SportsPro Magazine Issue #97

Issue 97

www.sportspromedia.com

Issue 97

THE OTT OLYMPICS 25 STORIES THAT SHAPED 2017

@SportsPro

Setting sights on the future of men’s tennis

Venue tech and the fan experience

Australian cricket’s biggest Bash yet

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+44 208 987 5522

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PROMOTIONS@SOCCERE X.COM

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SOCCERE X.COM

CONTENTS | ISSUE 97

56 COVER STORY 56 Channelling spirit One of the biggest media events of the new sporting year will come early. PyeongChang 2018 will see another advance in the operations of Olympic Broadcasting Services, and a Games-time debut for the Olympic Channel.

FEATURES 34 25 stories that shaped the sporting year In no particular order, SportsPro looks back at some of the events and trends that have defined another year of profound change in the industry.

50 Insight: What are Facebook’s intentions in sport?

With the launch of its new Watch video platform and a plethora of content already live, speculation is rife as to Facebook’s sporting strategy.

62 Rounding bases From its origins as part of Major League Baseball’s digital unit, BAMTECH Media has risen to become one of the most influential companies in live streaming.

Now, BAMTECH Europe is taking on new territories across the Atlantic.

66 Down the line Men’s tennis has enjoyed one of its greatest ever decades but as time catches up with its superstars, the future is a present concern. The ATP Next Gen Finals in Milan gave a glimpse of what may be to come, on and off the court.

54 The SportsPro OTT Summit

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The inaugural SportsPro OTT Summit took place at the Meliá Castilla in Madrid, Spain on 29th and 30th November, hosted with the support of the Olympic Channel and our partners: Sportradar, Neulion, Eleven Sports, BAMTECH Media and Brightcove.

72 Giving it a bash Kim McConnie, a new arrival from PepsiCo with big-time sports entertainment experience, is the woman in charge of the Big Bash Leagues for Cricket Australia, driving growth in tournaments with an eye on a new group of fans.

SportsPro Magazine | 3

CONTENTS | ISSUE 97

90 The place to be Nestled in the heart of Vancouver, British Columbia, BC Place Stadium has developed a reputation as one of Canada’s premier sports and entertainment venues. With two resident professional teams and the capacity to stage a diverse array of live events, it is a facility that punches well above its weight thanks to the ambition and agility of its operators.

16

Sport under investigation: a practical guide Ashley Blake

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League websites: the untapped asset in fan engagement Ben Turner

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Reading the latest trends in ticketing insurance

96 Fighting smart Though a edgling operator in the IT services sector, Bornan Sports Technology already boasts a workforce with an enviable track record of delivering major events. Roberto Garcia Riopedre, the company’s managing director, explains how his Lausanne-based startup plans to take on the big guns.

90 76 Elegance in equine form Equestrian dressage brings rider and horse together in perfect artistic unison. Now, the International Equestrian Federation is seeking to build out the commercial oering for a discipline it sees as the peak of horse training.

98 Straight to the fan Florida-based Fanatics is a leading player in licensed sports merchandise, but only a tenth of its annual sales come from outside North America. With an ambitious overseas expansion plan, a new president of international at the helm, and a scheme to bring reactive ‘v-commerce’ strategies into sport, that might not be the case for much longer.

80 A view of tomorrow In a world of burgeoning technological development, with high-speed internet access driving digital consumption and OTT platforms making it possible to watch sport when and where the need arises, creating a rich enough experience for the fan at an event is increasingly a challenge.

Venues are also turning to technology in order to develop the matchday of the future and keep live sport in the game.

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How to combine the venue and fan experience John Liljelund

20 22 24 26 30

Premature Facts Movers and Shakers SportsPro World Gallery The Shot: Astros win the World Series

AT THE BACK 108 110 114 116 118

Deals Review Sponsorship Deals Index Unofficial Partner Jottings

102 Moneyball Cross-border investment is a fact of life in the sports industry but the direction of ow is always changing – particularly in soccer. With China having already made its move, other regional forces could soon come into play.

86 Building for the future As promotional hashtags go, #BuildTheFuture could apply to any selfrespecting sports organisation. For the relocating, rebuilding Milwaukee Bucks, it is a maxim that neatly encapsulates the mindset of a venerable franchise going through a sweeping transformation.

James Davies

AT THE FRONT 6 8 10 12 14

Editor’s Letter The Long Read Notes and Observations The Matt Slater Column Digest

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EDITOR’S LETTER

Switching it up

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t some point during this year’s Women’s Big Bash League, the Australian T20 cricket tournament, something very unusual is likely to happen.

22-year-old right-arm offspinner Jemma Barmsby of the Brisbane Heat will be about to walk back to her mark, and she will turn to the umpire to inform him or her of a change of action. Barmsby will then bowl left-handed.

Ambidextrous bowling, as explored in a November piece by The Cricket Monthly magazine from ESPNCricinfo, is still exceedingly rare, but on the rise at the grassroots. After years of acceleration and experimentation in the once conservative art of batting, those with ball in hand are seeking new ways to respond. Improvisation has always been a part of sport – before switch-hitting, there was switching to southpaw. But the games we played and watched as children are different from those our own children will watch – not just faster and more spectacular, but explored from different angles with freshly discovered tools.

Finding solutions to disruption will no doubt be one of the themes of 2018 in the business of sport, after another year of uncertainty in everything from media to politics and integrity to hosting and event formats. Change is constant, but the signs are all there that sport is on the verge of a generational shift in how it is structured, how it is sold, and even how it is played. :H ZLOO EH WKHUH DJDLQ WR FRYHU LW DFURVV SULQW GLJLWDO DQG HYHQWV ZLWK D KLJKO\ VXFFHVVIXO ÀUVW 6SRUWV3UR 277 6XPPLW XQGHU RXU EHOWV DQG some exciting new projects to come – including our most ambitious edition of SportsPro Live to date. More on that soon. Unfortunately, we ZLOO EH PRYLQJ IRUZDUG ZLWKRXW D FRXSOH RI UHFHQW PDLQVWD\V $GDP 1HOVRQ DQG *HRUJH 'XGOH\ KDYH ERWK EHHQ LQYROYHG LQ WKHLU ÀQDO HGLWLRQV of the magazine. They leave with our best wishes after invaluable contributions, and will be missed.

We will have our own changes to make.

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Until then we wish you a merry Christmas, a refreshing holiday period, and a happy new year. We look forward to seeing you again in 2018.

Eoin Connolly Editor

EDITOR Eoin Connolly DEPUTY EDITOR Adam Nelson AMERICAS EDITOR Michael Long STAFF WRITERS Sam Carp, George Dudley JUNIOR WRITER Elena Holmes ART DIRECTOR Daniel Brown PHOTOGRAPHIC AGENCY Reuters Media Express MEDIA PARTNER Press Association

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Finding solutions to disruption will no doubt be one of the themes of 2018 in the business of sport, after another year of uncertainty.

MANAGING DIRECTOR Nick Meacham COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR Jon Abraham COMMERCIAL CONSULTANT Richard Partridge SENIOR BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGERS Charlie Barker, Sam Tibbitts BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Tom Purdy BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT EXECUTIVE Jamie Brown BUSINESS OPERATIONS MANAGER Kirsty Arundale EVENTS MANAGER Yin Khoo HEAD OF EVENTS CONTENT William Tubbs

SportsPro magazine is published by: SportsPro Media Ltd 3rd Floor, Two America Square, London EC3N 2LU, UK Tel: +44 (0) 207 549 3250 Fax: +44 (0) 207 549 3255 Email: info@sportspromedia.com Web: www.sportspromedia.com (SportsPro Media Ltd is part of the Henley Media Group Ltd www.henleymediagroup.com) NOTICES: Issue No 97 SportsPro Magazine (ISSN 1756-5340) is published bi-monthly throughout the year. Printed in the EU.

SUBSCRIPTIONS: Available at a cost of UK£199 (Print subscription), and UK£149 (Digital Subscription). Back issues are available for UK£40 and delivered anywhere in the world at no extra charge. Subscriptions are available by logging on to www.sportspromedia.com EDITORIAL COPYRIGHT: The contents of this magazine, both words and statistics, are strictly copyright and the intellectual property of SportsPro Media. Copying or reproduction may only be carried out with written permission of the publishers, which will normally not be withheld on payment of a fee. Article reprints: Most articles published in SportsPro Magazine are available as reprints by prior arrangement from the publishers. Normal minimum print run for reprints is 400 copies, although larger and smaller runs are possible. Please contact us at: info@sportspromedia.com

THE LONG READ

THE FUTURE WILL BE COMPARTMENTALISED SportsPro America’s editor Michael Long reects on sport’s ongoing shift from communal activity to media marker of individual tastes.

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hat are you?

I ask that question because the answer has never been so important. Are you a baby boomer, or are you a youth of the Generation Z variety? Are you a football fan, or do you prefer rugby? Do you LGHQWLI\ ZLWK D VSHFLĂ€F JHQGHU RU GR \RX believe gender is merely a social construct imposed upon you from the minute you arrived on this earth?

Such existential questions all form part of determining who and what we are. Or at least who and what we think we are or FKRRVH WR EH ,W¡V D PLQHÀHOG , NQRZ EXW the answers to these questions are critical to the way you experience the world.

In any case, the point of this exercise isn’t really about you at all. It’s about everyone else – the people and authorities and companies that seek to shape your existence. It’s about helping others make sense of who you are. Or, at least, who you think you are.

'HĂ€QLQJ WKH ZRUOG DURXQG XV LQ EODFN DQG white terms is hardly a new phenomenon; absolutism dates back to the beginning of time, and is written into our very genetics.

Without the ability to label and segment, we humans have no way of knowing what things are or what they should be, nor where they or we stand within the confusing melee we call life. Our ability to recognise differences and similarities between ourselves and others is an integral part of developing an identity. Displaying your label clearly and for everyone else to see is one of WKH ÀUVW WKLQJV ZH DUH WDXJKW DV FKLOGUHQ If only it were that simple. All the world’s a convoluted Venn diagram, after all, and as we get older we come to realise WKDW DWWHPSWLQJ WR QHDWO\ GHÀQH RU TXDQWLI\ things in discrete terms is futile. Far from being either black or white, good or bad, rich or poor, young or old, left-wing or right-wing, we all exist somewhere on a sliding scale, and the notion that we all conform to a straightforward stereotype has long proven to be frustratingly reductive, if not cringingly patronising.

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Within modern society, I myself am FODVVLÀHG DV D PLOOHQQLDO PDOH EXW WKDW label is in itself problematic. You see, I’m no more interested in video games than my 87-year-old grandmother is. I have little concern for the latest fashion trends.

I could care less for reality TV or celebrity endorsers. I use social media – a lot – but I’m not on Facebook.

What does that make me? More importantly, who the hell do I think I am?

In sport, as in life, our human instinct to compartmentalise informs everything.

Perhaps it is more pronounced due to the current political climate, but society’s insistence upon pigeonholing people has only created more scope for division, disconnecting us from ourselves and one another in the process.

At a time when advances in technology have afforded us the ability to personalise our experiences, to customise virtually every aspect of our interactions with the world and tailor them to our own exact VSHFLĂ€FDWLRQV ZH KDYH EHHQ PLVOHG LQWR thinking personalisation is about getting whatever it is we think we want.

Now, I can choose which stories are more prominently displayed on the home screen of my favourite news app. I can pick which camera angles to watch my favourite sport from and can curate my own social feeds. I can have my favourite food delivered directly to my favourite seat, initiate chats with faceless bots and earn loyalty points for purchases made with a tap of my phone.

All this personalisation is great, of course, but it’s not for everyone. Which begs the question: can any sport truly expect to grow in this environment?

Time and again executives in the industry talk of growing their sport. Such talk is commonly heard in high-end, ‘outof-touch’ sports like golf, where the need to “grow the game� has become a widely trumpeted mantra met with knowing nods. Across all sports, though, it is a constant refrain born of noble intentions – the kind of readily spouted ambition

that keeps a C-level professional in a job and on industry conference panels.

But is it not disingenuous to expect growth when society is becoming more fragmented and the job of tapping into already distracted, disparate and hard-toreach audiences is growing progressively PRUH GLIĂ€FXOW" Watching sport, like riding a bus or taking the tube, has shifted from a communal activity to an individual one where we engage with, comment on and consume content amongst others, rarely HYHU ZLWK WKHP ,I VSRUW LV UHĂ HFWLYH of the world at large, too often the industry invites us to don noise-cancelling headphones while staring at our screens.

Evolutions in the media landscape are largely to blame. Where once sports could hope to grow their audience by securing mainstream media coverage via linear channels, fans are now increasingly catered for with dedicated streaming services and bombarded with targeted advertising. All the while the choices you make are churned through algorithms that selectively determine your preferences and attempt to deliver a more personalised experience next time round. Marketers have long used data to assume things about us as individuals, but machines have come to know your likes and dislikes better than members of your family do.

It’s almost as if you’ve been married to them for years.

Of course, the industry’s basic rationale for all this data-driven personalisation is simple: give customers what they want, whenever, wherever and however they want it. Super-serve and you’ll soon make super-size super-fans of them all.

Yet sport’s place in this ever-more compartmentalised future is uncertain. As audiences fragment, the target pool will become even more elusive. Soon enough, sport’s value proposition and the notion that it brings people together will surely collapse. What will happen then? @_MichaelLong

11-12 APRIL 2018 LONDON www.sportsprolive.com

events@sportspromedia.com

@SportsProEvents | #SPLIVE18

NOTES AND OBSERVATIONS

WORLD RUGBY NEEDS TO CLARIFY VISION Adam Nelson

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ugby has long staked its reputation on being a sport that does things differently. For all the complexities of the game itself – not helped, of course, by being divided into two distinct codes – off the pitch, rugby is the straight-talking, gimmick-free, sensible sport; governed for fans, by fans, who have the best interests of the game at heart.

7KLV LPDJH LV SDUWLFXODUO\ SHUYDVLYH LQ WKH 8. DV H[HPSOLĂ&#x20AC;HG E\ WKH 5XJE\ )RRWEDOO 8QLRQ¡V 5)8 UHFHQWO\ DQQRXQFHG SODQV WR LQYHVW XS WR 8.Â&#x2026; PLOOLRQ 86 PLOOLRQ LQWR DQ DPELWLRXV SURJUDPPH WR PDNH UXJE\ XQLRQ WKH ´VWURQJHVW VSRUWÂľ LQ WKH FRXQWU\ :KHQ TXHVWLRQHG RQ WKLV DQG KRZ PXFK WKH SRSXODULW\ RI VRFFHU LQ WKH 8. PLJKW LPSLQJH RQ WKRVH DVSLUDWLRQV 6WHSKHQ %URZQ WKH ERG\¡V FKLHI H[HFXWLYH H[SODLQHG WKDW ´RXU GHĂ&#x20AC;QLWLRQ RI VWURQJHVW LVQ¡W QHFHVVDULO\ ELJJHVW <RX GRQ¡W KDYH WR EH ELJ WR EH VWURQJ Âľ The point, it was hard to escape, was that for all the many things rugby might be, the one thing it isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t is soccer, with its endless corruption scandals and governance mishaps, bloated with overseas wealth and where everything is for sale to the highest bidder. The RQH WKLQJ WKH 5)8 LVQ¡W LV WKH )$ ,W ZDV LQGHHG LQ DQ HIIRUW WR DYRLG WKH NLQG RI VFDQGDO WKDW KDV URFNHG )LID DQG WKH ,QWHUQDWLRQDO 2O\PSLF &RPPLWWHH ,2& LQ UHFHQW \HDUV WKDW :RUOG 5XJE\ UXJE\ XQLRQ¡V JOREDO JRYHUQLQJ ERG\ FRPPLVVLRQHG DQ LQ GHSWK HYDOXDWLRQ UHSRUW LQWR WKH VXLWDELOLW\ RI WKH WKUHH FDQGLGDWHV IRU KRVWLQJ WKH 5XJE\ :RUOG &XS 7KH HYHQWXDO SXEOLFDWLRQ RI WKDW UHSRUW LQ 2FWREHU ² D SDJH GRFXPHQW ZKLFK VWURQJO\ UHFRPPHQGHG 6RXWK $IULFD DV WKH SUHIHUUHG ELG RYHU )UDQFH DQG ,UHODQG ² GLG VHHP WR KDYH D GHFLVLYH HIIHFW RQ WKH HYHQWXDO RXWFRPH RI WKH EDOORW WKRXJK QRW WKH RQH :RUOG 5XJE\ ZDV KRSLQJ IRU )UDQFH HPHUJHG WKH YLFWRU DIWHU D VHFRQG URXQG RI YRWLQJ ZLWK YRWHV WR 6RXWK $IULFD¡V $W EHVW WKH YRWH VLJQDOV D SURIRXQG ODFN RI LPDJLQDWLRQ RQ EHKDOI RI :RUOG 5XJE\¡V PHPEHUV $W ZRUVW LW UHYHDOV GHHS OHYHOV RI PLVWUXVW FROOXVLRQ DQG LQĂ&#x20AC;JKWLQJ ZLWKLQ DQ RUJDQLVDWLRQ ZKRVH UHSXWDWLRQ LV EXLOW RQ SUHFHLVHO\ WKH RSSRVLWH )LQJHUV KDYH EHHQ SRLQWHG SUHGRPLQDQWO\ DW WKH RUJDQLVDWLRQ¡V FKDLUPDQ %LOO %HDXPRQW YLFH FKDLU $JXVWtQ 3LFKRW DQG FKLHI H[HFXWLYH %UHWW *RVSHU ZKR WKH ERG\¡V FRXQFLO UHSRUWHGO\ IHHOV ZLHOG WRR PXFK SRZHU DQG LQĂ XHQFH RYHU WKH VSRUW 7KDW WKH YRWH ZHQW DJDLQVW :RUOG 5XJE\¡V UHFRPPHQGDWLRQ LV DFFRUGLQJ WR RQH WKHRU\ DW OHDVW DV PXFK RQH LQ WKH H\H IRU LWV VHQLRU Ă&#x20AC;JXUHV DV LW LV D ULQJLQJ HQGRUVHPHQW IRU )UDQFH¡V KRVWLQJ DELOLWLHV $OWHUQDWLYHO\ WKHUH LV WKH $OO WKH 3UHVLGHQW¡V 0HQ WKHRU\ IROORZ WKH PRQH\ $JDLQVW D EDFNGURS RI SROLWLFDO XQFHUWDLQW\ LQ 6RXWK $IULFD ² D FRXQWU\ ZKLFK KDG DOUHDG\ EHHQ VWULSSHG RI WKH &RPPRQZHDOWK *DPHV WKLV \HDU DQG KDV QRZ VHHQ WKH 5XJE\ :RUOG &XS VOLS WKURXJK LWV Ă&#x20AC;QJHUV ² DQG WKH FRPSDUDWLYH ODFN RI LQIUDVWUXFWXUH DQG H[SHULHQFH LQ KROGLQJ PDMRU HYHQWV LQ ,UHODQG :RUOG 5XJE\¡V members have taken a safe play for touch, opting for the old hand they know will deliver reliably huge commercial and broadcast revenues. $V LW VWDQGV )UDQFH ZLOO KROG D 5XJE\ :RUOG &XS MXVW \HDUV DIWHU LW ODVW KRVWHG WKH VSRUW¡V VKRZSLHFH LQ 7KLV LV QRW XQSUHFHGHQWHG LQ WKH FRPSHWLWLRQ¡V UHODWLYHO\ VKRUW KLVWRU\ $XVWUDOLD Ă HZ VROR DV WKH KRVW LQ MXVW \HDUV DIWHU MRLQWO\ KROGLQJ WKH LQDXJXUDO HGLWLRQ ZLWK 1HZ =HDODQG ZKLOH WKH RIĂ&#x20AC;FLDOO\ GHVLJQDWHG KRVW LQ ZDV :DOHV EXW WKH HYHQW ZDV LQ IDFW KHOG DFURVV YDULRXV %ULWLVK ,ULVK DQG )UHQFK YHQXHV DQG IHOO \HDUV SULRU WR WKH UHWXUQ RI WKH :RUOG &XS WR WKH 8. ZKHQ (QJODQG ² ZLWK VRPH DVVLVWDQFH IURP WKH 0LOOHQQLXP 6WDGLXP LQ &DUGLII ² VWDJHG WKH WRXUQDPHQW 0XFK RI WKDW KRZHYHU FDQ EH SXW GRZQ WR WKH IDFW WKDW UXJE\ XQLRQ RQO\ WXUQHG SURIHVVLRQDO LQ DQG WKH :RUOG &XS ZDV LQ LWV LQIDQF\ ZKHQ VHYHUDO RI WKRVH HYHQWV ZHUH DZDUGHG ZLWK OLPLWHG RSWLRQV RXWVLGH WKH VSRUW¡V WUDGLWLRQDO KRPHODQGV ,Q WKH VW FHQWXU\ RQ WKH RWKHU KDQG WKHUH LV VRPH FUHGLELOLW\ WR :RUOG 5XJE\¡V FODLP WKDW LWV SUHPLHU FRPSHWLWLRQ LV WKH WKLUG ODUJHVW VSRUWLQJ HYHQW LQ WKH ZRUOG DIWHU WKH )LID :RUOG &XS DQG WKH 2O\PSLFV 5XJE\ XQLRQ LV D JOREDOO\ SRSXODU VSRUW ZLWK UHSUHVHQWDWLYH WHDPV IURP VL[ continents regularly competing at the highest level of the game. +DYLQJ EUDYHO\ GHOLYHUHG DQ $VLDQ :RUOG &XS IRU WKH Ă&#x20AC;UVW WLPH LQ :RUOG 5XJE\ KDG WKH RSSRUWXQLW\ WR EULQJ WKH WRXUQDPHQW WR one of the most passionate rugby countries on the planet, a nation which, while lacking in the range of top-level venues of France, would have put on a show like no other. Instead, Ireland is left wondering when â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and whether â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the opportunity will roll around again.

3KLOLS %URZQH FKDLUPDQ RI WKH ,ULVK 5XJE\ )RRWEDOO 8QLRQ ,5)8 FDSWXUHG WKH VSLULW RI PDQ\ ZLWKLQ WKH JDPH ZKHQ KH QRWHG DIWHU WKH YRWH WKDW ´:RUOG 5XJE\ QHHG WR GHFLGH ZKDW VRUW RI WRXUQDPHQW WKH\ ZDQW DQG PDNH VXUH HYHU\RQH XQGHUVWDQGV ZKDW WKHLU YLVLRQ LV DW WKH RXWVHW Âľ 7KDW DGYLFH FDQ EH ZLGHQHG :RUOG 5XJE\ QHHGV WR GHFLGH ZKDW NLQG RI DQ RUJDQLVDWLRQ LW ZDQWV WR EH )RU DOO )LID¡V IDXOWV ² DQG WKRVH IDXOWV PDNH QR PLVWDNH RXWVWULS WKRVH RI :RUOG 5XJE\ PDQ\ WLPHV RYHU ² VRFFHU¡V JRYHUQLQJ ERG\ KDV DW OHDVW VXFFHHGHG LQ FDSLWDOLVLQJ RQ WKH JDPH¡V JOREDO SRSXODULW\ WR EULQJ LWV VKRZSLHFH WR D GLYHUVH DXGLHQFH ,W WRRN )LID :RUOG &XS Ă&#x20AC;QDOV XQWLO 0H[LFR EHFDPH WKH Ă&#x20AC;UVW WZR WLPH KRVW LQ WKH 5XJE\ :RUOG &XS ZLOO KDYH YLVLWHG MXVW HLJKW FRXQWULHV LQ LWV Ă&#x20AC;UVW WHQ HGLWLRQV $W VRPH SRLQW :RUOG 5XJE\ QHHGV WR VWDUW VHUYLQJ LWV VWDNHKROGHUV WKH ZRUOG RYHU UDWKHU WKDQ SURWHFWLQJ WKH LQWHUHVWV RI D VHOHFW IHZ LQ LWV already well-established homelands. @adamsonnel

10 | www.sportspromedia.com

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THE SLATER COLUMN

ON THE BEAT WITH MATT SLATER Press Associationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s chief sports reporter wraps up the year at an extraordinary press event in Moscow, ahead of a massive year for sport and Russia.

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ianni Infantino gives the impression of a man who loves nothing more than a plinth packed ZLWK FDPHUDV Ă&#x20AC;OPLQJ KLP EHLQJ charming in one of the half dozen or so languages he speaks so well.

Which is why the press conference EHIRUH WKH :RUOG &XS GUDZ LQ 0RVFRZ PXVW KDYH EHHQ VXFK D GLVDSSRLQWPHQW IRU the Fifa president, particularly as all the elements were in place.

He was on a stage in front of a room stuffed with journalists from around the world, including yours truly.

7KDW URRP ZDV LQ D EXLOGLQJ LQVLGH WKH Kremlin, a palace which houses Russiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most sacred sites, ran an empire and still SURMHFWV IHDU DQG UHVSHFW DURXQG WKH JOREH â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the kind of place that only heads of state and Fifa presidents get to visit without wearing lanyards around their necks.

6DW EHVLGH KLP ZDV 5XVVLD¡V GHSXW\ SULPH PLQLVWHU 9LWDO\ 0XWNR FKDLUPDQ of Russia 2018â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s organising committee, SUHVLGHQW RI WKH 5XVVLDQ )RRWEDOO 8QLRQ and former sports minister â&#x20AC;&#x201C; not just any old apparatchik, then.

But what unfolded over the following 77 minutes was not on the carefully prepared media plan and the language Infantino VSRNH PRVW Ă XHQWO\ ZDV ERG\ ODQJXDJH which came across loud and clear. , Ă&#x20AC;UVW QRWLFHG LW ZKHQ WKH 6ZLVV ,WDOLDQ OHDQHG IRUZDUG LQ KLV EOXH DUPFKDLU SXW KLV HOERZV RQ KLV NQHHV UHVWHG KLV FKLQ RQ D FOLQFKHG Ă&#x20AC;VW DQG IURZQHG $W WKLV SRLQW 0XWNR ZDV WHQ PLQXWHV into an answer to a fairly generic question IURP D *HUPDQ UHSRUWHU DERXW WKH then impending International Olympic &RPPLWWHH ,2& GHFLVLRQ RQ ZKDW WR GR DERXW 5XVVLD¡V V\VWHPLF GRSLQJ ² DQ answer that had started with him saying KH GLG QRW ZDQW WR VD\ PXFK DERXW WKDW EHFDXVH ZH ZHUH DOO WKHUH IRU WKH IRRWEDOO right? %HWZHHQ 0XWNR¡V EUHH]\ VWDUW DQG Infantinoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s frown, we got a full house of Russian responses to claims it operated D VWDWH VSRQVRUHG GRSLQJ FRQVSLUDF\ WR

12 | www.sportspromedia.com

VDERWDJH DW OHDVW WZR 2O\PSLFV DQG VHYHUDO PDMRU FKDPSLRQVKLSV ² DQG SUREDEO\ WKH :RUOG &XS WRR LI LW KDG QRW EHHQ UXPEOHG E\ D FRDOLWLRQ RI ZKLVWOHEORZHUV UHSRUWHUV DQG DQWL GRSLQJ LQYHVWLJDWRUV â&#x20AC;&#x153;There was no conspiracy, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re no worse WKDQ DQ\ERG\ HOVH ZK\ DUHQ¡W \RX WDONLQJ DERXW 1RUZHJLDQ ELDWKOHWHV DQG WKH DVWKPD PHGLFDWLRQ RI %ULWLVK IRRWEDOOHUV ZKDW ZDV WKH :RUOG $QWL 'RSLQJ $JHQF\ GRLQJ EHIRUH WKH ZKLVWOHEORZHUV DUH GHJHQHUDWHV ZKR KDYH GRQH GHDOV WR EX\ QHZ OLYHV LQ WKH 8QLWHG 6WDWHVÂŤÂľ 7KHUH ZDV PRUH ODWHU EXW WKLV ZDV 0XWNR¡V RSHQLQJ JDPELW (YHQWXDOO\ KH VWRSSHG DQG VRPHERG\ else got a question in.

Ah, thank God, Infantino must have thought, it is from a Brazilian, this must EH DERXW IRRWEDOO VXUHO\ 1R WKLV RQH ZDV DERXW WKH RQJRLQJ IRRWEDOO FRUUXSWLRQ WULDO LQ 1HZ <RUN and, to mix sports and metaphors for D PRPHQW ZDV D ERXQFHU GLUHFWHG DW Infantinoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s shiny noggin.

