“W.E. ARE NEXT” will fuel 100 executive trailblazers as the city hosts an unprecedented four men’s basketball championships in 2026, and three women’s basketball championships in 2028.
INDIANAPOLIS — If you think the scoreboards in Indy only light up for athletes, think again. Indiana Sports Corp (ISC)—the crew that keeps racking up “largest-ever” banners—just launched W.E. ARE NEXT, a nine-month, high-voltage leadership experience built to catapult W(omen) E(xecutives) across the sports industry into the record books of the future.
Why now? Because in 2026 Indianapolis will do what no city has done—host the NCAA Division I, II and III Men’s Final Fours plus the NIT title game, four championship crowns in one town. Followed by the women in 2028, when the Division I, II, and III champions will come to town to be crowned. That’s a lot of hardware, and that’s only a few of the events ISC is driving – a bold vision of epic events demands an equally epic bench of leaders to run the show.
WHAT MAKES THIS DIFFERENT (READ: NOT ANOTHER PANEL)
Just like any epic event, blazing a new trail requires world-class collaboration. While Indiana Sports Corp (ISC) drives the vision, this experience is fueled by a coalition of leaders from ISC, WISE Indianapolis, the Horizon League, the NCAA, the WNBA All-Star 2025 Host Committee, Bloombase, and other national organizations and sports leaders.
- Full-contact leadership gauntlet – nine months of immersive labs grounded in neuroscience, organizational psychology, and real-world revenue pressure. This is about immediate impact.
- C-suite faculty – game-tested executives and legendary operators join in the immersive sessions.
- Executive coaching – master-level coaches push each leader from insight to action toward the next level of performance. Legacy in motion – post-graduation projects tie alumni to future Final Fours and marquee events, and continue leader development long after graduation.
THE INAUGURAL JoAn SCOTT COHORT
Named for NCAA Vice President of Men’s Basketball JoAn Scott, the first 20-woman cohort kicks off August 2025 and graduates in April, culminating with the 2026 Men’s Final Four—Indy’s ninth time hosting that spectacle. Over the next five years, W.E. ARE NEXT will build a powerhouse alumni network of 100 women executives, connected to drive success in the organizations they lead as confidently as athletes own the championship landscape.
The W.E. ARE NEXT experience will be held in Indianapolis beginning September 2025, with sessions continuing through end of April 2026. Applications open July 10 and close August 14. More information can be found at https://www.thisisbloombase.com/we-are-next.
Sponsorship opportunities are available at multiple legacy levels to support the mission and amplify the reach of this leadership pipeline.
For media inquiries, partnership information, or to schedule interviews with cohort leaders and participants, please contact the media representative listed below.
QUOTE SHEET
“Indianapolis has a long history of crowning champions. Now we’re creating them—starting with the leaders orchestrating the world’s biggest sporting moments.”
— Julie Roe Lach, Chair, Indiana Sports Corp and Commissioner, Horizon League
“W.E. ARE NEXT isn’t hype—it’s infrastructure for the next 50 years of sports leadership. Our vision at Indy Sports Corp is bold and we need bold leaders to fuel that vision.”
— Sarah Myer, Chief of Staff & Strategy, Indiana Sports Corp
“This is a pipeline, not an event. We’re fueling influence, impact, and the future of sports for decades to come.”
— Sheri Fella, Founder & CEO, Bloombase
KEY DATES & DETAILS
- Applications open: July 10, 2025
- Program runs: September 2025 – April 2026 (Indianapolis)
- Learn more / apply: https://www.thisisbloombase.com/we-are-next
- Sponsorships: Multiple “legacy” levels available now.
MEDIA & PARTNERSHIP CONTACT
Sarah Myer
Chief of Staff & Strategy, Indiana Sports Corp
(440) 371-5061
[email protected]
About Indiana Sports Corp
For nearly five decades, Indiana Sports Corp has turned Indianapolis into the place Where Champions Are Crowned—from the 2012 Super Bowl to several Final Fours, NBA and WNBA All-Star Weekends and numerous Olympic Trials. Now, with W.E. ARE NEXT, ISC is investing that championship DNA into the leaders who will write tomorrow’s sports history.