Fandom Unpacked

Rewriting the Playbook: What the Rise of The Gist Says About the Future of Fandom

• Situation • Season 1 • Episode 15

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Ever felt like sports media wasn't speaking your language? Jacie deHoop, co-founder of The Gist, is changing that conversation by creating content for "GISTers" – predominantly female, millennial and Gen Z sports fans who love the game but haven't felt fully welcomed by traditional coverage.

When deHoop and her co-founders launched The Gist, they faced significant skepticism. Critics claimed women weren't interested in sports and there wasn't a viable business model. Fast forward to today, with over one million newsletter subscribers and a 46% open rate, those critics have been proven spectacularly wrong. What The Gist recognized that others missed was the massive untapped potential in serving fans who love sports but don't necessarily fit the traditional mold.

What makes The Gist's approach particularly powerful is authenticity. They don't treat women's sports or female fans as a diversity project or marketing opportunity, but as a legitimate business venture with tremendous growth potential. As deHoop puts it, underserved audiences shouldn't be dismissed as "niche" – smart businesses should examine the actual addressable market size, spending power, and influence these fans wield.

Whether you're a sports industry professional or simply a fan who's felt overlooked by mainstream coverage, this conversation offers a fascinating glimpse into how The Gist is transforming sports media by centering those who've traditionally been left on the sidelines.

Recorded Tuesday, August 5th, 2025
Hosts: Damian Bazadona, CEO & Founder, Situation & Lisa Cecchini, Managing Partner, Situation
Guest: Jacie deHoop, Co-Founder, The Gist
Producer: Peter Yagecic, Innovation Advisor, Situation

Peter Yagecic:

You're listening to Fandom Unpacked the podcast, an audio version of our regular live stream series where we unpack modern fandom with some of the brightest minds in sports and entertainment. I'm producer Peter Yagisic, and joining me for today's Q&A from Situation are CEO and founder Damian Bazzadana and managing partner Lisa Cicchini. Founder Damian Bazzadana and managing partner Lisa Cicchini. Our guest today is JC DeHoop, co-founder of the Gist, the fan-first sports media brand that's shaking up the male-dominated sports industry.

Damian Bazadona:

Here's Damian to get us started. Let's do it, JC, big fan work you're doing. You and your team are doing it. That's awesome. How would you describe a jister? Who are they and why do they love what you're doing?

Jacie deHoop:

Yeah, a jister is someone we define as someone who's really interested in sports but may not fit the mold of the kind of more traditional sports fan. It's really a fan that's been historically underserved and that, in my opinion, uh, presents a really huge growth opportunity for the entire sports ecosystem. I think there's this kind of periphery of fans that haven't necessarily felt like sports is for them, and if we can convert these fans to feel seen and to start to engage, follow sports by tickets, by merch, the entire sports world from both the women's and men's sports perspective, can really benefit. Demographics-wise, a jister for us is really typically female. Female identifying is really most of our audience, but we have a lot of male jisters too, millennial or Gen Z, so kind of younger, next generation of sports fans, and typically it's going to be based in a major sports market as well In New York and LA, chicago, dallas are all really popular for us, but that's pretty broad, I would say.

Jacie deHoop:

Ultimately, what makes a jister and why they choose us and love the jist, is because they often haven't felt like sports is necessarily for them, they haven't felt represented in the sports world, they haven't been centered in sports and have often really been an afterthought, and I think many people have seen kind of the shrink it and pink it effect that has taken hold in sports over the last few years or what have you, and I think the other piece of it is that these are fans that are busy but still want to know what's going on. Um, and they, they really want something that's going to meet them where they are, to keep them in the loop of what's happening, but might not necessarily sit down watch the entire broadcast kind of thing too. A lot of success and growth has been because we've really focused on having trust and authenticity with our audience and with our gisters. It really feels like this community around sports and again, I think for many folks who haven't necessarily felt like sports has been for them, that's really, really valuable.

Damian Bazadona:

Tell me a little bit about the background of the gist. And I think there's so much, as you said, there's a huge opportunity. Why was there such a huge opportunity, I suppose, and really, what was the initial response that you got when you first I mean, it was 2017, 2018, I believe is when this all sort of came about what was the initial response you got as you started telling folks this is the idea.

