Women’s sports are growing fast and becoming more popular. The Women’s Rugby World Cup in England sold more than 300 000 tickets, which is double the last tournament. In Switzerland, the European Football Championship had more than 650 000 fans. But women’s sports still compete with men’s sports, where clubs and players move for huge amounts of money. For example, in the United States, Micah Parsons moved from the Dallas Cowboys to the Green Bay Packers in a deal worth one 188 million dollars.This year, women’s sports are expected to earn 2.35 billion dollars, more than three times compared to three years ago. Ticket sales, broadcasting rights, and sponsorship are growing very quickly. Big events like the Olympics have made athletes such as Simone Biles and Ilona Ma very famous on social media. This popularity helps to attract brands and new fans.However, there is still a large income gap between men and women. Cristiano Ronaldo earns more than seven times the best-paid woman, Coco Gauff. Tennis has most of the top-paid women, while basketball and football bring in the most revenue. North America and Europe are the biggest markets.
• spotlight (noun) – strong public attention or focus.
• meteoric (adjective) – very fast and impressive growth.
• tournament (noun) – a sports competition with several matches.
• transfer fee (noun) – money paid to move a player from one team to another.
• forecast (verb/noun) – prediction about the future.
• revenue (noun) – money that a company or sport earns.
• sponsorship (noun) – money or support given by a company to promote their brand.
• superstar (noun) – very famous and successful person.
• household name (noun) – a person known by almost everyone.
• gap (noun) – a difference between two amounts, levels, or situations.