W|W WEDNESDAY NEWSLETTER: AUG 13, 2025

While kids of all ages are heading back to school (or savoring the last few weeks of freedom), the sports community hasn’t taken any summer vacations. The Atlanta Hawks and Kaiser Permanente just held a summit focused on the health of men of color. The SPIRE Academy also focused on impacting its local community by launching SPIRE Cares. And, Adidas started an entire campaign to educate kids, parents, and coaches about positive sideline behaviors, helping to keep more young athletes in the game.

Speaking of young athletes, our Mic Drop this week spotlights the resilience that Colleen Corbin, Kansas State University Women’s Soccer first-year head coach, is teaching her players as they gear-up for the coming season. And, the WIN | WIN team is taking a stab at leveling-up the brand new partnership between beauty brand Glamnetics and sports retail leader Fanatics, once again (big surprise), with a reco about making the collab more than just a marketing play.

Now before you dive in, two quick reminders:

1) Don’t forget to support our crowdfunding campaign to get Circle the Wagons: The Bills’ Mafia Story documentary off the ground.

2) If you’re interested in joining the W|W Community (which, if you’re on this newsletter list, you probably are), please fill out this short survey to share your thoughts, and get on the list to be the first to know when memberships opens.

Until next week,
The WIN | WIN Team

P.S: You might have seen our posts on LI or IG about vying for a speaking spot at SXSW26. There are just ten more days to vote to make our « Common Ground: The Power of Sports & Social Impact » panel a reality. Help us bring WIN | WIN to Austin!

ICYMI: THIS WEEK’S W|W DOWNLOADS

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HEALTH & WELLNESS
The "Real Talk, Real Strength: Men of Color Health Summit" at State Farm Arena gathered nearly 100 attendees for candid conversations on mental and physical health. This initiative confronts the alarming statistic that over 63% of men of color don’t seek routine medical check-ups.

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COMMUNITY IMPACT
SPIRE Academy, a leader in the field of elite student athlete development, recently launched a local initiative called “SPIRE Cares” — extending the academy's core mission and impact into the wider Ashtabula, OH community.

Read more

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PARTNERSHIPS FOR GOOD
Earlier this year, in collab with sports psychologists, Adidas launched "Sideline Essentials"— a set of five positive behaviors to help young athletes be more supportive of their teammates, keep them more engaged in the game, and prevent more talented kids from dropping out.

Read more
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Image source: Kansas State University Women’s Soccer

"We cannot be defined by success or by our failures, but rather by how we respond and show up the next day. That's one of the most challenging things in sports, especially with a group that has so much they want to prove."

First-year Kansas State University Women’s Soccer head coach, Colleen Corbin, on how she approaches building athletes’ resilience

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Earlier this month, just in time for back to school fit checks, Glamnetics, a popular nail and beauty brand, announced a pretty baller partnership with sports retail giant Fanatics. The collab is designed to bring officially licensed sports team press-on nails to fans across the NFL, MLB, and NCAA, because as we all know, at least half of sports fans are women.

This fusion of beauty and fandom is nothing new, as we’ve seen with the droves of other fashion and personal care brands jumping onto the women’s sports bandwagon. But, the pace has been a little slower on the men’s side. This new collection taps into a market that has long been underserved — female fans of men’s sports — who want to show their team pride in a fun, stylish, and self-expressive way. (We’ll credit WAGS for re-igniting the fire here.)

We love how this partnership is a smart, creative take on the endless nail trends that dominate social media these days. But with so many of Glamnetics’ customers being teens and young women, why not making the collab about more than just about game-day glam — and extend it into a campaign that also directly builds confidence in the next generation of female fans and athletes?

So what if…

Image source: Glamnetics

What if Glamnetic and Fanatics teamed up to create a “Nail Your Game” program that turns self-expression into self-confidence? We’ve seen more elite athletes, like track and field star Sha’Carri Richardson, and Olympic gold medalists Jordan Chiles and Suni Lee, rocking stellar nails during recent competitions, so this partnership could be the perfect fit to bring the same empowering energy to young female fans and athletes alike.

Here’s how we see it happening (cue the dream sequence):

- Glamnetics and Fanatics join forces with local girls’ youth leagues in each of the cities the new nail designs are repping.
- They provide the leagues with funding and equipment to make playing more financially accessible to everyone, with some fanfare around a launch event to get everyone in the community excited.
- At the event, they give out Glamnetics products as a fun and empowering way for the girls involved to express themselves, and have a little piece of “armor” to wear on the field (where appropriate, of course).
- Then, they host a nationwide competition for all young athletes (promoted at partner retailers for both brands, including Sephora — which is teen and tween central) to design a set of nails in their team’s colors, with the winners not only getting their nail designs made IRL, but also but also receiving individual scholarships to keep their sports dreams going strong.

Glamnetic and Fanatics are both brands that thrive on passion and self-expression. By just going a few steps further, they could turn their cultural cache into social impact — smashing old-school stereotypes about beauty and athletes, and bringing a whole new level of energy (and access!) to the next generation of sports.

WHAT ELSE WE’RE FOLLOWING

🐝 David Beckham’s BEEUP is backing the next generation of soccer tlent as his honey-based snack brand becomes the official partner of Inter Miami CF Academy. Beeeeautiful.

🕊️ Gotham FC and Dove have teamed-up to keep girls in the game with the release of a new children’s book, made possible through the rising girls’ empowerment brand, Rebel Girls. Go get it, ladies.

🎮 PlayVS and NJCAAE are championing e-sports for two-year college students in a move to broaden access to collegiate esports. Access and inclusivity is always a WIN | WIN.

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