What would happen if women's sports became more than a trend?
More than a fad enjoyed during the Olympics. Or an emotional storyline in Superbowl ads.
Perhaps girls and women will feel more confident at the gym or on the playground. Athletes will see equal standards in their locker rooms. Communities will thrive. And everyone will benefit from a culture that puts women on the same playing field as men.
Madison hopes to embrace those possibilities and more as it becomes a destination for women's sports. Legacy programs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, mixed with professional and semi-professional softball and volleyball teams are making women's sports a lasting cornerstone in Madison sports culture.
The community's support for these programs is bigger than the love of the game. It's a testament to Madison's progressive culture and our welcoming nature. We're a city that's open to all and always moving forward.
Join the hype early by locking in as a super fan for one or all of Madison's women's teams:
UW Badgers Women's Sports
Women have been a part of Badger athletics since the 1970s when trailblazers including Kit Saunders, Ruth Bleier and Muriel Sloan pushed UW leadership to create women's athletics programs following the enactment of Title IX, which prohibits sex-based discrimination in educational-based activities that receive federal funding. UW women's rowing took home a national championship within the first year of UW offering women's sports. This would be the first of many successes from women athletes in the following 50 years.
Ice Hockey
The word champion has become synonymous with Badger Women's Ice Hockey. The program has taken home the most NCAA National Championship titles of any active UW Athletics program, claiming seven total titles (men's boxing leads the all-time UW championships record at eight, but is no longer an active NCAA program at the school). The team is also the winningest school in the entire NCAA for women's hockey.
The team plays at LaBahn Arena with a regular season that runs from late September through February. Tickets are on sale online.
Volleyball
A couple decades ago, UW fans would be shocked to learn any athletic program could garner hype that would rival the school's storied football and basketball teams the way Badger Volleyball has in recent years. The program boasts nine BIG 10 championships and brought home its first NCAA Championship title in 2021. The team has also set multiple attendance records in a sport where the competition to get the most people in the stands is sometimes as fierce as the action on the court.
The team plays at the UW Fieldhouse with a regular season that runs from late August through November. Tickets are available online.
Madison Night Mares
In 2024, the Madison Night Mares became one of four inaugural teams to form the Northwoods League Softball collegiate league, allowing some of the brightest collegiate fast-pitch softball talent in the country to compete during the offseason. The team was a natural fit for Madison and joined the Madison Mallards at the Warner Park Duck Pond.
In its first season, the Night Mares developed a culture around their games which are equal parts athletic and entertaining. Gameday at Warner Park includes theme days, children's activities, a live mascot pony named Midnight, bottom-of-the-inning games and more. In addition to being a new women's team, the team's management is historic with General Manager Samantha Rubin, the first woman to serve as general manager for the Mallards, at the Night Mare's helm.
The Night Mares season runs from June through August. Tickets can be purchased online.
LOVB Volleyball
A grassroots professional volleyball league, LOVB Volleyball, will kick off its inaugural season in 2025 with Madison being one of its six founding communities. The league will bring professional players, many who are Olympians and national champions, together to compete and foster strong connections with accompanying youth volleyball programs in their communities.
Each team will have at least one "founding athlete" who will be a leader and face of their respective team. Madison's founding athlete is former Badger volleyball and silver-medal Olympian Lauren Carlini. Volleyball fans may also recognize Olympian Annie Drews Schumacher and former Badgers Danielle Hart and Temi Thomas-Ailara who are committed to play in Madison.
LOVB Madison will play part of its season at the Wisconsin Field House and the remainder of the season at Alliant Energy Center. Construction is currently underway for the future home of LOVB, a first-of-its-kind to the area pro volleyball facility in Sun Prairie.
The regular season will run from January through April. Tickets are available online.