Raising the Game: Covering WNBA, NWSL, PWHL & More

Raising the Game Women's Sports Network | WNBA, NWSL, PWHL

Women’s Sports Podcast covering the WNBA, NWSL, PWHL, and NCAA. We explore the business, growth, and future of women's athletics. Hosted by Caitlin and Alex—a husband-and-wife team raising two young daughters. Each week, we highlight the economic impacts, key headlines, and rising stars in women's professional sports and collegiate athletics. We analyze these stories not just as fans, but as parents looking at how today's sports ecosystem is creating real career opportunities for the next generation Connect with us: Instagram/Threads/YouTube: @rtg_pod Email: raisingthegamepod@gmail.com

  1. 1d ago ·  Bonus

    BONUS EP | The WNBA at 30 Is Right Where the NBA Was at 30

    The WNBA Finals tipped Game 6 at 12:30 p.m. on a Thursday, and author Jeff Goldberg says the NBA has been here before. Jeff is back on Raising the Game for a bonus episode after emailing us the week of the Valkyries vs. Dream Finals with a take nobody else had. While everyone was roasting the lunchtime start, he was remembering a NBA games being played either mid-day or at 11:30PM Eastern on tape delay. His bigger point: the WNBA is about to turn 30, and the NBA at that age still had Finals games on tape delay. This week we dig into: WNBA Finals Game 6 at 12:30 p.m.: the Atlanta Hawks arena conflict, why it looked ridiculous, and why it still sold out and drew 1.5 million viewersThe NBA at 30: tape-delayed Finals in 1980 and 1981, scattered TV deals, and how long it took the league to really take offThe David Stern blueprint: marketing stars, consolidating TV, and what the next WNBA commissioner should steal as Cathy Engelbert steps downLA28 as the WNBA's springboard, the way the 1996 Olympic team helped launch the league, and whether a Caitlin Clark vs. Angel Reese Finals would ever have tipped at lunchtimeWNBA expansion and real conferences: Cleveland in 2028, the Sun's move to Houston, and why rivalries are what elevate playersWe also get into Kiah Stokes' title collection, Natalie Nakase and the Valkyries' new fans, Jeff's work-from-home ratings theory, and a quick women's college basketball preview with JuJu Watkins, Sarah Strong, Hannah Hidalgo and Mikayla Blakes. Jeff is the author of Bird at the Buzzer and Unrivaled, and appears in Apple TV's The Dynasty: UConn Huskies. Follow Raising the Game for weekly women's sports coverage. Instagram/Threads/YouTube: @rtg_pod Website: rtgpod.com Email: raisingthegamepod@gmail.com

  2. 1d ago

    Ep. 44 | Golden State Valkyries Win the WNBA Title in Year 2

    The Golden State Valkyries are 2026 WNBA champions, and they did it in year two of the franchise's existence. Golden State beat the Atlanta Dream 68-63 in the first winner-take-all Game 7 in WNBA Finals history, with Gabby Williams taking Finals MVP. We get into why Atlanta's offense lived and died by the three over the last three games, why we're not interested in any Angel Reese slander after she led the Dream in points, rebounds and blocks for the series, and why Natalie Nakase's willingness to tear up her own script in the second half of Game 7 was the difference. Then it's the NWSL playoff bracket, now that Decision Day did plenty of deciding. This week we dig into: The WNBA Finals: Gabby Williams unleashed, Allisha Gray playing Game 6 with pins in her shooting hand, Kiah Stokes blocking everything in sight, and the Valkyries rotating defenders and switching to zone to break Atlanta's rhythmWhy the Valkyries are the story of the 30th WNBA season: $50 million in expansion fees, a billion-dollar valuation, 50-plus straight sellouts, an all-female leadership group in Jess Smith, Ohemaa Nyanin and Nakase, and over $100 million in revenueFinals attendance and ratings: all seven games sold out, including a Thursday lunch-hour tip, and a series that pulled 1.4 million viewers head-to-head with Monday Night Football and the World SeriesNWSL playoffs: Gotham's first Shield, Seattle sneaking into the last spot on Decision Day, and our picks for all four quarterfinals, including why we disagree about Kansas City vs. Angel CityCoaching accountability in the W: the Liberty moving on from Chris DeMarco, Houston keeping Rachid Meziane, and the long list of qualified women, especially Black women, who should be getting these interviewsWe also hit the Goldman Sachs report putting women's sports on pace for $3 billion globally, Alexia Putellas winning a third Ballon d'Or (and the nonsense about her speech), Ashley Sanchez's 20-goal Golden Boot on a team that missed the playoffs, the WNBA Draft Lottery on November 15, Unrivaled's 2027 roster reveal, Team USA at the IIHF Worlds, and the return of NCAA women's basketball. Follow Raising the Game for weekly women's sports coverage.Instagram/Threads/YouTube: @rtg_podWebsite: rtgpod.comEmail: raisingthegamepod@gmail.com

