the women's leagues
(19:19):
that exist up here, and that just gives an opportunity
to use their important platforms to get this out there,
and it just keeps growing.
Speaker 1 (19:29):
You know, dB, when you look at the role of
players in building a league from the ground up, you're
more than just athletes. You're not just the excitement on
the field, but your brand ambassadors. You're a connection point
for fans. How did you and your teammates talk about
or embrace, or maybe even sometimes push back on the
idea that you were expected to be ticket sellers and
promotional voices and everything else as well as playing.
Speaker 4 (19:51):
Yeah, now that's a great question, I think.
Speaker 7 (19:53):
You know, it's interesting you say that we didn't really
talk about it much, but we did feel the sportance in.
Speaker 4 (20:00):
You know, just being ourselves.
Speaker 7 (20:02):
And I think a big part of the inaugural season
was connecting with our fan base. And one thing that
our club does which I don't think any other club
in the league does, but we have a designated time
after a game win our loss, where the fans come
down to the field, surround this inclose table that we
are all inside of and we just signed jerseys, sign cloths,
(20:23):
sign arms, sign balls, signed shoes, like sign everything. And
you know, it just shows how important it is. To
continue that inspiration for the future generations. And I think
the importance of just being ourselves and really connecting to
the people that you know, have helped make this league possible.
Soccer wouldn't be anything without the fans, and we're really
grateful that they're showing up. And to continue that connection
(20:47):
to our fan base and set it up for future generations.
For Ottawa Rapid to be a historical club as the
years go on, and to continue building that fan base
is really important for the club.
Speaker 4 (20:58):
I think in.
Speaker 7 (20:59):
Terms of just being really proud of, you know, wearing
the Autawa Rapid jersey and being a person that represents
the Northern Super League is something that we don't take
for granted and we all have that mindset and the team.
Speaker 2 (21:11):
Yeah, I mean, it's amazing to think about.
Speaker 1 (21:13):
You get to be the childhood memories for some kids
who grow up later and say, oh, I've been going
to Rapid games my whole life. Now I'm going to
take my kid and teach them about how long I've
been going. And the memories a lot of us have
for men's pro leagues that now exist for younger people
with women's leagues.
Speaker 2 (21:28):
It's so cool you know, Christina.
Speaker 1 (21:29):
When I hosted the first DESPNW summit in Toronto back
in twenty twenty three, Canada was quite behind when it
came to women's pro sports. But in a very short time,
the country now has several PWHL teams. The first WNBA
team tips off in two weeks, and of course the
NSL is now in its second year. The US had
a major head start, and yet the last few years
have still felt like a rocket ship down here. How
(21:53):
has the women's sports boom felt up there?
Speaker 6 (21:55):
It's incredible.
Speaker 5 (21:57):
Four years ago, five years ago, there was nothing, and
you know, a lot of our league staff, you know,
we were all working for pro men's teams or leagues
and watching the starts of things kind of come together.
And then I think for me, the turning point in
Canada was the p WHL draft. And again, those who
(22:19):
are close to them, and we're all very close uppere
in Canada. It's a really tight knit community in a way.
Not surprised, but when you saw that come to life
and you saw the engagement, that was the thing that
propelled the business really quickly. And yes, you know, the
knock on effect of Angel Rees and Caitlin Clark and everything.
Speaker 6 (22:41):
That some people will say was the fuel that let.
Speaker 5 (22:44):
The whole engine that played up here as well, But
it was that p WHL draft that did it. And
so as soon as they came out, we knew that
we had to make this happen quickly and more than
ride a wave because we don't want to speak in
those terms anymore, but be a part of this movement
and really recognize that, you know, this is it.
Speaker 6 (23:06):
We're we're not going back. And so yeah, it has
felt like that. That being said, I also don't.
Speaker 5 (23:13):
Want us to get complacent because this is really hard
and all of us have significant challenges ahead to make
the commercial model keep up with our fans, like we'll
do our job and make the product great, you know,
along with players like dB.
Speaker 6 (23:31):
And the fans are going to come. But we still
need investors.
Speaker 5 (23:35):
We still need broadcasters who are going to be you know,
thinking about their media rights ecosystem. And the men's leagues
have had one hundred years set start on us, but
their media rights fee keeps going up and up and up.
Speaker 6 (23:48):
You know, something's got to give and change. And same
thing with sponsors.