8QOLNH WKH YHUERVH 9LWDO\ JHQLDO *LDQQL VZHUYHG WKLV RQH NHHSLQJ LW EULHI UHLQIRUFLQJ KLV NH\ PHVVDJH WKDW LW ZDV DERXW the past and he represents the future. Fifa, KH UHPLQGHG HYHU\ERG\ DUH WKH YLFWLPV KHUH 8QIRUWXQDWHO\ WKDW ZDV DQ LGHD WKDW NHSW FRPLQJ EDFN WR PH DV 9LWDO\ Ă&#x20AC;UHG 0XWNR ,, DQG 0XWNR ,,, DW IROORZ XS TXHVWLRQV DERXW KLV RZQ VXLWDELOLW\ WR UXQ D VSRUWV tournament, given the fact the doping scam was run out of his ministry, from two British journalists working for American titles.

'XULQJ WKHVH PHDQGHULQJ PLVVLOH VWULNHV 0XWNR¡V VKDGH VSUHDG WR KRZ RIWHQ DWKOHWHV DUH WHVWHG LQ WKH PDLQ 86 OHDJXHV /$¡V DQWL GRSLQJ ODE ZKHQ KLV PDLQ DFFXVHU 'U *ULJRU\ 5RGFKHQNRY UHDOO\ wrote his diaries, The New York Times and KLV EHOLHI WKDW LI DQ\ERG\ FKHFNHG WKH\ ZRXOG Ă&#x20AC;QG PLFURVFRSLF VFUDWFKHV RQ ORWV RI XULQH VDPSOH ERWWOHV QRW MXVW WKH RQHV the Russians are supposed to have opened at Sochi 2014.

Infantino, meanwhile, shifted his weight IURP FKHHN WR FKHHN EXW FRXOG Ă&#x20AC;QG QR comfort.

He then demonstrated some FRQVLGHUDEOH FKHHN E\ WU\LQJ WR OHFWXUH the room on the type of the question we VKRXOG EH DVNLQJ VXJJHVWLQJ LI MRXUQDOLVWV from Australia or Peru had asked one he ZRXOG EH WDONLQJ DERXW IRRWEDOO Questions from Australia or Peru came there none, which is hardly surprising when you consider the real story of the day â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the actual draw â&#x20AC;&#x201C; had not happened and when it did, we all had plenty to write DQG WDON DERXW LW For that precise moment, however, ZH UHDOO\ ZDQWHG WR WDON WR 0XWNR DERXW KLV UROH LQ WKH ELJJHVW JOREDO VSRUWV news story of the last 18 months and Infantinoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s attempts to restore Fifaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s UHSXWDWLRQ DIWHU WKH ELJJHVW VSRUWV QHZV story of the previous year.

7KH IDFW WKDW WKH RQO\ PHPRUDEOH QRQ VFDQGDO UHODWHG TXHVWLRQ ZDV D PRDQ IURP D ORFDO MRXUQDOLVW DERXW 5XVVLD¡V ´IDOVHÂľ UDQNLQJ RI WK LQ WKH ZRUOG VSRNH YROXPHV DERXW ,QIDQWLQR¡V SUHGLFDPHQW He is committed to holding his organisationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most important event in a FRXQWU\ FRQVLGHUHG WR EH D SDULDK VWDWH E\ PDQ\ LQ WKH VSRUWV ZRUOG IRUFHG WR VKDUH VWDJHV ZLWK PHQ UHVSRQVLEOH IRU WKDW perception, at a time when that countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s economy has stalled and its image has EHHQ WDUQLVKHG E\ HOHFWRUDO PHGGOLQJ DQG ZDU $QG WKHLU IRRWEDOO WHDP LV UXEELVK 7KLV PLJKW EH LUUHOHYDQW LI )LID KDG PXFK FUHGLW LQ WKH EDQN 8QIRUWXQDWHO\ WKDW WULDO LQ 1HZ <RUN LV HPSW\LQJ LWV meagre reserves once more.

0XWNR HQGHG WKH SUHVV FRQIHUHQFH E\ GDVKLQJ RII WKH VWDJH WR KDUDQJXH D journalist, underlining the international take on things that he was losing his PDUEOHV EXW QR GRXEW ORRNLQJ OLNH D 5XVVLDQ EHDU JURZOLQJ DW WKH QDVW\ foreigners for the domestic audience.

2K ZHOO LW LV RQO\ RQH :RUOG &XS , suppose. There is always Qatar 2022 to ORRN IRUZDUG WRÂŤ 2K %XJJHU 3UHVV $VVRFLDWLRQ LV DQ RIĂ&#x20AC;FLDO SportsPro media partner.

DIGEST SECTION TEXT HERE ISSUE 97

Next time in

Issue 98 of SportsPro will open 2018 with our annual look at ten of the influential figures whose contributions will shape the sporting year ahead – across politics, brands, media and plenty besides. We’ll also be asking the industry for its take on what is to come, soliciting the most pertinent

The ideas edition

The Agenda

questions for what promises to be an intriguing 12 months.

Elsewhere in the magazine, we’ll be looking at the latest big developments in esports, as the worlds of competitive video gaming and traditional sport converge ever further.

This will include a report on the

newest leagues and the biggest investment crossovers.

We will also take a glimpse inside the world of sports investigation, while Rakuten’s Rahul Kadavakolu will explain how the Tokyo-based ecommerce firm is using sport to build out its offering in Japan and beyond.

Dates for your diary in the weeks ahead

6TH TO 20TH JANUARY The Dakar Rally Peru, Bolivia, Argentina The ASO's displaced rally raid begins another South American odyssey 15TH TO 28TH JANUARY Australian Open Melbourne, Australia The tennis season begins in earnest with the year's opening Grand Slam 3RD FEBRUARY TO 17TH MARCH 2018 Six Nations Championship UK, Republic of Ireland, France, Italy Rugby union's leading European powers resume hostilities

4TH FEBRUARY Super Bowl LII Minneapolis, USA The US Bank stadium welcomes the NFL's bombastic season finale 6TH TO 8TH FEBRUARY The 132nd IOC Session PyeongChang, South Korea 9TH TO 25TH FEBRUARY The XXIII Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang, South Korea

Icons designed by Freepik

14 | www.sportspromedia.com

ISSUE 97 By the numbers p56

What they’re saying this issue p50

“Frankly – put aside for a minute the actual streaming of games – we work with broadcasters all around the world to actually help support their current television business.”

Dan Reed, Facebook

p66

“I started the event in London, at The O2, and that aged me about ten years in the two years’ preparation.

This has been the same.”

Chris Kermode, ATP

p72

“We’re creating moments for people during summer. It’s Christmas. We’re creating moments that are going to stay with people for their lives.

We’re creating memories.”

Kim McConnie, Cricket Australia

p80

“We have the opportunity to change fan behaviours and the way that the fan interacts with the venue. We’re working with our partners to define the way people see sport and attending sporting venues.”

Sanjeev Katwa, Tottenham Hotspur

SportsPro Magazine | 15

THOUGHT LEADER INTEGRITY

SPORT UNDER INVESTIGATION: A PRACTICAL GUIDE Ashley Blake

A

s anticipated in The Sports Consultancyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;5 for 5â&#x20AC;&#x2122; article back in July looking at the priorities facing VSRUW RYHU WKH QH[W Ă&#x20AC;YH \HDUV WKH YROXPH DQG IUHTXHQF\ RI LQYHVWLJDWLRQV inquiries and reviews being carried out by or on behalf of sports bodies has continued to increase throughout 2017.

It is not just the volume and frequency of WKHVH LQYHVWLJDWLRQV ZKLFK LV LQFUHDVLQJ EXW also the complexity and the cost. Whether the investigations involve global betting V\QGLFDWH QHWZRUNV VWDWH VSRQVRUHG GRSLQJ programmes or allegations of historical HPRWLRQDO RU SK\VLFDO DEXVH DQ LQFUHDVLQJ level of sophistication and resource is needed to address the concerns effectively.

With UK bodies coming under particular scrutiny following the implementation of WKH 6SRUWV *RYHUQDQFH &RGH WKLV \HDU WKH QHHG WR LGHQWLI\ LQYHVWLJDWH DQG UHVROYH WKHVH issues â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and to be seen to do so â&#x20AC;&#x201C; becomes HYHU JUHDWHU :LWK IXQGLQJ DW VWDNH ERGLHV will now have no choice but to act. +RZHYHU D SRRUO\ SODQQHG RU SRRUO\ executed investigation can cause more harm than good. So what should an organisation take into account when commissioning or carrying out an investigation?

Failing to plan is planning to fail In a world where bad news can spread JOREDOO\ DW WKH FOLFN RI D EXWWRQ LW LV DOO too tempting to rush into an investigation. +RZHYHU D SRRUO\ SODQQHG LQYHVWLJDWLRQ VWDUWHG ZLWKRXW DGHTXDWH WHUPV RI UHIHUHQFH objectives and jurisdiction can take on a life RI LWV RZQ DQG EH GLIĂ&#x20AC;FXOW WR FRQWDLQ RU VWRS The terms of reference can determine whether the investigation is likely to succeed or fail. Too wide and it may uncover a breadth of issues but never reach a satisfactory conclusion; too narrow and it may not achieve anything at all.

It is important to address at the very HDUOLHVW VWDJH VRPH NH\ TXHVWLRQV DQG WR UHĂ HFW WKH DQVZHUV LQ D FDUHIXOO\ GHYHORSHG terms of reference and project plan: â&#x20AC;˘ What are you looking to achieve? â&#x20AC;˘ Will the investigation focus on individuals

16 | www.sportspromedia.com

or on structural or cultural issues? â&#x20AC;˘ What time period are you investigating? â&#x20AC;˘ What do your rules allow you to do/ prevent you from doing? â&#x20AC;˘ What are your jurisdictional parameters? â&#x20AC;˘ What powers do you have to collect evidence? â&#x20AC;˘ What is the budget? â&#x20AC;˘ How long should the investigation last?

Communication is key The media attention that sport draws is a GRXEOH HGJHG VZRUG 2Q WKH RQH KDQG LW FDQ GHOLYHU PLOOLRQV LQ FRPPHUFLDO GHDOV ZKLOVW on the other the public scrutiny that sports bodies and their personnel come under can be more intense than any other industry.

Investigations arise when negative issues KDYH EHHQ LGHQWLĂ&#x20AC;HG VR GHYHORSLQJ DQG H[HFXWLQJ D MRLQHG XS FRPPXQLFDWLRQV SODQ from the outset and throughout is critical.

This includes educating the media DQG SXEOLF UHJDUGLQJ WKH SXUSRVH VFRSH limitations and likely outcomes of the LQYHVWLJDWLRQ DV ZHOO DV SURDFWLYHO\ PDQDJLQJ the inevitable leaks that may arise during WKH FRXUVH RI WKH LQYHVWLJDWLRQ )XUWKHU an effective internal communications programme will ensure that personnel and stakeholders within the sports body itself XQGHUVWDQG WKH SURFHVV KRZ WR FRQWULEXWH and remain â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;on messageâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;.

The right personnel 6HOI UHJXODWLRQ LV RQH RI WKH FRUQHUVWRQHV of sport and sports bodies are traditionally extremely resistant to any help or oversight from outside of their sport. Whilst in some cases the sports bodies themselves may well EH EHVW SODFHG WR FDUU\ RXW DQ LQYHVWLJDWLRQ TXHVWLRQV RI DFWXDO RU SHUFHLYHG FRQĂ LFW ODFN RI REMHFWLYLW\ SROLWLFDO VHQVLWLYLW\ RU OHJDO H[SHUWLVH PD\ DULVH )RU WKHVH UHDVRQV bodies should consider whether independent scrutiny might be more appropriate. :KDWHYHU WKH DSSURDFK ERGLHV VKRXOG think very carefully about the most appropriate individuals or organisations to carry out any investigation. Depending on WKH VFDOH DQG QDWXUH RI WKH LQYHVWLJDWLRQ

D EHVW SUDFWLFH LQYHVWLJDWLRQ SDQHO ZRXOG W\SLFDOO\ FRPSULVH D FRPELQDWLRQ RI OHJDO VXEMHFW PDWWHU LQYHVWLJDWLYH DQG VSRUW VSHFLĂ&#x20AC;F H[SHUWLVH 6SHFLDOLVW VHUYLFHV OLNH digital forensics might also be considered for complex investigations.

Consideration should be given to the support that an investigating panel has in WHUPV RI VHFUHWDULDW VHUYLFHV HYLGHQFH gathering and sharing of best practice and NQRZ KRZ DFURVV VLPLODU LQYHVWLJDWLRQV Achieving a meaningful outcome An investigation is pointless unless there is a clear plan of what to do in the event of D VHULRXV LVVXH EHLQJ LGHQWLĂ&#x20AC;HG DQG XQOHVV there is a willingness â&#x20AC;&#x201C; or a compulsion â&#x20AC;&#x201C; to address any such issue.

A good investigation will result in clear recommendations aimed at addressing the issue and mitigating the risk of a recurrence.

7KH UHFRPPHQGDWLRQV VKRXOG EH DFKLHYDEOH appropriate and proportionate for the structure and sport in question.

A clear plan for implementation â&#x20AC;&#x201C; ZKHWKHU WKURXJK UXOH FKDQJHV SROLF\ updates or sanctions â&#x20AC;&#x201C; should be outlined and actioned. This may well also include structural measures such as education SURJUDPPHV LQGHSHQGHQW PRQLWRULQJ XQLWV RU ZKLVWOHEORZLQJ VHUYLFHV HQVXULQJ HDUOLHU detection or prevention in future.

The future New sports investigations are announced almost weekly â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and many more investigations are being conducted that are not announced â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and there is no doubt that we will continue to hear more and more on this topic. We expect a lot of developments in the area as sports look for a more uniform DQG FRVW HIIHFWLYH DSSURDFK WR KRZ WKH investigations are conducted.

Ashley Blake is a Partner at The Sports Consultancy Legal. Together with Quest, The Sports Consultancy and The Sports Consultancy Legal have recently launched Global Sports Investigations, an independent intelligence-led inquiries and investigations service for sport.

THOUGHT LEADER SECTION TEXT HERE DIGITAL

LEAGUE WEBSITES: THE UNTAPPED ASSET IN FAN ENGAGEMENT Ben Turner

B

uilding direct engagement channels with fans has never been more challenging for rights holders.

As second screen viewing continues to thrive, fans have access to an unprecedented level of content via thousands of news sites, mobile apps and social media channels which cover and analyse every play of every game.

With this explosive growth in digital channels, leagues are increasing their investment in multi-platform approaches to remain connected with their fans.

Yet with so many channels to choose from and so much rich content at their Ă&#x20AC;QJHUWLSV OHDJXHV PXVW QRW RYHUORRN D KLJKO\ SURĂ&#x20AC;WDEOH \HW RIWHQ XQH[SORLWHG UHVRXUFH WKHLU RIĂ&#x20AC;FLDO ZHEVLWHV Taking control Amid a highly competitive and increasingly fragmented media landscape, every channel has its own place and purpose. The global desire for short, sharp content continues to grow, both in and out of sports, with social media driving second screen experiences as borne out by the rapid growth of streaming and highlights deals between rights holders DQG WKH OLNHV RI 7ZLWWHU DQG )DFHERRN Meanwhile, many leagues continue to prioritise distribution via traditional media partners in the hopes of continuing to engage and extend their fanbase. With their outstanding content, exceptional UHSXWDWLRQV DQG JOREDO UHDFK ZHEVLWHV OLNH ESPN and BBC Sport continue to attract millions of unique page visits a day, helping the leagues to reach a truly global audience.

However, in terms of the level of information and potential to directly engage with fans, a leagueâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s proprietary assets can be even more powerful. Social media is designed to give fans a snapshot of the DFWLRQ DOHUWLQJ IDQV WR NH\ HYHQWV LQ D PDWFK with highly restrictive levels of content, while only a small number of leagues are in a position to drive exposure with a global audience via the largest news sites.

In contrast to these limitations, a leagueâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s RIĂ&#x20AC;FLDO ZHEVLWH LV D SHUIHFW PHGLXP WR

offer fans the richest level of information available, enabling them to analyse pregame, live and post-match content on individual players, teams and games, from one personalised platform. Each sport ZDQWV WR XQORFN LWV IXOO SRWHQWLDO LQ WKH rapidly evolving digital era, and the league website can be at the heart of this growth.

Becoming a hub The success of this strategy is dependent on multiple factors. While advancements in data and technology have created a multitude of new and exciting ways to engage fans, the core expectations remain WKH VDPH 1DWXUDOO\ Ă&#x20AC;[WXUH OLVWV OHDJXH standings, top goal or point-scorer statistics still hold the same value as ever and leagues must ensure this content is immediately onshow without fans having to hunt for them. %H\RQG WKLV RIĂ&#x20AC;FLDO VLWHV PXVW SURYLGH fans with deeper, more meaningful insights, driven by a level of information that canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be found anywhere else. In order to achieve WKLV IRUZDUG WKLQNLQJ OHDJXHV FDQ FRPELQH D fantasy league level of historic statistics with rich contextual information, including match reports, real-time updates on goal scorers, assists, substitutions and league tables which automatically update as the goals go in. )RU EDVNHWEDOO OHDJXHV FDQ VDWLVI\ IDQV¡ obsession with statistics with detailed box scores and league leader tables across points, assists, rebounds, steals and several others. They can then combine this with real-time information in the form of playby-play game updates and highly visual team and player shot charts. ,Q RUGHU WR PDNH WKHLU ZHEVLWH WKH RIĂ&#x20AC;FLDO VRXUFH IRU LQIRUPDWLRQ RQ WKHLU competitions, leagues must also be willing to exploit their unique level of access to all their competitions such as behind the scenes interviews and player training footage.

Arguably, leagues are in the strongest position here. They can use their levels of access to publish the same level of restricted content for every club, combining rich realtime video content with archive footage to create an immersive fan experience. Those

leagues without huge broadcasting potential can also live stream multiple games at one time, reaching fans across multiple mediums.

Making content pay Establishing a loyal audience on a leagueâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s RIĂ&#x20AC;FLDO ZHEVLWH EULQJV DGGLWLRQDO EHQHĂ&#x20AC;WV ,W provides a direct channel to drive revenues WKURXJK WLFNHW DQG PHUFKDQGLVH VDOHV E\ delivering updates and offers to a highly engaged audience. OTT products such as the NBA League Pass can also be advertised to loyal fans in visual formats, creating the best possible opportunity of reaching an audience across multiple formats.

Leagues can also utilise accurate fan data for extensions of sponsorship agreements.

Existing partners (such as shirt sponsors) can be offered the opportunity to reach a highly engaged audience with dynamic advertising, increasing the relevance and content of the sponsorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s messaging, their UHWXUQ RQ LQYHVWPHQW DQG WKH OLNHOLKRRG RI them increasing their spend with the league.

In time, leagues can also personalise the fan experience to better connect with WKHLU DXGLHQFH 7KH\ FDQ WUDFN PRQLWRU and analyse each fanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s individual viewing habits, enabling them to tailor content WR VXLW WKH LQGLYLGXDO )RU H[DPSOH IDQV can be served with tailored advertising promoting the merchandise of their favourite team or player.

6R ZKLOH VRFLDO LV VWLOO NLQJ IRU NHHSLQJ IDQV LQIRUPHG ZLWK NH\ VQDSVKRW XSGDWHV with the right data supply, any rights KROGHU FDQ PDNH WKHLU RIĂ&#x20AC;FLDO ZHEVLWH WKH go-to destination for in-depth information and rich engagement. An unparalleled level of customisable content, both statistical and contextual, can be provided to transform how leagues grow and monetise their audience.

Leagues of all sizes constantly face questions around the future of sustainable fan engagement, but the solution may be FORVHU WKDQ WKH\ WKLQN Ben Turner is the director, international operations at Genius Sports.

SportsPro Magazine | 17

THOUGHT LEADER INSURANCE

READING THE LATEST TRENDS IN TICKETING INSURANCE James Davies

The development of inability to attend refund schemes and cancellation ticket schemes is helping to create certainty for fans and event organisers

A

s ticketing platforms change with market forces, we are seeing more and more product ideas being added to the ticket product itself. The insurance enhancements have primarily been ‘borrowed’ by the travel business world to increase end user control, reduce event organisers’ costs and to provide a new line of income.

There are two products currently available in the insurance market: inability to attend insurance (ITA) and event cancellation for ticket holders.

Inability to attend (ITA) refund schemes When customers buy tickets for events, the ticket purchase will usually include refund terms. Generally, if the event is cancelled – for example, due to an unavoidable closure of the venue – the customer will receive a full refund for their ticket from the venue. However, if the customer has purchased their ticket or tickets and is unable to attend for personal reasons and the event still takes place, there is typically no responsibility on the venue to refund that outlay.

This is where ITA has become increasingly popular. ITA insurance picks up the liability for refunding the customer if they are unable to attend the event, for a selection of named reasons beyond their control. This enables the venue to provide

18 | www.sportspromedia.com

a safety net for customers who have invested in tickets, but miss out on the experience through no fault of their own.

Examples of the perils typically covered

by ITA include: • Death, accident, injury or sickness of the ticket holders • Travel delay due to mechanical breakdown or accidental damage to transport • Adverse weather preventing travel to the venue • Jury service preventing the attendance or a ticket holder(s) • Damage to the home of the ticket holder(s) requiring them to stay at home and miss the event • If the event has been postponed and rescheduled for another date that the ticket holder cannot make they will also be refunded Cancellation ticket scheme The cancellation ticket scheme is a rapidly growing event protection business through its core distribution channel of providing event cancellation insurance on a transactional basis to ticket agents, venues, events and sports teams. This opportunity exists to create a new channel of business through further

adaption and utilisation of a ticketing platform to act as a sales and distribution tool for cancellation insurance with a focus on events.

Typical clients for event cancellation insurance are event organisers, promoters, sponsors and talent agents. Brokers service their event clients through placement of risks, both one-off and annual. The policies range from public liability insurance, employer’s liability, professional indemnity and cyber event equipment covers as well as event cancellation insurance. The event insurance premiums are usually in the form of an upfront lump sum payment.

If the event is cancelled for a reason which is covered under the ticket policy, the client would normally pay a claim back to the ticket holder via their event cancellation policy. In this case, the individual ticket holder will make an online claim direct to the ticket insurer.

This form of cover removes the need for event organisers to put cancellation on their own P&L for ticket revenue, therefore reducing their premium spend.

Placing the cover direct on to the ticket holder generates a new income stream through the ticketing platform.

James Davies is a principal at Integro Entertainment and Sport.

THOUGHT LEADER STADIUMS AND VENUES

HOW TO COMBINE THE VENUE AND FAN EXPERIENCE John Liljelund

A

s sport is slowly gliding towards being an instrumental part of the entertainment industry and at the same time becoming more polarised, new and small sports have a tough nut to crack if they want to grow. The only sure solution is money, regardless of how good your athletes are and how they perform, but if that is scarce, you must try to be crafty. At the same time, the use of information is changing, with videos and pictures becoming more important than written text. The venue offering must therefore be much more compact and detailed to keep the interest of the audience.

Today, it is not enough to just have music and a sound system â&#x20AC;&#x201C; you need to have cheerleaders, a master of ceremonies explaining the sport, lights and thunder, interactive commercials, and instant replays on the jumbo-screen. You also need to provide this live in social media and on YouTube to please the fans also in the venue.

To become a â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;real eventâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; you need a YHQXH ZLWK DOO WKH WHFKQLFDO Ă&#x20AC;QHVVH DQG live music â&#x20AC;&#x201C; you need to build a spectacle that the fan can be part of. To successfully combine the venue and fan experience together, you need to activate the audience throughout the game. It can be true social media or in-venue videos â&#x20AC;&#x201C; these could be kiss cams or competitions for the EHVW VXSSRUWHU RXWĂ&#x20AC;W RU IDQ FKHHULQJ DV using the audience is key in the in-venue broadcasting to create feelings. All kinds of interactive tools will enhance the experience â&#x20AC;&#x201C; even something as simple as a paper clapper will raise the atmosphere in the arena, through participation, which is the key for a wonderful experience. If you feel emotionally involved, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re more likely to like it.

It has become imperative to provide a good and interesting overall experience for the fans, combined with an exciting VSRUWLQJ SURGXFW 6R WKH Ă&#x20AC;UVW TXHVWLRQ is: what is your sport providing that the fanbase like â&#x20AC;&#x201C; speed, beautiful goals,

technical excellence, hard hits or something else? The second is: what fan activations is it possible to be use in your venues? Can you provide this, without losing your true identity and becoming something else?

Then there is the product itself. Is the game too long? Is there too much time when nothing really happens? Is the standard of the game and the athletes on a OHYHO UHTXLUHG WR VDWLVI\ HYHQ WKH PRUH FULWLFDO fans? Here, the sport often encounters the biggest opposition within their own ranks, as you are trying to touch tradition.

the example of rugby sevens, but that would be too far from our core product, as we also play 3v3 games.

When included in the World Games ZH ZHUH IRUFHG WR Ă&#x20AC;QG D VROXWLRQ WR PHHW WKH TXRWD JLYHQ E\ WKH ,QWHUQDWLRQDO World Games Association (IWGA). Little did we know at that time, that we actually enhanced our sports product in a way which surprisingly pleased everyone â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the athletes, coaches, teams and fans. We played with only 14 players and shortened the effective game time to 3x15 minutes.

Floorball has focused on its in-game action, as well as its in-venue activities, to engage fansâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; attention

Floorball is a young and still growing sport, which is establishing a worldwide presence and awareness. It is really fast DQG FDQ EH TXLWH GLIĂ&#x20AC;FXOW WR IROORZ LQ the beginning, so the discussion at the International Floorball Federation (IFF) is about how to control the game speed to enhance the experience.

A strategic goal for the IFF, as with probably all other non-Olympic sports, is to enter more multi-sport games. Here, Floorball made major mistakes back at the start, 30 years ago, by setting the game as 5v5 plus goalies, with teams of 20 players (as many as 23 at the beginning) and effective game time of [ PLQXWHV PDNLQJ WKH SURGXFW TXLWH heavy. One solution could be to follow

This reduced the game time from two hours to just under 90 minutes, making it easier to watch. The more important effect was that the intensity of the games grew dramatically as there was no spare time to lose and the games become much more interesting when the best players were playing all the time.

So the solution for an enhanced venue and fan experience lies in the streamlining of the sport product and creating an interactive connection to the DXGLHQFH %XW LV QRW HDV\ ² LW UHTXLUHV WULDO and error before you know what your audience wants.

John Liljelund is the secretary general of the International Floorball Federation.

SportsPro Magazine | 19

PREMATURE FACTS

Quick pitch

Having orchestrated one of the transfers of the century when he negotiated his star client Gareth Bale’s (above) world record-breaking move from Tottenham Hotspur to Real Madrid in 2013, influential British agent Jonathan Barnett is now said to be looking to sell his Stellar Group, one of the UK’s most powerful athlete representation businesses, for upwards of US$100 million. Few doubt Barnett’s ability to get a deal done, but on whose terms? With Fifa president Gianni Infantino having personally vowed to review the role of agents in player transfers, any measures taken to reduce the millions paid to intermediaries would only erode the profits of companies like Stellar.

Shifting consumption patterns and evolving media trends have reshaped the way industries operate across the board, and advertising is no exception. With average attention spans said to have shrunk to just eight seconds, down from 12 seconds not so long ago, marketers are starting to see the value in playing the short game. Fox’s six-second commercial spots during this year’s MLB World Series were an apparent hit with advertisers, with brands like T-Mobile and Duracell both claiming to have seen impressive upticks in audience engagement and recall after buying up the less intrusive airtime. That the shorter spots sold for the same price as 15-second ads should have broadcasters salivating, too.

Gareth Fuller/PA Archive/PA Images

Dealbreaker?

Advertiser friendly

A ball in a China shop

Disney’s world

Is the weight of advertising tradition already coming to bear on the non-traditionalists of the streaming industry? Not only has Nielsen taken to monitoring views of video content on streaming sites, bringing its conventional method of audience measurement to companies like Netflix and, beginning in 2018, Hulu and Amazon, but advertisers are now pushing for more product placement as a means of tapping into these new players who have typically eschewed traditional commercials. At a time when piracy is said to be costing streaming companies billions of dollars in lost revenue – a time when those same firms are looking to fund massive production budgets – the industry could be about to discover how robust that SVOD model really is.

