WIS x USL Winter Summit Recap
The WIS squad had a blast at the USL Winter Summit! We connected with fellow industry trailblazers, crowned our PITCH IT and Changemakers Award winners, celebrated USL milestones and learned how to develop self-branding. We’re fuelled by the work WIS and the USL are doing for the future of soccer!
PITCH IT, AWARD WINNERS
WIS and the USL teamed up to host a pitch contest to invest in entrepreneurs who are using the beautiful game for social good.
GOL (@GolMentor) came in first place for their College Access Program leading Latinx student-athletes through financial support, professional guidance and personal development. We can’t wait to see what comes next for this amazing initiative!
Second place went to The Sports Bra Project (@sportsbraproject) for their work increasing access to sports and normalizing conversations around women athletes’ experiences and needs.
Every entry into this contest was astounding and we’re excited for our network to keep the innovation coming. Thank you squad for all of your hard work and congratulations to the winners!
Watch Pitch it judge Christina Unkel’s winner announcement here.
THE USL CHANGEMAKERS AWARD WINNERS
The USL and WIS community voted nearly 500 times for trailblazers who are impacting the soccer industry in a progressive and inclusive way. You all show up! We love to see it. Well done to every single person nominated—you all make the game better!
Congratulations to (from left) Oakland Roots’ Director of Community Engagement Karen Gonzalez (colleague Jenna is standing in for her), Desiree Kim, New Mexico United’s Chief Administrative Officer, Chanel Wiese, Executive Director of the Somos Unidos Foundation, Celina Lyva, the San Antonio FC Marketing Coordinator, and Emma Boyle, San Antonio FC’s Associate Manager of Event Services.
Read more about the final five winners here.
UNITED FOR SOCCER
During our networking event, we celebrated the news that since our partnership with the USL the organization has launched two brand new leagues that will support women and marginalized genders in soccer. Bring on the USL W League and Super League! We are even more ecstatic to share the news that the W league has officially reached its milestone of having 30 clubs ready to play in the inaugural season. This marks HUGE progress for growing the women’s game in the United States. Read more here.
SELF-BRANDING WORKSHOP
Our squad was honored to have social media expert and content creator Megan Reyes represent us at the USL Summit. During her keynote speech, Megan shared with us her incredible journey as a woman in sport who uses self-branding to elevate the voices of marginalized athletes and industry employees. After Megan’s keynote, we did a workshop on self-branding as a way to empower our squad to learn more about themselves and their professional goals. You can re-visit the self-branding workshop by scanning the QR code below.
The USL Winter Summit was the perfect way to end Women in Soccer’s first year in the game and we’re thankful to the USL and every member of our network who turned out to support us. Together we can do more!
Love,
The WIS Team
Xoxo