Speaker 5 (23:52):
I think there's still some sitting on the sidelines waiting
to see where this goes and not fundamentally reevaluate their
portfolios right now. And it's and it's hard because it's
still going to take time for those metrics to catch
up on women's sports.
Speaker 6 (24:08):
But so it's happening.
Speaker 5 (24:10):
It's exciting, but we can't take our foot off the
gas and we can't pretend like we're done here.
Speaker 1 (24:17):
Completely agree, you know, dB, your play in the NFL,
as we talked about, is a big part of you
getting the call up to the first national team beyond
helping change the face of women's sports in Canada. That's
something Diana Matthison talked about in founding the NFL, not
just that she was creating a space for folks to play,
but also for them to be seen and play outside
(24:38):
of Canada to make the Team Canada team stronger and better.
Speaker 2 (24:42):
You had dual citizenship.
Speaker 1 (24:43):
How did you decide to play for Team Canada and
then tell us what that call up meant?
Speaker 7 (24:48):
I mean, I've wanted to play for Team Canada ever
since I was young. I vocalized that I was in
kind of talks with the youth Canadian national team a
little bit, but never got like an official call in
and you know, as I said, like I was born
and raised California, but you know I would I'd be
representing like my friends and maybe like where I went
to school and where I was raised, but everything else
(25:12):
is Canadian. My blood's Canadian, how I was raised is Canadian.
My whole family is Canadian. So I would be representing
my family, my roots, my blood. So it was a
no brainer for me. And to have the NFL as
an opportunity to come and then play in front of
Canadians and my family and then to get maybe that
(25:32):
extra eyes on me for the Canadian national team was
a big reason why I came to the NSL. And
like I said, it was a big risk for me
in my stage in my career, twenty seven years old,
and to make that jump was big, especially while I
was playing in Europe, and you know, I had thoughts
of staying in Europe, but I was like, you know
(25:52):
what this feels right in my gut. This could be
my chance to be in front of my family and
also for Casey Stony to see me play more. And
that risk came high toward and and yeah paid off
and it was the best risk I've ever taken in
my life.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
And I'm so grateful and.
Speaker 7 (26:10):
So happy that i made that decision because it was
it was a lot to go all in on it,
and and I'm really happy that I made that decision
to come.
Speaker 6 (26:19):
Here and to build on that.
Speaker 5 (26:21):
It's it's not only you know, the chance to be seen,
it's it's the minutes, right And coach Tony has said
that time and time again.
Speaker 6 (26:29):
You could possibly, you know.
Speaker 5 (26:31):
Player like dB could sign with a better club, but
if you're not getting those those minutes to improve your
game and to get better and to have that live
match experience.
Speaker 6 (26:41):
It's just not the same.
Speaker 5 (26:42):
And there are only certain number of international spots on
an NWSL roster, and so those are things that I
think we look to as a benefit for this league
to get the chance.
Speaker 2 (26:52):
To have the call up for sure.
Speaker 1 (26:54):
Well, season two just started. Y'all kicked it off with
a really killer campaign called Built to Thrill that actually
involves a player, So tell me about it, Christina.
Speaker 6 (27:03):
Yeah, built a thrill our season two campaign.
Speaker 5 (27:07):
Sort of late last year, we were approached by Halifax
Tide player Tiffany Cameron, who said to us, I'm a
hip hop artist. I'd love to do something with you
sometimes and you hear those things and you're kind of like, Okay,
that's interesting.
Speaker 6 (27:21):
We should we should look at this.
Speaker 5 (27:23):
But then she actually wrote the theme song and all
of us in the office heard it and said, oh
my gosh, I think that's our campaign song.
Speaker 2 (27:32):
And so she.
Speaker 5 (27:33):
Went in with a JUNO nominated hip hop artist here
who helped with the track and recorded the track that
is in all of our brand spots and did a
full video and gosh, the players are so all of
our players are so great in front of the cameras.
So we had our media day and put some visuals
to it and it's been really really well received.
Speaker 2 (27:53):
Really cool.
Speaker 1 (27:54):
Yeah, I love discovering when world class athletes are also
world class singers. It really doesn't make me feel like
no talent loser at all. It definitely does wonders for
the ego.
Speaker 6 (28:05):
Well, and have you seen DB's fashion line.
Speaker 1 (28:08):
Well, you've brought me to my next question, because dB,
in addition to being the nsl's best player last.
Speaker 2 (28:15):
Year, you're also a designer. So how long have you
been interested in fashion?
Speaker 4 (28:19):
Honestly, my whole life.