Chinese president Xi Jinping’s vision of one day hosting the Fifa World Cup appears to be inching closer to reality. Marcello Lippi, China’s national team manager, claimed in November that the 2030 tournament remains firmly in the country’s crosshairs, although the Chinese Football Association (CFA) moved quickly to quash any suggestion that preparations for that edition are indeed underway. Nevertheless, with plans to develop soccer infrastructure and participation being formalised across the country, local media reports say regional authorities in at least 13 provinces are now supportive of staging major events, including the sport’s quadrennial showpiece.

Reported just as SportsPro was going to press, The Walt Disney Company’s seismic deal to acquire a set of major assets from 21st Century Fox has stirred substantial industry speculation – and not only because it carries a reported price tag of some US$60 billion. In defiance of the broader media trends eating into its affiliate fees and subscription revenues, Disney will reportedly acquire Fox’s US regional sports networks, a bold move into the costly local rights market that suggests the owners of ESPN still see profit potential in the cable model. Could the deal halt the decline of a supposedly sinking ship? And could it see Disney chief Bob Iger (above) stay on past his planned 2019 retirement date?

20 | www.sportspromedia.com

MOVERS AND SHAKERS

Movers and shakers Alain Prost and Christiana Figueres

October and November 2017 This is an edited selection of appointments made in the weeks before publication. For daily updates on the movers and shakers in the sports industry, visit www.sportspromedia.com Please email appointments to: info@sportspromedia.com

Jon Kelly M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment has announced that Jon Kelly will join the company in the new role of creative director. Kelly joins the sports consultancy from Australian creative agency Iris Worldwide, and brings four years’ experience as a creative lead and over 20 years’ experience across brand, digital and experiential areas in Sydney, Bangkok and London.

Grant Simmer Land Rover BAR, the British sailing team led by Sir Ben Ainslie, have appointed Grant Simmer as their new chief executive. Simmer, a four-time winner of sailing’s prestigious America’s Cup, replaces Martin Whitmarsh, who now moves to an advisor role and will also assume the position of chief executive at the newly formed BAR Technologies. Simmer began his America’s Cup career in 1983, when he helped Australia II claim victory as a navigator. He has since claimed the Auld Mug three times as head of design, managing director and general manager with the Swiss team Alinghi and, most recently, Oracle Team USA.

Kate Bosomworth Hassan Moustafa Hassan Moustafa has been re-elected as president of the International Handball Federation (IHF) for a fifth consecutive term. The Egyptian ran unopposed for the leadership during the 36th IHF congress in Antalya in Turkey, receiving 104 votes from delegates, with nine against and four abstaining. Moustafa, who played for the Egyptian national handball team for ten years, was first elected to head the federation in 2000. The 73-yearold is to run the IHF until 2021.

22 | www.sportspromedia.com

M&C Saatchi has named Kate Bosomworth as its chief marketing officer. The agency has created the new role specifically for Bosomworth, who is widely known for running the ‘This Girl Can’ campaign for the board of Sport England. A former member of the UK government’s sport and business council, Bosomworth also ran Speed Communications for 15 years before standing down in December last year in order to freelance a group of clients and help to develop women’s sport.

The International Automobile Federation (FIA), the global governing body for motorsport, has appointed Alain Prost and Christiana Figueres to head up a new global advisory board for Formula E. Frenchman Prost, who is a four-time Formula One champion, is the co-founder and team principal of the Renault e.dams Formula E team. He will advise the all-electric motorsport series guided by Costa Rican Figueres, the former executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) whose work includes spearheading the Paris Agreement on climate change.

Robert Klein Robert Klein has been announced as the new chief executive of Bundesliga International, the German Football League (DFL) subsidiary which manages marketing activities and the sale of international media rights for German club soccer’s Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga. Klein, who has been the body’s chief commercial officer since May this year, will replace Jörg Daubitzer on 1st January 2018. Steffen Merkel – previously manager of executive projects for the DFL – will also become director of operations.

Cain Liddle Australian rules football side Carlton Football Club have named Cain Liddle as their new chief executive. Liddle joins the Blues from rival Australian Football League (AFL) team Richmond Football Club, where he had been general manager of consumer business since 2010. He began his new role with Carlton on 13th November.

Richard Brisius and Johan Salén Richard Brisius and Johan Salén have been appointed as president and co-president of sailing’s Volvo Ocean Race. The two veterans of the eight-month, round-theworld event will take over from outgoing chief executive Mark Turner, whose departure was confirmed in September. Brisius and Salén, co-founders of the Atlant Ocean Racing team, take the helm having worked in various roles on seven previous editions of the Volvo Ocean Race. The pair have won the event twice – with EF Language in 1997-98 and Ericsson 4 in 2008-09 – and most recently managed Team SCA, an all-female entry, in the last edition of the race.

Michael Cole Golf’s European Tour has appointed Michael Cole as its chief technology officer.

Cole joins the leading men’s circuit immediately, and will be tasked with developing its digital and technical operations, including the creation of a new Technology Centre of Excellence. Cole previously worked at BT Global Service, where he helped deliver the British telecoms company’s London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games sponsorship programme as marketing and communications director.

David Hill

Amy Brooks

Formula One has hired former Fox Sports president David Hill to advise on an overhaul of its on-screen package. The 71-year-old, who has brought new innovations to cricket, soccer and football coverage in an eventful career, had previously worked with Formula One to develop an exhaust microphone, which owner Liberty Media believes will help revitalise its broadcast offering. The Australian will also be at the forefront of helping implement virtual adverts for local brands in the countries and regions where races are held.

The National Basketball Association (NBA) has promoted Amy Brooks to the role of president, team marketing and business operations, and also added the newly created position of chief innovation officer to her job title.

Brooks’ new brief sees her take on responsibility for driving ‘innovative decision-making and growth across the NBA’s business through the development and execution of new ideas and initiatives’, according to a league statement issued in November.

Sean Seamer Sean Seamer has been named the new chief executive of the Supercars Championship. The former head of global media agency group Mediacom joins the Australian motorsport series as the successor to outgoing chief James Warburton.

New Zealand-born Seamer has 15 years’ experience at Mediacom in its operations in the United States, Europe and Asia, and was appointed chief executive of the Australian arm in 2015, overseeing the rebuilding of the company’s reputation after it was embroiled in a fraudulent conduct scandal in 2014.

André Schunk Media analytics and consultancy firm Futures Sport + Entertainment has installed André Schunk as its general manager, Americas. Schunk was previously an executive vice president at Octagon, the sports marketing agency and sister company of Futures. In his new role, he will lead Futures’ North American operation, which provides sports media analytics to more than 30 clients.

Mauro Balata Italian lawyer Mauro Balata has been named as the new chairman of Lega Serie B, the body that runs the second tier of professional club soccer in Italy. Balata was elected with 17 votes from the 22 competing Serie B clubs. His only rival, former referee Gianluca Paparesta, received one vote, with the remaining teams abstaining from the ballot. Antonio Gozzi will serve as Balata’s new vice president.

Balata succeeds Andrea Abodi, who resigned earlier in the year to participate in Italy’s federal election.

Kerry J Perry USA Gymnastics has appointed Kerry J Perry as its new president and chief executive, eight months after a sexual abuse scandal led to the resignation of her predecessor, Steve Penny.

Perry, the former vice president of business development at Learfield Communications, began her new role on 1st December and will be based at the USA Gymnastics headquarters in Indianapolis.

FEATURED MOVER Michael Cole, chief technology officer, European Tour What attracted you to the new role?

The European Tour is a global brand and leading the transformation of global golf through innovation inside the ropes, with new formats such as GolfSixes, Hero Challenge and Shot Clock Masters, and outside the ropes through compelling content to a global audience and enhancing the fan experience to reach new spectators.

Drawing on my experience of over 20 years in technology and extensive experience across the global sports industry, and with technology being central to this transformation, the role had very clear merits.

What is the biggest challenge you will face?

I prefer to view them as opportunities, not challenges. The European Tour is unique in sport. We have 47 tournaments taking place in 30 countries across the world in five continents, more often at new venues requiring temporary provision of overlay and always with world class delivery in mind – for players, spectators and our global audience.

Secondly, we are keen to change the conversation in golf, and we are seeking the true convergence of sport and data to enrich our fans’ experience and enable insight to drive greater levels of performance for players. For example, we are using data analytics to interrogate every aspect of a golfer’s game, and analysing variables such as weather conditions and course dynamics to achieve peak performance for our players.

How will you measure success?

The European Tour is keen to change the conversation in golf. We are an entertainment company and golf provides the platform. In looking for new ways to widen the interest and broaden the audience we are using innovative technology to engage different types of fans across multiple platforms.

We aim to provide the perfect platform for a truly connected course and a compelling showcase opportunity for fans, players, media and a global audience, and ultimately we want to change golf from being just a loyal fan experience to becoming a true spectator experience.

What was your dream job growing up?

My dream role was always to work in the three areas of technology, sport and sponsorship – this role straddles all three. Who says dreams can’t be realised!

Where do you see yourself in three years’ time?

Continuing to drive innovation in global golf, and for the European Tour to be recognised as the leading adopter of technology in sport, delivering for our players, our fans, and providing unique showcasing opportunities for our partners.

SportsPro Magazine | 23

SPORTSPRO WORLD HOSTINGS AND HAPPENINGS

2 F 1 A

4 3

B D

E

C

5

Conferences 1

San Francisco, USA

The Holiday Inn San Francisco-Golden Gateway will bring together the worlds of sport and technology on 30th and 31st January when it hosts the Sports Performance Data & Fan Engagement Summit USA. 2

Düsseldorf, Germany

The 21st Sponsors Business Summit, or SpoBiS, takes over Düsseldorf’s CCD Congress Center in Germany on 30th and 31st January, when sports industry luminaries will gather to discuss the issues facing the sector over the coming year. Among the headline speakers is Oliver Bierhoff (right), national team sporting director and head of football development at the German Football Association (DFB), who will discuss the transformation of the German national soccer team.

24 | www.sportspromedia.com

3

Munich, Germany

From 28th to 31st January, more than 2,700 exhibitors from across the world of extreme, outdoor and winter sports will be presenting their wares at the the Messe München exhibition grounds at the 2018 ISPO Munich convention. The event combines a huge exhibition space with a conference programme and hours of structured networking time.

4

Copenhagen, Denmark

Copenhagen’s Radisson Blu Scandinavia Hotel will the scene of SportsKongres 2018 between 1st and 3rd February. The conference is hosted by the Danish Society of Sports Physical Therapy and the Danish Association of Sports Medicine, with the overarching theme of the 2017 edition being the treatment and prevention of sports injuries.

5

Singapore

The Shangri-La Hotel in Singapore will be the venue for Sportel Asia, the spring edition of the global sports media convention, from 13th to 15th March. Leading figures from the sports broadcast industry will be in attendance to network and discuss issues ranging from the impact of technology to marketing.

Hosting A

San Francisco, USA

San Francisco’s Olympic Club has been chosen as the host venue for golf’s 2028 US PGA Championship and the 2032 Ryder Cup. It will be the first time that the club’s Lake course has hosted either event. 2032 will see the Ryder Cup return to the US west coast for the first time since 1959, when Eldorado Country Club staged California’s first ever edition of the biennial contest, which now features teams of the best golfers from Europe and the US. B

Lemoore, USA

The World Surf League (WSL) has confirmed plans to stage a top-level Championship Tour event on manmade waves for the first time in 2018. The proposed contest will be staged in September at the WSL Surf Ranch Facility, a state of the art wave pool created by the Kelly Slater Wave Company (KSWC) in Lemoore, California. Confirmation that an official contest will be held at the ranch comes after the WSL staged a test event there in September. It is not yet clear whether the event will feature both male and female competitors.

C

Mexico City, Mexico

The National Football League (NFL) and Mexico’s Ministry of Tourism have reached an agreement to play at least three more regular-season games in Mexico from 2019 to 2021. The arrangement was announced before November’s secondever NFL Mexico Game at Mexico City’s Estadio Azteca. Along with London, the Mexico game forms the NFL International Series. This season’s tie saw reigning Super Bowl champions the New England Patriots beat the Oakland Raiders 33-8.

D

Monterrey, Mexico

Major League Baseball (MLB) has announced that the San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Dodgers will play a three-game regularseason series in Monterrey, Mexico next year.

The fixtures, which are due to take place between 4th and 6th May at the Estadio Monterrey, will see MLB return to Mexico for competitive action for the first time since 1999. The Padres, who will serve as the home team for the three games, have played regular-season fixtures in Mexico on two previous occasions.

E

Miami, USA

The organisers of the Miami Open tennis tournament have agreed a deal to relocate the event to Hard Rock Stadium, home of the Miami Dolphins National Football League (NFL) franchise. The agreement, which still requires approval from Miami-Dade County commissioners, will see the event moved from its traditional home in Key Biscayne to the recently renovated, 65,000-seat stadium in 2019.

F

France

World Rugby members have voted for France to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup, despite an earlier recommendation that South Africa be selected. The announcement, which was made in London, will see France host the tenth edition of the event after receiving the required majority of 20 from the 39 votes cast by the global governing body’s council.

The 2023 Rugby World Cup will mark the third time that the tournament has been held France, which previously hosted the event in 1991 and 2007.

Following the November visit of the New England Patriots, the NFL has confirmed that regular-season football will return to Mexico City each year until 2021

SportsPro Magazine | 25

GALLERY

ONE Championship’s Jack Lim with Prince Albert

Sportel chief executive Laurent Puons

Writer and former rugby player Daniel Herrero

The networking cafe hums with activity

The audience settles in for the Sportel Awards

Marathon world record holder Paula Radcliffe

Tennis star Marat Safin

Barcelona head of digital products Robert Gasto

Guy-Laurent Epstein of Uefa

William Gallas, Christian Karembeu, Luis Figo and Simao Sabrosa take on Teqball

Sportel Monaco Leading global figures from sport and broadcasting convened once again at the Grimaldi Forum in Monte Carlo for the 2018 edition of Sportel Monaco, the world sports marketing and media convention. A remarkable 3,045 delegates were in attendance from 22nd to 25th October, representing 1,048 companies from 78 countries.

26 | www.sportspromedia.com

The Sportel Awards team put on a show

Plenty of room for networking over table football

La Liga president Javier Tebas (left) in an on-stage interview

The RMC radio team in full ďŹ&#x201A;ow

Perform Groupâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Alex Rice

SportsPro Magazine | 27

GALLERY

James Delahunty, senior relationship manager at LinkedIn, takes the stage

Fox Sports Australia CEO Patrick Delany

James Johnson, the head of professional football at Fifa

Andy Jackson, FourFourTwo global brand director at Haymarket Media Group

Lambeau founder Cameron Schwab

Speakers consider how to rethink what the fan wants

A panel discussion on leadership and culture

AFL head of partnerships and media sales Adam Richardson

Bruce Djite of Suwon FC is interviewed

Guests meet for welcome drinks at The Star

Money in Sport The Star in the Australian city of Gold Coast was the venue for the Money in Sport conference from 12th to 14th November. Prominent operators from across the Asia-Pacific region and beyond talked through some of the most significant issues of the moment.

28 | www.sportspromedia.com

England cricketers Eoin Morgan and Steven Finn

Dimitrov hits out

Finally delivering on his potential, Dimitrov wins on the big stage

Romeo Beckham with former footballer father David

Jack Sock puts in a big serve

Actors Rami Malek and Lucy Boynton

Poldark star Eleanor Tomlinson and brother Rob, a fellow actor

Roger Federer went out in a surprise semi-final defeat to David Goffin

Nitto ATP Finals

Boris Becker brings in the silverware

Alexander Zverev enjoys his debut appearance

paimages.co.uk PAImages

The leading players in the year of men’s tennis were back at The O2 in the British capital of London from 12th to 19th November for the season-ending Nitto ATP Finals. Grigor Dimitrov took his first title in the singles tournament.

SportsPro Magazine | 29

THE SHOT ASTROS WIN THE WORLD SERIES

THE SH T Major League Baseball’s Houston Astros celebrate their 4-3 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2017 World Series with a parade through downtown Houston. The win was the first in the World Series for both the franchise and the state of Texas.

30 | www.sportspromedia.com

Big Screens

Creative People

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INSIGHT 25 STORIES

25 STORIES

STORIES THAT SHAPED THE SPORTING YEAR #01

#01

LA and Paris get their Games amid IOC bid struggles On the one hand, the next three summer editions of the Olympic Games will be held in a diverse trio of world class cities. On the other, every bidder to reach the finish line for the 2024 event was rewarded with a prize of their own.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) parked the question of dwindling interest in its biggest event in 2017 by creating what president Thomas Bach called a “win-win-win situation”, engineering a tripartite deal to make third-time hosts of Paris in 2024 and Los Angeles in 2028. Still, the February departure of Budapest from an already disintegrating race highlighted problems that the IOC will need to heal in the years ahead: the Hungarian capital’s enthusiastic and promising campaign had hoped to show a route back in for mid-sized cities but withdrew after shedding local political support in the face of a referendum.

Now, after a challenging build-up to PyeongChang 2018 and anaemic interest in the 2022 event that went to Beijing, thoughts turn to rejuvenating the Winter Olympics. The IOC knows how damaging stories of Sochi’s freewheeling budget were to the appetite for the ice and snow event and is trumpeting a more collaborative bid process. Sion is the closest to showing its hand for 2026 but there are no candidates yet; former host Innsbruck is already precluded by an October referendum. EC

34 | www.sportspromedia.com

#02

#03

Formula One begins Liberty era

#02

Digital disruption in sports media continues

For all its apparent struggles over the past decade or so, Formula One remains a bona fide top-tier sport; one of the few global series which not only transcends geographical boundaries but cultural ones, possessing genuine mainstream crossover appeal. Not many sporting properties would change hands for a fee in excess of US$8 billion, as Formula One did at the beginning of 2017 when Liberty Media finally completed its prolonged purchase.

The 40-year reign of Bernie Ecclestone – a man credited in equal measure with driving the sport forward and, in his later years, acting as a human handbrake – came to an end. Almost immediately, Liberty went about liberating Formula One. A new senior team was introduced alongside new chief executive Chase Carey, most prominently former ESPN executive Sean Bratches as commercial director and industry veteran Ross Brawn as director of motorsport, bringing a balance between the sport’s past and its future. New races were announced, too, with the Malaysian Grand Prix making way for the return of France and Germany in an expanded calendar for 2018. Others were mooted for inclusion further down the line, with street circuits in Copenhagen and Amsterdam rumoured, while significant growth in China and the potential for additional stages there remain high up Liberty’s agenda.

A new logo followed at the end of a season in which Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton claimed a fourth world title. Bratches’ broadcast background will eventually come to bear, too, with the likely introduction of a dedicated global OTT streaming platform in 2018 – a significant indicator of the digitally led, multimedia future Liberty has envisioned for motorsport’s elite series. AN #03

If this business did not know it already, it does now: digital technology is changing sport from its very centre. In everything from the distribution of broadcast and video content to the way communities build around leagues and teams, more and more of the industry’s founding certainties are being challenged.

With TV ratings in major competitions across the world being affected, 2017 was the year in which the big media companies began their response. Disney, which has watched the once indomitable ESPN shed subscribers quarter after quarter in recent years, was the biggest mover. It upped its stake in influential MLB spin-off BAMTECH to 75 per cent in a US$1.58 billion deal in August.

At the same time, it confirmed plans for an OTT version of ESPN for 2018, while also withdrawing its content from Netflix ahead of the launch of its own similar entertainment product in 2019.

With specialist platforms like DAZN in play and the tech giants circling, other US media heavyweights followed Disney’s lead. Turner and NBC will now pool the technical resources of their iStreamPlanet and Playmaker Media services, while many of the big networks also announced experimental pricing plans for selected content.

Across the Atlantic, Discovery unveiled plans to build its Olympic coverage around the now BAMTECH-powered Eurosport Player. UK market leader Sky Sports, meanwhile, produced its own response to the challenges of consumption trends with a new set of vertical, single-sport and single-subscription channels built around the likes of the Premier League, cricket and golf. EC

SportsPro Magazine | 35

SECTION INSIGHT 25 TEXT STORIES HERE

25 STORIES

#04

#05

European soccer transfer market goes wild

#04

IAAF looks to future as Bolt retires Usain Bolt would have played out the fairytale farewell thousands of times in his head, but none of those envisaged scenarios would have ended with him losing his 100m world title to the twicebanned Justin Gatlin at the scene of his 2012 Olympic triumph.

The Jamaican sprint king’s final individual race was a reminder that in sport – and particularly athletics – the crowd favourite doesn’t always win and victory is sometimes impure.

The IAAF, athletics’ global governing body, had decorated London 2017 posters with images of the man who has spent the last nine years defying the stopwatch, but was left with the portrait of a new champion who has spent longer defying doping laws. It was the latest blow to a sport that has suffered from a chronic credibility shortage for decades, and Sebastian Coe, president of the IAAF, admitted he was not “eulogistic” over the American’s victory.

But for all that, London 2017 and its record-breaking attendances gave athletics a kiss of life. Having spent the majority of his tenure trying to combat issues surrounding corruption and doping, Coe is now calling for a major overhaul of the sport. Insisting that “nothing is off the table”, the 61-year-old is considering NFL-style drafts, athlete auctions, franchises and pop-up tracks among a host of other radical proposals to modernise athletics.

The summer of 2017 might have seen one of sport’s greatest ever entertainers take his final bow, but with Bolt’s departure it seems that the race for athletics to remain relevant has only just begun. SC

36 | www.sportspromedia.com

After 2016’s transfer splurges, it seemed soccer’s spending bubble must surely burst – but 2017 was a summer of record-smashing financial exuberance as new TV deals came on stream and generous benefactors returned to the market.

In Europe, Ligue 1 side Paris Saint-Germain met the €222 million (US$259 million) buyout clause in Brazilian star Neymar’s contract at Barcelona. The deal was a statement of intent by the Qatari owners of the recently deposed French champions, easily surpassing Paul Pogba’s world record US$116 million move from Juventus back to Premier League outfit Manchester United in 2016. Teenage sensation Kylian Mbappé joined Neymar and company from Monaco, with the clubs brokering a one-year loan with a permanent transfer worth up to a reported €180 million (US$214.7 million) to come in 2018.

English clubs continued to enjoy unrivalled purchasing power, however, smashing their summer spending record for the seventh consecutive year with deals totalling a combined US$1.8 billion.

Abu Dhabi-backed Manchester City spent US$287 million to put the final pieces of their all-conquering side in place.

Javier Tebas, president of Spain’s La Liga, was among those to protest this inflated outlay, demanding an inquiry by European confederation Uefa into breaches by PSG and City of Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules, which limit clubs from spending more than they earn on soccer activities. Uefa rejected calls to look into City’s spending, but investigations into PSG are ongoing.

With Tebas accusing the sides of using “state aid”, creating an “inflationary spiral harmful to European competitions and the footballing industry” – and colourfully telling September’s Soccerex Global Convention that PSG and Neymar had been caught “peeing in the swimming pool” – it remains to be seen whether action will be needed or taken to deal with ‘financial doping’. Otherwise, with broadcast revenues expected to rise further, soccer’s spending seems set to carry on unchecked. EH #05

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INSIGHT 25 STORIES

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#06

#07

Industry heavyweights jostle for esports position At the end of 2016, 43 million viewers tuned in to watch the finale of a sports series being staged in Chicago, USA. It wasn’t soccer or basketball, nor was it football or baseball. It was the League of Legends World Championship, an annual esports competition with a US$1 million cash prize.

Love it or loathe it, esports is making its way into the mainstream, and 2017 saw a number of sports industry heavyweights make their move. From the National Football League (NFL), the New England Patriots’ billionaire owner Robert Kraft and Stan Kroenke of the Los Angeles Rams both bought franchises in Activision Blizzard’s Overwatch League, a new city-based competition due to launch next year.

Elsewhere, Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), whose portfolio includes the Washington Wizards basketball team, appointed Grant Paranjape as its first esports director. MSE’s esports outfit is one of 17 confirmed for next year’s inaugural NBA 2K eLeague, which became the first official competitive gaming competition owned by a North American professional sports league when it was launched in May. Soccer clubs across Europe continued to sign esports players to their books, while Formula One and Formula E headed the list of motorsport series creating video game competitions.

Drone racing, meanwhile, continues to pick up pace. The Drone Racing League received a US$20 million boost ahead of its debut season, with investors including UK broadcaster Sky, Formula One owner Liberty Media, and wrestling promotion WWE. The New York-based startup also locked in Allianz as a title sponsor.

It might be some time before video games and drones are accepted the traditional sports sphere, but 2017 hinted that major investors are already taking notice. SC #06

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#07

Fifa expands World Cup as Uefa launches Nations League When Gianni Infantino ran for the Fifa presidency in 2016, he vowed to create more opportunities for World Cup qualification.

He delivered on that promise in January this year, when soccer’s global governing body confirmed that the flagship international tournament would be expanded from 32 teams to 48 as of 2026. The announcement was met by mixed reviews, with fears emerging that it might cheapen the achievement of qualification, rendering the process too easily earned and consequently less of a treasured privilege.

Infantino though, has insisted that “there is nothing bigger in terms of boosting football in a country than participating in a World Cup”. However, a confidential internal report leaked to the media would suggest that the biggest boost may well be for Fifa’s finances, with the governing body set to pocket an additional US$1 billion in revenue from the expansion.

In truth, though, international soccer has required rejuvenating for some time now and, in September, European confederation Uefa also launched its new Nations League tournament, which is set to debut in 2018. The competition’s promotion and relegation format is intended to create more competitive national team matches, and Uefa will be hoping that it’s latest innovation can subdue the increasing levels of apathy that greet the international breaks during Europe’s domestic soccer season.

With news now emerging that Fifa and Uefa have entered talks about taking the competition global, and Concacaf due to launch its own League of Nations contest in North and Central America next September, this is certainly a space that needs to be watched. SC

#08

#09

America’s franchise landscape shifts again It was another year of change in the landscape of American sport, with several major league franchises coming under new ownership or relocating to new markets.

No sooner had the San Diego Chargers confirmed plans to bolt to Los Angeles in January than the National Football League (NFL) found itself approving its third contentious franchise relocation in less than 14 months. In March, the want-away Oakland Raiders secured their long-rumoured yet fiercely opposed move to Las Vegas – a move motivated by the promise of an unprecedented US$750 million public contribution towards a new US$1.7 billion stadium to be built close to the city’s casino-laden Strip.

With the Raiders facing the prospect of at least two ‘lame duck’ seasons in Oakland before setting up shop in Sin City in 2020, two franchise transactions in the National Basketball Association (NBA) further underlined the continued appeal of the booming basketball business. In Houston, local restaurateur Tilman Fertitta forked out an NBA-record US$2.2 billion to acquire the Rockets in September, while in Brooklyn Alibaba co-founder Joseph Tsai’s purchase of a 49 per cent stake in the Nets valued the loss-making franchise at some US$2.3 billion.

In October Laurene Powell Jobs (below), widow of Apple cofounder Steve Jobs, agreed to buy a 20 per cent stake in Washington DC-based Monumental Sports & Entertainment, whose assets include the NHL’s Capitals, the NBA’s Wizards and the WNBA’s Mystics.

Elsewhere, in what was perhaps the messiest franchise transaction in recent memory Major League Baseball (MLB) finally approved the sale of the Miami Marlins to a group led by New York businessman Bruce Sherman and Yankees great Derek Jeter. The league’s approval of the US$1.2 billion buyout in late September brought an end to a protracted negotiating process that dragged on throughout the year, clouded by a succession of false dawns and failed bids from multiple interested parties. ML #08

#09

Joshua emerges as heavyweights resume centre stage If there was one night in the year that came closest to capturing all of the glory that sport can sometimes promise, it was at London’s Wembley Stadium late in April.

In one corner of a boxing ring at the home of English soccer stood Anthony Joshua, a local boy restored from adolescent misdemeanour to Olympic gold, powerful and finely honed but delivered way ahead of schedule to the defining moment of his young career. In the other stood Wladimir Klitschko, long-time custodian and emblem of a stagnant heavyweight division, hoping to serve reminder of his relevance at the age of 41.

