Players Seek Bigger Cut of Billions Pouring Into Women’s Sports

The doubters were wrong. Women’s sports are ready for prime time.

From Caitlin Clark’s brash rookie season in the WNBA, to rugby sensation Ilona Maher going viral, to Simone Biles’s riveting comeback at the Olympic games in Paris, 2024 was the year of the female athlete.

Now, as a new year begins, that success has put a new challenge in focus: Whether leagues can capitalize on the momentum – and finally pay players what they’re due.

The biggest test of that proposition will arrive in the months ahead, as the WNBA and its players union hold talks on a new ...