Jacie deHoop:

Yeah.

Jacie deHoop:

So 2017 was when we first my co-founders and I first came up with the kind of concept and idea for the GIST, and while that really isn't that long ago seven years ago it was actually a very, very different time, I would say. The growth of women's sports, the growth of just like in stardom around female athletes and just the whole conversation around women being part of the sports world really wasn't where it is today. And so when we first came up with the concept, it was really born out of a pain point that myself and my co-founders experienced ourselves in just loving sports, but not necessarily feeling like it loves you back, not feeling like we had friends and particularly other female friends, to talk about sports with, to connect through sports with, to watch sports with, and so we wanted to create this community that was kind of the exact opposite of that kind of boys club mentality around sports, and so we came up with the idea very organically and, again, really just out of a pain point we experienced ourselves in 2017 and then launched the company in 2018. And the initial feedback was very mixed. I would say it was interesting, because I think that there was a lot of interest in what we were building, because I think a lot of people in sports whether that's from a media perspective, from a league team properties perspective has wanted to grow with women as it wanted to better understand that female fan and does see that as a tremendous growth opportunity.

Jacie deHoop:

But almost in the same breath, we got a lot of pushback. Um, we had heard a lot of like we've tried that before. Um, women just aren't interested in sports. Um, we heard a lot of feedback that was just like women's sports just is, doesn't have the um, really there isn't a business case for it. Like it really it came down to like there isn't and this isn't an investable opportunity because it's not large enough.

Jacie deHoop:

Um, I would say, fast forward to now. That conversation has changed A lot of our, the early folks that we spoke with, who passed on investing in us and what have you are seeing that there has been this tremendous growth and this really big cultural shift over the last few years too when it comes to women's sports and female fandom. But in those early days it was actually it was a really different time which, again, it's not that long ago, but we have to remember this was kind of we launched before COVID. We launched before the Caitlin Clark effect. Like the WNBA now is absolutely massive, like a Women's World Cup is a huge, huge event. But that really wasn't the case even you know, five, six, seven years ago, and so we got a lot of pushback in our early days.

Damian Bazadona:

I think your growth is incredible and it must bring you such joy when you see some of these folks from years ago when they said this isn't an investable opportunity, it's just not big enough of a market to see the success you've had. Maybe joy is the wrong word, but a little bit of. I told you so, but you know.

Jacie deHoop:

It's fun. It's a little fun.

Damian Bazadona:

There you go, Lisa. I know you got some questions.

Lisa Cecchini:

Yeah, and JC, thank you so much for being here. I mean, obviously, a topic that's very important to me. For those that don't know me, I'm the huge like sports theater hybrid in the office. I love both so much. My first question is about the intro that Peter gave straight off your website. You're described as fan first and I'd love to know a little bit more about what fan first means to you. Is that about, like, how you're thinking about content, how you're curating content? I feel like a lot of sports center might say that they're thinking about the fan first, but how do you really feel like you're differentiating as a fan-first sports property?

Jacie deHoop:

Yeah, I think for us it really means centering the gesture in every decision that we make and in everything that we do.

Jacie deHoop:

So certainly from a content perspective, but from a revenue and branded perspective as well, even from an ops and data perspective.

Jacie deHoop:

I think the key difference for us versus a more kind of traditional sports media company is that we really started the company as fans ourselves. We don't have a background in media, in sports, in journalism, which certainly has its downfalls Sometimes. We have had to learn a lot. It has certainly been a learning curve, but I think it also means that we approach everything a little bit differently and with like what is the solution for the fan? Like what would? What do we actually want as as really our core demo that we serve. I think that the gist is really being born out of a personal pain point and we don't necessarily have the experience, the expertise, the authority to say, like you know, this is how it's always been done, this is just the way that we do it, this is what works. It's a little bit different and, again, like we think of it as very fan first, because we've really been built, I think, in a relatively grassroots way and from just really what we felt like was missing as fans.

Lisa Cecchini:

Awesome and I know also one of your goals is to cover men and women's sports equally, which, of course, is a differentiator in the sports space. Is there also a goal to try and maybe move some audiences that maybe didn't think they were into women's sports but try and convert them? Or is that just kind of like a nice ripple effect? But it's not really something that you're trying to do is to convert people who maybe were rejecters of a certain type of sport or a certain gendered sport, that kind of thing.

