2024 was a watershed year for NCAA women’s college basketball.
The combination of the Caitlin Clark effect and compelling rivalries featuring stars like LSU’s Angel Reese and Stanford’s Cameron Brink turned regular season games into must-see TV. Then, the much-anticipated national championship between South Carolina and Iowa scored a record-breaking 19 million viewers — the biggest audience ever for a college basketball game on the ESPN family of networks and the first time the women’s title game drew a larger viewership than the men’s.
The season also set new records for TV advertisers. According to EDO's Basketball TV Outcomes Report, the sport enjoyed its third straight season of year-over-year ad effectiveness growth. Women’s college hoops is growing its ability to drive consumer engagement even faster than the WNBA, with year-over-year ad effectiveness gains of up to 44%.
But, which placements and creatives came out on top, and how should media planners incorporate those insights into next season’s buy? Read on to find out.
Queens of the Court: 2024’s Top Advertisers
The 2023-24 women's college basketball season saw a diverse lineup of brands stepping up their game, from categories such as CPG and financial services, to IT and healthcare. While the report highlights a full list of top brand performers, the five most engaging winners were:
- Degree, +167% (more effective than the average NCAA women’s hoops advertiser)
- NyQuil, +138%
- Invesco, +126%
- NordVPN, +93%
- Cologuard, +92%
What was the secret to Degree’s winning play? Embracing athletic authenticity. As the most engaging TV ad in the 2023-24 season, "Movement Leaves Marks'' outperformed the average women's NCAA basketball ad by an impressive 225%. The spot features a raw voiceover track from a female skater, reflecting on her bruises as badges of hard-earned street cred, while promoting nonstop protection against stain marks.
Other top contenders from the TV advertising season thrived on contextually relevant ad creatives. Corona’s “Buy a Bucket” shows Eli Manning and Carmelo Anthony sitting courtside, while Gatorade’s “Introducing Gatorade Water” follows a group of athletic types on-the-go, by foot and skateboard.
Looking Ahead: The Engagement Favorites for 2025
As superstars like Clark and Reese graduate to the WNBA, fans and advertisers alike are wondering: who will be the next icons to drive engagement in women's college basketball?
EDO's analysis of 2023-24 regular season games provides insight into which teams will be the ones to watch—and advertise with—in the upcoming 2024-25 season.
USC is the clear frontrunner, with its star guard and rising sophomore JuJu Watkins looking to build on her impressive Elite Eight run. Not far behind are perennial powerhouses Texas and UConn, led respectively by All-America forward Madison Booker and the return of Paige Buekers.
Leading the list of school programs that drove the highest TV ad engagement are:
- University of Southern California (USC), +42% (higher engagement vs. NCAA women's average)
- University of Texas, +31%
- University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), +31%
- Notre Dame, +25%
- Baylor University, +16%
As the landscape of women's college basketball evolves, keeping an eye on these next-gen engagement champions could be the key to advertising success in the upcoming season.
Plan Your Championship Run with TV Outcomes Insights
The TV buzz around women's NCAA basketball has never been louder, and smart advertisers are taking notice. To capitalize on this momentum, you need more than just instinct — you need data-driven insights to identify the matchups and top-performing schools that are likely to deliver the highest ad engagement.
EDO's Basketball TV Outcomes Report is your playbook for media success — for any game across the NCAA, NBA, and WNBA. By measuring TV outcomes for every ad aired during the 2023-24 season — from regular season tipoff to the final buzzer of the championship game — this comprehensive report equips you with the knowledge to optimize your buying decisions.
Don't let your brand get boxed out by the competition. Download your copy today and start crafting a winning game plan.