Epicenter: Women’s Global Sports Summit will be the cornerstone event of a four-day celebration of female athletes at Nike World Headquarters this July 23-26. Presented by RAJ Sports, and supported by partners including Nike, Front Office Sports, Travel Portland and Sport Oregon, the event will bring global leaders across sport, business and technology together to discuss increasing media equity among mens and women's sports, innovating in athletic performance science and more.
“In Portland, we’re not just participating in the future of women’s sports, we’re rewriting the rules,” Karina LeBlanc, EVP of Strategic Growth & Development at RAJ Sports, said in a statement.
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“We have the athletes, the teams, the fans, and the community. With the groundbreaking of a dedicated women’s performance center, we’re building the infrastructure to match. The Epicenter brings it all together — it’s how we show the world what’s possible.”
The multi-day event will feature international club soccer friendlies hosted by the Portland Thorns, the Nike Global Premier Cup featuring elite U-15 girls’ teams and “the first public activation of Portland’s WNBA franchise,” according to a statement.
The name of the team set to tip off in 2026 has not yet been made public, but RAJ Sports has said it will be unveiled this summer.
The name of this summit draws from what may be a familiar term among Portland’s women's sports community: the city’s place as the epicenter of women’s sports. The phrase and vision were articulated by RAJ Sports’ Lisa Bhathal Merage shortly after the group purchased the Thorns, and has gained momentum as the hype around Portland WNBA grows.
In April, the Thorns and WNBA team broke ground on a $150 million state-of-the-art practice facility for both teams. Located at the Evergreen Corporate Center in Hillsboro, the existing suburban office complex at 3220 and 3340 N.E. Aloclek Dr. was previously occupied by Nike.
The combined 80,000-square-foot space will feature two full-size basketball courts, two full-size soccer pitches, an outdoor training zone, a training facility that includes an outdoor turf zone and a yoga and pilates room