Digital payments company Visa has today (Thursday) stepped up its commitment to women’s football through a new five-year partnership with US Soccer, and other wider measures.
The agreement with US Soccer, brokered by Soccer United Marketing, will support the US women’s national team through 2023.
Visa will also be the presenting sponsor of the SheBelieves Cup, a four-team national team tournament played in the United States each year.
Jay Berhalter, chief commercial officer of US Soccer, said: “With Visa joining us in our long-term investment in women’s soccer, we will continue to increase opportunities for women players, coaches and referees at all levels. Overall, we are looking forward to Visa helping us reach our mission by increasing participation, developing world class players, coaches and referees, and increasing fan engagement.”
Read this: Visa steps up to partner Uefa women’s football programme
The agreement complements Visa’s existing investment in women’s football through partnerships with world governing body Fifa and European governing body Uefa.
Ahead of the 2019 Women’s World Cup, which takes place in France from June 7 to July 7, Visa is launching a new US marketing campaign celebrating the American team. The centrepiece is a new ad spotlighting stars Mallory Pugh, Becky Sauerbrunn, Rose Lavelle, Jessica McDonald, Abby Dahlkemper and Adrianna Franch. This builds upon Visa’s new global ad campaign, ‘One Moment Can Change the Game,’ focused on elevating women in sports.
At the World Cup, Visa will be the presenting sponsor of the Player of the Match trophy. Visa’s roster of Team Visa athletes is also expanding, as 18 new women’s football players from 16 countries will join Team Visa.
They include: Ellie Carpenter (Australia), Christine Sinclair (Canada), Nadia Nadim (Denmark), Lucy Bronze (England), Fran Kirby(England), Nikita Parris (England), Eugenie Le Sommer (France), Dzsenifer Marozsán (Germany), Laura Giuliani (Italy), Shanice van de Sanden (Netherlands), Caroline Graham Hansen (Norway), Ewa Pajor (Poland), Kim Little (Scotland), Ramona Bachmann (Switzerland), Alexia Putellas (Spain), Kosovare Asllani (Sweden), Didem Karagenç (Turkey) and Megan Rapinoe (United States).
“Sport presents a huge opportunity for women to pursue their dreams on and off the field,” Lynne Biggar, chief marketing and communications officer for Visa, said. “Women make the vast majority of consumer purchases and start millions of small businesses a year. By making a substantial investment in women’s initiatives, including soccer, Visa is celebrating this powerful global force.”