CINCINNATI — The term “WAG” is an acronym for wives and girlfriends, commonly used to reference partners of professional athletes.
The label first popped up in British tabloids in the early 2000s, and quickly became attached to women like Victoria Beckham.
But the term has since expanded to include wives and girlfriends of athletes around the world, including American football players.
Here in Cincinnati, wives and girlfriends of Bengals players have become recognizable names in the Queen City.
Many have built a social media following with their behind-the-scenes content of life as an NFL WAG, but there's more to their lives than the "glitz and glam" of Game Dey.
Whitney Risner
Whitney Risner is a content creator and business owner originally from Missouri. She met her husband, Bengals guard Dalton Risner, in college.
The two knew of each other through social media and met in person during a trip to the Lake of the Ozarks, where they hit it off and later started dating.
They balanced long-distance while Whitney finished college as a basketball player at Fort Hays State University. She then moved to Denver, where Dalton was playing for the Broncos. After four years in Denver, the couple relocated to Minnesota, where Dalton played for the Vikings before landing in Cincinnati.
Though she admits the beginning of their relationship wasn't easy, Whitney said their marriage wouldn't be what it is today without their struggles.
"Starting a relationship out with distance is really, really hard," Whitney said. "We had to work through a lot of stuff, but it's all worth it now."
Whitney's first viral video showed Dalton pulling her over the wall after a Broncos game. She quickly realized people loved NFL content and capitalized on that fascination. Sometimes, she'd gain 100,000 followers in just one week.
But eventually, she hit a wall with her football-dominated content.
"I kind of hit an identity crisis," Whitney said. "I kind of went back to the drawing board ... I definitely still talk about the NFL, but it's heavier on my lifestyle, rather than just NFL content."
The Risners recently made headlines with their unconventional way of using Whitney's platform to break the news that Dalton resigned with the Bengals.
"(Dalton) was like, 'All these reporters, they always break the news. Why don't you break the news?" Whitney said. "I didn't know what the response was going to be, if people were going to be like, 'You're not a sports reporter.' You just never know."
Whitney posted the news across her social media and said she saw a mostly positive response, with comments celebrating Dalton's return.
I’m feeling like @AdamSchefter right now pic.twitter.com/iTsvjzGjQ3
— whitney risner (@whitmarierisner) March 2, 2026
Social media has now turned into a full-time job for Whitney. But even as her following was rapidly growing, she felt something was missing. That's when she decided to return to her love of jewelry-making and start her own company.
Whitney launched her jewelry brand, Waawees, in 2022. She runs the company while keeping up with posting to her 1.1 million followers.
The Risners also participate in a variety of philanthropic efforts, like the RisnerUp Foundation, which Dalton started in college to support organizations like the Special Olympics.
"I always say (RisnerUp) is his baby, while Waawees is mine," Whitney said.
Though she's now become indifferent to the term WAG, Whitney once struggled with being known only as Dalton's wife.
"It was really hard to have an identity in myself when I was kind of seen as a wife or girlfriend. I'm like, whoa, I promise there is so much more to me," Whitney said.
She now views it as "just a term," and from negotiating brand deals to shipping out jewelry orders to organizing events like her annual "Sweat in Style" pop-up, Whitney focuses on her own endeavors while supporting her husband.
"Our marriage is most important to us, and everything else has to come next," Whitney said. "During the season, definitely, we work around that. Football is the main character. But we definitely make sure we have time for our marriage."
Hannah Foskey
Hannah Foskey met her husband, Bengals defensive end Isaiah Foskey, in Hilton Head when they were both in their final year of college.
Hannah is originally from New York and was attending the University of South Carolina at the time. Isaiah was at Notre Dame, where Hannah visited him a few months after they met to make things official. The couple balanced long-distance for over two years while finishing out college.
While in school, Hannah studied mass communications, specializing in sports media. She went on to work for the NCAA’s social media department before moving to New Orleans when Isaiah was drafted to the Saints.
But after two seasons, Isaiah was cut from the Saints.
After what Hannah described as “a week of unknowns,” Isaiah got picked up by the Bengals and headed to Cincinnati. While her husband adjusted to his new team, Hannah packed up the car and made the 10-hour drive from South Carolina, where their belongings were in storage, to their new home.