Even amid the excitement that followed an immaculate promotion there was little sense of what the two men would produce. Klitschko, returning after a bizarre surrender of his world titles to the underestimated Tyson Fury in 2015, turned in a limber and menacing performance, among the best of his two-decade career. But in a stirring, seesawing encounter that saw both men on the canvas, Joshua recovered from a mid-fight wobble to stop his Ukrainian idol in the 11th round.

It was a contest that confirmed Joshua as a superstar and made fans dare to dream that heavyweight boxing could be great again. Reality has since settled in: beyond fellow knockout artist Deontay Wilder of the US and the troubled, inactive Fury, there are few compelling opponents for Joshua’s team and promoter Eddie Hearn to line up as they plan a global assault. There will be nights, too, like the one that yielded a laboured win over late substitute Carlos Takam in October.

Still, between the presence of a marketing magnet among the big men and a growing appreciation of the value of proper matchups, fight fans have cause to be excited again. EC

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#10

#11

Formula E to the fore as motorsport grid is rewired

#10

Cycling’s leadership tussle ends in Cookson’s departure Brian Cookson, professional cycling’s great reformer, became president of the International Cycling Union (UCI) in 2013 when he ousted Pat McQuaid. His early years in the role were dedicated to restoring the sport’s image and coincided with the exposure of the once-revered American cyclist Lance Armstrong’s history of systematic doping.

To the outside Cookson appeared to be a transparent, popular leader of the cycling’s governing body and the overriding favourite to be re-elected at the UCI Congress in Bergen, Norway, on 21st September.

However, the 66-year old’s only challenger, David Lappartient – a vice president of the UCI and an ardent supporter of Cookson’s previous election campaign – claimed in an interview with the BBC that Cookson was “out of touch”, “lacked a clear vision” and was uninformed “about some of the key points of the institution”.

It was a view more widely shared within cycling circles than previously thought.

Lappartient had been branded “a political machine” by French journalist Jean-François Quénethas, having never lost an election of any kind, and he duly franked the form in a convincing victory.

The incumbent Cookson took just eight votes to his opponent’s 37.

France is ostensibly the spiritual home of cycling – particularly on the road – and Lappartient becomes his nation’s third president of the UCI; the first to hold the position since 1957. While a magnanimous Cookson believes that he can “depart with head held high”, some observers attributed his loss to an anti-British sentiment within the organisation.

The new president has since spoken of banning corticosteroids, including those taken on a therapeutic use exemption (TUE), from the beginning of 2019, as well as cutting road teams to six riders per team. Cookson, meanwhile, has announced plans for a team on the Women’s WorldTour. GD

40 | www.sportspromedia.com

2017 saw another drive for the world’s first all-electric motorsport series, and while Formula E faces a lengthy battle to rival Formula One’s global fanbase, the effort to attract leading automotive brands appears to be a more straightforward one. Reigning Formula One world champion Mercedes’ decision to follow German rivals Audi and BMW on to the grid – to be followed by Porsche and Nissan – only served to strengthen the notion that Formula E is weaving a permanent place for itself in motorsport’s tapestry.

The series also introduced an expanded 14-race calendar for 2017/18, featuring debuts for Chile’s Santiago, São Paulo in Brazil and the Italian capital of Rome, while the addition of a Zurich ePrix is set to return motorsport to Switzerland for the first time in 60 years. There may be some way to go before Formula E overtakes its rival combustion engine counterpart, but it’s becoming increasingly attractive for sponsors and manufactural teams to showcase themselves in a forward-looking setting.

And what Nascar would give to have the same trajectory right now. The arrival of Cup Series title sponsor Monster Energy was coupled with another slate of format and rule changes intended to arrest the series’ big skid but, according to Sports Media Watch, 22 of this year’s 26 top-tier races declined in ratings and viewership.

Nascar might keep its official attendance figures under wraps, but with the visual impact of empty seats unnerving broadcasters and potential sponsors, it appears that the stock of North America’s pre-eminent racing series only continues to slide. SC #11

#12

#13

Major leagues go big in Las Vegas After years on the periphery – years marked by stigma around its gambling DNA and historical links to the mob, both of which had fuelled persistent fears of possible impropriety – Las Vegas finally cemented its place on the global team sports map in 2017.

With a metro area of more than 2.2 million inhabitants, the neonencrusted desert metropolis had been notable in being the largest American city without a major professional sports franchise. Besides the odd flirtation with football and regular helpings of boxing, MMA, motor racing and college sports, the city of Las Vegas had long remained off the cards for North America’s preeminent leagues.

In March, however, that all changed when the Vegas Golden Knights officially joined the National Hockey League (NHL), becoming its 31st franchise. The creation of the Golden Knights, who began play at the US$375 million, 20,000-seat T-Mobile Arena in October, ensured that the tourist hub of Las Vegas would have a new big attraction to sit alongside its embarrassment of entertainment riches. But there was more – plenty more – still to come.

In August, the city landed its first-ever professional soccer team, Las Vegas Lights FC, who will join the second-tier United Soccer League (USL) next year. In October, the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) approved the relocation of its San Antonio Stars franchise to Vegas for 2018, while the impending arrival of pro football in the form of the NFL’s Oakland Raiders will add another big-ticket draw to this once-untouchable city’s rapidly maturing sports scene. ML #12

#13

Tech giants get serious about sport 2017 saw the tech giants make their opening moves in the sports rights arena. In April, ecommerce giant Amazon won the rights to show the National Football League’s (NFL) ten-game Thursday Night Football package on its Prime Video service in the 2017/18 season in a deal worth US$50 million.

Amazon then outbid Sky, picking up the UK rights to show exclusive coverage of the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) World Tour for all top-tier men’s tennis tournaments, excluding the four Grand Slams, for a reported UK£10 million US$13.2 million per year. It also showed the inaugural ATP Next Gen Finals around the world in November.

Meanwhile, Amazon has been using other parts of its platform to expand its offer to sports rights holders and subscribers, adding Discovery’s Eurosport channel to its Amazon Channels platform in the UK, Austria and Germany, creating access to a range of sports from German soccer’s Bundesliga to the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games. Away from live rights, it is taking on original content rival Netflix in the race for documentaries linked to major teams and leagues.

Facebook, meanwhile, began rolling out its new ‘Watch’ tab through the year, featuring a variety of sports content produced by Facebook partners rolled out in the US. Then, in September, the social media behemoth revealed how much it was willing to pay for sports content after it posted the second-highest bid, at US$610 million, for the local digital rights to five years of Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket.

With considerable financial arsenals to deploy, both Facebook and Amazon have been linked to bids for next cycle of rights to English soccer’s Premier League, due to go to tender at the end of the year for 2019-2022. Neither Facebook nor Amazon have ruled themselves out, though many analysts believe talk of a significant entry to be premature. EH

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#14

#15

Women’s team sport makes strides After seeds had been planted in 2015 and 2016, women’s team sport has been bearing commercial fruit in the past year – not least over a summer of growing media attention in Europe.

Three major international tournaments dominated the agenda, each providing evidence of impressively robust interest. In the UK, England’s women won the Cricket World Cup on home soil, beating India in the final at a sold-out Lord’s Cricket Ground and monopolising national front pages. Domestic pay-TV broadcaster Sky Sports, which had shown every game live, recorded an audience of 900,000 for the final – its highest peak audience across all cricket programming all season. The efforts of the runners-up also brought suggestions of a transformative impact on the sport in the giant subcontinental market, while many of the stars of the competition will be taking the field in Australia’s surging Women’s Big Bash League in December.

In soccer, the Uefa Women’s European Championship set TV viewership records across the continent. Back in the UK, England’s Lionesses were watched by four million viewers as they fell to hosts and eventual champions the Netherlands in the semi-final – free-to-air Channel 4’s biggest audience of the year at that stage and the biggest ever for women’s soccer in the country. The final pulled in an 83 per cent audience share on Dutch television, with 4.1 million domestic viewers forming part of a live global audience of over 13 million.

Not to be outdone, the 2017 Women’s Rugby World Cup final was the first to be shown live on free-to-air TV in a prime time slot in the UK. The game netted national record viewing figures for a women’s rugby match, with a peak audience on ITV of 2.6 million for England’s defeat to New Zealand. 3.2 million French viewers watched their team play England in the semi-finals.

There is some way to go but the success of women’s sports teams, and investment in them, is helping break the cycle of low media exposure and providing real opportunities for the future. EH #14

42 | www.sportspromedia.com

#15

#TakeAKnee Not even Colin Kaepernick, the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback, could have foreseen the furore sparked by his refusal to stand during pre-game renditions of the American national anthem. What started in 2016 as one athlete’s stand against police brutality and racial inequality quickly grew into an entire movement, one that spread from the National Football League (NFL) to other sports and became one of the year’s most contentious and talked-about political issues.

In the opening week of the 2017 season, several NFL players ‘took a knee’ in solidarity with Kaepernick and his cause. When US president Donald Trump waded into the issue, describing protesting players as “sons of bitches” and calling for their dismissal in repeated Twitter tirades, the story became a debate not about social injustice, but a racially charged, partisan argument about respect for America’s heritage and its military, the constitutional right to one’s freedom of expression, and the role of the modern athlete.

Spying an opportunity to stoke his right-wing base, the embattled president, whose years in business were pockmarked by unsuccessful attempts to buy into the NFL, refused to let the matter go, spouting off time and again about much-publicised declines in the league’s TV ratings whilst urging a boycott. In response, the #TakeAKnee movement blossomed, with dozens of NFL players and some team owners speaking out in opposition of Trump’s perceived intimidation.

The league’s unity, however, was short-lived. With Kaepernick still unemployed and the anthem protests starting to hurt business, players and owners held emergency meetings. In November, a resolution of sorts came when the NFL agreed to donate nearly US$90 million to social justice causes supported by players, though it is already clear the gesture has failed to appease the activists. ML

#16

#17

Picture by: Ian West/PA Wire/PA Images

Tennis sows seeds of change

#16

Icarus rises from Russian doping row The public perception of doping is that it’s a matter of individual athletes knowingly cheating to gain an advantage in a sporting event; the reality may be of systematised, even state-backed deception whose ramifications have a major political dimension and may even threaten lives. That is the narrative thrust and the revelatory impact of Icarus, the acclaimed documentary by playwright and actor Bryan Fogel (above), which begins with his experimental attempts to juice his performance in an amateur cycling sportive and ends with him at the centre of one of the great sporting scandals of all time.

The film follows Fogel’s burgeoning relationship with Grigory Rodchenkov, the former Moscow anti-doping laboratory director whose testimony has lent such strong foundations to the World AntiDoping Agency’s (WADA) McLaren Report, which in 2016 brought forth revelations of a state-sponsored programme of doping Russian athletes. Fogel brings the story back into public discourse and puts a human spin on the crisis, underlining just how much of a personal risk Rodchenkov has taken in an era where the Russian government treats attacks on its supremacy with extreme prejudice.

Russian officials continue to deny any wrongdoing beyond the actions of rogue individuals, including Rodchenko; WADA continues to deny the country’s Rusada agency a clean slate. As SportsPro went to press, the IOC executive board took Rodchenkov’s side: finally losing patience and banning the Russian Olympic Committee from PyeongChang 2018. Reports in the UK’s Daily Mail have also indicated that Russia’s soccer team may yet be implicated ahead of the 2018 Fifa World Cup. The flames of suspicion will burn for some time yet. EC

2017 will go down as a year of progress in tennis, even if it was the return to prominence of the old guard – and the return to action of the suspended Maria Sharapova – that dominated headlines on the court.

In the men’s game, the year’s four Grand Slams were split equally between the evergreen duo of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, while on the women’s tour Venus Williams led the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) money list at the ripe old age of 37, earning more than US$5 million despite not winning a title all year. Other, less heralded female stars had their moments, too, albeit in the absence of a pregnant Serena Williams.

Elsewhere, signs of reform have begun to emerge. The WTA has finally launched WTA TV, its new over-the-top (OTT) streaming service, and is mulling bids for its year-end Finals, while in Nitto the ATP World Tour has a new title sponsor for its season finale. The men’s series also launched the ATP Next Gen Finals for top players under 21, experimenting with a raft of rule and presentation changes, while in an effort to boost participation among big-name stars, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) confirmed plans to trial a shortened format for its venerable yet ailing Davis Cup competition.

Coincidentally or not, news of those latter changes came shortly after September’s Laver Cup in Prague had offered a glimpse into the future of tennis presentation. Pitting Team Europe against Team World in tennis’s answer to golf’s Ryder Cup, the all-new made-for-TV tournament, fronted by Federer and a supporting cast of past and present stars, was staged to rave reviews, bringing much-needed energy and entertainment to a sport that has been otherwise slow to innovate.

Whether the event – or the sport of tennis, for that matter – can thrive beyond today’s golden generation remains to be seen, but those in the game are doing nothing if not trying. ML #17

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#18

#19

MMA’s battle for Asia heats up Between the rise of the UFC and the more recent growth of Asia’s ONE Championship, something of a duopoly has developed in the global business of mixed martial arts. This year, however, the planet’s two largest MMA promotions demonstrated that amicable co-existence is never a given in the fight game. Throughout the summer, the struggle to win the hearts and minds of Asia’s burgeoning MMA fanbase became a tussle of two pugnacious PR machines.

June’s UFC Fight Night 111, staged in ONE’s backyard of Singapore, saw the Las Vegas-based promotion throw its first event in Asia since November 2015. The accompanying fanfare included a UFC-commissioned study that just so happened to declare the American series ‘the leading provider of MMA TV content across Asia’, surpassing all local and regional promotions in terms of hours viewed. New Asian broadcast agreements swiftly followed and soon after the UFC, under new ownership and on the front foot once again, announced plans to debut in mainland China in November.

ONE’s response was to drive its flag deeper into its Asian stronghold. Fresh off securing new equity investment from a group of venture capitalists in July, the six-year-old promotion announced an expanded slate of 24 events for 2018, confirming plans to enter Japan and South Korea in the process. Yet this particular dispute was as much about a clash of philosophies as a turf war.

Amid talk of potential cross-promotional bouts in future, ONE founder and chairman Chatri Sityodtong chided the UFC’s brand of “distasteful”, ego-driven bravado, arguing that the promotion’s trash-talking protagonists represented the antithesis of his more humble cohort of “true” martial artists.

Whatever happens next, the scene has been set for more showdowns to come. ML #18

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#19

Rio 2016 fallout claims more victims The closing curtain on the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro fell on a country in economic and political turmoil, in the grip of its most severe recession in a century, and facing a public security crisis, unpaid debts, spurned Olympic legacy promises and growing accusations of corruption in relation to construction projects for the event.

Some estimates put the spend on the Games through public and private financing close to US$20 billion, with creditors still reportedly owed millions by the local organising committee, and with Olympic venues left empty and in disrepair. The absence of legacy planning for the venues was the focus of an investigation led by federal prosecutor Leandro Mitidieri, who, at a public hearing in May, called the venues “white elephants” needing to be turned into “something usable”.

In September, accusations of corruption came to a head when Brazilian and French authorities announced they had uncovered an international corruption scheme aimed at buying votes in awarding the 2016 Olympics, and issued 11 detention warrants for those implicated in what was termed ‘Operation Unfair Play’.

Brazilian Olympic Committee (COB) president and Rio 2016 head Carlos Nuzman was arrested and accused of arranging more than US$2 million in bribes to Lamine Diack, a former International Olympic Committee (IOC) member, in order to win hosting rights for Rio for the 2016 event.

In another year dogged by revelations of corruption across sport, the need for big changes in the governing processes of key bodies has never been more urgent, with demands for transparency and accountability rising. EH

#20

#21

IPL and ECB deals remake cricket’s broadcast picture In September, cricket’s Indian Premier League (IPL) went to the TV market for the first time since signing a founding ten-year deal with Sony Pictures India all the way back in 2008. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), which owns and operates the six-week T20 juggernaut, secured US$2.55 billion from Star Sports for the next five years, more than doubling its money on a new contract which runs for half the length of its predecessor.

But the truly telling elements lay in the background. There was the subplot of a US$610 million bid from Facebook for local digital rights, an unprecedented play from the social media monolith. Then there was the subtext: for the first time, a media rights deal in domestic cricket is worth more per match than any in the international game.

The question is whether this is an outlier – in a period where the gathering struggles of franchise leagues are exemplified by the delay of South Africa’s new Global T20 League – or a game-changer.

In the UK, the growing importance placed on a robust, futurefacing domestic offering was underlined by the new T20 league, still unnamed, that the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has inked into its schedule from 2020 onwards. The eight-team competition will fit over the top of England’s historic 18-county structure, and was central to the ECB’s own new proposal to broadcasters – which delivered a UK£1.1 billion, five-year deal between existing pay-TV partner Sky Sports and the publicly funded BBC, bringing live English cricket back to free-to-air TV at home for the first time since 2005. EC #20

#21

PyeongChang 2018 struggles to capture imagination The potential participation of National Hockey League (NHL) players is regularly one of the key talking points ahead of a Winter Olympic Games. The biggest names in winter sport compete in North America’s premier ice hockey league, and their presence is seen as a significant boost to the visibility of any Games.

As it has turned out, the stars of the NHL will not be present in PyeongChang, after the IOC refused to sanction payments covering the league’s costs. But the issue has been relegated to a footnote in the storied build-up to 2018’s biggest multi-sport event, as global politics have overshadowed comparatively minor squabbles between sporting bodies.

The corruption scandal which led to the impeachment in March of South Korea’s president, Park Geun-hye, cast a long shadow over the country’s Olympic preparations, and has been one of several factors cited by the local organising committee for low ticket sales.

As of the end of November 2017 – just over two months out from the main event – only a third of tickets had been bought, with the Paralympics struggling even more, having reportedly shifted around five per cent of the total allocation.

If Park’s impeachment hadn’t generated a difficult enough political climate, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ramped up his exchange of bellicose rhetoric with US president Donald Trump in the latter half of 2017, contributing to the negative perception around the region and further dampening international ticket sales and wider commercial interest. While the expectation remains that PyeongChang will pull through, the IOC, after a difficult year of its own, will be looking for it to do so sooner rather than later. AN

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#22

#23

Qatar in the firing line – again

#22

A sea change for sailing It has been a year of choppy waters across the world of sailing.

After a build-up that took on a life of its own, in the form of a lengthy World Series and qualification process, the 35th edition of the sport’s flagship America’s Cup contest finally got underway in Bermuda in June. While there was no repeat of Emirates Team New Zealand’s humiliating collapse of 2013 – this time around they held on to their commanding lead to claim a third victory – the antipodeans took the opportunity to land a humiliation of their own on to the rest of the America’s Cup field.

Before sailing had got underway, the other five teams agreed a framework to bring the race into a biennial schedule, with the intention of holding the 36th America’s Cup in 2019. New Zealand were the only holdouts and, upon claiming the ‘Auld Mug’, immediately reversed those plans, confirming that the next edition would go ahead in the original timeframe in 2021, and not with the previously agreed upon specification of boats.

Seemingly having been prompted by its short-course counterpart, the round-the-world Volvo Ocean Race also unveiled a biennial programme this year, only to capsize into chaos of its own.

Having failed to amass support among the VOR’s stakeholders for a change of boats and an all-new environmentally minded approach ahead of a mooted 2019/20 contest, chief executive Mark Turner stood down on the eve of the 13th edition, after just 16 months in charge, during which time commercial constraints continually conspired against his revolutionary plans for the race. The Swedish duo of Richard Brisius and Johan Salén will now be charged with getting the series back on course.

Sailing’s bright new future, it seems, remains perpetually beyond the horizon. AN

46 | www.sportspromedia.com

If 2010 afforded Qatar a vision of itself as a sporting superpower, the subsequent seven years have been a constant reminder of what that status will cost.

Ever since the tiny but affluent and influential gulf state was awarded the 2022 Fifa World Cup, the deluge of negative press surrounding its winning bid has ensured that when the tournament finally rolls around, it’s unlikely to be remembered for the soccer.

Having spent previous years fending off allegations of corruption and mistreatment of migrant workers, the host nation’s preparations were further disrupted in 2017, when a handful of its powerful Arab neighbours opted to impose a land, air and sea blockade, accusing Qatar of supporting terrorism.

While this threatens to derail construction deadlines, equally disconcerting was a recent Human Rights Watch (HRW) report which revealed that workers building stadiums for 2022 are still operating under life-threatening heat and humidity.

And if the toxic combination of a diplomatic crisis and a potential human rights scandal isn’t troubling enough, one of the country’s key sports industry influencers, Nasser Al-Khelaifi (below), has also been the subject of two major probes. The BeIN Media Group chief executive, whose French soccer side Paris-Saint Germain are already being investigated by Uefa over their record-breaking €222 million purchase of Neymar, was also accused of criminally bribing disgraced former Fifa secretary general Jérôme Valcke to buy TV rights to two future World Cups.

The bad news keeps flooding in, and while Qatar’s powers that be will hope that the old adage of ‘new year, new me’ holds true in 2018, recent history has taught us to expect otherwise. SC #23

#24

#25

Mayweather and McGregor talk up a Vegas jackpot

#24

Golf’s status quo preserved as takeover talk resurfaces Jay Monahan’s (above left) first year as PGA Tour commissioner was always going to be one of consolidation. Tim Finchem had departed at the end of 2016 with the tour in rude financial health, leaving his successor to do whatever necessary to affirm the American circuit’s position as the biggest and most powerful in world golf. A US$650 million, ten-year extension with FedEx, the PGA Tour’s biggest corporate backer, in May only underlined that status, while a string of new sponsorship and media deals and the addition of new events added further lustre to a burgeoning brand.

With the PGA Tour busy solidifying its empire, others in golf were left pondering their future in uncertain times. After a major calendar overhaul saw the US PGA Championship moved to May from 2019, talk of creating a global unified circuit resurfaced once again, with four-time major winner Rory McIlroy insisting the establishment of a single world tour is “going to happen one day”. Speaking in September, the Northern Irishman suggested a Monahan-led takeover of the European Tour could be a viable option, not least since having several competing tours was proving “counter-productive” for everyone bar the PGA Tour.

If the workability of a global tour remains up for debate, it was in the women’s game that takeover talk appeared to carry more substance, particularly after Ivan Khodabakhsh stepped down as chief executive of the Ladies European Tour (LET) in August amid a dwindling schedule and mounting financial troubles. Khodabakhsh’s interim replacement, LET chairman Mark Lichtenhein, was formerly at the European Tour, fuelling speculation that a cross-gender merger could be forthcoming.

The LET’s woes also piqued the interest of the US-based LPGA Tour, whose expansionist leaders will be keeping a close eye on developments in Europe heading into 2018. ML

It was the most talked about sporting event of the year and yet, in many respects, it barely constituted elite sport at all. It briefly outshone desert neon, then flickered out like a mirage.

A welterweight boxing match between undefeated multiweight champion Floyd Mayweather Jr and Irish UFC sensation Conor McGregor held dubious competitive merit but was playground conjecture made flesh. It was sold on the back of playground taunts, too, through a promotional tour that took in four cities and a full measure of verbal abuse and crass grandstanding. But sell it did.

Indeed, much of the pre-fight talk centred on the numbers involved – for the two fighters and their camps, for UFC owner WME | IMG, and for host broadcaster Showtime. Even the WBC commissioned a one-off ‘Money Belt’ to commemorate the occasion in suitably gaudy style. Tellingly, the T-Mobile Arena did not sell out, but viewers in 4.4 million US households were tempted enough by the spectacle to pay up to US$99 apiece to tune in, with millions more watching elsewhere.

In the event, McGregor prepared thoroughly and performed gamely but was readily dismantled by Mayweather, who cruised through the middle rounds before deciding time was up in the tenth. The beaten man protested a hasty stoppage and suggested things would have gone differently in the octagon. The latter claim, at least, was undoubtedly true, but then there are some things Floyd Mayweather would not do for money.

The American duly collected an estimated US$300 million to close out a 50-fight career as a peerless heel, who mastered the art of saying what it took to promote a fight then doing what it took to win it. For all the summer talk of McGregor’s relentless pull, it is Mayweather whose gifts may not be matched again – inside or outside the ring. EC #25

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Quantis guides top organizations to define, shape and implement intelligent environmental sustainability solutions.

Based on solid experience working with leading sports organizations, Quantis has developed a reputation as the reference in assessing sustainability strategies in sports.

Science-driven goals propel sports’ positive legacy Every year, hundreds of millions of fans follow sports. With such massive audiences and influential players, there is great potential for sports to up their sustainability game. Boosted by crosssector collaboration, sports organizations can harness this dynamic to spark the transformative change required to align with a 2°C global warming scenario.

To step up to the plate, sports organizations can ride the momentum initiated by the Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi). The result is a strict carbon budget for the world until 2050 – where businesses are allocated a share not to exceed. Working back from that allocation, sports businesses can set specific goals, define ambitious action plans and take measures to meet them.

Many leading businesses are adopting science-based goal setting to track their progress against just how much global warming the planet can accommodate.

There is indeed a clear advantage to this business decision as it generates resilient growth, longer-term access to resources, increased stakeholder engagement, an improved image, and more.

To navigate the shift towards science-driven goals, Quantis outlines common drivers in sports and science-driven goals and explains which approaches are recommended for sports organizations seeking to set their own.

Science ushers new era of sustainable sports Sports catalyze major enthusiasm, putting them in a unique position to raise global awareness around sustainability and reduce the sector’s impacts. Maintaining that prestige requires sports to demonstrate to their audiences they are going the extra mile to tackle climate change.

Paving the way for other key players to implement a full assessment of their carbon footprint, the Organizing Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Rio 2016 and UEFA EURO 2016 chose Quantis to measure their environmental impacts, notably in terms of travel, catering, waste management, as well as infrastructure construction.

At the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change side event at COP23, Formula E Sustainability Manager Julia Pallé reinforced that there is “a tremendous opportunity for sports to act as a platform to raise awareness on

The experts at Quantis share some key guidelines to guide sports organizations to set science-based sustainability goals and structure a long-term legacy.

the challenges facing the climate”. She added “science-driven goal setting is all very new to sports businesses, but with the appropriate guidance, we enthusiastically support global initiatives by setting ourselves ambitious goals and taking steps to curb our environmental footprint”.

Neil Beecroft, founding Director of Sports and Sustainability International supports Pallé’s call to action: “Now standards and carbon footprint assessment methodologies are in place, the next logical step to progress on sustainability is to standardize sciencedriven goal setting across sports events and federations”.

Joining the SBTi puts sports businesses in a position to get the guidance they need to curb their environmental footprints. As December 2017 rolls in, newcomers may count on inspiration from heavy-hitters ASICS and PUMA SE, along with the more than 320 companies of all sizes and sectors that have made public commitments to the SBTi and are working toward the same goal.

“The next logical step to progress on sustainability is to standardize science-driven goal setting across sports events and federations” Neil Beecroft, founding Director of Sports and Sustainability International

Sports need to cut carbon by at least half Instead of coasting on a business-as-usual approach to carbon reduction trajectories, wherein companies set attainable goals, science-driven goals require a value chain approach to carbon budgeting, with a longerterm vision that will keep their business at – or below – their specific allocation.

Like pole vaulting champions combine skill and the best available knowledge to propel themselves, sports businesses need to understand their sustainability context, set science-driven goals and take concrete steps to meet them (see graph).

Here are 3 specific approaches to align with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which would see sports organizations set a 2050 carbon reduction target ranging from 49 to 72% (against a 2010 baseline): 1. Federations, leagues, clubs and the likes have a built-in advocacy role for sports.

Setting their own science-driven goals would drive the sports community to raise its sustainability game. In this specific case, Quantis recommends following the SBTi’s Sectoral Decarbonization Approach for service providers to address their activities’ direct impacts.

2. Recurrent events can set the same percentage of emission reductions as is required to stay within the global carbon budget. When possible, Quantis suggests they refine these goals by following the SBTi’s Sectoral Decarbonization Approach.

Despite the complexity of identifying relevant carbon reduction cuts, sports events would benefit from a preexisting business momentum and spread the learning curve across different events.

3. Sports events organized in varying geographical contexts, cities, infrastructures and even cultural habits will find defining a common baseline challenging. Instead, Quantis puts forward the qualitative target recommendations issued by the We Mean Business Coalition, which would guide sports toward ambitious climate action (e.g. committing to 100% renewable power) and addressing other environmental issues (e.g. fighting deforestation, water security...).

Innovation essential to the sustainability of sports’ business models Science-driven goal setting brings sports businesses to move beyond quick environmental wins to future-proof their entire supply chain and operations. Because they can – and must – affect business models, disruptive innovations are essential.

Sports businesses tend to focus on technical innovations to drive performance.