Jacie deHoop:

Right, yeah, I would say yes, that is a big part of our strategy and what we try to achieve. I think and I'm glad you touched on this, Lisa, because I think that, as there's been this tremendous growth in women's sports over the last few years, I think that female fans equaling women's sports is a bit really like reductive, and I think that those two are often really conflated. Women love women's and men's sports, and men love women's and men's sports, and men love women's and men's sports. In fact, male fans are really what's driving a lot of the growth in women's sports right now. And so, yes, we are really all about bringing someone into the sports world, whether that's the women's sports world or the men's sports world, and making you feel welcome and falling in love with it.

Jacie deHoop:

Um, that might mean discovering a totally new sport that, just like you, hadn't been on your radar before.

Jacie deHoop:

Like we have so many jisters who maybe have historically been a huge NBA fan and they just don't have the time to be watching everything and watching sports night every day and what have you.

Jacie deHoop:

So they subscribe to the gist and then, through our content, they're like oh, I'm getting all of these updates on what's happening in the W and it is so dramatic and so fun and I'm starting to fall in love with it and follow it and what have you? But then we also have a lot of newer sports and I think that you know the W is really pushing the forefront of the growth of women's sports. But we have jisters who have, who come to us for, like, volleyball, softball there's so many other sports that jisters have become a fan of through us. I think that we've become this really great kind of entry point and that is agnostic of gender and I think that just generally making again those fans that have felt kind of on the periphery feel more included is so essential to just growing fandom overall, and I think that's certainly men as fans of women's sports and women as fans of men's sports. I think it goes both ways.

Lisa Cecchini:

Yeah, I definitely want to give a shout out to the men or people that identify as male out there that are fans of female sports. I went to the 2019 Women's World Cup in France and I got emotional seeing men wearing jerseys with women's last names on the back, as I just. It just was so meaningful and powerful to me seeing people walk around France proudly wearing these jerseys with their whatever, whatever country it was from, so it was awesome.

Jacie deHoop:

Yeah, 100%. And I want to call out too that, like for women's sports to grow, we need male fans. That is just. I think it's important for that to just be really explicit and to be recognized because, again, they're actually currently the the largest growth driver um of women's sports has been, has been, amongst men, and so I think that it's a really good call out. And, again, I think, on the on the other hand, from men's sports perspective, there are so many female fans out there, myself included that love everything wmba, but I'm a huge NFL fan and, again, that's been more of an audience that I think has been really historically underserved, in that there's just so much growth potential in centering them a little bit more, making them feel included and part of it.

Lisa Cecchini:

Absolutely. I don't think people realize that of the four major male sports leagues in the United States, that the distribution is, at the lowest, 30% female fans at the lowest. Sometimes it's closer to 50, which it is in the NFL. So it's like there is this huge group that has not historically been as recognized. So yeah, absolutely. I'd love to also talk about younger fans, because you mentioned that in who a jister is that you do have a lot of younger fans and just what are some of the gaps that you also seeing that, what younger fans want to see and how the gist is helping to fulfill what they're looking for in sports coverage yeah, so our jisters are predominantly millennials and gen z, so we we think a lot about this kind of younger fan.

Jacie deHoop:

I think of it as really like this next generation of fans, and there's been quite a bit of research that has indicated that younger fans, and particularly Gen Z, isn't as interested in sports, which I think has sent the industry into a tailspin in some ways. But I I really vehemently disagree. We have found that there is a ton of interest amongst Gen Zs and just that kind of younger millennial as well in sports, but it does show up in different ways than it did for their parents and I think that has a lot to do with shifting sports media consumption and there's various factors that play into that. But I think a few of the key things that we have found younger fans are most interested in and engaging with are the athletes. I think that has been just a huge growth driver for women's sports, especially these female athletes being so much bigger than the sport that they play. Like really transcending their sport has been really amazing to see and of course, social media plays a massive part in that. But it's male athletes as well that Gen Z is following and kind of falling in love with and they're going to be following their career and what they're up to outside of the league and the team and they're going to be traveling around with them. I think is really important for just people to realize. I think, like they, the athletes really are the biggest growth driver and are really what is driving that next generation to pay attention to the league.

