The Rise of Mary Fowler and the Matildas Brand
Before the 2026 Women’s Asian Cup, a big question loomed over Mary Fowler. At just 23 years old, she had been sidelined for nine months due to an ACL injury, making it uncertain how much time she would spend on the pitch during the tournament. However, no amount of doubt could deter the businesses that were eager to sponsor her during this period.
Fowler’s personal brand has become incredibly lucrative. Even though her salary at Manchester City is estimated to be less than half what her partner, NRL star Nathan Cleary, earns at the Penrith Panthers, she likely takes home far more through her ventures off the pitch. From advertisements before and during every Asian Cup match reminding us that she eats Weet-Bix cereal and banks with CommBank, to Instagram posts showcasing her Samsung phone, adidas clothing, and L’Oreal Paris makeup, Fowler has built a strong presence in the market.
When she’s not promoting other products, she’s plugging her three books: two children’s books and a young-adult memoir called Bloom. She’s even had a Barbie doll made in her likeness. Fowler shows just how valuable the Matildas brand has become since the 2023 Women’s World Cup, which was also held in Australia. During the tournament, her social media feeds were filled with photos of her playing; after the event, those on-field pictures were distributed between paid-for partnerships.
She’s not alone. In the skincare section of Woolworths or Coles, you’ll find varying brand partners for players like Steph Catley, Caitlin Foord, Mackenzie Arnold, and Katrina Gorry. In the fridges, rows of a2 milk sponsor Catley and Amy Sayer. Where socks and underwear hang, Bonds has partnered with Sam Kerr and even her baby, Jagger.
By this measure, the Matildas were winners before the Asian Cup began. The promise of a home tournament less than three years after the Women’s World Cup created fertile ground for investment. Fiona Crawford, author of The Matilda Effect, said:
“It meant that sponsors have continued investing in them, that media has continued covering them, that Football Australia and everyone has continued putting resources behind them. And I think that was very deliberate because the danger could have been, like every other major tournament women’s sport generally has, that it’s great in the moment, but then everything goes away after that like a flash.”
Crawford explained that because salaries and prizemoney are lower in women’s football compared to men’s, players build their personal brands as a way of supplementing their incomes. So, even though the tournament prizemoney hasn’t increased, despite record-breaking ticket sales and Fowler being paid less by her club than her partner Cleary, she will make up the difference through brand partnerships.
“It always has been more than the sport because there hasn’t been money in the sport,” Crawford said. “You have to be remarkable because you can’t just be an athlete, you’ve got to be a well-rounded person, and I think people have really picked up on that. That’s why people are interested in [Mary Fowler] off the pitch. That’s why she’s getting offers to walk the catwalk or why they want to have a Barbie.”
But without another home tournament on the horizon, and with more Matildas playing overseas than in Australia, it’s fair to ask whether the team’s brand can continue increasing in value. There have been doubts about whether the “Matildas mania” that took hold of Australia after the World Cup is still as strong.
Mark Crowe, managing director of Brand Finance, which valued the Matildas after the 2023 World Cup at $200 million, says there is nothing to suggest that value has not been reached, even if the tournament has not sold out.
“We’ve certainly estimated twice in the last few years that women’s sport on a global basis is still undervalued relative to a number of men’s sports and club brands,” he said. “So there’s still a lot of opportunity for the Matildas to exploit the brand and continue to grow.”
Asian Cup chief operating officer and ex-Matilda Sarah Walsh agrees.
“If the Matildas are constantly measured by the success of only having full stadiums, it’s really dangerous because that’s never applied on men’s sport,” she said. “It never is, and it never has been.”