  3. Oct 28

    Ep. 43 | A WNBA Title Could Be Clinched at 12:30 in the Afternoon

    The WNBA could crown a champion at 12:30 in the afternoon on a Thursday, and that tells you most of what you need to know about how women's sports still get scheduled. Game 6 of the WNBA Finals tips at 12:30 p.m. Eastern at State Farm Arena, 9:30 a.m. on the West Coast, because the Atlanta Hawks had the building that evening. Caitlin's word for it is egregious. Not surprising, which is its own indictment, but egregious. The reporting says the conflict has been in conversations for months, and if that's true it makes the outcome worse rather than better: the league had time to figure it out and we still got a mid day game. Meanwhile the Dream have dropped two straight and now have to impose their will seven hours before their normal tip-off. This week we dig into: WNBA Finals games three, four, and five: Atlanta's 97-71 blowout in game three, Golden State's 67-62 answer in game four, and why this series keeps coming down to possessions rather than shooting. Atlanta took 54 shots in game four. Golden State took 72.Angel Reese's two-of-12, six-turnover night, Kiah Stokes rewriting the finals blocks record, and the patience problem at the rim that keeps putting Reese right where Stokes wants herThe 2026 All-WNBA teams: Olivia Miles, A'ja Wilson, Kelsey Mitchell, Caitlin Clark, and Breanna Stewart on the first team, Angel Reese, Shakira Austin, Rhyne Howard, Paige Bueckers, and Jackie Young on the second. How the 56-member panel's points system actually works, why narrative does more of the voting than anyone admits, and the fact that the league's second-best team all season put nobody in the top ten.The Indiana Fever front office coming apart: Amber Cox fired, Kelly Krauskopf out as president, and the free agency problem sitting underneath it. Caitlin's read is that the firing is about how many no's the Fever are hearing from top talent, and that a reputation like this takes years, not one offseason, to fix.NWSL Decision Day on November 1: every game at 4 p.m. Central, the Shield still live between Gotham and San Diego down to goal differential, and the eighth playoff spot down to Seattle, North Carolina, and Denver. We walk through every scenario, including the one where Denver sneaks in and draws Gotham, the team they've beaten every time they've played this season.We also get into the Rodman rule losing its restrictive criteria, Mark Walter's reported $700 million ask for the Los Angeles Sparks, Croix Bethune's record-setting 11th assist, FIFA putting $2.5 million of prep funding behind every 2027 World Cup qualifier to match the men, Portland and Chicago bidding for 2031, and the Utah Royals making the playoffs in year three. Follow Raising the Game for weekly women's sports coverage.Instagram/Threads/YouTube: @rtg_podWebsite: rtgpod.comEmail: raisingthegamepod@gmail.com

