EXCLUSIVE: Olympic Gold medalists Sue Bird and Megan Rapinoe have inked with WME in all areas.
The sports icons will be working with the agency across brand partnerships, books, scripted and non-scripted TV, digital and podcasting, among other areas.
Bird retired from the WNBA in 2022 after a historic career spanning three decades as the world’s premier point guard, in which she won five Olympic Gold Medals, four World Championship Medals, two NCAA Championships, and four WNBA Championships, among numerous other accolades. In 2024, her jersey was retired by the Seattle Storm, becoming only the second player in franchise history to receive this honor; she officially joined the Seattle Storm ownership group, and it was recently announced that she will be inducted into both the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame and the Naismith Hall of Fame later this year.
Rapinoe is a two-time World Cup Champion, Olympic Gold medalist and soccer legend. She helped lead the US Women’s National Team to the 2019 Women’s World Cup Championship, where she took home the tournament’s two top honors – the Golden Boot for top scorer, and the Golden Ball for the best player in the tournament. In addition to her countless soccer accolades, Megan is also a New York Times bestselling author, one of Time100’s Most Influential People, and a Presidential Medal of Freedom award recipient. Rapinoe recently had her jersey retired by the OL Reign (the first player in franchise history and the second player in the entire NWSL to have this honor) and she was just inducted into the University of Portland Hall of Fame.
At the end of 2022, Rapinoe and Bird launched A Touch More, a production company focused on producing entertaining stories that center unique voices and underserved communities. Their first TV scripted series, Playing the Field, (based on Meryl Wilsner’s best-selling novel, Cleat Cute) is currently in development. Playing the Field is an ensemble show set in the world of women’s soccer and a contemporary romance that follows a young soccer player as she juggles being the rookie, her goals of making the national team and a budding romance with the team captain.
Rapinoe and Bird also re-launched their podcast, A Touch More: The Podcast last year. Initially an Instagram Live series originating during the height of the pandemic, the podcast quickly garnered a large following for its honest and wide-ranging conversations, which has continued since the re-launch of the show. The duo also serve as EPs on the podcast via their A Touch More production banner. The podcast was recently named as one of Apple’s “Shows We Love” for 2024.
In 2021, Bird co-founded Togethxr – a woman-centered media commerce group – alongside Alex Morgan, Simone Manuel and Chloe Kim, to further the progress, culture, representation, and coverage of all women and girls in sport. Through Togethxr, she produced Power of the Dream, a documentary from director Dawn Porter on the WNBA and their fight for social justice which had a major impact on US politics in 2020; and the six-part podcast series, Summer of Gold, about the American female athletes who dominated in the 1996 Atlanta games. It was recently announced that this podcast series will be adapted into a television limited series with Bird as one of the executive producers on the project. Togethxr is also represented by WME.
Last year, Bird hosted Sue’s Places, a take on Peyton Manning’s signature ESPN+ Original series, where she explores the history and traditions of college basketball; over the past several years, she and best friend Diana Taurasi have hosted their popular ‘alterna-cast’ The Bird & Taurasi Show with their coverage of the Women’s Final Four; and Sue Bird: In the Clutch, a documentary on her historic career premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and is currently available on Netflix.
Bird and Rapinoe are outspoken advocates for LGBTQ+ rights, racial equality, and gender equity.