Science-driven goals set them on a pathway to long-term sustainable growth, well beyond what they can currently predict.

Sports are characteristically drawn to challenges and their organizations wield immense supply chains. Science-based approaches lend their business models an additional sustainability edge, allowing sports organizations to take leadership in the shift toward a low-carbon future.

As science-driven approaches foster sustainability leadership, they could also yield new and better opportunities for sports businesses. Sharing in on the same environmental challenges, sponsors (as well as hosting cities) have also been defining 2°C global warming trajectories. Sports having formal science-driven goals could therefore become a differentiating factor (and eventually a requirement), as their partners increasingly aim to align sponsorship and sustainable growth strategies.

Finally, science-driven goals streamline risk management in the sports arena, to strengthen credibility and stakeholder confidence (particularly investors), cut costs and open new markets.

“With major strengths in innovation, visibility and drive, the sports industry must now structure their mitigation efforts with sciencedriven goals”, concludes Quantis’ Senior Sustainability Consultant and Sports Sector lead, Denis Bochatay, “Sports have fantastic initiatives to share in order to deliver long-term value to the global community”.

An innovation in both vision and method, science-driven goals stand to structure sports’ leadership in the global transition toward a low-carbon, sustainable future.

Contact information Denis Bochatay Senior Sustainability Consultant, Sports Sector Lead denis.bochatay@quantis-intl.com +41 21 353 59 10 www.quantis-intl.com

DISRUPTIVE INNOVATIONS ARE ESSENTIAL TO ACHIEVE SCIENCE-DRIVEN GOALS AND ALIGN SPORTS WITH A 2°C GLOBAL WARMING SCENARIO

SUSTAINABLE

ECODESIGN

DISRUPTIVE INNOVATION

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

SCIENCEDRIVEN GOALS

Metrics

Business as 2sual

Traditional Goal Setting

Carbon footprints identify environmental hotspots generated by sports' energy consumption, waste management and travel.

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Sports favor attainable goals + action plans to stretch over time, instead of aligning with a 2°C global warming trajectory.

Disruptive innovation guides sustainable business models Using science-driven goals, sports businesses can quantify their carbon budget + identify gaps where innovation is needed to hit their sustainability targets.

INSIGHT TECHNOLOGY

What are Facebookâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s intentions in sport?

With the launch of its new Watch video platform and a plethora of content already live, speculation is rife as to Facebookâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sporting strategy. Head of global sports partnerships Dan Reed took questions from journalists in London in October on what might be next for the social media giant.

By Michael Long

50 | www.sportspromedia.com

A

presence on Facebook has already become an essential part of the marketing and promotional strategy for almost every sporting organisation in the world, providing reach and scale as well as a direct link to their fanbases.

As the social media giantâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s head of global sports partnerships, part of Dan Reedâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mission, however, involves educating the sports industry on the European side of the Atlantic about the merits of the new Facebook Watch video platform, launched in August and currently the subject of a controlled rollout into the marketplace.

Watch is intended to be a home for live and packaged video, providing a more natural setting than the news feed and homepages with which users have been familiar for over a decade.

It also allows Facebook to show off WKH EHQHĂ&#x20AC;WV RI LQWHJUDWLQJ YLGHR ZLWK live chat, measurable reactions, native advertising and branded content, cross-pollination with ticketing and merchandising sales services, and lines into its Instagram photo-sharing network.

The development of this new platform is intended to make video on Facebook more engaging â&#x20AC;&#x201C; at present, viewers will spend less time watching video content on a Facebook news feed than they would on a dedicated platform like YouTube â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and it has inevitably given rise to discussions about Facebookâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wider plans as a media player. This is particularly true in sport, where its strong ties and deep pockets â&#x20AC;&#x201C; with US$26.885 billion revenues UHSRUWHG IRU WKH Ă&#x20AC;QDQFLDO \HDU ² could make it a force to be reckoned with very quickly indeed.

Will Facebook get involved in the Premier League rights race?

Needless to say, the Premier League was top of the agenda for the assembled journalists, with Reedâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s trip to the British capital coinciding with club discussions over revenue-sharing and with mounting speculation over whether Facebook will make a long-mooted play for global streaming rights to English VRFFHU¡V WRS Ă LJKW Autumn reports in the UK press

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Of course, you have to prime the pump. You have to start to stimulate the ecosystem.â&#x20AC;? suggested the company has already shown strong interest in acquiring streaming rights to the competition, while Manchester United vice chairman Ed Woodward has said both Facebook and Amazon will likely â&#x20AC;&#x153;enter the mixâ&#x20AC;? when discussions over the next round of rights sales covering the period 20192022 begin later this year.

Asked if Facebook would indeed enter an offer, Reed would not be drawn on the speculation but he also refused to rule out a bid. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Premier League is a very important partner of ours,â&#x20AC;? he said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We work with them on an ongoing basis to help them grow their audience and optimise their presence on Facebook. It would be premature to speculate on how we might approach that opportunity but they are a very important partner of ours.â&#x20AC;?

Reed also declined to comment on the suggestion that talk of Facebookâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s interest might have been a ploy by Premier League clubs looking to stoke competition in the marketplace and drive up the value of their rights. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m not going to speculate on why or what those in the Premier League are saying,â&#x20AC;? he said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re going to make that decision, theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re going to say whatever makes sense for them.â&#x20AC;?

Speaking in late October, Enders Analysis founder and chief executive Claire Enders told the Westminster Media Forum that she thought the tech giants would be â&#x20AC;&#x153;absolutely nutsâ&#x20AC;? to bid now for domestic Premier League rights given the â&#x20AC;&#x153;gigantic investmentâ&#x20AC;? required.

However, with the league in talks about expanding the number of live games on offer each season from the current 168 to as many as 210, there could yet be new routes in for Facebook.

How about that US$600 million bid for the Indian Premier League?

While it remains to be seen whether Facebook will enter the next Premier League bidding war, the company has already demonstrated it is serious about acquiring premium rights elsewhere. In September, it made headlines when it entered a bid in the region of US$600 PLOOLRQ IRU D Ă&#x20AC;YH \HDU GHDO WR VWUHDP matches from cricketâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Indian Premier League (IPL) on the sub-continent.

As with its other sports coverage, 5HHG FRQĂ&#x20AC;UPHG ,3/ PDWFKHV ZRXOG have been made available free-to-access on Facebook for local fans, with the considerable advertising interest that accompanies one of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most avidly followed competitions helping to cover the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s investment.

Though Facebook ultimately lost out on those coveted rights to Star Sports, which ended up paying US$2.6 billion for the full package of global broadcast and online rights, the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s decision to make such a substantial offer was a clear statement of intent. So what motivated that particular bid? ´:H VHH Ă&#x20AC;UVW KDQG RQ RXU SODWIRUP that the IPL is incredibly engaging in India,â&#x20AC;? explained Reed. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It connects communities, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s immensely popular in that market, and so itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s consistent with this approach to add interest and being home for that kind of content on a more robust basis.â&#x20AC;?

Had Facebook won those IPL rights, the deal would have been by far its biggest investment in sports rights to date. Hypothetically, then, what would the company have done with them?

Might it have looked to collaborate in some way with the IPLâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s linear broadcaster, for example? â&#x20AC;&#x153;I probably shouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t speculate hypothetically about what might or might not have happened in that situation but thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s certainly a possibility,â&#x20AC;? Reed said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You can imagine a situation where that would be a PXWXDOO\ EHQHĂ&#x20AC;FLDO UHODWLRQVKLS EXW \RX never know.â&#x20AC;?

SportsPro Magazine | 51

INSIGHT TECHNOLOGY

Which rights is Facebook interested in?

Until recently, Facebook has acquired rights to lower-tier sports as well as less valuable or geo-gated content from premium properties such as Major League Baseball (MLB) â&#x20AC;&#x201C; where teams like the 2016 champions Chicago Cubs have made local TV rights available out of market. But as it looks to build out its sports offering to better serve its more than 650 million fans worldwide, plus a further 200 million-plus on Instagram, will Facebook begin to seek big-ticket rights it can exploit globally?

7KRXJK KH DYRLGHG VSHFLĂ&#x20AC; FV 5HHG GLG provide some insight into Facebookâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s acquisition strategy. â&#x20AC;&#x153;All things being HTXDO Âľ KH VDLG ´FRQWHQW WKDW Ă RZV WR the broadest possible audience, and lights up all of the community of Facebook, is more interesting. That said, all things are rarely equal. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Different properties have different levels of popularity in different countries.

There are different values of different content in different regions, and so itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s really on a case-by-case basis. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll give you an example. Our Major League Baseball deal is geo-gated to the United States, whereas our Stadium college football deal is global. Our WSL [World Surf League] deal is global but our Fox/Uefa Champions League deal is geo-gated to the United States. Different circumstances will have different approaches but I think a key thing is you can do all of those things. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We can do one-stop global distribution but we can also geo-gate in any number of countries successfully. Our Cubs broadcast we even geo-gated at the zip code level in the United States.â&#x20AC;?

Can rights holders across the board expect Facebook to splurge on content?

In short, no. Of the more than 3,500 live broadcasts of sports events Facebook KDV VKRZQ LQ WKH Ă&#x20AC; UVW VL[ PRQWKV RI WKLV year, the vast majority have not come through paid partnerships. While the FRPSDQ\ KDV PDGH XQGLVFORVHG Ă&#x20AC; QDQFLDO investments to license rights from some of its content partners â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Major League Soccer (MLS), WSL and MLB included â&#x20AC;&#x201C;

52 | www.sportspromedia.com

Dan Reed, head of sports partnerships at Facebook, says the social media giant has big ambitions in sport

it has typically not stumped up any cash whatsoever.

It is for that reason that Reed describes Facebookâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s service as â&#x20AC;&#x153;free consultingâ&#x20AC;?. +H VD\V WKH EHQHĂ&#x20AC; WV RI SDUWQHULQJ with the company are not necessarily monetary, especially for smaller sports that may struggle for mainstream airtime but are looking to ramp up distribution and grow their fanbase.

He explained: â&#x20AC;&#x153;The typical relationship or partnership we have with a club, for example, is weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll ask them, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;What are you hoping to accomplish, generally, as a business?â&#x20AC;&#x2122; Inevitably [they say,] â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;I want to grow my fanbase, I want to engage that fanbase, I want to convert them into revenue streams that I have, monetise this.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; So we work with them in a variety of ways that do that. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Most of the time it doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t involve money changing hands because we can help them do those things and they can do it on their own on our platform. But we provide the service and the insights and resources to do it effectively. And thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s obviously good for us because weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re helping them reach their objectives but their content drives time spent on our platform, which is only good for our

business as well. That is the currency of the partnership.â&#x20AC;?

According to Reed, Facebookâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s freeto-air, ad-supported model is unlikely to change anytime soon. He said Facebook remains â&#x20AC;&#x153;bullish on ad-break and branded contentâ&#x20AC;? but it does have other means of monetisation at its disposal and could look to build a paid-for platform further down the line â&#x20AC;&#x201C; although, he DGGHG ´LW¡V WRR HDUO\ WR VD\ GHĂ&#x20AC; QLWLYHO\ what the monetisation strategy will beâ&#x20AC;?.

What does the future hold for Watch?

Facebook launched its Watch video service in August as part of an ongoing push to put original video content at the heart of its platform. The new feature includes content produced exclusively

by Facebook partners and has initially been rolled out on the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mobile, desktop and TV apps to a limited number of users in the United States, before a broader release across the globe in future.

Sports programming available upon launch includes MLB games, WNBA All-Access, streams of Mexican soccerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Liga MX, and Golden State Warriorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

Championship Rewind, a documentary that looks back at the teamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s title-winning 2016/17 NBA season. More content is set to be added in due course, with Reed saying the platform is ideal for sport as it combines â&#x20AC;&#x153;episodic, longer-form viewingâ&#x20AC;? with the broader conversation that has become the hallmark of Facebookâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s network. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Watch platform is designed to be an open platform,â&#x20AC;? Reed said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s still in LWV HDUO\ GD\V VR LW¡V QRW IXOO\ Ă HVKHG RXW but itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s designed to be an open platform, where anybody can watch a show page and publish a show to Watch. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Of course, you have to prime the pump. You have to start to stimulate the ecosystem, so many of the shows that are on Watch today are actually the result of a paid partnership, like some of the live sports deals. â&#x20AC;&#x153;But we expect, over time, that more and more content will come organically on to the Watch platform and, like Facebook, there will be more self-service monetisation in the form of ad-break and branded content.â&#x20AC;?

By opening up the Watch platform to all of its users, Facebook expects content creators big and small to utilise the service in future. While that could create visibility challenges for smaller leagues and clubs, including those at the grassroots level, Reed says Facebookâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s technology and capabilities when it comes to user data and targeted marketing will enable distributors to â&#x20AC;&#x153;deliver the right piece of content to the right audienceâ&#x20AC;?.

Facebook signalled its intentions in sport this year with a huge bid for the rights to the Indian Premier League

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Obviously a big football club will automatically, if theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been doing the right things to build reach and build engagement, they will reach a much larger audience, whereas the youth sports might care about activating the parents of the kids that are performing on the Ă RRU RU RQ WKH SLWFK Âľ KH VDLG â&#x20AC;&#x153;For them, 1,000 viewers would be a huge success. We think the power of our platform is that we both deliver that broad global distribution for the biggest properties, but we can also aggregate a niche audience very effectively on a global basis.â&#x20AC;?

Facebook: friend or foe?

As Facebookâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ambitions in sport take shape, it stands to reason that traditional broadcasters and media companies should see the company as a serious threat â&#x20AC;&#x201C; if they donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t already. Although Facebook currently collaborates with some of those

Facebook Watch presented Championship Rewind on its launch, a look back at Golden State Warriorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; season

traditional players on content distribution â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Fox Sports and Univision in the US among them â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s continued interest in rights acquisitions will put it in direct competition with some of its existing partners.

That could pose headaches further down the line but, for now, Reed says Facebookâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s partnership proposition for broadcasters is â&#x20AC;&#x153;pretty compellingâ&#x20AC;?, and he sees many areas in which the company FDQ EXLOG ´PXWXDOO\ EHQHĂ&#x20AC; FLDO FROODERUDWLYH relationshipsâ&#x20AC;? with traditional outlets. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We can help them,â&#x20AC;? he said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Certainly there are rights that they have, virtually all broadcasters, that theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not distributing.

We can help them think about distribution and monetisation and footprints. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Frankly â&#x20AC;&#x201C; put aside for a minute the actual streaming of games â&#x20AC;&#x201C; we work with broadcasters all around the world to actually help support their current television business. For example, we work with Fox in the US to help them devise a counter-programming strategy during the live events and get people to tune into the live event on television, which is a bedrock of our relationship with broadcasters.â&#x20AC;?

Strategically speaking, Reed noted WKHUH LV ´QR WHPSODWH IRU GHĂ&#x20AC; QLQJ what our partnership approach should beâ&#x20AC;?, not least since Facebookâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sports strategy is only now taking shape and market circumstances vary across the globe. Nevertheless, he said Facebook is â&#x20AC;&#x153;intending to be complementary to broadcasters and rights holdersâ&#x20AC;?, even if it does have designs on becoming a major force in the sports media landscape. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s so early in the process,â&#x20AC;? he said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I wish I had a simple answer. It would make it a lot easier but the reality is there is no template.â&#x20AC;?

SportsPro Magazine | 53

GALLERY SPORTSPRO OTT SUMMIT

Horse & Country TV director of network development and business affairs Susan Elkington with OverTier chief executive Sam Jones and NFL VP of international media and business development Michael Markovich

Tim Orne, head of digital products at Formula One

Eleven Sports executive chairman Marc Watson

Sportradar’s MD of OTT, Rainer Geier

Tracey Keenan, the WWE VP and general manager for the UK and Ireland

The opening day ends with a networking dinner

OBS director of production management Karen Mullins

Delegates chat over coffee and refreshments

NBA vice president of global media distribution Else Memmi

OBS CEO Yiannis Exarchos opens proceedings

The SportsPro OTT Summit The inaugural SportsPro OTT Summit took place at the Meliá Castilla in Madrid, Spain on 29th and 30th November, hosted with the support of the Olympic Channel and our partners: Sportradar, Neulion, Eleven Sports, BAMTECH Media and Brightcove. Around 250 high-level delegates were in attendance, with 40 speakers from the digital broadcast sector sharing insights on one of the hottest topics in the industry.

54 | www.sportspromedia.com

The audience watches on with interest

Rick Cordella, the EVP and general manager of digital media at NBC Sports Group

Neulion’s Chris Wagner with Eleven Sports’ Danny Menken and BeIN Media Group global digital director Bhavesh Patel

IOC member and Olympic Channel chairman Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr

The speakers’ weapons of choice

Eurosport’s Will Lock talks PyeongChang

SportsPro Magazine | 55

COVER STORY OTT

CHANNELLING

SPIRIT One of the biggest media events of the new sporting year will come early. PyeongChang 2018 will see another advance in the operations of Olympic Broadcasting Services, and a Games-time debut for the Olympic Channel.

By Eoin Connolly. Photographs by Jesús Antón.

56 | www.sportspromedia.com

40

days into 2018, one of the year’s biggest and most complicated sporting events will be underway.

The build-up to the 23rd Winter Olympic Games has been characterised by rancour, uncertainty and, sometimes, by apathy. Between domestic political turmoil, geopolitical strife, a sluggish commercial campaign, a doping ban for the Russian Olympic Committee DQG D JHQHUDO FULVLV RI FRQÀ GHQFH around future bids, there has been plenty to keep the sports news lobby occupied in the past 12 months.

Yet as seasoned watchers of the Games will understand, from 9th to 25th February in PyeongChang, South Korea, only the sport will matter. The effect may just be temporary – like a coating of fresh snow – but for 17 days, it will be the athletes’ stories that count. And it will once again be the job of Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS), the host broadcaster of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), to relay those stories around the world.

“All the venues are ready,” says OBS chief executive Yiannis Exarchos. “Our house – the International Broadcast Centre [IBC] – is ready. In terms of construction, we have advanced a lot with the installation of equipment. :H KDYH VWDUWHG WHVWLQJ 7KH À UVW broadcasters have actually started arriving. And, most importantly, snow has arrived – so the pictures are already beautiful from the venues. We’re very, very excited.”

Exarchos is speaking in Madrid at the end of November, a little over two months out from the Games, during the inaugural SportsPro OTT Summit – hosted with the support of the Olympic Channel, and partners Sportradar, Neulion, Eleven Sports, BAMTECH Media and Brightcove.

“We have completed cabling to the areas of our broadcasters, and some of them have already started taking over their spaces,” he notes.

“And I would say that we are halfway through the cabling in the venues –

HVSHFLDOO\ LQ WKH PRVW GLIÀ FXOW DQG challenging venues, which are venues like alpine where the cable lengths DUH KXJH :H KDYH À QDOLVHG WKH installation of all the infrastructure for our specialty equipment – so the towers for the big cable cams that we use, and so on.”

Around 240 people are working at the IBC at the start of December; by February, that will number well into the thousands.

No sporting event has a richer broadcast life than an Olympic Games. OBS estimates around 4,000 hours will be broadcast in total from PyeongChang, including over 860 hours of live sport and at least 39 hours just of live training coverage. Multi-clip feeds will be created for 11 disciplines, with TV partners getting access to 425 hours of content there.

The presentation of competition broadcasts comes after the “lengthy and complex process” of consultation with each international federation. Creating uniformity across the Olympic output, Exarchos explains, can be a challenge when sports have different aesthetic norms and, in some cases, are rarely produced to the level of a truly global media event.

Discussions centre on how “to go closer to the action, closer to the athlete”, and can even encompass “how to make the format of a VSHFLÀ F VSRUW PRUH 79 IULHQGO\ RU more digital-friendly”.

Most federations, Exarchos says, are open to experimenting when there are prospects of strong results.

OBS chief executive Yiannis Exarchos opens the inaugural SportsPro OTT Summit

“Let me give you an example: in PyeongChang we will be introducing on-board cameras on bobsleighs,” he adds. “Those will come as close as you can get to the athletes; they can replicate the experience that the athletes themselves have. But obviously in order to do that you need to have a buy-in from the athletes themselves, from the national federations, from the teams, from the international federations, to make sure that all safety rules are observed, to test the system and so on.”

Camera and display technologies inevitably catch the eye but for Exarchos, it is advances in digital distribution that will provide “an incredible opportunity” to tell the tales of PyeongChang 2018.

Unsurprisingly, digital consumption of the Olympic Games has been ULVLQJ VLQFH QDWLYH FRQWHQW ZDV À UVW produced at Athens 2004 and last year in Rio, the signs were that it is drawing level with traditional platforms in some markets as TV viewership declines. In 2018, the centralised production network will now be serving that demand and reacting to that changing balance.

“One major innovation that we have introduced beyond what we’ve done in the past in PyeongChang is a service that we call Content+,” Exarchos reveals, “which is actually an aggregation of primarily short-form content that can work better, especially on social media.

We believe that this will facilitate broadcasters to distribute the Games better through their social media handles. And it’s not just the

SportsPro Magazine | 57

COVER STORY OTT

traditional coverage that we put there in shorter form. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s primarily content designed to work well in social media: so more behind the scenes, athletes preparing, individual stories; things that you donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t usually see in the traditional coverage.â&#x20AC;?

Content+, which will be a source of animations, maps and analytics as well as ready-to-air video, is an indication of an ongoing shift in Olympic programming strategy. It is one shadowed by the movementâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s biggest broadcast partners. PyeongChang will mark the beginning of Eurosportâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x201A;Ź1.3 billion, six-year deal to show the Olympics across 50 territories, and the broadcaster has outlined an aggressive digital strategy built around its Eurosport Player OTT service.

Social media partners including Snap Inc will join a push to grow measurable digital video engagement.

For NBC â&#x20AC;&#x201C; signed up to carry the Games until 2032 in a US$7.65 billion deal which makes it the movementâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s biggest benefactor â&#x20AC;&#x201C; digital distribution is becoming an ever more important part of the picture.

The US network has a historical reputation for conservatism when it comes to Olympic programming but, with PyeongChang 2018 taking place several time zones away, it will be fully embracing new media opportunities. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll stream somewhere in the neighbourhood of 1,800 hours,â&#x20AC;? says Rick Cordella, executive vice president and general manager of digital media at NBC Sports Group, in another interview at the SportsPro OTT Summit. Highlights and original SURJUDPPLQJ ZLOO Ă&#x20AC; OO WKH ´GDUNÂľ hours during the US daytime. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think from a digital perspective, we can always go a little bit deeper,â&#x20AC;?

Cordella adds. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think on TV, again, with the limited number of hours, WKH\ GRQ¡W KDYH D SRVW JDPH Ă&#x20AC; JXUH skating show or a post-game hockey show. They typically move on to something else. Whereas digitally, we can take that audience thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been watching a particular piece of content and feed them into a show thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s more about that certain niche.â&#x20AC;?

The service that is most emblematic of the Olympicsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; digital

58 | www.sportspromedia.com

drive is one that now shares a home with OBS in Madrid. Trailed for some time as a pet project of IOC president Thomas Bach, the Olympic Channel was founded in 2015 and went live at the end of Rio 2016. Its mission is to be the place â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Where The Games Never Endâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, creating a broadcast presence for sports in the Olympic family between each showpiece.

The Olympic Channel and OBS both have production teams in a facility just off the Spanish capitalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Avenida de AmĂŠrica; the headquarters of Spanish soccerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s La Liga are close by. The base was completed in May 2016 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; constructed in accordance with Agenda 2020 directives regarding recycled materials and other sustainable practices â&#x20AC;&#x201C; with Olympic Channel teams moving straight in and their OBS colleagues following after Rio 2016. There are around 400 staff based here â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a little over 100 of them from the Olympic Channel, spreading themselves RXW RYHU WKH ORZHVW WZR Ă RRUV ,WV commercial and distribution teams are based in Lausanne, however.

Over the 15 months since the channel launched, its operators KDYH OHDUQHG WKH YDOXH RI Ă H[LELOLW\

Olympic Channel general manager Mark Parkman at the SportsPro OTT Summit

â&#x20AC;&#x153;When youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re a startup, you have to be improvising every day,â&#x20AC;? says Mark Parkman, the general manager of the Olympic Channel, also speaking during the SportsPro OTT Summit. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You have to be able to pivot.â&#x20AC;?

There are production suites GRZQVWDLUV LQ 0DGULG DV ZHOO DV Ă&#x20AC; YH voiceover booths where footage can be overlaid in different languages.

There is a fully rigged studio here. A live production team is also in situ 24 hours a day, gathering in feeds from around the world.

At the latest count, the Olympic Channel has 57 federation partners providing on-demand video content as well as access to athletes and venues. In some cases, it has provided a platform for those partners to air their events in territories where the rights have not been sold. As delegates from the SportsPro OTT Summit tour the studios, operatives are sending a live feed of canoeing to viewers around the world.

The Olympic Channel has also worked through the archives and on a range of documentaries and original programming, much of it created with the help of local production teams in each country.

Against All Odds tells stories of sporting triumph over real world adversity, while Identify follows Ă&#x20AC; YH WUDQVJHQGHU DWKOHWHV VHHNLQJ WR establish their own identity through sport. Foul Play is a new series examining the darker side of the Games, beginning with the tale of Margaret Lambert, the world-leading Jewish high jumper barred from Berlin 1936 by the Nazi regime.

Five Rings Films will launch in January, with its approach to sports Ă&#x20AC; OPPDNLQJ LQVSLUHG E\ (631¡V award-winning 30 For 30 series.

Hollywood director Peter Berg is in line to produce an entry about Cubaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s celebrated boxing lineage.

There are lighter touches, too, from Kids Call â&#x20AC;&#x201C; short clips of kindergartners commentating on world class sport â&#x20AC;&#x201C; to series which pit athletes against gamers and VRFLDO LQĂ XHQFHUV The execution of the channel probably differs from what was

imagined when early feasibility studies were conducted. Rather than traditional TV, it has rapidly evolved into a multi-platform digital offering, with content distributed on its own website as well as the full range of social networks.

Social media teams work out of WKH 0DGULG RIĂ&#x20AC;FHV IURP 0RQGD\ WR Sunday, with night shifts running during major events. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve probably focused less on linear as weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve gone further into it, focusing more on localisation â&#x20AC;&#x201C; which is a combination of digital integration, social activation, original programming,â&#x20AC;? says Parkman. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s something that weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re constantly adjusting because we know that that marketplace that weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re trying to attract, that younger demographic, some of the platforms that theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re spending time on didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t exist two years ago.

They didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t exist when we were doing our initial studies as to what the Olympic Channel should be.â&#x20AC;?

The early indications are that this social-focused approach has found some traction. 7,000 pieces of content were produced by the 2O\PSLF &KDQQHO LQ LWV Ă&#x20AC;UVW \HDU LQ

StaďŹ&#x20AC; at the Olympic Channel monitor the global feeds that will go live on its platforms

11 languages, while 500 live events will have been shown by the end of 2017. The most eye-catching ODQGPDUN ZDV FRQĂ&#x20AC;UPHG LQ 2FWREHU when it hit one billion views across all platforms â&#x20AC;&#x201C; based on the Facebook standard of three seconds watched, YouTubeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 30 seconds and 7ZLWWHU¡V Ă&#x20AC;YH WR WHQ VHFRQGV â&#x20AC;&#x153;I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know that we were going to achieve that billion number,â&#x20AC;? admits Parkman. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I kind of threw it out a year in advance and said, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;How can we get to a billion views or a billion interactions? Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s think big.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; And we got there a lot quicker than I thought.â&#x20AC;?

Ways of encouraging deeper user interaction are already being explored. The 25th anniversary of the Barcelona Games was commemorated earlier this year with an online game that paid homage to the 8-bit era of the 80s and early 90s. Ahead of PyeongChang 2018, the channel is running the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Become the Lightâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; campaign for the UN refugee agency UNHCR. Viewers can sign up to log their recent physical activity, with a global tally then converted into funding by the

IOC for lighting in the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s refugee camps. The intention is to further assimilate training apps in the near future, tying in incentives like statistical comparisons with Olympic athletes. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t envision in the beginning that we would offer archive services; we didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t envision that we would do clipping and commentary; we didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t envision that we would offer embeddable players on their platform so that they could use our Olympic Channel content,â&#x20AC;?