Speaker 7 (28:21):
I remember when I was young, I would put on
the most random outfits.
Speaker 4 (28:25):
I'd wear like a.
Speaker 7 (28:27):
Tinker Bell dress and then wear cowboy boots and just
do whatever I wanted. And that came from just getting
that like confidence and just like excitement for my mom
just being like, you got it, that looks good.
Speaker 4 (28:38):
Let's go, like never doubting.
Speaker 7 (28:39):
What I put on, and that just made me feel
really confident in what I was wearing on a daily basis.
And then my mom's an interior designer and my dad's
also into fashion, and in school, I was loving art
classes and my I think it was my sophomore year
of university at the time, it wasn't allowed where I
could make money outside of soccer, so with n rule,
(29:00):
so I was just painting on my teammates shoes and
when they were dirty or run down, and then someone
else on another team saw it, like a basketball player.
One of my friends was like, oh, please paint my
basketball shoes, and then I painted his, and then another
player wanted something, and it just kind of like spiral
affected and I was like, whoa, this is actually kicking off,
like maybe after university I can start making this something,
(29:21):
and I just kept doing it.
Speaker 4 (29:22):
People wanted custom.
Speaker 7 (29:23):
Apparel, custom designs, and it just kind of blew up,
and it's a way for me to kind of turn
my brain off from soccer because it's constantly spinning with
the sport.
Speaker 4 (29:33):
So it's been an amazing balance.
Speaker 7 (29:36):
For me to express my creativity in another way and
express myself in another way and have that kind of
pause on the soccer side of my life and really
just dive into art and fashion.
Speaker 1 (29:50):
You made some really cool Autawa rapid painted denim jackets,
but my favorite is the fit with the blue button
down crop and the jeans that you painted the white jeans.
Oh yeah, Oh my god, that's the sickest fit.
Speaker 4 (30:04):
The first look.
Speaker 2 (30:04):
Yeah, I was so think it good things. So the
name is Bee b ai E, which is your middle name.
Speaker 7 (30:11):
So it's my first name. Yeah, I have two parts
my first name. My parents can decide between calling me delaye.
Your bay Bay is actually named after George and Bay,
which our family has a house on and it's French,
so it's called be ai E. And the eye is
lowercase because my bay, like it's a play on words
of before anyone else, and an eye is lowercase to
(30:33):
express the individual style is before anyone else. So you
wear what you feel true in and what you feel
your best in. And I think there's a lot of
pressure in society to wear like what's in or what's cool,
But I think the real style is just wearing what
feels cool to you and what you feel like most
confident in. And that's why I do a lot of
(30:54):
custom designs, because I like to collaborate with people to
kind of feel what they're feeling and make something that
makes them feel like themselves rather than what others might
want them to wear.
Speaker 1 (31:05):
So it's all custom right now, right the average person
can't go buy anything yet from your designs. No, not yet, Okay,
you know, Christina, On a previous show we mentioned the
NSL hotline. You had Diana reading off all the games,
matchups and channels for the week.
Speaker 2 (31:18):
So fun have there.
Speaker 1 (31:20):
Been conversations behind the scenes about brand voice and messaging,
because it sure feels like this year you're stepping into
a more curated and intentional branding and voice for the league.
Speaker 5 (31:29):
With the success of our first year, it's allowed our
owners and investors to have the confidence to invest more. So,
not to put too fine a point on it, but
last year we really didn't have a marketing budget. We
were going off the tailwinds of this incredible story of
the league coming together and you know, folks like you
talking about us. This year, we had a little bit
(31:51):
of more time and budget to really think this through.
Speaker 6 (31:54):
But this is Kelly Shouldeye.
Speaker 5 (31:56):
This was all done in house with some free las.
We have an incredibly talented group of creators.
Speaker 6 (32:03):
At the league.
Speaker 5 (32:04):
You know, I've worked both on the entertainment side of
media and then the sports side, and I think there's
still so much fertile ground for sports to have a
lot more fun and be more entertainment focused and be
much more part of the pop culture.
Speaker 2 (32:20):
Right the zeitgeist.
Speaker 1 (32:21):
It feels like it that's very intentional, and it's really
smart when brands do that. We've noticed it over here,
particularly with something like Unrivaled that again is something out
of nothing, but everyone's in instantly because they made it
so clear what their perspective was, that they were similar
to NSL run by a female athlete.
Speaker 2 (32:37):
It's been fun to watch the league sort of develop.