  4. Oct 22

    Ep. 42 | Nobody on the Valkyries Can Slow Down Angel Reese

    Ep. 42: Angel Reese went for 30 points and 16 rebounds on 60%+ shooting to even the WNBA Finals, and Golden State has no obvious answer for her. The Dream and Valkyries are playing the best-defense-against-second-best-defense series everyone expected, which means the winner isn't whoever shoots better, it's whoever gets more possessions. Golden State took game one 68-64 behind Gabby Williams' 26 points. Atlanta answered 79-65 by turning steals into 24 points off turnovers, 19 of them on the fast break. Games three and four are in a fully open State Farm Arena, where 42,000 people queued for tickets. This week we dig into: WNBA Finals games one and two: Reese's historic double-double, Jordan Canada's fourth playoff double-double, Ryan Howard leading the league in steals, and the Natalie Nakase vs. Karl Smesko coaching duel that's shaping the whole seriesThe six-player 2026 WNBA All-Rookie Team: Olivia Miles, Azzi Fudd, Flau'jae Johnson, Pauline Astier, Kiki Rice, and undrafted Sydney Taylor, plus the All-Defensive teams and why no Minnesota Lynx player made either oneUSWNT's 2-2 comeback draw with Spain: Ashley Sanchez's cheeky finish, Mal Swanson's half volley, Alexia Putellas' 150th cap, and the chemistry-versus-depth question with four windows left before the World Cup. Emma Hayes has used 46 players this calendar year, a program record, and still may not have a starting elevenNWSL's final two weeks: Gotham chasing the Shield at 55 points, San Diego a point back, and the Portland, Seattle, North Carolina, and Denver scramble for the last playoff spots heading into Decision Day on November 1Expansion versus player safety: Jessica Berman targeting two more NWSL teams, the new Arthur M. Blank Crest Cup with USL Super League clubs, and the uncomfortable math on adding games when roughly 6% of sports science research is done on women We also get into Nneka Ogwumike's record fifth Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award, Michele Kang and Lise Klaveness being floated as UEFA's FIFA presidential candidates, Corinne Schroeder's off-ice injury before San Jose's first PWHL season, the women's flag football tournament coming to Super Bowl week, three Zambian internationals stuck in Uganda on an Ebola travel restriction, and a record 13 NWSL players in double-digit scoring. Follow Raising the Game for weekly women's sports coverage.Instagram/Threads/YouTube: @rtg_podWebsite: rtgpod.comEmail: raisingthegamepod@gmail.com

  5. Oct 14

    Ep. 41 | It’s a Dream/Valkyries Finals, A'ja's Record Fifth MVP, USWNT Falls to Spain

    The Atlanta Dream are headed to the WNBA Finals and might have to play them in Gateway Center, their 3,500 capacity home arena, and not the State Farm Arena that holds 17,000+. NOTE: We are leaving our original description, but before publishing our episode, the scheduling conflicts have been resolved and both games 3 and 4 will be played at State Farm Arena. Golden State and Atlanta both swept their semifinal series, setting up a WNBA Finals matchup between the league's highest-revenue franchise and its lowest-attended one. Meanwhile, scheduling conflicts at State Farm Arena could push the Dream back into 3,500-seat Gateway Center for the biggest games in franchise history since 2013. We get into why that happened, who could have fixed it, and why "step aside, Hawks" is a reasonable position. This week we dig into: - The WNBA Finals picture: Golden State's absurd depth under Natalie Nakase, Atlanta's hounding defense, points off turnovers as the deciding stat, and why the Aces' field goal percentage fell roughly 10 points from their regular season mark without NaLyssa Smith - A'ja Wilson's record fifth WNBA MVP, her third straight, plus the full voting breakdown including Olivia Miles' second-place finish and the Caitlin Clark first-place-vote discourse - The reset timeout disaster in Dream-Liberty game two: what Brianna Stewart was told, what the referees said afterward, and why WNBA officiating and national commentary both need fixing - USWNT's 2-0 loss to a shorthanded Spain: the new back line, the double pivot that didn't defend, why the team needs a true six, Lily Yohannes' penalty, and Emma Hayes on closing the gap in the final third - NWSL playoff math with three matches left, goal differential as the first tiebreaker, and the early regular season MVP conversation We also cover the league's record 3.79 million fans in 2026, the Golden State Valkyries becoming the first women's pro team past $100 million in revenue, Cheryl Reeve adding Executive of the Year, PWHL expansion jerseys, and Serena Williams joining the Barbie Role Model series. Plus what to watch: Finals games one and two, a loaded NWSL weekend, LPGA Shanghai, and ranked NCAA volleyball and hockey. Follow Raising the Game for weekly women's sports coverage. Instagram/Threads/YouTube: @rtg_pod Website: rtgpod.com Email: raisingthegamepod@gmail.com

