OAKLAND, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 31, 2026--
e.l.f. Beauty (NYSE: ELF) and Parity today released a first-of-its-kind research report revealing a powerful, data-backed link between girls' sports participation and women’s workplace performance. The study draws on more than 9,500 respondents across the United States, Canada, Germany and the United Kingdom, making it one of the largest and broadest studies of its kind. The findings are clear and consistent: women who played sports in their youth are more likely to become workplace leaders, are more likely to aspire to senior leadership and are more likely to negotiate their salaries. These women also credit skills learned in sports with helping them advance professionally.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260830853936/en/
The report sits at the intersection of e.l.f.’s two long-standing purpose commitments: Change the Board Game, the company’s commitment to boardroom equity and empowering.legendary.females., its commitment to women’s sports. Both initiatives are rooted in creating access and accelerating pathways for the next generations of leaders.
Parity, a women’s sports consultancy focused on closing the gender income and opportunity gap in sports, is e.l.f.’s partner in the research. Aligned by shared beliefs, Parity brought their research expertise and rigor to execute the research at scale and e.l.f. leaned into its global platform of positivity, inclusivity and accessibility.
The report centers on the Everyday Athlete – women who played sports for at least three years before the end of high/secondary school and now work (or recently worked) full time – alongside pro women athletes, men and women board members and women with little or no sports experience. Across all four countries, the study shows women who played sports carry those lessons into their careers.
See how Everyday Athletes say sports change the e.l.f.ing game for women at work:
The study doubles down on these findings by talking directly to pro women athletes and men and women board members from all four countries:
"This research puts numbers behind what we’ve always believed. Building pathways for women in sports by investing in the players, leagues and their fans helps shape a brighter future for the next generation of changemakers,” said Patrick O’Keefe, Chief Integrated Marketing Officer, e.l.f. Brands. “At e.l.f., we are committed to democratizing access to the playing field and to the boardroom so every legendary female has the access and the opportunity to change the e.l.f.ing game.”
Data from the study shows momentum for girls playing sports is growing: 70% of Gen Z women who started sports played through the end of high/secondary school, up from 62% of Baby Boomers. Even so, prior research shows girls across the US, Canada, Germany and the UK all participate in sports at lower rates than boys in their countries. Given the data from this study shows the life-long positive impact sports have on girls’ futures, e.l.f. and Parity are resolved in their shared commitment to get and keep girls in sports.
“Our hope is that these findings don’t simply reinforce the value of sports but inspire society to create more opportunities for girls to play,” said Leela Srinivasan, CEO of Parity. “Because this isn’t about being elite or becoming a professional athlete. The benefits are linked to participation itself. By showing up, learning, competing and staying in the game for a few years, girls are already building valuable skills and characteristics they can leverage for advancement throughout their careers.”
Together, e.l.f. and Parity look to help level the playing field and widen the pipeline into every room where decisions are made.
The report will debut at the third Power of Women’s Sports Summit, produced by Billie Jean King Enterprises with e.l.f. as the presenting partner. The Power of Women’s Sports Summit brings together some of the most influential change makers in sports, business and entertainment together on a global stage, all united by a shared commitment to accelerate the progress in women’s sports as a marketplace.
Check out the full report to learn more here.
About e.l.f. Beauty
e.l.f. Beauty (NYSE: ELF) is a bold disruptor with a kind heart, fueled by a mission to make the best of beauty accessible and a purpose to make the world a better place for every eye, lip and face. Purpose led and results driven, e.l.f. Beauty is a different kind of company that disrupts norms, shapes culture and connects communities through positivity, inclusivity and accessibility. e.l.f. Beauty’s global portfolio of brands includes e.l.f. Cosmetics, e.l.f. SKIN, e.l.f. Hair, Naturium, rhode and Well People. e.l.f. Brands products are vegan, e.l.f. clean and double-certified by Leaping Bunny and PETA as cruelty-free. e.l.f. Brands are proud to have products made in Fair Trade Certified™ facilities. Learn more at www.elfbeauty.com.
About Parity
Parity is a women’s sports consultancy specializing in professional athlete partnerships. With a mission to close the gender income and opportunity gap in sports, Parity connects brands with a diverse network of more than 1,600 pro women athletes across 85+ sports, including 300+ Olympians and Paralympians. Through athlete engagements, official community partnerships, women’s sports consulting, and custom research, Parity helps brands authentically engage the most trusted voices in sports today. For more information, visit www.paritynow.com.
Research Methodology
The research draws on original surveys of three groups in the U.S., Canada, Germany and the U.K.:
The quantitative research was supplemented by 21 qualitative interviews with a mix of Everyday Athletes, women professional athletes, and women board members from each country.
Comparisons between groups are descriptive and reflect correlation, not definitive causation. For the complete methodology, see the full report.
e.l.f. Beauty and Parity unveil “Girls Who Play Change the Game,” new research connecting girls’ sports participation to women’s leadership and workplace success.
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Long lines of voters formed outside polling stations across Serbia on Sunday for a parliamentary election that is seen as a showdown between the Balkan country's populist leader Aleksandar Vucic and a movement of university students who have led protests against him for almost two years.
Though Serbia's 6.4 million voters get to choose from 18 parties hoping to enter the 250-member Parliament, the election has taken shape as a referendum between Vucic's right-wing Serbian Progressive Party and the youth-backed Students' List.