Jacie deHoop:

I would also say that there's this interest in just like storytelling beyond the scores. I don't think that's very novel or cutting edge. It's kind of like yes, obviously, but I think we're seeing it even more so with this next generation. I think we know attention spans are much lower and that the scores and just what happened in the game is not engaging enough. I think that this next generation is looking for like this.

Jacie deHoop:

So what Like? How does this intersect with culture? How does this play into the bigger picture of this season? And so we're finding that definitely providing more of this storytelling and having an actual narrative and theme around what's happening, whether it's in a single game or a season or the playoff run or what have you, that's really what's drawing fans in and I think, especially newer fans. That's what's making someone who's maybe a more casual fan actually start paying attention and following a little bit more closely. I would also say like, from a sports media consumption perspective, is really like meeting her where she already is. We find that this next generation isn't necessarily going to download a new app or subscribe to something new, and so meeting her on those existing channels is really important.

Peter Yagecic:

Fandom Unpacked is brought to you by Situation, an award-winning marketing agency built for live entertainment that champions the power of unforgettable shared experiences around the world. We offer full marketing and creative services for experience-based brands in live entertainment, attractions, theater, sports, arts and culture, and more. Check us out at SituationInteractivecom. Now back to our Q&A.

Lisa Cecchini:

I know we have some questions popping in, so, peter, I'd love to turn it over to you.

Peter Yagecic:

Yeah, I'd love to turn it over to you. Could you talk a little bit about the different types of content that are differentiating you from some of your competition, or can you talk about the kinds of things that you see that are really working, whether it's interviews with players on the podcast or just different types of media that you see is really working for the GIST?

Jacie deHoop:

Yeah, yeah, I mean touching on that. I think sports media consumption and just media consumption in general has shifted quite a bit. I think we used to be it used to be all about the live broadcast and live sports will always be aren't watching live sports and aren't watching the broadcast. Some of them are going to be watching highlights on a channel like a YouTube or on socials and what have you, but they are scrolling in different places and so again, when you're trying to engage with that peripheral fan, there's a few different channels that we find and kind of formats that we find have worked best. There's a few different channels that we find and kind of formats that we find have worked best.

Jacie deHoop:

Our newsletter, an email newsletter, has really been our signature channel from day one. The very first night we came up with the concept of the gist. We wanted to start sending a newsletter. We have a lot of corporate kind of gisters who are checking their inbox incessantly, and I think that the newsletter is a really interesting way to build that feeling of community. There's a level of frequency to it. We have a 46% open rate. That's over double industry average and you know, I think that is a channel that is not the most sexy or cutting edge or what have you Like. It's very simple, but it has allowed us to build that really, really strong relationship and trust with our gisters. I would say our social channels and by that I mean like an Instagram, a TikTok are foundational, super, super important to a company like us as well. I don't think that's any surprise. I would say that we think of our socials as more of that kind of like discovery channel, though it's not where we build as much of that community relationship. It's a little bit more difficult to do on socials. You're so at the whim of the algorithms and what have you, but a lot of gisters discover us through socials and they're absolutely foundational.

Jacie deHoop:

I wouldn't say that the interview style athlete interview style is necessarily something that always hits. I think it can, but it really depends on the athlete we found, what their story is and their personality, like how they're performing. There's a lot of different factors at play. I wouldn't say that those kinds of athlete interviews are necessarily a silver bullet that always work.

Jacie deHoop:

But I will touch on our podcast because I think that it's been interesting to see how that our podcast kind of listenership has evolved over the years and I think our podcast listeners are highly, highly engaged. Where the newsletter has certainly a certain level of engagement we have over a million subscribers there. Our podcast is a lot smaller but those that listen to the podcast and have been around for a while feel so tied to our community. And again, we don't necessarily do interview style content there, but it's more like telling those athletes stories and providing a little bit more of that contextual storytelling on the pod that I think that format is just really conducive to a little bit more depth and context. That is very difficult to achieve in a very short newsletter. That's very quippy.

Peter Yagecic:

Well, I'm going to sneak in one more audience question before I kick it back to Lisa. Are there any headlines or big stories in the past few years that you feel perfectly personified as just a previously underserved perspective on sports, that have helped you achieve liftoff? Anything that sticks out.

