W|W WEDNESDAY NEWSLETTER: JULY 9, 2025
When you get the opportunity to mention Malala, flag football, and old balls in the same sentence, you know you’re up to something good. Well, my friends, that’s exactly what we did this week. Just in case you’re not caught up, here’s the recap:
Malala Yousafzai launched Recess, an investment firm focused on women’s sports as an avenue for global development and peacebuilding.
RCX Foundation and Gillette partnered on a grant to make flag football more accessible to youth in underserved communities.
RecycleBalls helped East Brunswick, NJ save over 82k tennis balls from landfills. What a week!
Our Mic Drop also hails from the tennis world, with a candid moment from Naomi Osaka, who continues to be at the forefront of speaking-out for athletes’ mental health. Following a loss at Wimbledon, she was transparent about her tough emotions, and reminded everyone that pro athletes are human beings, too.
And last but not least, as we tend to do at WIN | WIN, we’re calling on a whole roster of brands to level-up, step-up, and get in on youth development by supporting the Mamie Johnson Little League Softball team. Wondering why them, and why now? Well, you’ll just have to keep reading to find out.
Stay cool and safe out there, friends. This summer is a brutal one. (And not to end on a downer, but our thoughts are with everyone affected by the Texas floods, and we’re sending major gratitude to all of the Texas teams who’ve donated resources and funding to support their local communities.)
Until next week,
The WIN | WIN Team
ICYMI: THIS WEEK’S W|W DOWNLOADS
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GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai recently launched Recess, a women’s sports investment firm, to help drive greater access and funding globally. Malala has shared that she views sports as a powerful instrument for unity and peace, and hopes to increase grassroots participation and foster more environments where girls are empowered.
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PARTNERSHIPS FOR GOOD
The RCX Sports Foundation is teaming-up with Gillette to provide $25,000 in grants to help make flag football more accessible for kids everywhere. Through the initiative, families with financial need can receive $100 toward registration fees, helping to reduce the barriers to participating — and providing more opportunities for them to build confidence, learn teamwork skills, and get involved in one of the fastest growing sports in the country.
Read more →
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CLIMATE AND ENVIRONMENT
RecycleBalls, a national nonprofit that reclaims and repurpose old tennis balls, recently honored the town of East Brunswick, NJ for sending them over 80K well-played balls — not only diverting them from the landfill and reducing methane emissions, but also creating a massive supply of materials which will be recycled into new products.
Read more →
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Image source: Getty Images AsiaPac
"I'm just gonna be a negative human being today, I'm so sorry. I have nothing positive to say about myself which is something I'm working on…that’s human emotions."
-Naomi Osaka in a press conference and follow-up post after her Wimbledon loss. Osaka has been a champion for athletes’ mental health, and continues to speak candidly about her own journey, while also criticizing the media for only focusing on negative soundbytes.
This week’s Leveling-Up was inspired by our partners over at GoFundMe, who continue to be a major connection point for friends and neighbors helping each other out when they need it the most.
This particular story caught our attention not because the team it’s focused-on needs to level-up (they’re already at the top of their game!), but because we believe there’s a huge opportunity for brands who care about youth development — especially in women’s sports — to level-up, and step-up, to help them reach their goals.
Here’s the scoop:
The Mamie Johnson Little League Softball team from DC, an all-Black team comprised of girls from typically underrepresented and underfunded areas of the city, just made it to the Little League World Series Regional Championships…for the SECOND year in a row.
That’s a pretty huge accomplishment for any team. But just like last year, these girls and the head of their league, Keith Barnes, are having to go out and raise funds on their own to help cover the tournament’s travel expenses.
(Why? The average U.S. family spent $1,016 on ONE child's main sport in 2024, according to the Aspen Institute. That’s just nuts.)
Barnes, who was recognized in 2022 as a New York Life Community Hero of the Year for his leadership in growing the league, knows that these girls’ accomplishments are about more than just softball.
"This incredible team, composed of girls representing Ward 7 & 8, is breaking barriers and paving the way for young girls in DC to excel in softball. This milestone isn’t just about winning - it’s about representation and opportunity.”
We couldn’t agree more. But you know who else this is an opportunity for (besides for the cost of sports in general to come down)?
BRAND SPONSORS!
Of course, we wouldn’t be WIN | WIN if we didn’t already have a few thoughts as to who might make a great brand sponsor for these ladies, and honestly, for more girls’ youth clubs in general.
AUSL. We know they’re just getting off the ground themselves, but think about the incredible message that supporting a Little League softball team (or even a whole league??) would send. And oh my goodness, they’d have fans for life.
Fenty Beauty. They’ve already entered the women’s sports ecosystem with their WNBA / New York Liberty partnership, and the brand’s values of empowerment and self-expression are a perfect fit for these rising female athletes. Rihanna, you in?
TeamSnap, LeagueApps, or any of the 100 other youth sports scheduling management platforms out there. We know there might be concerns about “playing favorites” since youth teams are also their target customers, but that’s part of why it makes so much sense, too. (Sponsorship plus free access to the app, please!) Besides, we believe that where there’s a will, there’s a way.
Coursera or Udemy. While kids aren’t their primary audience, their parents just might be. And bridging the gap between sports and education is always a winning play, reinforcing the importance of supporting all aspects of young bodies and minds.
Amtrak. Trains may not be the first mode of transportation on everyone’s lists, but with Amtrak’s headquarters being in DC, and their current efforts to reignite their segment of the travel industry, it would be a fantastic move for visibility and goodwill. (Plus, if the team could get from DC to Bristol CT on Amtrak, with all-star celebrity treatment? What a great story for everyone.)
Native. This non-toxic, personal care brand makes clean-ingredient sunscreens and deodorants that are safe for all skin types — and no one’s out in the heat more than these girls. Keeping their sweat in check and their skin healthy on the field? Can’t get a better proof point than that.
Two Good Yogurt. They already have two wonderful social impact partners in City Harvest and We Don’t Waste, helping to bring fresh produce to food insecure families in New York and Denver. Standing up for access to healthy food — and equitable play — for a team from an underserved community in DC seems like another home run.
We could probably come up with 10 more thoughts, but this newsletter would get very long. Besides, you get the idea.
Teams, orgs, athletes, brands — we’re here to help level-up your partnership connections and activation ideas, too. Give us a shout anytime. You know where to find us.
WHAT ELSE WE’RE FOLLOWING
🎬 The NBA Summer League Film Festival is back, with players getting a chance to shift from being on camera to behind it. The festival has more than 20 entries this year. We’re predicting one of our own in the future.
🥅 We love to see that all 8 PWHL teams are hiring roles specifically for Grassroots Growth Specialists — i.e., folks that can help grow fan-bases through community engagement and support. Sounds like a WIN | WIN to us.
👀 Front Office Sports just launched “Second Acts: Live,” a production that talks to major sports figures about how they’re creating a bigger legacy for themselves in retirement. FOS folks, we want in on the action!
BECOME A CONTRIBUTOR
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