  6. Oct 7

    Ep. 40 | The College Sports Bill's Title IX Loophole, Angel Reese's DPOY, WNBA Semis

    The Protect College Sports Act just cleared the Senate, and the fine print may hand universities a way around Title IX. The bill calls revenue sharing "compensation" rather than athletic benefits, and that one word swap could let schools sidestep the equal-opportunity obligations Title IX was written to enforce. The programs that get cut first are the ones that don't generate revenue, which means women's sports. Meanwhile the WNBA playoffs delivered the best basketball of the year, Angel Reese picked up Defensive Player of the Year, and the USWNT named a forward group nobody saw coming. This week we dig into: - The Protect College Sports Act: the Title IX language that got left out, NWSL Players Association director Meghan Burke's warning that the bill undermines the law it claims to protect, and why the collective bargaining restrictions look like union busting before a union exists. The House hasn't voted yet. - WNBA awards season: Angel Reese takes Defensive Player of the Year with 46 of 74 votes, the first in Atlanta Dream history, after a season that set the league's single-season rebounding record. Jessica Shepard wins Most Improved for Dallas, and Golden State's Janelle Salaün goes unanimous for Sixth Player of the Year. - WNBA playoffs: the Liberty become the first eight seed to knock off a one seed, Arike Ogunbowale drops a playoff-record 45 points, and the semifinals open with Atlanta beating New York 92-82 and the Valkyries holding the defending champion Aces to 60 points. - The fan problem at Gainbridge: the A'ja Wilson incident, Fever GM Amber Cox defending the fan base in her exit interview, Kelsey Mitchell saying the quiet part out loud, and why the league's player protection keeps falling short. - The Women's Sports Foundation's inaugural report on the youth pipeline: girls want to keep playing, access and belonging are what stop them, and under half of young girls surveyed could name a professional athlete. We also cover Unrivaled's $650 million valuation and Issa Rae joining as an investor, Project B's January launch in China, the PWHL's new conference alignment and playoff format, equal prize money coming to all combined WTA 1000 events in 2027, the Denver Summit stadium groundbreaking, the NWSL playoff race with four games to go, and Emma Hayes' roster for the USWNT's two-match set against Spain. Follow Raising the Game for weekly women's sports coverage. Instagram/Threads/YouTube: @rtg_pod Website: rtgpod.com Email: raisingthegamepod@gmail.com

  7. Sep 30

    Ep. 39 | The Lynx's Playoff Wake-Up Call, PWHL's First All-Star Game, NWSL Tiebreak Chaos

    WNBA playoffs are here, and game one already told us something uncomfortable about the Minnesota Lynx. The one seed dropped its opener to the New York Liberty 91-75, and Breanna Stewart looked unguardable doing it. Meanwhile the PWHL announced the first women's professional hockey all-star game in history, the NWSL playoff picture came down to a tiebreak system almost nobody has read, and the WPBL crowned its first champion behind one of the best pitching performances of the year. This week we dig into: WNBA playoff round one: the Lynx's second-half collapse against the Liberty (34.4% shooting, eight rebounds, eight turnovers), Golden State's record-low four-turnover game against Dallas, Las Vegas running past Indiana 102-85, and Atlanta turning 22 Washington turnovers into 27 pointsWNBA awards: Olivia Miles wins Rookie of the Year unanimously after leading the league's best team in scoring, and Cheryl Reeve picks up a record fifth Coach of the Year. Our picks for MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, Most Improved, and Sixth PlayerPWHL news dump: the December 5th opening weekend schedule, the first-ever PWHL All-Star Game at Scotiabank Arena in a 3v3 four-team format (USA, Canada, Rookies, International), and Hockey Night in Canada picking up a weekly PWHL broadcastNWSL playoff mechanics: why goal differential beats head-to-head as the first tiebreaker, who can clinch this weekend, and the Denver problem heading into the international breakWPBL's first championship: the LA Queens beat the San Francisco Firebelles 2-0 in game five, with Ayami Sato throwing the league's first complete game in playoff history and taking Championship MVP We also get into Atlanta City FC's underwhelming NWSL expansion name, Unrivaled adding San Francisco as a tour stop and switching to Adidas, a Vancouver ownership group eyeing a 2031 WNBA bid, Kori Cheverie taking over as Team Canada's head coach, and Jess Fishlock breaking Megan Rapinoe's Seattle Reign scoring record in what looks like a perfect final season. Plus why a three-game first round is bad for players and bad for the league's bottom line. Follow Raising the Game for weekly women's sports coverage.Instagram/Threads/YouTube: @rtg_podWebsite: rtgpod.comEmail: raisingthegamepod@gmail.com