Jacie deHoop:

There are so many. Anything that sticks out Hmm, there are so many. The one headline or kind of moment that I think shifted the concept of the gist to being a little bit more mainstream was actually Serena Williams in her retirement. I think that there was a lot of intersections. Like, serena Williams is just such a huge superstar again, is that kind of athlete that transcends the sport, has like just so much personality, so much business and commerce around her. I think her pregnancy, her kind of retirement tour, like that last US Open run wasa, really it was like such an amazing moment for just like women's sports.

Jacie deHoop:

And I think tennis is an interesting one where we've seen a lot of that work happen way back in the day with Billie Jean King, so that women's tennis is at the place that it is now. And I think just seeing everybody talking about Serena Williams and her retirement and what that meant for the sport of tennis and what that meant for women's sports overall, I noticed that that was a really interesting shift. I was in New York at the time at the Open, so I think I was like really in that hubbub. And then the other kind of it's not necessarily a headline, but I would say. The Olympics in general are another really great example where women's and men's sports are more on that level playing field. This last Paris Olympics was the first that we had gender equity and the storylines that come out of the Olympic Games where again there's a little bit more of that level playing field and everyone's coming in as a newer fan and not knowing the ins and outs of a lot of those sports.

Lisa Cecchini:

That is a really amazing event for us where we find that our coverage our content, our way of thinking about sports really transcends and reaches that kind of other level, either content programming or anything. That was like a big learning or surprise, because I think most of our listeners know that generally about the shift of coverage that happened just organically at first and then the explosion that kind of just came quickly after.

Jacie deHoop:

Yeah, I would say from our perspective, we didn't change much before after during the rise of Caitlin Clark, because I think our content has been a real inflection point where all of a sudden, a lot more people have been paying attention and we've certainly seen that has been a shift.

Jacie deHoop:

I think the macro environment has really changed when it comes to like is this an investable opportunity? Are we putting brand dollars against women's sports and the WNBA and I? That has been a really significant shift in the last few years with the rise of Caitlin Clark. But I would say for us, from a content perspective, we really haven't changed much. We've always covered women's basketball very closely. I think it's actually been interesting because we have seen and this happens in any new space we've seen a lot of new entrants and so when we first started the GIST, we had no competition. You know it was very much so a white space and people would ask, like, who are your competitors? And there really weren't any at the time.

Jacie deHoop:

And that has certainly changed, which is going to happen and should happen, like we need more content, more coverage, everything and again, whether that's around women's sports or in centering female fans, I think that it has been with any like exponential growth immediately.

Jacie deHoop:

There's also people that are jumping on the opportunity to make a quick buck, like that always happens in business.

Jacie deHoop:

And so I think, staying true to our roots we started the gist serving gisters and also like making it known that we have been here for some time and are not kind of jumping on that bandwagon I think is actually very important, and I find that female fans in particular are very, very discerning and they are really paying attention to the brands that are, in particular, that are showing up and, you know, actually investing in the sustainable growth of women's sports, versus doing a quick campaign to capitalize on some of the momentum and the headlines that are happening right now. And so I think the fact that we have been in this space and growing this space for some time goes a long way with this audience. It might not with other fans, but I think for our gisters that's been a really important factor too, as the space has become a little bit more crowded and everyone has a little bit of a different approach to engaging with a moment, like Caitlin Clark and her fandom.

Lisa Cecchini:

Awesome. I have one fun question and then I will pass it back to Peter, but on our last Fandom Unpacked, we had Nicole from the US Open, which was a great conversation, and those of us that are based in New York, we're all getting excited for the US Open, which is just three weeks away. She had to rightfully dodge this question because she works at the US Open, but I'd love to know who do you like for both the women's draw and the men's draw for the US Open?

Jacie deHoop:

Oh, okay, I'm a huge Coco golf fan. I am Canadian, so I would love Leila Fernandez to just like hit it out of the water, and she might. She has been hitting very well, but I do think what Coco represents for just the growth of the sport and American fandom for tennis is really special. I love the way she plays and she did not have a great run at the Canadian Open that is happening right now or the National Bank Open happening in Toronto right now, but she will bounce back and I would put my money on Coco if I was a betting woman.