Parkman says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;So that technology and that need for those services has caused us to divert a bit from the core mission but all of that that we do in the services is meant to grow our overall audience and aggregate that Olympic audience.â&#x20AC;?

At this stage, all of that is outlay.

The Olympic Channel has been granted an initial budget of â&#x201A;Ź490 PLOOLRQ IURP WKH ,2& IRU LWV Ă&#x20AC;UVW seven years of operation â&#x20AC;&#x201C; taking it to the end of 2021. In time, Parkman says, the â&#x20AC;&#x153;long-term vision is that the channel will be self-sustainingâ&#x20AC;?, and sponsorship is ERXQG WR SOD\ D VLJQLĂ&#x20AC;FDQW UROH LQ how that ambition is achieved.

SportsPro Magazine | 59

COVER STORY OTT

â&#x20AC;&#x153;We have Bridgestone, Toyota and Alibaba as the founding partners of the Olympic Channel,â&#x20AC;? he notes. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re also in close discussions with Intel about ways that they can participate in the channel. So between those four, we view that partnership as ways that they can continue their brand association with the Olympic Games 365 days a year, which a lot of them have wanted, theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been asking for, and the channel is that avenue to do so.â&#x20AC;?

The Olympic Channel did not exist at the point when most TOP sponsorship deals were signed by the IOC but Parkman expects they will be a feature of future renewals and new business. Moreover, he sees a number of ways in which the movementâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s partners will add different dimensions. â&#x20AC;&#x153;With Alibaba,â&#x20AC;? he says, â&#x20AC;&#x153;weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re talking about the possibilities of a digital Olympic Channel proposition in China, plus the ecommerce capabilities that they bring. They did US$25 billion in sales earlier this month on their Singles Day! So how can we harness their power to build an ecommerce platform for the Olympic movement through the Olympic Channel?â&#x20AC;?

Meanwhile, Intelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s experience will increasingly be brought to bear on the integration of virtual reality and DUWLĂ&#x20AC;FLDO LQWHOOLJHQFH Olympic Channel content will not solely be living online, though, with IOC broadcast partners stepping up to collaborate. Eurosport will give airtime to Olympic Channel programming and place a portal on its own website, as well as offering creative input on new series

DQG Ă&#x20AC;OPV -XO\ VDZ WKH ODXQFK RI NBCâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA, a new linear network that will offer Olympic-themed programming all year round with a particular focus on the fortunes of American athletes. In September a similar outlet went live across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region with Qatarâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s BeIN Media Group. BeIN Sports Home of the Olympic Channel has been operating across 24 territories since 1st November. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re providing the branding, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re providing the original content that we create, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re providing digital content, but the core operation is done by the rights holding broadcaster,â&#x20AC;? explains Parkman. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re the one thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s programming it and promoting it in their market. And we think that will extend to some other markets.

Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re hopeful that in the coming months weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll have activation in Korea, in Japan, in China, in Brazil. Those are the key ones that weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re talking to our rights holding broadcaster partners about.â&#x20AC;?

Existing relationships with broadcasters mean that the Olympic Channelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s role during Games-time will be quite different. PyeongChang ZLOO EH WKH Ă&#x20AC;UVW HYHQW LQ LWV existence, providing an opening glimpse of how the IOCâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s OTT service will work when the live action will be going on elsewhere. â&#x20AC;&#x153;What we want to do is additive,â&#x20AC;?

Parkman says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;First, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re already doing quite a bit on the road to PyeongChang, which we started in conjunction with the lighting of WKH Ă DPH LQ 2O\PSLD DQG WKH days to go that happened around

The Olympic Channel base in Madrid features production facilities and a fully rigged studio

60 | www.sportspromedia.com

1RYHPEHU VW DQG WKH Ă DPH¡V DUULYDO in PyeongChang. So what you see on our platform for the most part â&#x20AC;&#x201C; from what weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re doing on social, what weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re doing digitally, what weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re doing in news, and particularly on our original programming, is more winter-focused.â&#x20AC;?

Most of the Olympic Channelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s production staff will stay in Madrid for the duration of the Games, although news and social teams will be in South Korea to provide coverage from the ground. In the extremely rare case that rights have not been sold in a given market, there is the chance that the Olympic Channel could step in to provide live coverage. â&#x20AC;&#x153;On our linear channels,â&#x20AC;?

Parkman adds, â&#x20AC;&#x153;NBC Olympic Channel: Home of Team USA will have the Olympic Channel news that OBS is producing, theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll have talking heads doing wrap-up, and they may build in some of our original programming as well as live medals. With BeIN, the idea is that on the linear side, the Olympic Channel-branded platform theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve created will have live events.â&#x20AC;?

2QFH WKH Ă DPH JRHV RXW LQ PyeongChang, the Olympic Channel will return to its primary purpose â&#x20AC;&#x201C; that of keeping the 2O\PSLF Ă&#x20AC;UHV EXUQLQJ EHWZHHQ Games and, with luck, helping to â&#x20AC;&#x153;inspire that younger generation to become more active, to become PRUH Ă&#x20AC;W WR WU\ D QHZ VSRUW VR WKDW they live a healthier lifeâ&#x20AC;?. â&#x20AC;&#x153;What we want to do is capture peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s attention on a daily basis,â&#x20AC;? says Parkman. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want them just every two years, for 17 days, to turn up and watch the Games.

We still want them to do that in massive numbers, but we want to educate the audience in advance. A lot of times, you donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t hear about these athletes except every four years. They donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t go away.â&#x20AC;?

7KH SURMHFW LV WKXV D UHĂ HFWLRQ of and response to viewership trends across sports media, which demand that lofty plateaus of engagement are found between the old peaks of major made-forTV events. But there is another

underlying pattern to address. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think all sporting properties realise in some respects that the viewer and fan are ageing,â&#x20AC;? concedes Parkman. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It creeps up every year, and everybodyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s trying to get to that younger demographic.

7KH FKDQQHO ZDV VSHFLĂ&#x20AC;FDOO\ designed to do that and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s resonating. When over the billion views that we have, 77 per cent are under 35, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re quite pleased with meeting that key metric.â&#x20AC;?

That happy discovery about the make-up of the Olympic Channel audience may not be too surprising, given the tendency of digital user bases to skew younger, but it is one WKDW ZLOO EXLOG FRQĂ&#x20AC;GHQFH LQ WKH future success of the endeavour.

2WKHU Ă&#x20AC;QGLQJV ZLOO VRRQ KHOS EXLOG a more detailed picture of the kind of viewer the channel is attracting and, as Exarchos suggests, inform programming choices that responds to their tastes. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Digital offers you â&#x20AC;&#x201C; on top of everything else â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the opportunity to understand minute details of how content is being consumed,â&#x20AC;? he continues. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Every single moment; ZK\ VRPHERG\ JRHV WR D VSHFLĂ&#x20AC;F piece of content; where does he come from; where does he go next; when does he decide to leave a video. For us, it was super-important to create a system where we could digest and understand all this information. And I feel that, already, within those 12 months, we have made changes on the platform in the way that we produce and present the content that have been based on this knowledge and understanding.â&#x20AC;?

The future of the movement ZLOO QRW RQO\ EH GHĂ&#x20AC;QHG E\ digital, of course. Future events ZLOO VHH D GLIIHUHQW SURĂ&#x20AC;OH RI sport appear, beginning with the quintet of baseball/softball, karate, skateboarding, sport FOLPELQJ DQG VXUĂ&#x20AC;QJ DW 7RN\R 2020. The IOCâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s courtship of the esports community is in its very earliest stages â&#x20AC;&#x201C; with the Olympic credentials of competitive video gaming and the IP morass of its publishing and event landscape among the many complications

The Olympic Channel has been following the progress of the Olympic ďŹ&#x201A;ame towards PyeongChang

that lie ahead â&#x20AC;&#x201C; but Intel will bring its Extreme Masters tournament to PyeongChang ahead of the Games. It is clear that the broadcast proposition that exists in the future will be very different. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I believe that the Olympics are bound to change,â&#x20AC;? says Exarchos. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They should change by the way they look. In terms of traditional coverage, we have reached a level of maturity which is pretty high â&#x20AC;&#x201C; most people, even younger people, would appreciate and enjoy traditional coverage â&#x20AC;&#x201C; but I still believe that even in the realm of this traditional coverage, there are areas of improvement leveraging digital technologies.â&#x20AC;?

As for the way PyeongChang 2018 looks, 4K coverage will be available in selected sessions for eight disciplines, as well as the ceremonies. OBS and Japanese broadcaster NHK will continue their joint experiments in 8K in a smaller number of events.

More live and on-demand virtual reality footage will be shot in South Korea as well, building on trials launched at Rio 2016 with the added assistance of Intel. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We believe in this technology â&#x20AC;&#x201C; not as a technology which will substitute traditional broadcasting or even digital but as an additional opportunity and additional experience,â&#x20AC;? Exarchos says.

But the developments that Exarchos sees as being most LQĂ XHQWLDO LQ WKH \HDUV DKHDG DUH QRW limited to how the sporting action

is captured on camera. ´, EHOLHYH WKDW WKHUH DUH VSHFLĂ&#x20AC;F technologies that maybe are not direct broadcast or sports broadcast technologies like augmented reality, SRWHQWLDOO\ DUWLĂ&#x20AC;FLDO LQWHOOLJHQFH WKDW may offer us opportunities to really change the way sports are covered,â&#x20AC;? he argues.

These solutions, which he EHOLHYHV ZLOO Ă&#x20AC;QG ´D ELJ WHVWLQJ groundâ&#x20AC;? at Tokyo 2020, will help to forge â&#x20AC;&#x153;incredible tools to have a better understanding of how sports work, of how the SHUIRUPDQFHV RI VSHFLĂ&#x20AC;F DWKOHWHV workâ&#x20AC;?. They also look set to dramatically reduce the number of â&#x20AC;&#x153;very burdensome processesâ&#x20AC;? in broadcast production, leading Exarchos to speculate ZKHWKHU ´DUWLĂ&#x20AC;FLDO LQWHOOLJHQFH RU virtualisation or cloud technologies may provide us the opportunities to have a smaller presenceâ&#x20AC;? on site. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Myself, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m hugely excited about those technologies,â&#x20AC;? he adds. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m not afraid that they may change traditional broadcasting â&#x20AC;&#x201C; as much as I love broadcasting and the way sports television has been done. I think that we live in such exciting times that it would be a shame if sports broadcasting was not trying to get something and to learn something from the emergence of huge technologies which will change the way we live.â&#x20AC;?

The result, he suggests, is that more resources will be spent on what appears on the screen â&#x20AC;&#x201C; whatever screen that proves to be.

SportsPro Magazine | 61

FEATURE OTT

ROUNDING BASES From its origins as part of Major League Baseballâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s digital unit, BAMTECH Media has risen to become one of the most inďŹ&#x201A;uential companies in live streaming. Now, BAMTECH Europe is taking on new territories across the Atlantic.

By Eoin Connolly

F

or much of its existence, BAMTECH has been, if not quite a surprise package, then a surprising one.

Grown out of Major League Baseball Advanced Media (MLBAM), itself created to bring one of the most contentrich competitions in sport to life online, it has made its reputation in specialist circles as a digital streaming pioneer through a dizzying sequence of projects.

HBO, Sony Vue and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) became clients, followed by the likes of Major League Soccer and golf â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s PGA Tour.

It was three deals, over a period of a little more than two years, WKDW Ă&#x20AC;QDOO\ RSHQHG WKH ZLGHU industryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s eyes to what MLBAM and more recently BAMTECH had EHHQ GRLQJ 7KH Ă&#x20AC;UVW FDPH EDFN in August 2015, when MLBAM announced a six-year digital rights agreement with the National Hockey League (NHL) that also included an equity stake in the company as part of a planned spinoff from MLB. If that was an indication that baseballâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s digital arm was stretching out in unexpected directions, what has happened since has only VHUYHG WR FRQĂ&#x20AC;UP LWV SRWHQWLDO reach. A year later, in August 2016, The Walt Disney Company spent US$1 billion on a one-third stake in BAMTECH. Then in August 2017, Disney announced an acceleration of its investment timetable to become a majority owner of the company, spending a

62 | www.sportspromedia.com

further US$1.58 billion to take its shareholding to 75 per cent.

As a result, BAMTECH will SOD\ D VLJQLĂ&#x20AC;FDQW UROH LQ 'LVQH\¡V new direct-to-consumer initiatives, including the new ESPN+ subscription service launching this spring. The product will be accessible through a new and fully redesigned ESPN app, which will allow viewers to stream ESPN channels and subscribe to ESPN+ for additional sports coverage, including thousands of live sporting events. Additionally, BAMTECH will support a Disneybranded DTC service in the latter part of 2019, streaming the latest Disney, Pixar, Marvel, and Star :DUV IHDWXUH Ă&#x20AC;OPV It is an arrangement that completes the journey from a small unit trying to create websites for baseball teams in the early days of the 21st century to one of the most LQ LQĂ XHQWLDO DUFKLWHFWV RI WKH 277 age. It also means that now, people will see BAMTECH coming.

In November 2016, it set out right across the Atlantic. A joint venture with another global media giant, Discovery, led to the establishment of BAMTECH Europe. Discoveryowned Eurosport would be the QHZ HQWLW\¡V Ă&#x20AC;UVW FOLHQW )RU %LOO Martens, the former MLBAM senior vice president of partner solutions who was installed as BAMTECH (XURSH¡V Ă&#x20AC;UVW PDQDJLQJ GLUHFWRU the move was a chance to cement a burgeoning international reputation. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Most of our business has been US-focused in terms of our clients,â&#x20AC;? he says, speaking to SportsPro at the Sportel Convention

Bill Martens, the BAMTECH Europe managing director

in Monaco in October. â&#x20AC;&#x153;However, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been distributing content globally for many years. A lot of people donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know that about us, but we operate today in over 200 countries, supporting brands like WWE Network, which is distributed globally, and NHL, which is distributed in most of the world, with a few exceptions. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been supporting products on a global basis until now but we havenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t had an actual operation outside the US, so thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a big part of our expansion plan: to be close to our clients and support them from within Europe. We believe thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a lot of opportunity in (XURSH VR WKDW ZDV RXU Ă&#x20AC;UVW IRUD\ internationally.â&#x20AC;?

Investment from Disney, Martens says, has helped BAMTECH to â&#x20AC;&#x153;accelerate our expansion effortsâ&#x20AC;?.

He adds: â&#x20AC;&#x153;There is a lot of upfront capital required when youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re building out data centres and other infrastructure for the ingestion,

encoding, packaging, monitoring and distribution of video.â&#x20AC;?

As far as BAMTECH Europe is concerned, however, Martens â&#x20AC;&#x153;canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t imagine a better strategic partner in the region than Discoveryâ&#x20AC;?.

Together, the two partners have helped to establish the organisation on European soil â&#x20AC;&#x201C; literally. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We opened our Amsterdam headquarters in August and weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been ramping up there with local talent that will support technical infrastructure, media operations, client services and application development,â&#x20AC;? says Martens. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was important for us to be close to the end user and to our clients, with operations, technology and other resources based in the same time zone. Understanding their unique requirements, and the differences country by country, from a cultural, market and business perspective is also critical.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;Secondly, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve just completed EXLOGLQJ RXW RXU Ă&#x20AC; UVW (XURSH EDVHG transmission operation centre. That is housed within our Amsterdam headquarters as well, and was purpose-built to support all of our European clients from a media operations perspective. Having a local transmission operations centre on Central European Time improves our ability to provide 24/7 support globally to all our partners.â&#x20AC;?

According to Martens â&#x20AC;&#x201C; who also spoke under the Chatham House rule at the inaugural SportsPro OTT Summit in November â&#x20AC;&#x201C; those facilities were put together â&#x20AC;&#x153;on a pretty short timelineâ&#x20AC;? once the tie-up with 'LVFRYHU\ ZDV FRQĂ&#x20AC; UPHG ´%XW thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not atypical for BAMTECH Media,â&#x20AC;? he explains. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve learned how to work fast. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re very pleased with how far weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve come in a relatively short amount of time.â&#x20AC;?

BAMTECH Europeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s founding client is Eurosport, which is aggressively pushing its OTT service, Eurosport Player, across 69 territories

Soon, BAMTECH Europe will be able to point to a signature piece of work that will underscore its arrival. Over the past year the Eurosport Player, a digital live and on-demand video service, has been transitioned over to the BAMTECH platform. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re now in 69 different territories, supporting 14 different languages and six different currencies,â&#x20AC;? Martens says.

That infrastructure has been put in place ahead of the most ambitious projects in Eurosportâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s history, and one to rank alongside :UHVWOHPDQLD DQG VHDVRQ Ă&#x20AC; QDOHV of Game of Thrones as one of the largest and most complex undertakings executed so far E\ %$07(&+ ,Q )HEUXDU\ Eurosport will begin in earnest a six-year stint as the lead broadcaster of the Olympic Games in 50 territories â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the entire continent, except for Russia. And both Discovery and Eurosport are determined to put digital at the heart of their delivery of PyeongChang 2018.

Every minute of the Winter Olympics will be shown live on the Eurosport Player, including practice sessions, which means as many as 20 streams could be operational at once. With Discovery Communications chief executive David Zaslav demanding a continued pivot to direct-to-

SportsPro Magazine | 63

FEATURE OTT

consumer video and OTT in order to offset declining revenues in the global pay-TV sector, new metrics have been developed for the Games that more satisfactorily measure digital consumption. That in turn will interest the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which knows it must prove its case that new media engagement is rising as old media viewership falls.

Two and a half years after its stunning â&#x201A;Ź1.3 billion IOC coup, PyeongChang 2018 is Eurosportâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s biggest declaration yet of its new status under Discoveryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ownership. The impression its Eurosport Player makes on those fans who drift across from free-toair partners, or from the content made available through digital partners like Snap Inc, could be pivotal. Martens will only say that BAMTECH Europe is â&#x20AC;&#x153;very excitedâ&#x20AC;? by the prospect of taking it on, but there is no doubting what a powerful statement the success of that project might be to potential clients.

The identity of those clients, at the time of writing, is not yet clear, but Martens is open-minded about where they will come from.

He anticipates a similar mix of projects as in the US, from

64 | www.sportspromedia.com

sport to entertainment and from event-based to SVOD and linear television. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re known, certainly, for having many tier one partners,â&#x20AC;? he adds. â&#x20AC;&#x153;But our position is that we want to be foundational. Our belief is that, while there is a certain inevitability to the trends, content owners will need to be thoughtful about how they enter the market.

Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re most interested in customers that are making a long-term investment in OTT.

BAMTECHâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s roots are as part of the in-house company supplying digital services to MLB but it was a 2015 deal with the NHL that transformed its outlook

â&#x20AC;&#x153;One of the main reasons customers choose BAMTECH is our ability to scale, and this is important for any company building for the future. In 2017, we will stream more than 1.5 billion minutes of live content, and our platform is designed to support up to ten million users.â&#x20AC;?

Martensâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; own background is in news media. He spent ten years at CBS Interactive, serving as vice president and general manager of CBS News Digital and overseeing GHYHORSPHQW RI &%61 WKH Ă&#x20AC; UVW 24-hour OTT news network. He is aware, in other words, of how profoundly digital distribution is changing industries with hitherto consecrated ways of working.

Those changes, moreover, are global. â&#x20AC;&#x153;There are a lot of trends that are similar in the US and in Europe,â&#x20AC;? Martens suggests. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Content owners are recognising the importance of building a foundation for a direct-toconsumer strategy â&#x20AC;&#x201C; either now, or in the very near future. And there are a lot of reasons why that makes sense â&#x20AC;&#x201C; one of which is to reach younger audiences, another of which is to leverage data and new capabilities, such as advanced analytics, to deepen the relationship with their fans and their customers.

â&#x20AC;&#x153;What Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve found is that, particularly within the sports category, thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a lot of recognition of BAMTECH Mediaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s capabilities and a lot of interest in adopting a PRUH Ă H[LEOH DSSURDFK WR ULJKWV PRQHWLVDWLRQ )RU H[DPSOH VRPH content owners are looking at more of a hybrid distribution model, including both direct to consumer products and traditional licensing that would allow them to optimise revenue, gather more information directly about their fans or customers, and also be in a position to react quickly to changes in the marketplace.â&#x20AC;?

With that in mind, analytics is an important area of development for BAMTECH Europe, one in which the company is â&#x20AC;&#x153;investing and building out our capabilitiesâ&#x20AC;?

DV LW VHHNV WR UHĂ&#x20AC; QH VROXWLRQV WKDW can â&#x20AC;&#x153;power personalisation and marketing tools that help reduce churn, increase engagement and deliver high ROI ad solutionsâ&#x20AC;?.

Studio-grade DRM is another element that Martens sees as increasingly critical for rights holders in sport, who are learning from their counterparts in entertainment of the need â&#x20AC;&#x153;to better protect their content as they make more of it available on digital platformsâ&#x20AC;?.

Martens does not expect every new innovation to take root in the short term and also accepts that â&#x20AC;&#x153;there may be marketing tactics that are effective in some markets but not in other markets, for cultural reasons or otherwiseâ&#x20AC;?.

Nevertheless, he still believes the potential of OTT is yet to be fully appreciated by some within sport. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The stream itself, while incredibly important, is just the start,â&#x20AC;? he says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The beauty of digital platforms is you can build a much deeper, richer experience around the content. One of the things that MLBAM is known for, historically, is the ability to ingest and normalise sports data, and then to create visualisations of that data that drive a deeper viewing experience for the user. So, for example, features like milestones

Martens speaking at the SportsPro OTT Summit in Madrid at the end of November

which can be laid over an actual live event which allow a user to go back and forth in an event around key moments. Things of that nature provide a very different user experience from what consumers have seen in the past on television.â&#x20AC;?

However the market evolves, one thing Martens is keen to underline is that BAMTECHâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s commitment to experimentation and innovation will continue. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s part of our DNA,â&#x20AC;? he says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The partners that we work with are generally very committed to OTT. Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re making massive investments in content and theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re committed to delivering content at scale directly to consumers. As a general rule, those clients always want to be discovering ways to improve monetisation of the content, improve the user experience, and to ensure that they have the marketing tools to drive their business. â&#x20AC;&#x153;If you look at the underlying technology of the platform, it was initially developed based on the needs of MLB.tv but after that, based on the requirements of our partners. Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve really driven a lot of the innovation on our platform, and we have a lot of very smart, technical people at BAMTECH Media who are also constantly thinking about ways to add value.

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s what has led to our success, and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s something that weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll make a point of continuing as we go forward.â&#x20AC;?

BAMTECHâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own future will be one of transition over the next few years as it moves away from

its origins. Bob Bowman, who has guided baseballâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s digital project for 17 years, stayed with MLB when the company was spun off and FRQĂ&#x20AC; UPHG LQ 1RYHPEHU WKDW KH would step down from his role as president of business and media at the league at the end of 2017.

At BAMTECH, new leadership is being provided by former Amazon Video executive Michael Paull, who MRLQHG DV FKLHI H[HFXWLYH LQ )HEUXDU\ %XW LW ZLOO EH WKH LQĂ XHQFH RI WKH new majority owner that will be watched most carefully. â&#x20AC;&#x153;With respect to Disney,â&#x20AC;? says Martens, â&#x20AC;&#x153;weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re thrilled to be supporting more of Disneyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s products on the platform, including the multi-sports service that weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re going to be launching in 2018.

Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not ready to talk in too much detail about that relationship yet.

But I would say, overall, that itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s business as usual. We think itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s critically important to be in the technology services business and exposed to the demands of the marketplace. The best in class technology that we have today will continue to evolve and will be available not only to Disney but to all of our other clients as well.â&#x20AC;?

Under Martensâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; watch, the opportunity now exists to build BAMTECHâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own network in the years to come. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Near-term â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 2018 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; localisation will be a priority and operational expansion in Europe to better support all of our clients on a global basis,â&#x20AC;? Martens says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;In addition, we will build on the work that weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve done with Eurosport Player. The Olympics is a huge event for Discovery and for BAMTECH Media, so weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re focused right now on delivering the best possible streaming experience to the Eurosport Player audience. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Over time, the goal is really to build out a technology services business that looks very similar to what weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve built in the US. So, working with premium brands and with rights owners that are committed to a long-term strategy around OTT, and providing them with best-in-breed technology to support all of those efforts.â&#x20AC;?

SportsPro Magazine | 65

FEATURE TENNIS

Down the line Menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tennis has enjoyed one of its greatest ever decades but as time catches up with its superstars, the future is a present concern. The ATP Next Gen Finals in Milan gave a glimpse of what may be to come, on and oďŹ&#x20AC; the court.

By Eoin Connolly

T

he future can come at you quicker than you think. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I started the event in London, at The O2, and that aged me about ten years in the two yearsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; preparation,â&#x20AC;? says Chris Kermode, the executive chairman of tennisâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; ATP. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This has been the same.â&#x20AC;?

It is early November in Milan and Kermode is sitting at a neon-lit dinner table beside a warm-up court installed as part of a temporary venue at the Fiera Milano, a convention centre more accustomed to hosting trade fairs.

7KLV LV WKH Ă&#x20AC;UVW GD\ RI WKH $73 Next Gen Finals, an expo of a kind for the sport of tomorrow â&#x20AC;&#x201C; another set of players, and another ZD\ RI SOD\LQJ ,W LV QRZ WKH Ă&#x20AC;UVW RI two season-ending competitions on the ATP World Tour, alongside the ATP Finals â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the event in London

66 | www.sportspromedia.com

to which Kermode refers, now an annual staple in the British capital.

For the past decade, the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s best players have met in midNovember at AEGâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;event tentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; â&#x20AC;&#x201C; once the Millennium Dome, offering its own vision for the future â&#x20AC;&#x201C; for a week that has comprehensively updated the experience of watching tennis through a polished combination of high-end audio-visual production and dynamic staging.

And these, of course, have been auspicious times indeed for menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tennis in general. The â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Big Fourâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray have formed the core of what Kermode calls the â&#x20AC;&#x153;greatest generation of players everâ&#x20AC;?. Those stars have burned longer than many expected: Nadal and Federer shared the Grand 6ODPV IRU WKH Ă&#x20AC;IWK WLPH WKLV \HDU EXW WKH Ă&#x20AC;UVW WLPH LQ VHYHQ \HDUV

Novemberâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ATP Next Gen Finals in Milan brought a new look and a series of format changes to elite menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tennis

That longevity has been an unexpected blessing but, for many fans, it makes the thought of a tennis world beyond them harder to envisage, and the comfort blanket of their celebrity becomes that bit more alluring. As Kermode speaks in Italy, Glasgowâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s SSE Arena is preparing for a sell-out exhibition match between Murray and Federer that will end with the former in a novelty wig and the latter in a kilt.

For some time, then, it has been a priority for the tour to create some exposure for the tourâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s budding talents, out of the shadows of those deep-rooted giants. The concept of a tournament for the top eight players aged under 21 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; established on the circuit, but perhaps not in the minds of casual fans â&#x20AC;&#x201C; has been drifting around for a while. Now, with a purse of US$1.275 million on offer, those

young prospects are excited by their chance to break into the light. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I cannot stress how much buyin theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve had for this event,â&#x20AC;? says Kermode. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This is the end of a season where, normally, players are quite tired â&#x20AC;&#x201C; theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re on their last legs. And they are so pumped to be here â&#x20AC;&#x201C; I mean genuinely excited â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and they backed me 100 per cent on all this stuff.â&#x20AC;?

But in the process of putting the new concept together, the ATP

leadership have been contemplating the future of tennis in an entirely different way. â&#x20AC;&#x153;A lot of these kids are 18, 19 years old, and my youngest son is 19, and I see how he views entertainment,â&#x20AC;? says Kermode. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not how I did â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the conventional destination TV. My girls are in their 20s: they donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have a TV in their apartment, theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re watching everything on iPads and phones.

That next generation of fans is the one that this is all about, actually. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We keep talking about the next generation of players but the next generation of fans â&#x20AC;&#x201C; all sport is going to have to be ready for this change of generation. A generation thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s never been used to paying for content, on any level. Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve never paid for a Sky subscription. Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve never paid for music â&#x20AC;&#x201C; everythingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s downloaded free. And thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the culture. So now suddenly, part of the sports business model is TV rights and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s all changing, how theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re going to consume and watch our products. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Also, I just think there is no way that when these kids get into their 30s in ten yearsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; time, I just donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t believe that they will be watching a six-hour product. I just donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t see that that is JRLQJ WR KDSSHQ :H¡OO EH Ă&#x20AC;QH LI ZH make no changes at all for the next Ă&#x20AC;YH \HDUV SUREDEO\ EXW FKDQJH ZLOO happen and I want to do it from a position of strength, now, because in all the numbers in terms of people coming to watch tennis, or the TV numbers, or the on-site numbers or

â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think we should be looking at it now, rather than in five yearsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; time.â&#x20AC;?

