For the first time, women’s elite and professional sports will generate revenue surpassing $1 Billion in 2024, according to Deloitte. That’s a 300% increase from the industry’s evaluation in 2021.
One of the sports making a significant impact in the explosive growth of women’s sports is volleyball. Last season, on August 30, 92,003 fans sold out Nebraska’s college football stadium, making it the largest women’s sporting event attendance ever, to watch the Cornhuskers volleyball team take on Omaha.
The Explosive Growth of Women’s Volleyball
As an emerging league, League One Volleyball – LOVB, pronounced “love” – is on a path to making volleyball the next major league sport in the United States. LOVB has the #1 volleyball business in the U.S., with over 1,400 junior club teams across twenty-two states. These clubs include Atlanta’s A5, Houston Skyline and Premier Nebraska, which all rank in the top ten nationally and annually see players go on to be recognized as NCAA champions and All-Americans.
In 2024, LOVB Pro is launching their inaugural season from the grassroots up, built from their foundation of over 14,000 junior youth players and led by the world’s best professional players. Through their unique community-up model, LOVB will provide club players with the opportunity to learn from and build even stronger ties with pro players they admire as they train alongside each other.
LOVB is championing the sport of volleyball — and every athlete who plays it — in unprecedented ways.
LOVB’s Goal: Support An Athlete-Centric Model
From its inception, LOVB aims to reimagine the future of volleyball and create pathways from youth to pro that haven’t existed before in the US. LOVB is seeking innovative partners who can help build a truly athlete-centric league. In search of solutions that connect, focus, and empower their athletes to create one volleyball ecosystem, LOVB turned to The Operating System for Sports™, as both LOVB and Teamworks share the same mission of holistically empowering athletes.
Built for On-The-Go Athletes and Staff: Teamworks Hub
Specifically, LOVB wanted the best solution to handle communication easily and efficiently with their athletes in each city and across the league. Kelley Kish, LOVB Head of Volleyball Operations, shared that in their inaugural season, there is a lot of information to manage and disseminate as athletes move into their new home cities for the first time. LOVB Pro will have teams in six cities, including Atlanta, Austin, Houston, Madison, Omaha, and Salt Lake.
“Using Hub will enable us to streamline communications and bring everyone together into one collaborative space, which we believe will help accelerate our relationship-building and deliver a better experience for our athletes.”
Kelley Kish, LOVB Head of Volleyball Operations
Putting One Resource in Athletes’ Hands: From College to Pro
LOVB found Teamworks Hub to be the best solution for supporting their players and staff. Hub’s ability to organize communication, scheduling, and collaboration tools provides LOVB players and staff with one central resource on their own devices.
“With many of our athletes familiar with the system from their NCAA experience, and it being trusted across so many different professional leagues, it was a natural fit to bring Teamworks to LOVB as our operating system.”
Kelley Kish, LOVB Head of Volleyball Operations
Over 190 NCAA volleyball teams rely on Teamworks Hub as their operational resource for communication, scheduling and collaboration. College athletes are familiar with the ‘Check Teamworks’ mentality, making the transition from college to pro with their familiar operating system that much easier.
Building The Future of Volleyball Together
Working closely with the LOVB staff, our Teamworks Customer Success team is providing hands-on training tailored specifically to LOVB’s needs.
“The Teamworks staff has provided us with a wealth of knowledge, information, and experience in helping us set up our Hub. They have made sure everything is as seamless as possible for our athletes and staff. Their availability to answer questions and always ensure we have LOVB shining through our league platform has exceeded our expectations.”
Kelley Kish, LOVB Head of Volleyball Operations
Kelley shared the excitement around the league as players step into their roles, getting real experience with the solutions and processes LOVB has dedicated to uplifting the pro volleyball community. Former Pro & Collegiate Volleyball Player and Teamworks VP of Customer Success Betsy Sedlak echoes this sentiment, saying:
„It is incredibly exciting to see the growth of women’s volleyball in the USA, which is something that has been on the horizon for a long time. LOVB is building something very special for volleyball athletes and the growing volleyball fanbase in the States. We are excited to have Teamworks Hub help streamline the experience for athletes & staff during a pivotal time for the league. Many LOVB athletes have come from elite collegiate programs using Teamworks Hub, and we are looking forward to continuing to support their journey at the next level!“
To see how Teamworks empowers emerging leagues to create player-centric models with effective technology solutions, visit here.
