Major League Baseball (MLB) is making a big investment in women’s sports by supporting the new Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL), which is starting its first season this June. This marks MLB’s first full partnership with a professional women’s sports league, showing strong support during a time when women’s sports are quickly growing in popularity and value.

Although exact financial details weren’t shared, MLB will help promote the AUSL and its athletes by using its marketing, sales, broadcast, and social media resources. The league will also receive funding from MLB to help with operations and expansion.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said that the league wants to help softball grow and be successful, aiming to build a long-lasting and meaningful league that supports female athletes and fans.

Jon Patricof, CEO of Athletes Unlimited, believes the partnership will bring a lot of attention to women’s professional softball. He highlighted the sport’s growth at the youth and college levels and its return to the Olympics in 2028 as reasons for optimism.

Games from the AUSL will be shown on MLB Network and MLB.TV. ESPN is also involved, having agreed to broadcast at least 30 softball games. This comes after over 2 million people watched the 2024 NCAA Women’s College World Series finals, a 24% increase from the previous year.

Kim Ng, the AUSL Commissioner, called this deal a major turning point for women’s sports. She said that MLB’s support will help build a strong professional league and send a strong message about the value of women in sports.

The AUSL’s debut season starts on June 7 and features four teams playing 24 games across 12 cities. The season will end with an All-Star Cup. By 2026, the league will expand to six teams and shift to a city-based format.

Ng added that this partnership will help grow the fanbase and inspire future softball players.