Carol Stiff Appointed President, Raquel Braun Named Chief Business Officer

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — FAST Studios, the main premium content material studio specializing in free, ad-supported streaming tv, introduced in the present day two key government appointments of sports activities trade trailblazers at its community, Women’s Sports Network (WSN), the primary and solely 24/7 platform devoted solely to feminine athletes. Carol Stiff, a 30-year veteran government of ESPN Programming and Acquisitions and a tireless advocate for ladies’s sports activities, has been named President of Women’s Sports Network, whereas Raquel Braun, a former EA Sports and FOX Sports government integral in negotiating unprecedented world media partnerships and creating new enterprise alternatives, joins as Chief Business Officer.

Confirming these management positions forward of its first anniversary milestone subsequent month, Women’s Sports Network continues its mission to complement the world of sports activities by delivering reside video games, information and authentic storytelling, showcasing the distinctive achievements and contributions of star feminine athletes, while serving as a seamless doorway for manufacturers. Available in 95 million properties with distribution on Amazon Freevee, Fubo, LG Channels on LG Smart TVs, Local Now, Plex, Tubi, VIZIO WatchFree+, Roku and XumoPlay, Women’s Sports Network has skilled great development in its nascent 12 months of operation with viewership rising by 40%, to 2 million hours seen, since launch. The community includes 1,000 whole hours of programming and is about to function 200 hours of reside occasion protection in 2024 and extra ladies’s sports activities programming than another channel. WSN’s studio, positioned in El Segundo, California, has already created greater than 500 hours of authentic content material, inclusive of its signature present, “Game On,” which gives an in-depth look inside every day prime sports activities headlines and interviews with athletes, coaches and influential leaders in ladies’s sports activities. WSN continues its mission of bringing extra media protection and advertising and marketing help to ladies’s sports activities constructed from partnerships with each main skilled ladies’s sports activities league in the United States, together with the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL), Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA), U.S. Ski and Snowboard, World Surf League (WSL), WNBA, Athletes Unlimited and lots of extra.

As President of Women’s Sports Network, Stiff will oversee the course and continued growth of the community, content material improvement, and handle key league and athlete relationships.

FAST Studios CEO Stuart McLean commented, “Carol Stiff is undeniably an influential voice in the sports media landscape, tirelessly advocating for the growth of women’s sports at the collegiate and professional level through her innovative ideas and programming.” He continued, “Over the past year, she developed our WSN advisory board comprised of key women executives and then served as Chair of the board as we grew the Women’s Sports Network. I am incredibly grateful for her expertise, experience and wide swath of connections in all aspects of women’s sports. I know WSN is in the right hands as she extends her impact as President of the network.”

Stiff has been on the forefront of selling ladies’s sports activities from her student-athlete taking part in profession, to collegiate teaching to her 30-year tenure at ESPN, together with as the previous Vice President of content material integration for espnW. At ESPN, Stiff was accountable for the acquisition and programming of quite a lot of sports activities together with NCAA ladies’s basketball, NCAA Men’s & Women’s championships, WNBA, skilled softball and extra throughout a number of platforms comparable to ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNews, ESPN+. Stiff serves on the Women’s Sports Foundation Board of Trustees, as President of the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame Board of Trustees, Collegiate Women’s Sports Awards Board of Directors and the Pat Summitt Alzheimer’s Advisory Board. In 2021, Stiff was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, acquired the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame John R. Bunn award, and acquired the Naismith Lifetime Achievement Award and an Edward R. Murrow award.

“Women’s sports are in the midst of a shining moment, breaking records across numerous fronts. From the dynamic participation of girls and women to thriving live audiences at sporting events, surging viewership figures, the emergence of new professional leagues, league expansions, soaring franchise valuations, and increased investments and promotions, it’s evident that women’s sports have become a thriving business. As the saying goes ‘If you build it, they will come.’ Join us at the Women’s Sports Network as we ride this wave of progress, carrying the momentum forward and build a network for everyone to witness,” stated Carol Stiff, President of Women’s Sports Network.

Additionally, Raquel Braun brings a wealth of expertise to Women’s Sports Network. In her position as Chief Business Officer, Braun will oversee the community’s enterprise technique & operations, and league and distribution partnerships.

As a senior enterprise improvement government at EA Sports previous to becoming a member of WSN, Braun was instrumental in launching groundbreaking partnerships on the intersection of sports activities, leisure, and gaming. In her position, she led enterprise improvement efforts with respect to world media partnerships, content material improvement & manufacturing, expertise engagements, together with celebrities, athletes, and broadcasters, and esports initiatives throughout EA Sports’ portfolio of manufacturers. Prior to becoming a member of EA Sports, Raquel was Vice President of Business and Legal Affairs at FOX Sports the place she labored on the acquisition of main sports activities rights for FOX’s nationwide and worldwide sports activities networks, managed high-profile expertise negotiations, suggested on manufacturing operations and technique, and led quite a lot of production-related offers for FOX Sports’ premier properties, together with the FIFA Women’s World Cups in 2019 and 2015, the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Super Bowl LIV, and the 2017 World Series. An alumna of Georgetown Law, Braun additionally serves as an Adjunct Professor on the Law Center, and because the Chair of the University of Florida’s Sports Management Industry Advisory Board.

“I am thrilled to join Women’s Sports Network as we build an innovative business that champions female athletes, creates additional value for our league, team and distribution partners, and ensures women’s sports receive the 24/7 coverage and support they deserve,” stated Chief Business Officer Raquel Braun. She continued, “I’ve known Stuart for years as a constant innovator in the media business and Carol is an absolute trailblazer in women’s sports. Together the possibilities to further shine a bright light, highlighting women in sports, are endless.”

Women’s Sports Network continues to interrupt boundaries to make sure that feminine athletes have a platform and that their followers have alternatives to find extra in regards to the sports activities stars they admire. Stiff and Braun shall be instrumental in assuring better accessibility to ladies’s sports activities protection, amplifying the voices of athletes and their coaches, for all sports activities followers.

ABOUT WOMEN’S SPORTS NETWORK
Women’s Sports Network is a free, ad-supported, 24/7 streaming vacation spot accessible on Amazon Freevee, Fubo, LG Channels on LG Smart TVs, Local Now, Plex, Tubi, VIZIO WatchFree+, Roku and XumoPlay. Launched by FAST Studios in 2022, Women’s Sports Network goals to advertise variety within the sports activities and leisure industries by providing viewers content material that celebrates feminine athletes each on and off the sector. Women’s Sports Network has confirmed participation from all the key sports activities leagues, together with the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL), Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA), U.S. Ski and Snowboard, and World Surf League (WSL), WNBA, Athletes Unlimited and lots of extra. For additional data go to: https://womenssports.com.

ABOUT FAST STUDIOS
FAST Studios (FAST) is a multi-faceted premium content material studio specializing in content material creation, advertising and marketing, distribution, and monetization of free ad-supported streaming tv channels (FAST). Channels embody Women’s Sports Network, the one 24/7 channel devoted to feminine athletes, SpartanTV, the world’s main impediment race and life-style wellness model, and RACING America, the official media accomplice of the Race Team Alliance that consists of 16 NASCAR Cup Series groups. FAST Studios concurrently serves dozens of streaming platforms who want high quality content material channels to attract loyal audiences, model entrepreneurs who should effectively attain fragmented audiences at scale, and the rising inhabitants of streaming viewers who count on premium content material experiences. For additional data go to: www.FASTstudios.com.

SOURCE Women’s Sports Network