Fans enjoy the activities available at the Fiera Milano

commercial revenues, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re in the best place weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve ever been. So this is the time we need to test it rather than maybe doing it when it starts WR SODWHDX RU JR GRZQ LQ Ă&#x20AC;YH RU WHQ yearsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; time, and then you make very rash decisions or panic about what you should do. I think we should be ORRNLQJ DW LW QRZ UDWKHU WKDQ LQ Ă&#x20AC;YH yearsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; time.â&#x20AC;?

In considering those two generational shifts together, Kermode reached an epiphany. â&#x20AC;&#x153;With this event here,â&#x20AC;? he recalls, ´ZKHQ , ZDV Ă&#x20AC;UVW PHQWLRQLQJ LW WR people â&#x20AC;&#x201C; host cities, broadcasters, sponsors â&#x20AC;&#x201C; they were sort of thinking it may be a junior tennis tournament. And I said, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;No, no!

These guys are already here â&#x20AC;&#x201C; theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re in the top 50 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and we need to start putting the next generation on a stage to promote them.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; And there was still limited buy-in, to be honest. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Then when I changed the focus on to â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;this is where we will test-case innovationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s where companies like Amazon and Red Bull went: â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;OK, now youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re talking. This is becoming very interesting.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;? ***** Fans enter from the lobbies of the Fiera Milano down a darkened corridor, with the playersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; images towering over one side and full-length mirrors lining the other. From there, they enter a strip-lit tennis miniverse, built inside ten days. The scale and sheen may not match that of The O2 or a Grand Slam, but there is plenty to keep visitors occupied.

A cavernous hall has been divided into three different sections.

One end is dedicated to fans, the far end to media and partners, with a warm-up court in each.

The playing court is sited in a

SportsPro Magazine | 67

FEATURE TENNIS

modular arena in the centre. Above, hanging from the ceiling, lines of red lighting mark out a giant tennis court to draw the whole area together. It is a concept that has been developed in collaboration with the ATP’s hosting partner, the Italian Tennis Federation (FIT).

Visitors mingle near one of the warm-up courts in the exhibition area, where they can eat, play table tennis and tennis challenge games in pop-up booths, or shop for equipment from suppliers like Babolat and Head. Lead sponsor Peugeot is showing off one of its latest vehicles; broadcaster Super Tennis has set up its studio here. Spotlights swirl around one installation showcasing VR technology; two others, shaped like giant hollowed-out tennis balls, JLYH XVHUV D FKDQFH WR ÀQG RXW more about leading players in an interactive experience.

The mood is convivial and the crowds are young: the number of families in attendance only throws the $73·V PRUWLÀFDWLRQ DW D PLVMXGJHG pre-event draw, involving fashion models and distressed boundaries, into sharper relief. And the most VLJQLÀFDQW LQQRYDWLRQV DUH RQ WKH court, where the work of creating a version of tennis that might appeal to these new fans has begun.

Matches at the ATP Next Gen )LQDOV DUH SOD\HG WR ÀYH VHWV EXW HDFK VHW LV ZRQ E\ WKH ÀUVW SOD\HU WR IRXU games, with tiebreaks at 3-3. There is

68 | www.sportspromedia.com

a 25-second shot clock. No advantage is played at 40-40. And no lets are called on serve when the ball lands in.

The general impetus of these changes is not solely to cut the playing time – D ÀYH VHW PDWFK VWLOO UXQV WR D FRXSOH of hours, or roughly the same length as a conventional three-setter. More important is eliminating common lulls in the game, making more points count and keeping the intensity high.

“In terms of the rule changes, I think it’s just that this is the perfect platform to try things,” says Kermode. “I’ve been in the game a long time and people have talked about different scoring formats, no lets, no advantage, all of this stuff for years. And sport is very good at hiding in rooms and talking about it, and not doing anything about it.”

The updates are the main talking point for those attending and the organisers know it. Explainer cards are circulated in the press area while regular videos, some of them featuring the eight players involved, are played on screens by the main court and beyond.

7KLV PRGLÀHG YHUVLRQ RI WHQQLV will be played in a reconceptualised arena. The court, like the match, has been tapered – with no doubles tournament here, there is no need for tramlines. Spectators sit round three sides of the court with one end – opposite the broadcast production and commentary suites – reserved for a striking hospitality suite modelled on Milan’s La Scala

Dramaric lighting and staging effects add an element of polish to proceedings and elevate the status of the players

opera house.

After such a successful spell in London, the ATP has insisted on retaining the services of Wasserman Experience to run the production.

Some of the colourways have been adapted but many of the cues and ÁRXULVKHV ZLOO EH IDPLOLDU WR WKRVH who have watched the ATP Finals, from the stings that accompany break point and match point – and, at 40-40 in this tournament, deciding point – to the heartbeat motif that denotes the most intense moments of the day.

According to George Ciz, the ATP senior vice president of marketing and business development, the organisers “don’t want to do one unbelievable thing, but lots of little things” that build into something truly impressive.

200 video clips have been created for use here, from season highlights to the aforementioned explainers, introductions to the players’ lives and behind-the-scenes footage.

Periodically, Roger Federer and his cohorts appear on screen to extol the virtues of the young pretenders on show.

Two ATP cameramen are also on site throughout, along with two editors and a producer, to turn around six additional one-minute video pieces and six two-minute pieces a day from the tournament.

Those are aired around the arena, and also fed into the tour’s digital and social media channels.

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FEATURE TENNIS

There are 12 digital surfaces in the arena, along with the tablet computers provided by partner Red Bull for players to access statistics during matches. The energy drinks giant is a relative newcomer to tennis sponsorship but has made its presence felt here. It has provided a DJ, who takes up residence below the hospitality stand and spins tracks during breaks in play. At courtside, Red Bull also has branding on the playersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; benches. These come replete with fridges full of the caffeinated product, with a guitar rack to serve as storage for spare rackets.

Elements of the player entrances have been ported over from London but here, too, there are tweaks and updates which are designed, Ciz says, to generate â&#x20AC;&#x153;more build-upâ&#x20AC;? and â&#x20AC;&#x153;more atmosphereâ&#x20AC;?. The walk-ins serve as an invaluable stage for the players, too. While many of them hover around the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s top 50, only a handful will be familiar to a less than committed follower of the sport.

At the start of the season, the ATP conducted a photoshoot with 122 of its leading players at WKH Ă&#x20AC;UVW *UDQG 6ODP RI WKH \HDU in Melbourne. A follow-up took SODFH DW WKH 86 2SHQ LQ 1HZ <RUN ZLWK WKRVH LQ 1H[W *HQ FRQWHQWLRQ and the result is that giant banners hang from all areas of the Fiera Milano bearing the images of the eight youngsters involved:

70 | www.sportspromedia.com

With the HawkEye Live system in place, the tournament was played with no line judges

Andrey Rublev, Karen Khachanov and Daniil Medvedev of Russia, &DQDGD¡V 'HQLV 6KDSRYDORY %RUQD ßRULý RI &URDWLD $PHULFDQ -DUHG Donaldson, Chung Hyeon of 6RXWK .RUHD DQG ,WDOLDQ ZLOGFDUG *LDQOXLJL 4XLQ]L UDQNHG SODFHV below his nearest rival.

The yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s best under-21, $OH[DQGHU =YHUHY RI *HUPDQ\ KDV TXDOLĂ&#x20AC;HG IRU WKH IROORZLQJ weekâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ATP Finals, but he does make an appearance for an H[KLELWLRQ JDPH RQ WKH RSHQLQJ night in a clear bestowment of imminent star status.

Each playerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s entry begins in a backstage gym, where they await their call â&#x20AC;&#x201C; countdown clocks follow the tournamentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s every setpiece â&#x20AC;&#x201C; as the camera tracks them through some late stretches. From there, they walk to a corridor just outside the show court, the lowerranked player standing on a mark a few strides ahead of his opponent.

The lights dim, and the two players are beckoned into the arena with no little fanfare.

The lights draw down on the court as the players complete a shortened warm-up. When they meet at the net for the toss, the sound of the coin hitting the hard surface echoes throughout the DUHQD 7KDW &L] H[SODLQV LV D OHJDF\ of ATP advisor and broadcast pioneer David Hill, who suggested the production team beef up their

audio output to better capture the impact of heavy shots.

The pageantry all bears a more than SDVVLQJ UHVHPEODQFH WR WKH SUH Ă&#x20AC;JKW IRUPDOLWLHV LQ SURIHVVLRQDO ER[LQJ and there is another aspect at the 1H[W *HQ )LQDOV WKDW FDUULHV WUDFHV of the ring. Between games, players are allowed to talk to their coaches on radio headsets, with the conversations conveyed to the audience at home in WKH VDPH ZD\ DV WKRVH EHWZHHQ ER[HUV and their corner.

As play starts, there is one more striking difference to take in. The players are there, along with the umpire and the ball boys and ball girls, but there are no line judges.

Hawk-Eye, which has provided LWV RIĂ&#x20AC;FLDWLQJ DLGV WR HOLWH WHQQLV for a decade, is implementing its automated Hawk-Eye Live line-calling programme here. The system has been made possible by advances made through the development of goal-line technology in soccer, and tested at ATP events throughout the year. &ORVH FDOOV DUH Ă DVKHG XS RQ WKH video screens and courtside LED boards when the ball hits or just misses the line, as if to reassure spectators that the system is paying DWWHQWLRQ <HW ZKHQ D EDOO JRHV ZLGH HDUO\ LQ WKH Ă&#x20AC;UVW PDWFK EHWZHHQ Khachanov and Medvedev, there is an unmistakeably male shout. â&#x20AC;&#x153;During the testing we tried a considerable amount of different options,â&#x20AC;? says Hawk-Eye Innovations KHDG RI WHQQLV 6DP *UHHQ ´:H tried the likes of a beep or a buzzer, something thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s more electronic, but it just felt right with a human voice. And I think a lot of this is how it feels, rather than the technology which we know is doing its job. The key thing is that it feels right for the SOD\HUV DQG IRU WKH RIĂ&#x20AC;FLDOV DQG IRU WKH FURZG 6R WKDW¡V ZKHUH WKH KXPDQ voice came into things.â&#x20AC;?

Even in the future, there is sometimes call for familiarity. ***** ´:H¡UH KHUH LQ 0LODQ IRU Ă&#x20AC;YH years, and I think each year we will tweak elements from asking all the

people involved in tennis,â&#x20AC;? says Kermode. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll tweak various ideas, and maybe weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll drop some or make some ideas stronger and develop them more. Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be a long-term discussion about it and I think whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s great about it is that WKHUH ZLOO EH PL[HG RSLQLRQ DQG PL[HG RSLQLRQ SURGXFHV GLDORJXH which is good. It produces noise around tennis, which is good.â&#x20AC;?

6RPH RI WKH H[SHULPHQWV ZLOO prove more fruitful than others.

Hawk-Eye is pushing to roll out its live system across more tournaments â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and more courts DW HDFK WRXUQDPHQW ² ZLWK *UHHQ suggesting this will help players â&#x20AC;&#x153;because theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re getting the most accurate calls all the timeâ&#x20AC;?. Tennis $XVWUDOLD PHDQZKLOH FRQĂ&#x20AC;UPV LQ 1RYHPEHU WKDW LW ZLOO LQWURGXFH LWV own version of the shot-clock for WKH $XVWUDOLDQ 2SHQ LQ But other innovations may have further to travel. Medvedev LV DPRQJ WKH SOD\HUV WR H[SUHVV some discomfort with the idea of allowing fans to circulate during games, rather than waiting outside the court for breaks in play. And while Kermode is an advocate for four-game sets, believing they cut through the baggy, by the numbers passages that often characterise the RSHQLQJ H[FKDQJHV KH DFFHSWV WKDW it will be some time before they are seriously considered elsewhere.

6WLOO WKH IRUPDW KHUH KDV generated interest. As Kermode suggests, it has captured the attention not only of Red Bull but also of Amazon Prime Video. The 277 VXEVFULSWLRQ VHUYLFH LV PDNLQJ its debut as a tennis broadcaster here, after taking the global rights, H[FOXGLQJ &KLQD WR VKRZ WKH WRXUQDPHQW OLYH ,WV LQĂ XHQFH LV also heavily felt here, with players involved in a press conference launch on the Monday evening before play and branding peppering the Fiera Milano.

7KDW WZR \HDU GHDO FRQĂ&#x20AC;UPHG LQ 6HSWHPEHU PDUNV RQO\ WKH VWDUW of the tech giantâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s commitment WR WKH VSRUW &RQĂ&#x20AC;UPDWLRQ ODWHU FRPHV RI D Ă&#x20AC;YH \HDU GHDO IRU WKH live and on-demand UK rights to

Red Bull provided a DJ to play tunes during breaks in the action

the full ATP World Tour from 2019, ZLWK FRYHUDJH RI WKH 4XHHQ¡V &OXE Championships and the Eastbourne ,QWHUQDWLRQDO WR EHJLQ QH[W \HDU while the tourâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own Tennis TV outlet will be carried on the Amazon &KDQQHOV SODWIRUP LQ WKH 86 Kermode sees room for both Amazon and the traditional broadcast players in the ATPâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s future but he makes no attempt to FRQWDLQ KLV H[FLWHPHQW DERXW WKH companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s involvement. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not just about getting the revenue in,â&#x20AC;? he says, â&#x20AC;&#x153;which is always helpful to keep the business model going. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s also about whether they are partners who want to really get into the sport, to market the sport and get behind LW SURSHUO\ 7KH Ă&#x20AC;UVW VLJQV DUH WKDW theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been incredible. I mean, theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re really receptive to getting behind us in a big way, and thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just as important to me as the Ă&#x20AC;QDQFLDOV Âľ Just as this tournament has been DERXW WKH QH[W JHQHUDWLRQ RI IDQV and players, it is also about the QH[W FRPPHUFLDO VWHSV IRU WKH $73 Kermode believes that the format FKDQJHV KDYH DOWHUHG WKH SURĂ&#x20AC;OH RI the event, bringing a new breed of SDUWQHU LQWR SOD\ IRU WKH Ă&#x20AC;UVW WLPH â&#x20AC;&#x153;Tennis has historically had sponsors from very traditional

categories and this was an RSSRUWXQLW\ WR H[SORUH QHZHU companies, startup companies, millennial companies, and theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve shown huge support,â&#x20AC;? he says.

The end of the season is a punishing spell for the ATP staff, the core of whom, Ciz reveals, have been working 12KRXU GD\V VLQFH 6HSWHPEHU 7KH team in Milan leave for London RQ 6XQGD\ PRUQLQJ VRRQ DIWHU Chung Hyeon beats Rublev to EHFRPH WKH Ă&#x20AC;UVW $73 1H[W *HQ Finals champion. In a few weeks, WKHUH ZLOO EH WLPH IRU UHĂ HFWLRQ RQ the season, the new innovations, and the scope for marginal gains on and off the court. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re investing in this,â&#x20AC;? says .HUPRGH RI WKH $73¡V Ă&#x20AC;YH \HDU commitment to its new tournament and the Fiera Milano. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This is not a money-maker by any means. Even if you were in the commercial business of doing an event, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s probably year three that you start to break even so weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not trying to claw back money. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re putting it back into the game in ways that we can engage people to come and watch the sport.â&#x20AC;?

However subtly, or dramatically, the sport those fans watch tomorrow looks will be different to the one played today.

SportsPro Magazine | 71

THE PROFILE KIM MCCONNIE

Giving it a bash Australia is playing host to men’s and women’s Ashes series this summer, resuming an age-old rivalry with England, but at the heart of its cricket season are a pair of youthful events with a focus on the future. Kim McConnie, a new arrival from PepsiCo with big-time sports entertainment experience, is the new woman in charge of the Big Bash Leagues.

By Eoin Connolly

A

ustralia has arguably been cricket’s major power in the last 20 years but when Twenty20 arrived, it’s fair to say they didn’t quite know what to make of it Down Under. England dished out a WKXPSLQJ WR WKH PHQ LQ \HOORZ LQ WKH À UVW T20 international in 2005, while early games against New Zealand featured retro kits and comedy moustaches.

By the time the multi-billion dollar Indian Premier League powered into life in 2008, Cricket Australia seemed at a similar loss as to what to do with T20 on a domestic level. The original KFC Twenty20 Big Bash launched in 2005, bringing the six traditional state teams into the shortest format, but struggled to capture the popular imagination.

A few years later, the governing body rethought its priorities and retooled the competition. Rather than attempting to appease traditionalists or pursue the big spenders on the subcontinent, it imagined the competition as a way into the sport for those with no prior experience.

The tournament re-emerged in 2011 as the KFC Big Bash League. It would now feature eight city-based franchise teams, with two rival sides apiece from Melbourne and Sydney. High quality and overseas signings were still encouraged but from an experience standpoint, particularly inside the venue, the event was forensically targeted at newcomers, families, and children. The competition would be played through the heart of the Australian summer – the school holidays – with healthy exposure on free-to-air television each night.

72 | www.sportspromedia.com

It has been a successful approach, ZLWK À JXUHV VXJJHVWLQJ DQ DXGLHQFH WKDW is younger and newer to cricket, and a concept that has CA’s old rivals at the England and Wales Cricket Board building their own new tournament in its image. As IUDQFKLVH 7 WRXUQDPHQWV KLW GLIÀ FXOWLHV around the world – with the launch of South Africa’s new Global T20League SRVWSRQHG IRU D \HDU DQG RWKHUV À QGLQJ holes in their business models – the BBL’s clear sense of its own identity and purpose is becoming an ever more powerful asset.

Allied to the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL), created in 2015 to further the professionalisation of the women’s game, it is showing early signs of being able to gather an Australian cricketing community of and for the 21st century.

The responsibility for continuing the progress towards that goal will fall to a newcomer this season, with Anthony Everard moving up to the role of executive general manager of events and leagues. Kim McConnie (left) is his replacement as head of BBL and WBBL, returning home to Australia from a KLJKO\ LQÁ XHQWLDO VWLQW ZLWK IRRG DQG beverage giant PepsiCo. There, McConnie went from marketing GLUHFWRU UROHV LQ WKH $VLD 3DFLÀ F UHJLRQ WR take on the enormous task of overseeing the group’s sports marketing activities as VHQLRU GLUHFWRU LQ LWV JOREDO RIÀ FH $PRQJ her responsibilities in New York, as well as maximising the impact of PepsiCo’s many partnerships within sport, was creating plans for the biggest crossover event for sport and entertainment: the Super Bowl Halftime Show.

The Big Bash League has placed the fan experience at the heart of its plan, making each match a spectacle and creating unique activation opportunities for its partners

McConnie will be aiming to apply the insights she has gleaned there to the task of growing the BBL in Australia and around the world. In particular, she energised by the prospect of the WBBL, the timely startup she believes “can and will be the best women’s sport in the world”.

Coming into your first season as head of the BBL and WBBL, what have some of your personal preparations involved and what do you see as your priorities for the year ahead?

I’m super excited to come into Big Bash because it’s such an amazing league and, when you think about it, it’s only our seventh season. So for me, the excitement was coming into a relatively new league. There’s not many opportunities you get to do something like that. There’s still so much headroom and growth for us, so a lot of my preparation was really… I came from the US and I spent a lot of time talking to some of the sports partners over there and understanding some of the innovation that they’ve been doing, understanding their journey.

And I think, as I come into this role, what are some of the priorities? It’s got such momentum and it’s great being able to come into a team that’s seeing such growth, and the fan engagement and excitement around Big Bash is phenomenal. It really does own summer, and that’s such an exciting journey to be on.

And now, this season, we’re actually adding more games. We’re going to more markets

– so we’re going to be taking BBL to new audiences and giving new people a chance to experience BBL. And then one of the things I’m most excited about is WBBL – the Women’s Big Bash League. That kicks off in early December and we’ve got a lot of focus on that, and the exciting part is we’ve just got more and more appetite from fans for WBBL. As a result, we’re actually going to be broadcasting 12 of those games on TV this year, which is phenomenal.

There’s going to be a lot happening.

A lot of people will be struck by the fact that you’ve moved from a global role with PepsiCo back to Australia, to a nationally focused role, and across to a rights holder. What were your motivations for doing that?

I was really interested to work with a rights holder. You know, I spent my career working on the other side – on the brand side – and I felt that I had gained so much experience that one of the opportunities that really interested me was: ‘Hold on a sec, how about if I jumped over the other side? How would I approach this? What would I do?’

So actually being on the rights holder side was a piece that I felt I could really learn from and I could also add a lot of value to, having worked across all the major leagues in the US, from NHL to NFL and everything in between, across all the different sports partners and athletes. I felt like it had given

me a wide range of experience, and I was really excited to jump over to the rights holder side to have a look at adding some value on that side.

And again, it’s because it was the BBL. It’s such a different approach to cricket and it still had such headroom to do more. That’s what really brought me in.

How did the opportunity present itself?

Like most of these opportunities. Sport’s actually a relatively small world – despite the fact that it spans continents and feels big from the outside. The inner workings of the sport world are very interconnected. So just through relationships and connections.

Did Cricket Australia go looking for you or did you become aware of the change in the structure there?

A bit of both. They did a really broad search – they did a global search. They were looking across all facets of sport globally, and I was also thinking it would be really interesting to move to the other side. So I think the best of both sort of combined, and then some contacts brought us into a connection.

What’s the nature of your role there?

Anthony Everard, who played such a role in the growth of BBL, is still there, so how do you see yourself fitting into that structure?

SportsPro Magazine | 73

THE PROFILE SECTION TEXTMCCONNIE KIM HERE

McConnie has expressed a desire for the WBBL to be the strongest women’s sports league in the world

Anthony’s been promoted. He now heads up events and leagues. Mike McKenna, who was in that role, has moved on and is now heading up the exciting venture of the brand new stadium at the WACA. So that obviously gave Anthony the opportunity to be recognised for all his great work and to be promoted into that role, which left an amazing opportunity to backfill his role at the Big Bash Leagues.

For me, it’s the best of both worlds because I now have a boss who is intimately aware of and very passionate about the Big Bash League, and also now looks after all events and leagues across Cricket Australia.

Does that help you to think about where Big Bash sits in the wider remit of what Cricket Australia does? You have an Ashes series this year, but BBL has been something that almost self-consciously sits outside the rest of what the sport has to offer there.

Yeah, and I think where I come into it and where I look at it, we now have formats of cricket for literally all Australians. And if you think about Cricket Australia’s mission, it’s to be a sport for all Australians. In order to do that, it needs to play the portfolio, so to speak. BBL is very much laser focused on: ‘We’re for kids and familes.’

If you’re for kids and families, you need to act a little differently because your target expectation is to be fun and colourful and dynamic. So I think as a result of that, we hold that fan-first approach and that dictates how BBL comes to market.

But I do think a lot of my experience has helped set me up. My role over there, I headed up all sport, and really it was about sport and entertainment. We leveraged our sport to engage fans in a way that was exciting. So that, I think, is something that I bring to this role: how do we morph sport and entertainment?

Because, more and more, they’re merging.

When people go to a game now, there’s such a higher expectation of what they’re looking to get out of it. So I spent a lot of time working on platforms like the Super Bowl. How do you create a half-time show which gets more viewers than the game and really create excitement around that? That’s all about appealing to teens.

I definitely think a lot of the experience I had with working on sports entertainment properties in the US which target mums, target teens, target kids; that’s experience that I think and hope I’ve been able to bring back here.

A lot of what you’re talking about is entertainment that is linked to a sporting event, whereas with the BBL you’re creating an entertaining product that drives people into the sport more generally and serves a development function. Do you have to look at things differently in that regard?

Absolutely, and I love the way that you’ve framed that up because that’s absolutely our approach – how do you create a more entertaining product so that we’re introducing new fans into the Big Bash League and therefore creating fans of cricket?

And we see that, actually. A quarter of our attendance are people who’ve never been to a cricket game, which is just fantastic. No other sport that I’ve come across can talk about the fact that a quarter of their audience have never been to a game. And the great thing is, we’re only seven years in but we’re finding that they’re continuing to come back. So it really is introducing them to the sport in a way that is fun and engaging.

They then get hooked on cricket and hopefully – and what we’re starting to see is this – that moves up and they get interested in the other forms of cricket. And then they’ll start to age and have kids and their kids will play cricket, and then all of a sudden we’ll have got this lifecycle and that will be fantastic.

What have you learned so far about what Cricket Australia is doing and has done to retain those people? Not just in creating messaging around the tournament but through data and how it’s managed its marketing relationships? Where do you see room for development in that?

I’m four weeks into the role so I’m learning every day. What I’ve seen so far is really that our grassroots programme is a core part of that. As people get introduced to the sport through attendance and viewership on TV, a big focus of Cricket Australia is how we build participation. How do we get kids, teens, young adults playing sport? How are we introducing

How does it compare with some of the activations that you’ve been working on with Pepsi in the US? Is there anything that’s quite like the BBL in terms of having that family focus?

I think from a sports point of view, there probably aren’t too many properties which have that focus on family – which I think is what’s so exciting about BBL.

74 | www.sportspromedia.com

Targeting a younger audience for the game has been one of Cricket Australia’s key objectives in recent years

them to cricket as a fun way to just run around and do some exercise? And as you get a little bit older, get a little bit more competitive and think of this as a fun competitive sport?

So definitely a big part of what I’ve learned that fits behind the product that you see on the TV and that you see in the stadiums is the commitment and focus that we’ve got to grassroots participation. It’s the number one grassroots participation sport in Australia. It very much goes back and forth on that title with soccer. I think we do a lot of great school programmes.

That’s one of the things that pleasantly surprised me as I came in. It’s the shop front you see but what we want to get behind that is how we get as many kids as possible playing the game in a format and way that is right for them – and right for them at their age.

BBL is televised around the world but is it still a nationally focused enterprise?

At this point it’s very much a nationally focused enterprise. The whole vision behind BBL was to really build a strong domestic sports programme, and that was its genesis.

How do we give domestic sport a rebirth?

When you think about cricket, it’s so strong internationally here, so we have that.

What it needed was a really strong domestic competition, and that’s the best of both worlds.

We’re only seven years in, so we’re only a young league, but actually so much of our fanbase is more and more from overseas. So never say never. We’re always looking at how we expand and what that expansion model means and, ultimately, what guides us is the fans.

What’s your experience been of returning to Australia after years of international travel?

What’s surprised me, and maybe it’s heightened because I’m coming in at World Series time for MLB, is the globalisation. NBA is so popular here. There seem to be so many more people following global sport or US sport.

I think soccer has definitely always been there but when I was talking about it the other day with some of my colleagues back in the States, I’m amazed at how many people are getting behind the World Series and I’m amazed at how many people are watching the NBA. What kind of opportunities and insights does that give you as somebody who has worked in the Asia-Pacific region and the US?

Despite its accessible premise, the BBL still brings in world class talent like the Melbourne Renegades’ Aaron Finch

It’s early days for me yet, so I still need to think that through. It’s sort of something that I’ve put away in the filing cabinet for the moment. But I think it’s an opportunity because, for me, it says that people follow a sport globally. If you’re a cricket fan, you want to see the best cricket and you want to be engaged in that, and it doesn’t really matter where you are in the world.

The world is getting smaller – and people say that all the time but I see that more and more come from us through sport.

Let’s go back to your work at Pepsi. What were some of the biggest variants you saw from market to market in your time there?

It’s an interesting combination because, on the one hand, sport is so global and unites people globally. But on the other side it’s so local, and it has such a strong local connection.

There’s no better place to see that than the US, right? You go somewhere that’s a hardcore Nascar market, and it’s all about motorsport and that really dominates and you struggle to even find a basketball fan there. The NBA struggles to get into that market.

In my experience in the US, we had to have almost a national-local approach. We had national sports – you talked about football, because football was national – but then you had to overlay that with a very localised strategy where in Texas, it’s all about the Cowboys. As a marketer in the US, you had to have a two-tiered approach. You had national communications and a national approach with retailers, then you had to complement that with a hyper-local approach which really tapped into the team and player affinity.