  8. Sep 23

    Ep. 38 | WNBA's Playoff Bracket Is Pure Chaos, Miles Breaks the Record, NWSL's Transparency Problem

    The WNBA regular season ends Thursday and the playoff bracket from the four seed down is still completely unsettled, with six teams able to finish almost anywhere. Minnesota, Golden State and Las Vegas have the top three locked, but Atlanta, Indiana, New York, Washington and Dallas are all bunched together with two games left, and four of those teams are playing each other to close the season. We walk through the tiebreakers and the realistic seeding scenarios, including a few brackets where three of the four first-round matchups feature a lower seed that owns the season series against the higher seed. This week we dig into: WNBA playoff seeding scenarios: how Minnesota vs. Indiana and Atlanta vs. New York decide spots four through eight, what the WNBA tiebreakers actually are, and which first-round matchups are on the tableA good and bad breakdown for all eight WNBA playoff teams: the Lynx's shooting slump and their trouble with physical defense on Olivia Miles, Golden State's three-point reliance, A'ja Wilson's extra rest, Atlanta's record against playoff teams, Indiana's defensive problem, Dallas' injury pileup, New York's reliance on Breanna Stewart, and Washington's fearless young rosterRecords falling across the W: A'ja Wilson becomes the first player in league history with multiple 1,000-point seasons, Olivia Miles passes Caitlin Clark's rookie scoring record, Angel Reese keeps adding double-doubles, and the league is on pace for its most-attended season everThe NWSL misconduct report from Defector Media: eight complaints across at least four clubs in six months, how the post-Yates reporting requirements are actually being met, and why the redactions matterThe NWSL playoff race: Gotham clinched, Chicago is out, and fourth through tenth is separated by seven points with the schedule doing most of the decidingWe also get into Adam Silver's comments on more independence for the next WNBA commissioner and the names being floated for the job, Lisa Leslie's statue in Los Angeles, ESPN's Toronto Tempo docuseries, the WPBL championship series going to a winner-take-all game five, a monumental PWHL announcement coming Thursday, Unrivaled adding Minneapolis and Houston tour stops, and the NWSL golden boot race with 11 players already in double digits. Plus our What to Watch slate: the final day of the WNBA regular season, playoff openers on ABC and Prime, five NWSL matches, the LPGA in Northwest Arkansas, Oregon at Wisconsin volleyball, and the start of NCAA hockey. Follow Raising the Game for weekly women's sports coverage. Instagram/Threads/YouTube: @rtg_podWebsite: rtgpod.comEmail: raisingthegamepod@gmail.com

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Women’s Sports Podcast covering the WNBA, NWSL, PWHL, and NCAA. We explore the business, growth, and future of women's athletics. Hosted by Caitlin and Alex—a husband-and-wife team raising two young daughters. Each week, we highlight the economic impacts, key headlines, and rising stars in women's professional sports and collegiate athletics. We analyze these stories not just as fans, but as parents looking at how today's sports ecosystem is creating real career opportunities for the next generation Connect with us: Instagram/Threads/YouTube: @rtg_pod Email: raisingthegamepod@gmail.com

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