Jaymee Messler

Hall of Femme honoree Jaymee Messler is in a league of her own. The entrepreneur and sports business executive is a co-founder of The Players’ Tribune with Derek Jeter, and widely acknowledged as the “secret weapon” behind its success. Prior to launching the game-changing sports media giant, Jaymee was one of the first hires at Excel Sports Management. She spent 12 years there and became CMO, developing a glass-shattering marketing formula for major athletes like Jeter, Kevin Love, Blake Griffin, and Clayton Kershaw. “In the sports world, especially back then, there weren't a lot of women in decision-making positions,” she says. “I created the roles I had for myself, finding the intersection of management and marketing.” 

In June 2021, Jaymee teamed up with NBA Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett on a gamified content platform called The Gaming Society. It features a newsletter, podcast, and sports betting education course for casual fans. “I discovered that sports betting was difficult to learn, which made entering the space intimidating,” Jaymee says. “More importantly, sports betting didn’t feel inclusive, especially when it came to female fans and women’s sports.”

In an effort to incentivize women’s sports and bring female fans into the fold, The Gaming Society partnered with the Women’s National Basketball Players’ Association for the Bet on Women initiative. “Together we will propel women’s sports forward, maximize engagement and visibility around its teams, leagues and players, and bring fans of these sports from the sidelines into the action,” Jaymee says. Sounds like a slam dunk to us.