Remember when people said women’s basketball would never draw serious crowds or money?
Yeah, me too. And then Caitlin Clark happened, the WNBA happened, and suddenly arenas are selling out and charter flights are a thing. Now every sports investor on the planet is asking the same question: what’s the next women’s sport ready to explode?
Three different Power 4 conference commissioners gave me the exact same answer this fall: volleyball.
The Quiet Boom Nobody Saw Coming
Here’s something wild: last year college volleyball averaged 140,000 viewers per regular-season match on ESPN platforms. That’s more than a lot of men’s college basketball games outside March. The national championship between Nebraska and Texas pulled numbers that would make mid-tier bowl games jealous.
Yet walk up to the average sports fan on the street and ask about pro volleyball and you’ll probably get a blank stare. That disconnect is exactly what a league called LOVB (League One Volleyball) is trying to fix, and they’re moving faster than most people realize.
From College Phenomenon to Pro Reality
The blueprint is simple on paper: take the insane popularity of the college game—especially in the Midwest and Texas—and give those stars a professional stage worth watching. Sound familiar? It’s literally the WNBA playbook from the last three years.
LOVB launched its inaugural season in 2025 with six teams. Season two kicks off in January, and by 2027 they’ll have at least eight markets including brand-new franchises in Los Angeles and Minnesota. More importantly, they’ve started selling teams to private ownership groups instead of running everything centrally.
That’s a huge signal. When a league shifts from “we own everything” to “smart money wants in,” you’re no longer in experiment mode.
“It typically takes a professional sports league five to seven years to become profitable.”
– Rosie Spaulding, LOVB President & COO
Translation: they’re thinking long-term, and the early returns look promising.
The Money Is Already Showing Up
LOVB has raised $160 million across three funding rounds. The investor list reads like a celebrity fantasy league:
- Kevin Durant
- Lindsey Vonn
- Candace Parker
- Amy Schumer (yes, really)
- Alexis Ohanian (who just bought the LA team)
- Even the owners of the Houston Texans
When Ares Management and Ariel Investments are writing checks alongside NBA superstars and Olympians, you’ve got something more than a passion project.
Media deals are following. They’ve got one year left on ESPN, but just signed with the soon-to-launch Versant (NBCUniversal’s new sports/media spinoff) for a package worth low-seven figures annually. Not earth-shattering money yet, but it puts games on USA Network in primetime slots. That’s real distribution.
The Numbers Tell Two Stories
First season linear ratings were modest—around 51,000 average—but the playoffs jumped to 114,000 for semis and still 93,000 for the finals. That upward trend is what investors care about.
More telling is the demographic split: 68% female fans, 77% millennial or younger. In other words, exactly the audience brands are desperate to reach. Adidas, Skims, Yeti, and Revolve are already sponsoring before the league even has household-name stars.
Think about that. Sponsors are betting on the sport itself, not individual athletes. That almost never happens this early.
The Youth Pipeline Nobody Else Has
Here’s where LOVB gets really interesting. Unlike almost every other pro league, they didn’t just launch teams—they built an entire vertical ecosystem.
They own and operate hundreds of elite youth clubs across the country. Pro players train in the same facilities as 14-year-olds. Kids grow up watching (and sometimes meeting) the athletes they’ll eventually become.
It’s the closest thing American sports has to European soccer academies, and it creates a built-in fan base from day one. Parents who spend thousands on club volleyball suddenly have a pro team to root for. That’s sticky loyalty you can’t buy with marketing.
Competition—or Collaboration?
LOVB isn’t alone. There’s also the Pro Volleyball Federation (eight teams) and Athletes Unlimited’s shorter seasonal format. Three pro leagues feels crowded, but history says early competition can actually help growth—look at the AFL/NFL merger or the ABA’s influence on the NBA.
Right now everyone is carving out slightly different niches. LOVB with the youth pipeline and bigger markets, PFV leaning harder into existing volleyball hotbeds. Eventually someone consolidates or they find ways to coexist. Either outcome is healthier than a monopoly that gets complacent.
The 2028 Olympics Wildcard
Los Angeles hosting the Summer Games feels like perfect timing. Beach volleyball already has massive casual appeal, but indoor six-on-six could ride that wave if American women medal (they usually do).
More importantly, several current LOVB players already have huge social followings from college. Lexi Rodriguez and Madison Skinner draw autograph lines that rival mid-tier NBA players. Give them an Olympic platform and a few viral moments? You’ve got your breakout stars.
The Biggest Hurdle Remaining
If I’m being honest—and I always try to be—the sport still lacks a single transcendent “face” right now. There’s no Caitlin Clark or Angel Reese walking through that door yet.
But maybe that’s okay. The WNBA took decades to produce Bird and Taurasi and Diana. Sometimes the sport itself becomes the athletes, at least at first. College volleyball has proved people will watch great competition even without superstars.
The league is also paying real salaries—$60,000 minimum, full benefits, year-round employment—which matters when you’re trying to keep talent home instead of losing them to richer European or Japanese leagues.
My Take: This Feels Different
I’ve watched a lot of “next big thing” sports come and go. Most fizzle because they chase hype without infrastructure. LOVB has the infrastructure. They have the youth participation numbers (volleyball is already one of the most-played girls’ sports in America). They have the college TV ratings. They have the investors who’ve done this before.
Are they guaranteed to become the next WNBA? Of course not. But for the first time, I can actually see the path. And that path looks a lot like what women’s basketball looked like about five years ago.
Sometimes the breakout doesn’t come with a thunderclap. Sometimes it creeps up on you while you’re busy watching football. By the time the 2028 Olympics roll around, we might all be wondering how volleyball arenas got so loud so fast.
Wouldn’t shock me one bit.