“It’s hard to describe getting ripped up and moved immediately,” Hannah said. “As women it’s hard. It’s easy for (the players) to just move, but then we’re moving their life on top of it.”
Even with the uncertainty and constant change, each NFL team has its own group of women ready to welcome new WAGs
For Hannah, moving to Cincinnati so quickly was a big change. Having a group of women who understood her unique lifestyle was "the best thing possible" in helping her adjust to a new city and new team.
“People get hurt, people retire, people get traded, cut, but you're all going to be in the same spot," Hannah said. "It's something that I'd say only we understand, and it's hard to explain."
Like many of her fellow WAGs, Hannah posts on social media about life married to an NFL player, her hobbies and most recently, her pregnancy journey. The couple announced they're expecting a baby later this year.
With posting on social media comes an almost inevitable series of negative comments. But Hannah said she mainly uses her social media to post for fun, and has gotten the hang of letting the hate comments roll off her back.
“In the season during the cut process, the hate comments were horrific. People (were) commenting on our wedding photos and creating accounts with horrible names," Hannah said. "I know some comments really affect a lot of people, but to us, it just doesn't."
Like Whitney, Hannah doesn't mind being called a WAG, and said she'll always show up for the other women's businesses and passions.
"I personally don't care, because it's kind of what we are," Hannah said. "But there's so many women who are, outside of just being a wife or girlfriend, they have their main careers ... I will always be there to support."
Kristin Gutierrez
Kristin Gutierrez is the longtime girlfriend of Bengals running back Tahj Brooks.
Gutierrez and Brooks are from the same small town just outside of Austin, Texas. The two knew each other throughout middle and high school, and officially started dating in 2019.
When Gutierrez graduated, she played two years of softball at Hill College before transferring to Texas Tech, where Brooks played football. She moved to Cincinnati when Brooks signed with the Bengals.
"It was surreal," Gutierrez said. "It's just a blessing to be there every step of the way for him, and to see all his hard work is finally being paid off."
Coming in as a rookie was daunting. Gutierrez didn’t know much about Cincinnati and was admittedly confused when her realtor suggested looking at apartments in Northern Kentucky.
But she said the Bengals WAGs welcomed her right away. She first met the other women at a brunch event, which she attended with another rookie’s girlfriend. Since then, she's grown closer to the group.
Throughout the year, the WAGs come together for different events and traditions. Many spend game days together, participate in a women’s bible study and go to group workout classes.
"It really is a girlhood, and to this day, I still contact them every day," she said. "It's just a genuine friendship."
After Brooks' rookie season, the two went back to Texas to spend time with family. While it was technically the offseason for Brooks, Gutierrez returned to her jobs in Texas, including coaching softball and working as a teacher's aide.
Gutierrez said when she went back to working at a lower-income school district, she made it a priority to encourage the students, some of whom couldn't believe Brooks was her boyfriend.
"We didn't have a lot growing up, and so I could relate to those kids. And Tahj could relate to those kids," Gutierrez said.
Now that Gutierrez is preparing for her second year in Cincinnati, she wants to get involved in the community here, too. She applied to work as a substitute teacher and plans to offer softball lessons.
It's one of the reasons she's frustrated by those who say she's "just a WAG."
"We are our own people," Gutierrez said. "I think a lot of people don't realize a lot of us do still work, and we still do have our own life outside of football."
She’s also taking advice from some of the other WAGs and leaning into making social media content. While some posts feature NFL content, Gutierrez said she wants to continue showing her interests outside of WAG life.
"You just have that freedom to post whatever you want, and you don't have to just be titled into one specific category," Gutierrez said.
Though their lives all look different from the outside, each woman described the balancing act that is being a WAG. Behind the custom outfits and millions of views is a life of constant movement, change and maintaining a sense of self beyond who your partner is.
And while they all have their own friendships and relationships within the team, they said having a group of women who understand and support each other has been pivotal to their experience.
"Just being around these girls that have genuine hearts has been the best thing for me," Gutierrez said. "It's just been a blessing being able to be with them."
