For over twenty years, Amanda Gunville didn’t just watch football—she lived in the heart of it. Working alongside legendary sports agent Leigh Steinberg, she had a front-row seat to the careers of icons like Troy Aikman, Steve Young, and Patrick Mahomes. Football was her native tongue, a world of strategy and high-stakes pressure that she navigated with total ease.
Then, life threw a massive curveball. A two-and-a-half-year battle with cancer, involving intensive chemotherapy, forced Amanda to step away from everything. For a long time, she couldn’t even look at a screen, let alone follow a season. When she finally felt well enough to tune back into a game, she experienced something shocking: she felt like an outsider.
“If I spent two decades at the highest level of the NFL and felt lost after a break, how must millions of women feel who were never invited into the conversation in the first place?” Amanda asks. That moment of personal disconnect sparked a realization: women aren’t “bad” at football; they’ve just been talked at instead of talked with.
The “Smartest Friend on the Couch” Approach
Amanda’s mission with her platform, Champera, isn’t to lecture. Think of her as your smartest, funniest friend sitting next to you on the couch, explaining the game in real-time. She’s the one who can tell you exactly why that play mattered without making you feel like you missed the memo.
“I had a conversation with one of my closest friends—an incredibly successful woman who built a multi-million dollar athletic apparel company,” Amanda shares. “She’s athletic, she’s brilliant, and she’s a mom to a son who plays. Yet, she told me, ‘I have no idea what’s happening. It just looks like a bunch of guys running around.’ That’s the gap Champera is here to fill.”
By removing the “gatekeeping” language and specific figures that usually make sports feel like a closed club, Amanda is reframing sports fluency as a tool for confidence and inclusion.
Finding Joy in the Complex
This philosophy of making difficult things feel approachable didn’t just come from the sidelines; it came from her recovery. During her cancer journey, Amanda authored her book, Finding Hope & Joy in Cancer, and launched a nonprofit to donate copies to those in the thick of their own battles.
“Whether it’s a scary diagnosis or a complex blitz package on a Sunday afternoon, my philosophy is the same: use humor, empathy, and relatable stories to take the intimidation out of the experience,” she explains. Her nonprofit work reinforces this emotional throughline—proving that when you simplify the “scary” stuff, you open the door to genuine joy and connection.
Beyond the Steinberg Years
While her time with Leigh Steinberg provided invaluable insight into the psychology of elite athletes and the strategy of the front office, Amanda’s sports roots go much deeper. Her journey started in Montana, where she had zero connections. In college, she simply walked up to a cameraman to ask, “Who hires you?”
Before becoming an industry fixture, she co-founded her own agency, produced massive hospitality events for the Super Bowl and Formula 1, and worked as a stage manager for FOX Sports and ESPN. She didn’t just “figure it out”—she built a career on the floor of the stadium.
Sports Fluency as a Superpower
With the Football Fluency Method, Amanda is teaching women to “See Players, Not Just Jerseys” and “Think Like a Coach.” It’s about moving past trivia and into true cultural fluency.
“This isn’t about memorizing stats to impress people at a bar,” Amanda says. “It’s about belonging. It’s about the mom who wants to finally feel present at her son’s high school games, or the professional woman who wants to engage in the Monday morning quarterback talk at the office without hesitation.”
The Vision for Champera
As Champera grows, Amanda is looking toward a future of wide-reaching partnerships and media expansion, moving the needle on how fans engage with the sports they love. She envisions a world where sports fluency is a standard part of the female experience, fostering deeper connections with partners, children, and colleagues.
Her message to any woman who feels behind the curve is simple: “You aren’t behind. You were just never taught this way before.” Through Champera, Amanda is making sure the most exciting conversations in sports finally have room for everyone at the table.