our mission
Fill The Stands supercharges attendance at girls’ and women’s sporting events, creating energized crowds that fuel confidence, celebration, and community.
who we are
A letter from the Founder
"This organization exists to build a stronger, more visible culture around girls’ sports, one where athletes feel supported, seen, and celebrated."
Growing up in the Midwest, sports were the center of my childhood. Weekends were filled with tournaments, summers revolved around camps and training. By high school, my goal was simple: make the varsity basketball team, the sport I loved most.
When I did, I looked up at the stands and immediately felt the difference. Boys’ games were packed, loud, energized, standing-room only. Our girls’ games were quieter, often just parents and the occasional band.
“That’s just how it is,” I'd hear.
At fifteen, I felt what that absence meant. The empty seats carried weight. I started to wonder if it mattered, if anyone was really watching, if our team's hard work was being seen at all.
Years later as a parent and journalist, I returned to my alma mater and found the same quiet stands, now alongside something more troubling: fewer girls trying out for teams, a missing Freshman team all-together. What I had felt as a teenager hadn’t just remained, it had deepened.
As I spoke with other women, I realized my experiences in the early 2000s weren't unique; we had all felt that silence, and had all wanted change. Today, student-athletes echo the same reality; in 2026, it is still felt in gyms and on fields across the country.
That realization is what led me to create Fill The Stands.
This organization exists to build a stronger, more visible culture around girls’ sports, one where athletes feel supported, seen, and celebrated.
And our ultimate goal?
To make ourselves obsolete.
To make ourselves obsolete.
Together with our volunteer student-athletes, mentors, and game-day vendors, we work to bring the energy middle and high school girls deserve to their game days, energizing the critical competition years when girls are most at risk of stepping away from sport.
My bullseye: create environments that feel electric, connective and motivating. Games that carry the spirit of higher-level women’s sports, with full stands, shared community presence, and a sense of occasion that tells girls loudly and with conviction: you matter!
While the immediate goal is filled seats, the deeper work is fueling girls' confidence and instilling lasting belief that they can hit the shot when the pressure is on; when their fans are watching.
Research shows that girls are significantly more likely than boys to drop out of sports during the middle and high school years, making this a critical window to build support, visibility, and belonging that keeps them in the game.
As a sports and design journalist dedicated to telling stories of transformation and empowerment, I believe we can flip the script on these statistics.
Together we can show these young athletes the support they deserve, and spark a movement that’s long overdue.
Game on!
Elizabeth Sweet
Founder
In addition to game days, our Fill The Stands Junior Athlete initiatives create opportunities for girls to see themselves reflected in the world of sports.
The FTS Team
Fill The Stands is powered by a collective of student-athletes, volunteers, mentors, and community partners who believe every girl deserves full stands. We are grateful to everyone who gives their time, energy, ideas, and heart to help advance this mission.
Founder & Executive Director
Elizabeth Sweet
Elizabeth Sweet founded Fill The Stands to grow attendance and support for girls’ sports. She leverages her journalism, design, and sports experience to lead programs, partnerships, and fundraising that create meaningful opportunities for athletes to learn and grow.
Board of Directors
A family-based Board of Directors leads Fill The Stands, including Elizabeth’s parents, whose marketing and art direction backgrounds provide strategic and creative guidance.
FTS Volunteers
Fill The Stands volunteers support game days, special events, community outreach, and organizational initiatives that create meaningful experiences for girls and families in sports. Many also serve as mentors for members of the Junior Athlete Committee (JAC), supporting their leadership growth while helping refine and strengthen Fill The Stands programming and resources, including the “All In Playbook for Girls.”
Junior Athlete Committee
High School Athletes + College Students
Composed of high school student-athletes and college students with interests in professional sports, leadership, and journalism, the Junior Athlete Committee (JAC) amplifies young voices, ideas, and advocacy in girls’ sports. Members collaborate, brainstorm, and share ideas focused on strengthening sports attendance culture and visibility for girls and women in athletics. The committee represents high schools across the Chicago and Milwaukee areas, as well as colleges nationwide.
Community Partners
Thank you to the organizations, schools, and teams who collaborate with us to bring more girls into the stands and onto the field!