Jacie deHoop:

And on the men's side, I say my like fan favorite and who I love to watch is Tiafoe. I think he just gets to a whole other level in New York and feel the energy of the crowd and him just like. He is somebody who I think does such an amazing job at like feeding off the crowd's energy and the crowd gives him that back, and so he would be my favorite to watch. Like I really want to get to one of his matches. Um, I would probably put my money on sinner, yeah yeah, you're like.

Lisa Cecchini:

You just said all the things that I would have said.

Peter Yagecic:

I love it, peter uh, well, okay, then I'm going to pick a fun audience question to follow up with that one on and this is clearly from someone who's come to a lot of our fandom unpacks, because it's a callback they said F1 expanded its fan base with Netflix's Drive to Survive series and professional tennis benefited from the movie Challengers starring Zendaya. Is there any sport that you'd like to see? Get the Hollywood treatment next to bring some more visibility to it.

Jacie deHoop:

There are so many. The one that I think should be the first candidate for a Netflix docuseries would be volleyball, or a Netflix docu-series would be volleyball. I think that women's college volleyball is, like, so exciting. I don't know if anyone in the audience or if you guys have seen just some of the audience numbers in those stadiums, but it is just crazy. And I think the athleticism that you see when watching volleyball, like I find it to be a really interesting sport.

Jacie deHoop:

If you are a more casual fan or don't have like a background and don't necessarily like it's very easy to follow. And, again, I think that just the athleticism that's on display is so fun. And I would be paying attention to women's college volleyball and then that pro pipeline. I think there's a few leagues right now that are really taking off and there's and there's a few, and that's where I think there'll be probably a natural consolidation but, um, you know, making these women stars and again like larger than their sport, um, I think, I think volleyball is very ripe with opportunity, um, and I think it will be the next big thing.

Peter Yagecic:

Awesome, Well, Netflix. I hope you're listening because I've watched that. Damien, do you have a?

Damian Bazadona:

question. Yeah, one more. You know, I think the whole point of Fandom Unpacked is we bring different industries together sports, entertainment, media space, live events all about fandom. You have done something pretty incredible. You've engaged groups of audiences and fans that have not been spoken to in the way that they want to be spoken to. You create a whole business around it. What would be your advice to the folks on this call there could be F1 on this call the tennis folks, all the different industries represented here today. What would be your advice to them on what to do or what not to do in the sports and entertainment media space? Based on what you've learned, there's a lot.

Jacie deHoop:

I think the biggest piece would be that there are a lot of audiences and fans that are considered niche um or another big objection that we've certainly got is that we've already tried growing with that fan or with that audience and I would interrogate that a little bit further. I think when we've gotten a lot of this feedback I mentioned in our early days especially, but I think for those on the call I would really look at the numbers and think about and really unpack, like, what is the actual total addressable market here? How much um does this fan spend in other categories? How much influence do they have over their household spending and why are they currently underserved, and you start to see, I think, a really tremendous business opportunity.

Jacie deHoop:

I think that the incorrect way of going about it is as a project, a cause, a diversity quota or project. I think that it is the right thing to do to center these underserved fans or other audiences or more diverse fans and what have you. I do think it is the right thing to do, but I think there's a business opportunity here and I think treating it like that and investing in it like that is incredibly important. To kind of taking whether it's women's sports or female fandom, or how this applies to your industry to a whole other level. You need to make the business case for it. I think that's what I would leave the group with is kind of thinking about some of those spaces, places, fans that may have been deemed as a niche or a smaller opportunity, and like actually going through the numbers and seeing what that could look like if they are centered and heard, and like really what that growth could look like.

Damian Bazadona:

Yeah, no, I totally agree, and as a business we usually speak of, I don't think there's much of a ceiling for what people will do for things they're passionate about. It's just a tremendous business opportunity. If you're going to tap it Totally, yeah, thank you, peter, take it.

Peter Yagecic:

That's going to do it for this episode of Fandom Unpacked the podcast. If you liked what you heard, please be sure to leave us a review on Apple Podcasts. Find out how to join us live for an upcoming recording at situationlivecom slash fan. We'll see you next time, true believers.