Rethink’s “See My Name” campaign for Molson and the PWHL moved nameplates lower and placed Molson above the numbers, elevating player visibility. The effort won seven Effies and multiple industry awards.

This story was originally published in the Fall 25 issue of strategy magazine. Check out the winners as they appear online over the course of the week here.

The world was ready for the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL). More than ready. Even before the puck dropped on its inaugural season in 2023-24, the league already had its first sponsor: Canadian Tire. “They committed a significant amount of money to us before they ever knew what we were going to look like on the ice,” Amy Scheer, the PWHL’s EVP of business operations, tells strategy.

Since then, the PWHL’s brand partnerships have grown significantly. The league and team partnership portfolio nearly doubled from its first to its second season, increasing from 40 to 60 brands, with notable additions including Ally, Bravado, EA Sports, Factor Meals, Intact Insurance, Midea, SharkNinja and, most recently, DoorDash. “In the middle of our first season, EA Sports said, ‘We want to put the PWHL players into NHL 24.’ So now you can play NHL on EA Sports with PWHL players,” Scheer adds.

Being able to play yourself in a video game is about as clear a sign as any that you’ve made it.

Heading into its third season (2025-26), the PWHL has experienced success in all areas. For starters, the league is already seeing expansion, from six to eight teams, welcoming teams in Vancouver and Seattle to its existing roster: Toronto Sceptres, Montréal Victoire, Ottawa Charge, New York Sirens, Boston Fleet and Minnesota Frost.

Fans don’t just watch the PWHL – they engage live and online: players toss pucks, sign autographs and trade friendship bracelets while social engagement leads all professional leagues and fuels record attendance.

The league’s fanbase is also seeing significant growth. In its second season (2024-25), the PWHL drew a total of 737,455 fans across 102 games (regular season and playoffs) – an increase of 52.2% from the previous season, which saw 485,530 fans across 72 regular season games and 13 playoff games. In fact, the PWHL has broken multiple attendance records and holds the worldwide all-time record for a women’s hockey game, which was surpassed twice during its inaugural season – including the current record of 21,105 fans, set on April 20, 2024, at the Bell Centre in Montréal.

For Scheer, the PWHL’s success starts with the product. And success in sport is something she knows about, having held leadership roles with the NFL, the WNBA’s Connecticut Sun and New York Liberty, MLS’s New York City Football Club and New York Red Bulls and the NBA’s New Jersey Nets.

Fans cheer on the Ottawa Charge, one of the original six PWHL teams. This season, the league welcomed the Vancouver Goldeneyes and the Seattle Torrent.

“We were put in a position where we could bring all of the best hockey players in the world under one umbrella,” Scheer explains, adding that early investment from the Mark Walter Group was critical. “We were able to launch with the highest level of hockey anyone has ever seen, with stars across every team. Our players are authentic, true to who they are. We’ve made a promise that we’re going to put the best product on the ice, and we’ve lived up to that. Every game counts, every point counts.”

With more than 1.2 million attendees across two seasons, global streaming in 106 countries and a digital footprint spanning 150+ nations, the PWHL is setting the standard for purpose-driven, high-impact sports partnerships.

And these partnerships “involve more than just putting their name on a rink board,” Scheer adds. She cites a summer 2025 campaign partnering Barbie and Tim Hortons, in which the QSR chain turned a Toronto location pink to celebrate the launch of a limited-edition PWHL doll collaboration with PWHL superstars Marie-Philip Poulin and Sarah Nurse. “They engaged with our league and with our fans at every level, [resonating] with young girls and with parents about what their child could be and what we stand for,” Scheer says.

Barbie x Tim Hortons turned a Toronto shop pink to launch limited-edition PWHL dolls of Marie-Philip Poulin (left) and Sarah Nurse, sparking excitement among girls and families. 

In another partnership, Molson Coors signed a multi-year sponsorship agreement with the PWHL that kicked off with an award-winning campaign, “See My Name,” during the Toronto-Montreal game at the Mattamy Athletic Centre on March 8, 2024 – International Women’s Day. For that campaign, done in collaboration with creative agency Rethink, the beer brand appeared in the space above the jersey numbers, which is normally hidden by the player’s hair, while the player names were moved below their numbers to make them visible. The campaign brought home seven Effie awards, as well as six Atomic and two strategy awards.

The PWHL’s fanbase skews young, affluent, family-oriented and more than 60% female, making it highly attractive to brands. Furthermore, the league boasts the highest engagement rate on Instagram of 13 major sports leagues, with a 9.4%, and the second-highest engagement rate across all platforms with a 4.9% cross-platform rate. And it’s only increasing year-over-year. Engagement across the PWHL’s league and team social media platforms – including X, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Bluesky and YouTube – grew by 68% over the first season.

Beyond social media, the PWHL and the players have made an even deeper connection with fans, through the league’s “Dear Hockey” tribute to kick off its first season and its “Dear Fans” tribute ahead of its second, which was part of the larger campaign, “Here’s to the Bold,” developed in collaboration with creative partner Uninterrupted Canada (UNC).

Programs like “Ready, Set, Skate,” meanwhile, offer camps and clinics for young girls that have expanded to all eight PWHL markets. Plus, the league and its official jersey partner Bauer have committed that 3% of licensing fees will help subsidize equipment for young girls.

Most importantly, Scheer says, the connection starts with the players. “If you ever watch them when they come out for their pre-game skate, they’ll go up to the glass and they’ll actually interact with the fans. They’ll throw the pucks. After the game, they’ll sign autographs. You’ll see players and fans trading pucks for friendship bracelets and candy for sticks, so there’s this whole interaction before and after the game that happens between our fans.”

For the PWHL – as a brand – the product, players, campaigns and grassroots initiatives combine to make an impact on the sports world and beyond, so that the women’s hockey league can stand alongside other success stories in women’s sports such as the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) and the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL).

Élizabeth Giguère of the New York Sirens signs autographs for young fans. 

And recognition of the PWHL is coming from outside of the sporting world. Beyond earning a strategy 2025 Brand of the Year nod, the PWHL topped the Harris Poll’s first-ever Canadian edition of its highly regarded Reputation Quotient. Based on more than 5,500 interviews with Canadians across the country, it offers a comprehensive ranking of how the “most visible” companies in Canada are perceived by the public across key metrics including trust, ethics, vision and products.

“This is proof of concept,” Scheer says of the league’s successes and potential. “The PWHL has proven that there is a space for professional women’s hockey in the sports ecosystem in North America, and we’re here to stay. We’re here to make a difference in people’s lives. We want a safe space for young girls to have a place to compete and to build confidence and self-esteem and leadership skills. We’re on a mission, and we want people to be a part of our mission and join us every day. We need everyone’s help; we’re not in it alone – the fans matter.”