The main contenders are believed to be polling neck-and-neck, making Sunday's election the most uncertain in recent years. Turnout is expected to be high and could push most smaller parties below the 3% threshold needed to make it into the assembly.
While Vucic has routinely outplayed Serbia's fractured opposition in the past, the leaderless youth movement has proved to be a tough opponent that rattled his firm grip on power in Serbia like no one else could in the past 14 years since his party took office.
A students' victory likely would resonate beyond Serbia as countries across Europe face youth and student protests.
Voters queued at polling places around the country early Sunday, something Ilija Srdanovic, a physician who is the first of 250 candidates for the youth movement, said heralded "record turnout in Serbia’s recent history.”
“I hope that this day will pass in a democratic atmosphere and in peace and that we will legitimately choose a new government in Serbia,” Srdanovic said after voting in the northern Serbian city of Novi Sad.
Opponents of Vucic as well as some independent monitoring groups have warned of potential irregularities in the voting process.
Asked about whether voters should gather outside polling stations in the evening to “guard ballots,” Srdanovic said that “this evening, when we present our results, we will give recommendations what to do next.”
The student movement on its website dubbed the long lines of voters across the country “queues of hope.” In the capital, Belgrade, Vucic stood alongside his wife for over an hour waiting to vote, and was expected to address the media after casting his ballot.
At a polling station in Belgrade, voter Aida Rodic said that Sunday was "a special day for me.”
“I am very excited,” she said. “After 30 years I am really excited.”
Another voter, Jovan Mitrovic, said he hopes that “everything goes peacefully and that everything finishes nicely,” and that "the dawn finally rises in this country after many years.”
Recent elections have been marred by irregularities and the European Union is watching closely the conduct of Sunday's vote in a candidate nation for the bloc's membership.
Both international and local election monitors already have expressed concern about the safety and fairness of an election campaign marked by detentions, near-total government control over the media and reports of surveillance and cyberattacks against activists.
Local elections earlier this year in 10 municipalities in Serbia saw violent attacks on journalists and activists. The previous parliamentary vote in 2023 was followed by opposition protests alleging fraud.
If his SNS party wins the most votes, Vucic will become the prime minister after serving two near-full terms as president. He resigned the presidency last month to lead the campaign.
The populists' popularity has eroded since 16 people were killed two years ago when a concrete canopy collapsed at a train station in Serbia's north, setting off a wave of youth protests that demanded accountability for the disaster and justice for the victims.
The anger reflected widespread accusations of high-level corruption and cronyism. Protesters said that rampant graft led to negligence during renovation work at the Novi Sad station, and eventually to the canopy collapse.
Despite the protests, Vucic retains considerable support among Serbia's voters. Admirers view him as a capable leader who can steer the nation through global uncertainties — the image that was carefully crafted by the mainstream media.
The newly formed Students' List movement differs from any of the political organizations in Serbia. It is shaped by university students but none of them are actually on the list. Instead, the candidates are little-known experts, athletes, farmers and artists.
This approach was meant to counter Vucic's one-man rule and restore a sense of community and solidarity. The “we know how” message during the campaign promised a non-partisan effort to rebuild Serbia's economy and democracy after a change of government.
With their youthful energy, the students have attracted voters who are disillusioned with local politicians. Vilified by pro-government media, students have cycled and walked through the country to reach voters in rural areas — Vucic's traditional strongholds.
Election surveys have come up with varied results while both camps say they are ahead. Some analysts fear postelection instability in case of a close result.
Vucic has said that his side would concede defeat if it lost the vote. But he has also warned that any protests that might erupt to claim fraud in case of his party's triumph would be immediately quashed.
The state election commission is not expected to release the official tally before Monday.
Magda Anastasijevic, the Eastern Europe analyst for the conflict monitor ACLED, said that electoral violence has been on the rise in Serbia recently, and could escalate, "particularly if the results are disputed."
A man holds a dog while arriving at a polling station to vote in a parliamentary election in Belgrade, Serbia, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
People wait outside a polling station before the start of voting in a parliamentary election in Novi Sad, Serbia, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Armin Durgut)
Students' List leader Ilija Srdanovic casts his vote in a parliamentary election in Novi Sad, Serbia, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Armin Durgut)
Aleksandar Vucic, leader of the right-wing Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), waits along with his wife Tamara to vote in a parliamentary election in Belgrade, Serbia, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
People enter a polling station that just opened its doors to cast their votes in a parliamentary election in Novi Sad, Serbia, Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Armin Durgut)
Serbia's populist leader Aleksandar Vucic, center, listens to the Serbian national anthem with supporters during a pre-election rally of his ruling Serbian Progressive Party ahead of the early parliamentary election scheduled for Oct. 25, in Belgrade, Serbia, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026. (AP Photo)
People shine the lights of their mobile phones and light flares during the final "Student List – Students Win" rally ahead of a parliamentary election in Belgrade, Serbia, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Armin Durgut)
Serbia's populist leader Aleksandar Vucic gestures during a pre-election rally of his ruling Serbian Progressive Party ahead of the early parliamentary election scheduled for Oct. 25, in Belgrade, Serbia, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026. (AP Photo)
A young man holds a Serbian flag as people gather for the final "Student List – Students Win" rally ahead of a parliamentary election in Belgrade, Serbia, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)
