Wasserman acquires women’s football agency Volante
April 12, 2024
Global sports, music, and entertainment company Wasserman has acquired the United Kingdom’s leading women’s football (soccer) agency, Volante Sports.
As part of the acquisition, Volante Director Luca Russo will join Wasserman as Vice President, Women’s Football, Europe.
“From the beginning of our conversations with Luca, I felt we were aligned on our relationship-first approach to talent representation and management – sharing core values of integrity and professionalism at the highest level,” said Motzkin. “I have no doubt that the addition of Luca, his team, and their clients will help further grow our women’s football practice globally and continue to provide precedent-setting deals and opportunities for our TeamWass clients.”
“Wasserman has long been a leader in global football – especially with regard to elevating women’s players – and it’s a privilege to be part of what I consider to be the premier representation practice in the industry,” said Russo. “Rich, Spencer Wadsworth, and the entire Wasserman football division have set the standard, and through our steadfast work for our clients, I hope to continue to be at the forefront of pushing boundaries as women’s football continues to grow and evolve worldwide.”
A longtime leader in the space, The Collective is Wasserman’s women-focused practice that exists to create change in support of equity and fairness for women. The aim of The Collective is to raise the visibility and drive inclusion of women in sports, entertainment and culture by providing unique insights, strategies and ideas.
Volante’s roster includes some of the world’s most prolific footballers, including Alessia Russo, Jorja Fox, Leah Galton, Lois Joel, Anna Patten, Emily Ramsey, Lucy Staniforth, and Maisie Symonds.
They will join Wasserman’s existing women’s football roster, which most recently featured 13 clients on the United States’ SheBelieves Cup winning team, highlighted by Jane Campbell, Abby Dahlkemper, Tierna Davidson, Emily Fox, Naomi Girma, Lindsey Horan, Casey Krueger, Alex Morgan, Olivia Moultrie, Jenna Nighswonger, Jaedyn Shaw, Sophia Smith and Mallory Swanson.
Wasserman also represents some of the biggest names in sports beyond women’s football, including Mikel Arteta, Chris Eubank Jr., Tony Finau, Brittney Griner, Alun Wyn Jones, Josh Kelly, Nelly Korda, Morgan Lake, Katie Ledecky, Auston Matthews, Connor McDavid, Weston McKennie, Megan Rapinoe, Geno Smith, Giancarlo Stanton, Diana Taurasi, Klay Thompson, Federico Valverde, Jamie Vardy, and Anthony Watson.
Russo and Volante have close to a decade of experience in the women’s football industry, offering bespoke, personalized service for some of the top WSL and WSL2 players.
The acquisition of Volante continues an ambitious growth strategy over the last 20+ years, and further positions Wasserman at the epicenter of the sports, music, and entertainment industries. Wasserman has become a leading marketing, management, representation and sales business that serves talent, brands and properties on a global scale, with the ability to provide tailored services and an unrivaled network of relationships, skills and specialisms.
