The U.S. women’s national team’s defense of its back-to-back World Cup championships is proving to be an irresistible story for advertisers.

Ad revenues for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup are up by 50% from the last tournament in 2019, according to Mike Petruzzi, senior VP of sales for Fox Sports, which has U.S. broadcasting rights for the soccer tournament. Ad inventory is 90% sold out for the event, which begins July 20 in Australia and New Zealand.

The higher revenues reflect, in part, a tournament that has grown from 24 teams in 2019 to 32 this year, with a record 29 games to be broadcast live by Fox (another 35 will air on Fox Sports 1). A juggernaut U.S. squad—which Fox Sports itself highlights in a new ad—is another big reason, Petruzzi said.

“The U.S. women's national team is the biggest and best story in women’s sports, period, and they’re going for their third straight championship, so a lot of awareness and popularity follows that team and that’s been the case since ’15,” Petruzzi said.

The “social conversation” is also driving interest, Petruzzi said.

“We’ve got a massive international women’s sporting event which only happens every four years,” he said. “There’s nothing that drives this type of audience that happens on an every-year basis in women’s sports.”

Petruzzi said Women’s World Cup advertisers represent automotive, insurance, financial services, telecom and wireless industries. Volkswagen is the sponsor of the halftime show; Verizon is the pregame sponsor and Google is the sponsor of the “bridge” show between games. 

The Women’s World Cup provides Fox with a “unique audience” who's young and diverse, Petruzzi said.

“Women’s soccer and the athletes in general have done a great job connecting and becoming a part of the conversation, and this summer brands are going to get behind these women because they’re inspirational, impactful personalities,” he said.

Fox Sports’ new ad, known as “USA vs. the World,” was created in-house by Fox Sports marketing and directed by Gary Van Dzura. It features USWNT stars including Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe, Rose Lavelle, Crystal Dunn and Naomi Girma. Fox Sports’ newest soccer analyst and co-captain of the champion 2019 U.S. squad, Carli Lloyd, also makes an appearance.

The ad debuted during Fox's broadcast of the Belmont Stakes on June 11.