Female Athletes in the USA

Why is it that the idea of female professional athletes seem to be more popular outside of the U.S.  Professional basketball (WNBA) is trying to stay afloat currently, and we have already seen at least three of it's predecessors fail.  My friend has a daughter who plays professionally, and  during the offseason here, she goes overseas to compete.  The pay is reportedly better overseas, but they are still far away from the comforts of home.  Basketball is not alone, softball and soccer seem to do better professionally in other countries.  Soccer is truly a worldwide sport, and there are pro leagues everywhere.  Softball is huge in Japan, and many of the players that we see (saw) in the olympics play in the Japanese pro league.  Both sports have tried to gain foothold in the US, but to no avail.  Soccers WPL has only 7 teams, and NFP softball only has 5.  Why doesn't it work here???????????  Our american daughters deserve the right to play professionally at home.