Lisa Baird Just Had The Most Epic First-Year Run For A Sports Commissioner
Lisa Baird generated roughly $1 billion of sponsorship revenue while leading marketing efforts at the United States Olympic Committee and rebranding the organization to Team USA. She spent time at General Motors, IBM, and the NFL. Yet, when she took the reins as commissioner of the less-than-a-decade-old National Women’s Soccer League in March 2020, she called it her “dream job.”
Nothing, however, could have prepared Baird for the year ahead. Just 48 hours after stepping into the role, she postponed the NWSL season due to COVID-19.
And that’s where things got interesting. In the months that followed this unprecedented situation, Baird built the country’s first sports bubble, signed on blue-chip sponsors which had not been done in the league’s eight-year history, increased its TV viewership to historic rates (in a year that saw sports TV ratings decrease across the board), and expanded the league to markets such as Los Angeles with big-name backers.
Given all of this, I truly believe Lisa Baird had the most epic first-year run for a commissioner in sports history. Don’t believe me? Here’s the timeline:
March 10, 2020: Lisa Baird begins her first day as NWSL Commissioner
