MADISON, Wis. – Over the past few months, University of Wisconsin–Madison women’s sports fans may have started to see much more of UW Health.
That is because UW Health is now the official title sponsor for all UW Athletics women’s sports, the only such partnership in all of NCAA athletics.
This partnership isn’t just for sports like volleyball, hockey and basketball, but also soccer, golf, track and field, cross country, softball, tennis, swimming and rowing.
Supporting all women’s athletics aligns with UW Health priorities, according to Chris Roth, chief marketing officer, UW Health.
“We want to raise up the remarkable athletes and people on the UW women’s teams,” he said. “We see the hard work they put in to be the best of the best and want to support them in and out of competition.”
The partnership will increase visibility of UW Health at games and across women’s sports social media and digital marketing. It will also provide athletes with various name, image and likeness opportunities, featuring them in UW Health content campaigns to share important health messages across marketing, social media and other channels.
This new collaboration builds on a long-standing relationship with UW Health, which began with a sponsorship agreement between UW Athletics and Learfield’s Badger Sports Properties in 2010, supporting football, men’s and women’s basketball, and men’s hockey.
“This unique partnership with UW Health signifies a milestone in support for women’s sports at Wisconsin,” said Mitchell Pinta, UW Athletics deputy athletic director/chief revenue officer. “We are grateful for UW Health’s commitment to elevating these incredible student-athletes and excited about the opportunities it will create for them, as we together continue to foster an environment where they can thrive and promote the important messages of health to the Badger community.”
As part of the sponsorship agreement, UW Health will highlight the remarkable care provided to Badgers women athletes by UW Health, official medical provider for all of UW athletics, according to Dr. Tamara Scerpella, chief of sports medicine at UW Health, and chair of the Department of Orthopedics and Rehabilitation at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.
“UW Health experts in primary care and orthopedic sports medicine work diligently to ensure Badgers can perform at the top of their game,” said Scerpella, who has served as the orthopedic team physician for Badgers women’s hockey and softball for more than 10 years.
This partnership between UW Health and Badger Sports Properties, a locally-based team of Learfield, a collegiate sports marketing company, is designed as a long-term sponsorship of women’s athletics.
“We’re creating a foundation of collaboration that will enable us to elevate both women’s sports and UW Health,” Roth said. “This sponsorship will enable both Badgers women’s sports and UW Health to reach fans, patients and beyond.”
