Ally, Charlotte Sports Foundation Renew Women’s Hoop Deal To 2028

Crowd at the 2023 Ally Tipoff, the first iteration of the showcase sponsored by Charlotte Sports Foundation and Ally Financial.

Duncan Littlefield, Charlotte Sports Foundation

As the start of women’s collegiate basketball hits its stride, Ally Financial and Charlotte Sport Foundation announce they have extended their partnership hosting the Ally Tipoff through 2028. This announcement comes days before the third iteration of the showcase, which this year will feature a top 25 matchup between University of Southern Cal (USC) and NC State on November 9.

Through the partnership, the marquee collegiate women’s basketball event will stay home in Charlotte and be played at the Spectrum Center for the next three years. The Ally Tipoff, although young in its iteration has established itself as a premiere women’s basketball event spotlighting teams and players on the national stage. In its first two years, the Ally Tipoff drew 15,000 fans thanks in large part to the presence of the Iowa Hawkeyes and Caitlin Clark in the showcase. As the premiere event moves forward it will include:

-A doubleheader featuring a Carolinas showdown between three-time national champion South Carolina and North Carolina, as well as NC State vs. Kentucky in 2026

-A 2025 national championship game rematch between the SC Gamecocks and 12-time national champions, the UConn Huskies in 2027

-Two historic programs clashing in 2028 between South Carolina and NC State

In reference to participating and playing in the Ally Tipoff for the next three years, South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley said, “We couldn’t be more excited to sign on to playing in the Ally Tipoff for the next three seasons. The Charlotte Sports Foundation and Ally know how to create great matchups and then roll out the red carpet for teams, and Charlotte is a tremendous basketball city that will welcome fans from every program and create an amazing atmosphere to play.”

Additionally, Kentucky head coach Kenny Brooks stated, “My team was a participant during the inaugural event in 2023 [Brooks previously coaches the Virginia Tech Hokies], and it was one of the best events that I’ve been associated with. Ally Bank teamed up with the Charlotte Sports Foundation and has made a genuine investment in women’s sports and this particular event showcases the growth in that area. It’s an honor to participate again and I hope Kentucky fans will help us put on a spectacular show in Charlotte.”

Impact of Investing in Women’s Sporting Events

Ally Financial is not a new player to investing in women’s sports. The company has been instrumental in partnering with the NWSL and NWSL Players Association, the WNBA and 2025 WNBA champion Las Vegas Aces, the Unrivaled three-on-three basketball league, the United States Golf Association, tour of Wrexham AFC Women and several player-direct relationships including former UConn Huskies, now WNBA players Breanna Stewart and Paige Bueckers.

However, alongside the Charlotte Sport Foundation, Ally realized an opportunity to provide the women’s game a season opener worthy of the momentum and growth of the sport. According to Stephanie Marciano, Head of Brand and Sports Marketing at Ally Financial, “We’ve been with the Charlotte Sports Foundation from the beginning on this. We loved their vision from the start. Women’s basketball needed a real premium tip off event. Men’s basketball has had this for years, but we love the idea of building this together.”

She continued, “We have a shared commitment to continue to build a best in class experience and event and be really flexible to try new things each year. So it was an easy decision, but it was the right time to do it because of the future plans and mapping out three years continues to show our long-term investment in this event in our hometown of Charlotte and in our strategy in women’s sports.”

Ally has seen this investment already pay off for their company, as women’s sports fans conceive the company extremely favorably. According to internal Ally data:

-Fans of women’s sports have higher likability and preference for Ally brand compared to general sports fans

-Fans of women’s sports are 3x more likely to say they intend to use Ally products in the future vs. general consumers

-Since launching the 50/50 pledge, awareness of Ally has grown at 2x the pace among fans of women’s sports vs. general consumers

-Ally’s brand valuation is up +31% in a time when the category overall is declining. (as measured by Brand Finance)

Additionally, Charlotte Sports Foundation continues to find ways to bring economy and tourism to Charlotte, a city in the top 25 metro economies in the United States. For perspective, Will Pitts, CEO of the Charlotte Sports Foundation explained, “Charlotte Sports Foundation events and activities last year generated over $90 million in economic impact and we welcomed over 200,000 fans through our community at the various events, driving nearly nine million viewers across all the broadcasts for those events.”

He continued and reiterated that hosting women’s sporting events is an emphasis for the foundation, “We certainly are in conversations about a lot of different future opportunities. Ultimately, our goal is to compliment what currently resides in the sports landscape in Charlotte. We’re looking, pursuing, and considering a lot of different opportunities in the sports landscape and believe Charlotte is well positioned to continue to grow in that space.”

Commitment to Women’s Basketball Fans

In hosting the event, Charlotte Sport Foundation and Ally also prioritized community efforts to grow women’s basketball, as well as the fan experience at the Tipoff. The two entities are hosting a basketball clinic with the Charlotte Mecklenburg school system with a session on financial education, donated tickets to local nonprofits, and will be bringing in veteran employee resource groups (ERGs) to the game.

In addition, Ally committed resources to provide in and out of arena experiences which include a fast-line entrance for Ally customers, chances to win seat upgrades, giveaways and committed marketing efforts to capture content and provide behind the scenes looks at the game through basketball influencers/personalities.

Again, these efforts are all to provide women’s collegiate basketball with an elevated environment and atmosphere, as Marciano emphasized, “The first, the inaugural event of the Ally Tipoff, one of the coaches talked about that his team walked in and after playing the game, they felt like this was a Final Four environment. So that matters to us. We do measure success in how we’re impacting the landscape and how we’re impacting athlete experiences.”

Pitts reiterated this, “We really believe that this is and will continue to be the premier women’s college basketball event in the country starting each and every season annually. And that’s certainly our hope and desire to continue to do that. And I think the matchups that we have for future years convey our efforts and our belief that that is something we can continue to do.”

The 2025 Ally Tipoff will take place on Sunday, November 9 at 3 pm EST on ESPN.

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