Speaker 1 (32:40):
Anything else new and different for season two that you're
excited about or that we should know about.
Speaker 5 (32:44):
Yeah, I mean, i'd quite everybody to our new YouTube
show that is going to be kind of like our
version of Manning Cast. The first one is in May
coming up, but hosted by Kate McKenna, but also the
very flat no personality era cloud Sarcasm, and we're going
(33:04):
to have special guests. Maybe we can get you Sarah
on We would love to, and it's just going to
be watching the match. Signal will still be that they're
doing the great play by play, but this is our
chance to kind of lean back, have an interactive experience
and watch the game through a lens that was built
for that platform.
Speaker 6 (33:20):
So that's something we're really excited about that we'll be
launching in the coming weeks.
Speaker 1 (33:24):
And then a seventh club set to join in twenty
twenty seven, so expansion already on the brain dB for
this season two. Is there any big name athlete or
celeb you'd most want to see pitch side at one
of your games?
Speaker 4 (33:35):
Oh that's a great question. I mean we've already had
to go of course, Christine Sinclaire pretty big deal.
Speaker 1 (33:41):
Drake would be sick. I knew you were going to
say that. It's the most Canadian answer ever. What about Kendrick?
Are your team Drake?
Speaker 2 (33:49):
Do you have to be?
Speaker 4 (33:51):
I love Drake?
Speaker 2 (33:52):
It feels like you'd have to be Yeah.
Speaker 4 (33:55):
I mean that would be sick, especially like when we play.
Speaker 7 (33:58):
Away against AFC at BMO, Like if he's just in
a box, that'd be sick.
Speaker 2 (34:03):
Thanks so much for joining us.
Speaker 1 (34:05):
So excited to chat with you and excited for the
second season to be getting underway.
Speaker 4 (34:09):
Good luck, dB, Thank you, Sarah, Thanks for having me, Thanks.
Speaker 1 (34:11):
Sarah, Thanks again to Christina and dB for hanging out
with us.
Speaker 2 (34:17):
And don't forget.
Speaker 1 (34:17):
You can now watch full length Good Game interviews on
the Iheartwomen's Sports YouTube channel, so go subscribe. We got
to take another break when we return. Finally a math
class that adds up. Welcome back, Slaces. We love that
you're listening, but we want you to get in the
(34:38):
game every day too, So here's our good game play
of the day.
Speaker 2 (34:41):
Watch the NFL.
Speaker 1 (34:42):
We'll link to the schedule and that NFL hotline one
eight three three NSL live again in today's show notes.
Also check out DB's custom clothing brand, Bay Designs. We'll
link to the Instagram in our show notes as well.
We always love to hear from you, so hit us
up on email. Good Game at wondermedianetwork dot com or
leave us a voicemail at eight seven two two O
(35:02):
four fifty seventy and don't forget to subscribe, Rate and review.
It's easy watch a college class devoted to w stats,
rating one of one math class. I'd actually be excited
to attend review. I know, I know I shouldn't feed
into the math is hard stereotypes, but y'all.
Speaker 2 (35:21):
For some people, math is hard. I like the words, but.
Speaker 1 (35:26):
I might be convinced to give numbers another go if
I had the chance to take Communicating Mathematics through Sports Data,
a course developed by University of Washington math doctoral student
Matti Brown. Shout out to slice leanne a UW alumna
herself for alerting us to Mattie's class and Matty's TikTok
and insta, which are full of fun quick videos diving
into WNBA statistics. We'll link to a great story about
(35:48):
Matty's course, which ended with a field trip to a
Seattle Storm game, and also tour TikTok and Instagram in
the show notes. Now it's your turn, y'all, Rate and review.
Thanks for listening. See it tomorrow. Good game, Christina, good game,
dB you how easy it is to slip up between
NSL and NWSL, different leagues, very different countries, but I'm
(36:10):
still stumbling.
Speaker 2 (36:17):
Good Game with Sarah Spain.
Speaker 1 (36:18):
Is an iHeart women's sports production in partnership with Deep
Blue Sports and Entertainment. You can find us on the
iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Production by Wonder Media Network, our producers are Alex Azzi
and Bianca Hillier. Our executive producers are Christina Everett, Jesse Katz,
Jenny Kaplan and Emily Rudder. Our editors are Emily Rudder,
Lucy Jones, Britney Martinez and Gianna Palmer. Production assistants from
(36:42):
Ady Loftus and I'm Your Host Sarah Spain
Host
Sarah Spain
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