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Viewership in women's sports is growing and catching up to men's leagues in certain cases, says investor Kara Nortman, a co-founder of Angel City.

Why it matters: Recent media rights deals and team sales have shown that the women's sports boom is not a moment but a growing movement.

Reality check: The NBA's new media rights deal underscores a wide chasm in the valuation of men's and women's sports, with the WNBA portion just 3% of the $77 billion deal.

Yes, but: That slice is still a big jump for the league. The WNBA is set to receive about $200 million per year, a source with knowledge of the deal terms tells Axios, up from $60 million annually in its last deal.

That could grow by an additional $60 million per year, as the league is expected to cut two additional deals.

What they're saying: "If you look at the data in the WNBA, viewership is essentially 3x, and it's not that far below the men's side anymore," says Nortman, managing partner of Monarch Collective, a women's sports-focused investment fund.

"But you do have different tonnage, meaning fewer teams, shorter season, etc," she says. "I think one of the saving graces or one of the positives ... [is] there are a lot of different opportunities and carve-outs on the women's side to do creative things."

Speaking Wednesday at an Axios Pro event in New York, Nortman says the new deal is important not only for the dollar amount but also the distribution. Older fans may not be familiar with streaming platforms that have aired games.

"Your mom is calling you and saying, 'Sweetie, how do I watch your game on Twitch?' ... We need to create a way for people to come in where they already get content and live sports," Nortman says.

Context: Angel City agreed to sell itself to Disney CEO Bob Iger and his wife Willow Bay, dean of the USC Annenberg School, at a valuation of $250 million — another new data point of growth for the sector.

"I think a lot honestly of what I've realized about myself in the last five or 10 years in women's sports is it is really just finding one data point and a lever," Nortman says.

The bottom line: "Men's sports and women's sports are not the same at this stage," Nortman says. "We're building teams essentially from zero to one."

"It requires a different kind of owner and capital and work in understanding of mission and how to hold that in a way where you can make mistakes but not mistakes that you can't recover from," she adds.

Monarch's Kara Nortman on women's sports growth

"We're building teams essentially from zero to one."

Kara Nortman in a cream blazer and jeans and Tim Baysinger in a blue suit sitting on chairs, holding microphones in front of a backdrop that says Axios Pro

Monarch Collective managing partner Kara Nortman and Tim. Photo: Naomi Paul

Women in sports

Viewership in women&#x27;s sports is growing and catching up to men&#x27;s leagues in certain cases, says investor Kara Nortman, a co-founder of Angel City.Why it matters: Recent media rights deals and team sales have shown that the women&#x27;s sports boom is not a moment but a growing movement.

Monarch's Kara Nortman on women's sports growth

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