The $1.5 billion effect Australia's female athletes want to cash in on

Sydney Morning Herald

15-07-2025

There's been a billion-dollar boom in women's sport, and Australia's premier female athletes want to capitalise on it.
As the social media profiles of individual athletes such as rugby's Ilona Maher and basketball's Caitlin Clark surge in popularity, cricketer Phoebe Litchfield isn't the only one wondering who can do the same here.
'I'm thinking who's the Ilona? Who's the cricket version, and I can't picture anyone,' Litchfield said. 'Same with Caitlin Clark … I don't have the personality for it, but it would be cool to grow the sport in that scene.'
Besides generating million-dollar sponsorship deals, a Sports Illustrated cover, a spot on Dancing with the Stars, and likely being the highest-paid women's rugby player in the world, Maher has also brought unprecedented wealth to the women's game. Last year, the Bristol Bears moved their season opener to a larger stadium to accommodate her fans.
T he Athletic estimates that Caitlin Clark has delivered as much as $1.5 billion to the WNBA after spending little more than one year in the league.
When the Wallaroos play the US in the group stage of the Women's World Cup in England next month, they'll play against Maher. Wallaroos player Annabelle Codey has already seen the impact of her enormous profile.
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'I think the Ilona Maher effect's been huge,' she said. 'I'm all about it, I think a few of the girls are getting around it as well. I think anything that can amplify our game and put female athletes on the world stage is great.'
Despite being enthusiastic about the overflow benefits of Maher's social profile on women's sport, Codey, like Litchfield, is reluctant to become the face of Australian women's rugby. She knows, having seen it on her own team, that the downsides of a large profile can overshadow the good.