Is that something that’s more important for an FMCG brand like Pepsi, especially when you are in every shop or kitchen across the country?

Absolutely. And then you think, also, in the US, they have geographical restrictions. The Dallas Cowboys would love to promote their brand nationally but they can’t so the leagues guide a lot of that.

And then what are some of the things that hold true across every market?

I think what holds true across every market is how emotional sport is for people. And I think that holds true for the rights holder, from the brand side – really, from the brand side, the reason Pepsi were so heavily invested in sport is because people are so emotionally connected and if you can insert your brand in a meaningful way in those moments they feel more positively towards your brand.

No matter where you go, people feel sport in the heart – and that’s a really powerful thing. You’re creating emotional moments.

And you can talk about any sport, right? Even coming here, talking to people and saying, ‘Why do you love cricket?’ It always comes back to these memories: ‘You know, I went with my granddad.’ ‘I went with my dad.’

‘There was a moment where I went with my friends.’ It’s such emotional territory and that’s what I find so rich and exciting.

And that’s the way we look at BBL. With BBL, we’re creating moments for people. We’re creating moments for people during summer.

It’s Christmas. We’re creating moments that are going to stay with people for their lives.

We’re creating memories.

SportsPro Magazine | 75

FEATURE EQUESTRIANISM

Elegance in equine form Equestrian dressage brings rider and horse together in perfect artistic unison, attracts a global audience of 393 million and has been a stalwart event at the Summer Olympic Games since 1912. Now, the International Equestrian Federation is seeking to build out the commercial oďŹ&#x20AC;ering for a discipline it sees as the peak of horse training.

By George Dudley

76 | www.sportspromedia.com

A

s triple Olympic gold medallist Charlotte Dujardin puts it, dressage is all about the â&#x20AC;&#x153;partnership and the connectionâ&#x20AC;? between rider and horse.

Originating from a French term meaning â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;trainingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, the equestrian discipline is considered by many to be the ballet of horse riding. It combines precision, elegance and contained power to create a symbiotic performance.

Indeed, the International Equestrian Federation (FEI) GHĂ&#x20AC; QHV GUHVVDJH DV WKH ÂśWKH KLJKHVW expression of horse trainingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, where competitors perform â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;from memory a series of predetermined movementsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; to create something unique in sport.

As a result of careful coaching, the beautifully bred equine athletes are encouraged to develop their natural ability and, through attentiveness to their rider, they will acquire a calm, supple self-control that can lead to graceful Olympic-level performances.

Equestrian dressage has a rich history that dates back to the classical Greek military, which trained its horses to perform programmed movements. The earliest recognised work on training horses was written

by Xenophon, a Greek military commander born around 430 BC. However, modern dressage is an evolution of a treatise by Federico Grisone, published in 1550, called The Rules of Riding.

Many of the training systems used in todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s classical dressage are consistent with those preached by the Neapolitan nobleman, who was referred to in his time as the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;father of the art of equitationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;.

And over 450 years later, at the 2016 Rio Olympics, the teachings of Grisone were elevated with almost perfect distinction by the composed Dujardin and her horse Valegro, whose sophisticated piaffes, collected trots, double pirouettes, Ă \LQJ FKDQJHV SHUIHFW WUDQVLWLRQV and cadenced passages combined to set a new Olympic dressage score of 93.857 in the Grand Prix Freestyle.

Such performances have made Dujardin â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;The Girl with the Dancing

Horseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; to the UK press, but pure poetry in motion to a knowledgeable dressage audience. Now, the FEI is seeking to capitalise on that tradition DQG UHĂ&#x20AC; QHPHQW The calendar: FEI World Equestrian Games and FEI World Cup

Like many Olympic sports, dressage holds a quadrennial world championship alongside the annual FEI World Cup. The FEI World Cup Dressage series, which has been competed for since 1985, brings together the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s best dressage horses and ULGHUV FXOPLQDWLQJ LQ WKH Ă&#x20AC; QDO DW WKH end of each equestrian season in either March or April.

The nine events per year are contested by 276 athletes from 37 nationalities. 1,554 hours of traditional coverage are broadcast on 69 TV channels in 26 countries, complemented by a media reach in print, online and social platforms of 985 million.

7KLV \HDU¡V Ă&#x20AC; QDO KHOG LQ WKH American city of Omaha, was won

by Isabell Werth of Germany.

Werth, who is the most decorated dressage rider in Olympic history, bagged the third FEI World Cup victory of her distinguished career aboard her 12-year-old mount named :HLKHJROG +HU Ă&#x20AC; UVW ZLQ ZDV \HDUV previously on Fabienne, and her second ten years ago in Las Vegas on Warum Nicht.

The 48-year-old said after her triumph this year that it was â&#x20AC;&#x153;special to win [the FEI World Cup] againâ&#x20AC;?.

Aside from the FEI World Cup, the FEI presents its world championships, called the World Equestrian Games, in the middle year of an Olympic cycle. The sportâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s JRYHUQLQJ ERG\ Ă&#x20AC; UVW UDQ WKH 'UHVVDJH World Championship in 1966 and since 1990 it has held it at the World Equestrian Games, in conjunction with its other equestrian world championships.

The 2018 FEI World Equestrian Games will be held in Tryon, North Carolina, US at the Tryon International Equestrian Center from

Dressage is viewed as the peak of artistic expression and training in equestrian sport

11th to 23rd September. It will be the eighth edition of the FEIâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s blue-chip event and represents the second time that North America will host the competition.

A luxury global platform

542 international dressage events worldwide (121% increase since 2007)

3.851m registered dressage riders (48% increase since 2009)

79,200 registered horses worldwide (50% increase since 2009)

9% of the 37m active riders participate in dressage

With over 393 million dressage fans in 15 international markets, equine events provide a unique platform for sponsors to engage with an international fanbase who are up to SHU FHQW IHPDOH DIĂ XHQW EUDQG loyal and consider equestrianism to be an integral part of their lifestyle. )DPLOLHV LQ SDUWLFXODU RIWHQ Ă RFN to the gates to witness the sport in action.

With 542 international dressage events worldwide, the sport is a truly globetrotting one. However, the vast majority of FEI World Cup competitions take place in the USA and continental Europe, alongside one in Al Shaqab, Qatarâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s equestrian centre.

Further statistics show that half of dressageâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s followers are aged between 35 and 53. Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s more, 34 per cent of them have a higher interest than the international average in luxury goods, which makes up a high proportion of the FEIâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sponsorship across the board.

Due to the jet-setting nature of the sport, international equestrianism attracts exclusive companies such

SportsPro Magazine | 77

FEATURE EQUESTRIANISM

as Swiss watch brands, champagne houses and international automotive manufacturers, as well as a plethora of high-end riding apparel and accessories suppliers.

At present, dressage does not boast the large numbers of celebrity competitors of another equestrian discipline: jumping. Jessica Springsteen, daughter of rock icon Bruce, and Microsoft founder Bill Gatesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; daughter Jennifer, for example, have both ridden at an elite level over the poles.

However, dressage did catch the wider sporting headlines at the London Olympics when a horse owned by Ann Romney, a distinguished amateur rider and wife of 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt, took to the sand.

Breeding and travel

It is currently the trend in elite dressage to ride Warmbloods of various types. Dutch Warmbloods (KWPN), Oldenburgs, and Hanoverians are currently the most popular breeds, although a smaller selection of riders do compete on less fashionable types such as Andalusians, Lusitanos and Selle Français. %UHHGLQJ KRUVHV VSHFLĂ&#x20AC;FDOO\ IRU dressage is, nevertheless, a relatively young science and only dates back to the latter half of the 20th century.

Thoroughbred racehorses, for example, can trace their progeny back to the 17th and 18th century in England, when native mares were crossbred with imported Oriental stallions.

That said, a dressage-bred horse can still cost anywhere from US$60,000 to US$100,000 while a successful competition horse can be placed on the open market for far greater values, often over US$1 million. The highest-priced horse ever is rumoured to have been sold for US$20 million.

The aforementioned Valegro was, of course, competing at the vanguard of international dressage but when it comes to breeding, the gelding stands apart from the modern type of horse being produced. In fact, like

78 | www.sportspromedia.com

so many other eventual stars, he was rejected at the KWPN licensing for his stallion grading.

The young Valegro was purchased

by Carl Hester for the princely sum of UKÂŁ4,000 (US$5,387), his bargain price tag due to the fact he was still entire and was not showing many signs of being a future superstar.

Horses are not only judged on their athletic promise but the performance of their sires. Their inheritance and competition statics are compiled and added to the Colts German Breeding Value Index, which is released by the breeding department of the German Equestrian Federation.

Valegro, who is by Negro, has been MXGJHG DV WKH Ă&#x20AC;QHVW RI KLV JHQHUDWLRQ and, with countless world records and two individual gold medals to his name, it is hard to argue with that belief. His main assets in competition were his strength and poise, the latter coming from training as opposed to his breeding, which harked back to another era.

This opinion was highlighted in an article in Horse and Hound by David Pincus, the co-owner of Sheepcote Equestrian Centre and Stud, who suggested that the fanfare around the stallion licensing and young horse classes has resulted in certain stallions only producing young horse stars, not necessarily medal-winning stars. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Today, three-year-old stallions have to create an optical illusion of balance, energy and power, despite only trotting in-hand,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; wrote Pincus.

Pincus believes that an obsession with extravagant trots, which have been commonplace in dressage breeding since at least the early 80s, has meant that many breeders have got away from the concept of strength in the search for thoroughbred beauty.

As Sam Knight wrote in the New Yorker in 2016: â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;The mysteries of dressage are many and not unrelated to love. Young horses mature well or badly. Riders fall and lose their nerve. There is always a search for the feeling of connection, and no JXDUDQWHH WKDW \RX ZLOO Ă&#x20AC;QG LW +RUVHV impossible for one rider will dance for somebody else. Mediocre riders Ă RXULVK RQ KRUVHV JLYHQ XS IRU WKH

Charlotte Dujardin riding Valegro to Olympic glory at Rio 2016

Top 5 countries in organising events in the discipline include:

USA

97 events

Spain

72 events

France

55 events

Germany

43 events

Russia

28 events

same reason. There are relationships that make everybody better than they ever were, and there are horses and riders that simply never meet.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; Alongside creating or acquiring these majestic dancing beasts, the highest cost to an owner is the travel.

The international landscape of dressage determines that just getting oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s horse to the arena is an arduous undertaking in itself.

Specially designed Boeing 777 cargo planes can carry roughly 50 KRUVHV RQ D Ă LJKW ZKLFK FRPHV complete with generous servings of hay and individual horseboxes, each mucked out as if at home. Some planes even include horse treadmills for long-haul journeys.

Before the horses are even moved their staff must ensure that all appendages are waiting upon arrival, including saddles, bridles, brushes and horses transportation trailers, which can cost as much as UKÂŁ500,000 (US$670,000).

In an interview with the Omaha World-Herald before this yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s FEI World Cup, Cathy Martin, who FRRUGLQDWHV Ă LJKWV IRU LQWHUQDWLRQDO horse transport company Dutta Corp, revealed that her company Ă LHV PRUH WKDQ KRUVHV D \HDU to competitions in the USA, Canada, Europe and parts of South America.

Martin describes the horsesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; travel to competitions as â&#x20AC;&#x153;a luxurious tripâ&#x20AC;? and says that they are â&#x20AC;&#x153;accustomed to travellingâ&#x20AC;? in the same manner that a transatlantic chief executive might be. Their comfort is furthered by pilots working closely with air WUDIĂ&#x20AC;F FRQWUROOHUV WR FKDUW D Ă LJKW path that avoids turbulence and sharp unpredictable turns.

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FEATURE STADIUMS AND VENUES

A VIEW OF TOMORROW In a world of burgeoning technological development, with high-speed internet access driving digital consumption and OTT platforms making it possible to watch sport when and where the need arises, creating a rich enough experience for the fan at an event is increasingly a challenge. But as the old adage goes, necessity is the mother of invention, and so venues are turning to technology themselves in order to develop the matchday of the future and keep live sport in the game.

By Elena Holmes

80 | www.sportspromedia.com

SIGHT AND SOUND Fans watching sport on a screen can see action from multiple camera angles, with replays, visualisations of technology and live data breakdowns. In order to compete with this, venues must ensure that a live sporting experience is giving the spectator the same calibre of high-quality viewing experience. LED video boards that can broadcast content, showcase notable moments in the game, give viewers access to real-time data, or even show live social media feeds, have long been prevalent in venue designs in response to this need. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Video has helped us make sure the game remains exciting and accessible; you can get replays and close-up action, and we can ensure that where youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re sitting isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t any sort of hindrance to your experience of every element of the game,â&#x20AC;? says David Manica, lead architect at Manica Architecture, which led the design of the new home of National Basketball Association (NBA)

champions Golden State Warriors. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The scoreboard at the Chase Center will be one of the biggest and the brightest in the world. The video boards are a way to bring action closer to everyone in the building.â&#x20AC;?

The Chase Center, set to open in 2019, will feature 32 club lounges under the seating bowl.

An entire wall of each lounge will be comprised of LED video boards that give fans access to the game wherever they are in the stadium, mixing the comfort RI WKH KRVSLWDOLW\ DUHDV Ă DZOHVVO\ with the excitement of the live action. The arenaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s control room will be furnished with broadcast equipment that allows programmers to deliver content in numerous formats around the building, from managing social media feeds, replays and graphics on LED boards, to providing data and controlling advertising.

On the same theme, the National Football Leagueâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s (NFL) Atlanta Falconsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; new US$1.5 billion

The Golden State Warriorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; new Chase Center home will feature will feature retail space, a restaurant, and park space on its 12-acre site

Mercedes-Benz stadium, which opened in August, features a 63,000 square foot, 360 degree highGHĂ&#x20AC; QLWLRQ /(' ERDUG ODUJH HQRXJK WR Ă \ D KHOLFRSWHU WKURXJK PDNLQJ the game accessible from anywhere around the venue. On top of that, 3,200 speakers and 2,000 monitors provide surround-sound systems, with more than 20 cameras giving fans numerous angles to view the action, creating an immersive experience for each guest.

Aside from enhancing fansâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; sensory experience inside the venue, technology is also being used to hone the design of buildingsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; infrastructure. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re XVLQJ WHFKQRORJ\ WR UHDOO\ Ă&#x20AC; QH WXQH the way sound is controlled and reverberated in there,â&#x20AC;? Manica says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;In the design stages, we used special programmes to understand how loud the building would be based on the size and shape of the seating bowl, and that helped us hone the design to make sure this was a very loud and exciting building to be in.â&#x20AC;?

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FEATURE STADIUMS AND VENUES

NAVIGATION If going to watch live sport means battling the hordes and your own road rage for hours in a tin box, the temptation might not be enough to tear you away from the sanctity of your living room. Improving access to the venue before arrival, either through better integration with public networks or by assisting those who choose private transport, LV D VLJQLĂ&#x20AC;FDQW SULRULW\ IRU DQ\ QHZ project. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s getting more and more important to make sure that the experience of sport is as comfortable as possible, since people have more options now than they ever had to have a great athome experience,â&#x20AC;? says Manica.

The Atlanta Falconsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; new stadium, for example, provides details of transport routes delivered to a mobile app which has schedules and maps built in, as well as an option to pre-purchase a parking slot. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Technology extends way beyond the walls of the building,â&#x20AC;?

Manica explains. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re studying the way people come to and leave the building as it relates to computer-moderated systems for transportation. The most obvious is ride-share technology â&#x20AC;&#x201C; so with Uber, we have a plan for people to use the app to ride in and leave in the most comfortable way possible.â&#x20AC;?

THE INTERNET OF THINGS Navigational technology is not only limited to the logistics of arrival and departure for the newest

82 | www.sportspromedia.com

venues, but is being brought to fansâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; VPDUWSKRQHV WR DOORZ WKHP WR Ă&#x20AC;QG their way around a building, cross to rest-rooms and refreshment areas, and upgrade seating options.

3UHPLHU /HDJXH VRFFHU RXWĂ&#x20AC;W Tottenham Hotspur have plugged their new stadium, which is due to open in 2018, as an â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;intelligentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; one. In order to make good on that promise, the north Londoners are partnering with IT specialist Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) to provide networking and wireless infrastructure for mobile phones and other connecting devices that will deliver facility management, building control, and fan services.

HPE is introducing what it calls an â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;intelligent edgeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, which the FRPSDQ\ GHVFULEHV DV GHĂ&#x20AC;QLQJ DQ\ place that can be incorporated into an â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Internet of Thingsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; (IoT) system whereby a network of physical devices connected to the internet can communicate to exchange data and facilitate action. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Digital strategy is a nonnegotiable business fundamental if you want to compete in the marketplace,â&#x20AC;? says Mark Waters, managing director for Ireland and the UK at HPE. â&#x20AC;&#x153;And an intelligent edge becomes an increasing differentiator. Ultimately an intelligent edge becomes a mobile delivery platform for applications, for data, and a collector of data.

Devices all become more intelligent and more connected, and therefore the opportunity for what you can do with that technology increases.

The new home of Premier League soccer side Tottenham Hotspur will feature a retractable pitch for NFL games

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re able to use some of the information we get from the hardware in some of the software that weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re going to be applying. We OLYH LQ D VRIWZDUH GHĂ&#x20AC;QHG ZRUOG ² everything we use today touches some form of software and all of that data connects to something, and in a stadium experience this is really important to our guests. We want to provide the best user experience for someone outside the stadium, but also as they enter into the stadium.

This can be from utilising apps but also from a connectivity point of view so you can use connectivity to work on a social aspect. This means youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re able to have the 60,000 users all tweeting the goal that was scored or providing information to friends that theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re talking to through the various apps out there. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s all about creating a seamless user experience.â&#x20AC;?

This â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;seamlessâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; user experience extends, as with navigation, out of the venue walls. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re doing a lot of work on the infrastructure and operations, which are effectively your access structure to get into the venue,â&#x20AC;? explains Waters. CCTV will be connected to Wi-Fi and building control systems to deliver a highsecurity experience. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Then weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got TVs and sound systems all built on to an internet network. We want to deliver an experience without you even having to touch technology.

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the environment that technology enables rather than simply an interaction with that technology.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;We want to provide the most secure connectivity,â&#x20AC;? adds Eugene %HUJHU FKLHI WHFKQRORJ\ RIĂ&#x20AC;FHU IRU Aruba UK and Ireland, an HPE company. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Every single one of the access points from the controllers KDV D EXLOW LQ Ă&#x20AC;UHZDOO 7KDW PHDQV you can make contextual decisions based on who the user is, what application theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re using and the location theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re in.â&#x20AC;?

Like Spursâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; stadium design, the Falconsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; venue has an emphasis on connectivity. Three fan applications have been designed in partnership with tech sponsor IBM to serve fans, providing transport navigation, ticket purchasing, navigation through the facility, and answers to

event and venue questions. Fans can upgrade their tickets and access promotional offers when in the building through the apps, which generate data collected through fan use to target further promotions and create a personalised experience.

Connectivity has been a notorious bugbear for venues in a more data-hungry age so in order to IDFLOLWDWH WKHVH HIĂ&#x20AC;FLHQW DSS VHUYLFHV the Mercedes-Benz Stadium has DQ DOO Ă&#x20AC;EUH PLOH ORQJ RSWLF network allowing fans to get online and stream content from their devices. The stadium will also have its own IoT network that connects concession stands, and operates digital turnstiles, security cameras

Spurs envisage their stadium having a transformative eďŹ&#x20AC;ect on their corner of north London

and giant video screens, integrating fan comfort on all fronts and PD[LPLVLQJ RSHUDWLRQDO HIĂ&#x20AC;FLHQF\ Meanwhile, spectators at the Golden State Warriorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; current ground, the Oracle Arena, have been trialling tech giant Appleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;iBeaconsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, which use Bluetooth to VHQG QRWLĂ&#x20AC;FDWLRQV WR VPDUWSKRQH users so as to interact with fans and offer seat upgrades, promotions and concessions when in the venue.

Building work continues at White Hart Lane; Spurs are playing home games across London at Wembley Stadium this season

VR AND AR Virtual reality and augmented reality technologies are both beginning to be brought into the fan experience in sport, though so far their major use has been for fans at home; Intelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s True VR platform, for example, gives users access to live player and team stats throughout the match and the option to personalise their camera angle through the app.

Guests at the Warriorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Oracle arena, however, are trying out virtual reality shooting data that shows up on Google Glass or a smartphone screen once the user points their device in the direction of the player, bringing fans more accessible information during the live moment.

As well as enhancing elements

of the live sporting experience, however, VR is also being used as a sales technique.

Echoing a process that is becoming increasingly common throughout the world of commercial and large-scale residential property development, particularly at the luxury end of the market, prospective season ticket and hospitality buyers are being given a virtual look around the Chase Center. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re using VR to help sell the Warriorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; building,â&#x20AC;? Manica says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It helps to bring it to life before it actually exists, and weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve used it with the contractors to have them understand what we intend to build, and in sales for people to understand what opportunities there are to buy into the building before it opens.â&#x20AC;?

The Chase Center, with an estimated cost of US$1 billion, is the most expensive privately funded arena of all time, making big returns on sales more vital than ever. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Without the sales, the building doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t exist,â&#x20AC;? Manica points out. â&#x20AC;&#x153;So weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been very careful to make sure that we are leveraging technology to make the building actually possible.â&#x20AC;?

SportsPro Magazine | 83

FEATURE STADIUMS AND VENUES

MAKING MULTI-USE EASY With the incorporation of more technology driving up the cost of each build, sports venues are increasingly looking to generate revenue from as many streams as SRVVLEOH ´7KH ZRUG ÁH[LELOLW\ LV key here,” explains Manica. “Venue operators are looking to generate revenue from as many different events as possible throughout the year, and of course the building has to respond to that. It has to meet the needs of a bunch of different stakeholders. Those needs don’t all always practically align so it’s a real challenge to create something that can do all of those things at one time.”

The Chase Center is being built to accommodate not only the Warriors’ games, but also concerts, family shows, and even conferences.

“We are making sure the building is optimised for concerts, because there’s a lot of stuff that needs to move in and out from trucks for those types of events, and not a lot that needs to for basketball games, so we are making sure there’s easy loading access,” Manica explains. “We KDYH DOVR VSHFLÀFDOO\ ORFDWHG FOXEV RQ the opposite end of the building to the stage end so that those areas can provide amenity for the people on WKH ÁRRU DW WKH FRQFHUW µ Spurs, meanwhile, have partnered with the NFL in a UK£10 million (US$13 million) deal to host two NFL games per year on a retractable real-turf pitch. That will allow the club to hold football games there without damaging the

84 | www.sportspromedia.com

playing surface for soccer, and in theory opens up the possibility of playing Spurs games and NFL games on consecutive days at weekends. Not only will that provide surety in Tottenham’s planning, opening up more slots in the calendar alongside Premier League commitments, it also puts the club in a strong position to bid for more London games or even a local franchise in the future.

“The NFL has a very detailed brief of what a stadium should be and what it needs,” says Sanjeev Katwa, head of digital at Tottenham Hotspur. “Our venue will meet NFL requirements, be that the size of the locker rooms, the connectivity, or the pitch.”

The 61,500-seater facility, the largest club soccer stadium in the British capital, will stage concerts, becoming a rival to the 90,000-capacity Wembley Stadium – where Tottenham are currently SOD\LQJ WKHLU KRPH À[WXUHV ZKLOH White Hart Lane is redeveloped – as well as the London Stadium in the east of the city and the Emirates Stadium, the nearby home of bitter rivals Arsenal.

CHANGING FAN BEHAVIOUR As well as serving as a location for numerous different events, venues are being designed to increase the amount of time visitors will spend there. The Warriors’ arena, for example, will feature retail space, a restaurant, and park space on its 12-acre site. Spurs, meanwhile

A range of highend hospitality options will create different experiences for guests at Tottenham

KDYH GHVFULEHG WKHLU QHZ 8.

PLOOLRQ 86 PLOOLRQ VWDGLXP as being a ‘destination’ that brings fans to the location for a range of different experiences.

The new ground is set to include a microbrewery, an in-house bakery, a museum showcasing the club’s history, and a retail experience. A range of tiered premium seating options will include the ultra high-end H Club, billed by Spurs as the leading members’ club at any sports venue, and a loge, both of which will offer ‘Michelin Star-calibre dining’. There will also be conventional hospitality suites, while the Sky Lounge will offer views across the city and the Tunnel Club comes with pitchside seats and a view through one-way glass into the players’ tunnel. The latter builds on similar concepts at Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium and the AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys since 2009.

“We are creating a venue and an experience where you want to go to the location way in advance of the event,” says Waters. “You want to interact and engage with the club in a completely different way, which KDV VR PDQ\ EHQHÀWV IRU WKH IDQV and for the club.”

Katwa adds: “We have the opportunity to change fan behaviours and the way that the fan interacts with the venue. We’re ZRUNLQJ ZLWK RXU SDUWQHUV WR GHÀQH the way people see sport and attending sporting venues. It’s about changing the way fans perceive coming to a sporting venue.”

FUTURE-PROOFING Learning to use technology to enhance a venue is far from the only challenge, however – the speed of technological innovation could render new systems obsolete in months. Consequently, looking at trends to try and predict new developments is becoming a key strategy for architects.

“All we can do is look at history, and importantly what’s going on now, for some indication of what might happen in the future,” explains Manica. “There was a time

when buildings were considering whether they should bring a cable to every seat in the building. But obviously now we know that’s not necessary because Wi-Fi is getting faster and faster – so that was a trend people had to predict.

“Another thing that we looked at IRU D ORQJ WLPH ZDV ÁLS RXW VFUHHQV on the back of chairs. But now most people have a phone in their pocket that does the exact same thing and does everything that they need. So instead of creating new technology that’s built into the arena, we have to think about how to let people use their phones in increasingly sophisticated and advanced ways.”

Another crucial concept for new venue designs is incorporating ÁH[LELOLW\ LQWR WKH EXLOGLQJ VR WKDW future adaptations can be made with minimal disruption. “The very best we can do today for a building that’s going to open in three or four years is to build a strong backbone: the infrastructure that new technology will plug into,” says Manica.

“We don’t know really what kind of video boards will be available in three years, we just know that they are going to need to run over a robust backbone of infrastructure inside the building.

So we design those systems today to hold the technology of tomorrow, and technology is always bought as late as possible so we get the very best deal on the newest technology available.”

Tottenham are tackling the many-headed Hydra of technology’s innovative spawning through creating scalable, resilient and secure inbuilt infrastructure that can develop as the club move forward.

“We talk about the art of the possible,” says Katwa. “The worst

The distinctive retractable roof and video ring in operation at the Atlanta Falcons’ new MercedesBenz Stadium

The Chase Center will take its place in the Mission Bay area of San Francisco from 2019

thing that could happen is where you try to add stuff on to the venue, it doesn’t work, or it doesn’t look great. But we’ve chosen technology with design; we’ve made sure our mechanical equipment rooms are the right size and there’s enough space, that we’ve got enough cable runs.

And when the time comes to take people into the stadium, you will see we’ve accommodated for every eventuality.

“We are looking to create one of the most technologically advanced stadiums in the world.

We must keep in mind here that scalability is important, because the infrastructure we want to use needs to scale up as time goes on.

“We might do something on day one which doesn’t work, so we will take it out and change it on day two.

We will be pushing the boundaries, and we will be trying stuff out. We also want to use the best software vendors out there and have them integrate into the platform that we provide. Effectively what that means is you have the best from a software perspective, from a hardware perspective, and lastly you can take third party applications and have them built in.”

THE FUTURE OF THE LIVE SPORTING EXPERIENCE With venues bringing in more and more technology to serve full crowds, some believe the invasion of that tech reduces the raw experience of the sport, but Manica thinks the lure of live attendance will endure.

“I think personally, we are

analogue people— we enjoy being a part of a crowd,” says Manica.

“No matter what happens, I don’t believe we are just going to want to sit in a dark room the whole time watching a screen. So there will always be that human social need to get out and be a part of something that’s happening live.

“However, we do need to work with the technology, which I think in most ways only enhances the experience – I like to think it doesn’t replace it. I think you have to have a wide variety of experiences you can access – anything from seats, to lounge seats, to theatre boxes – we are providing options to have different levels of access and different experiences which you can’t get at home.

“But there’s just nothing that will replace that moment when teams score a goal and 65,000 people cheer, so we have to think about how we can hold on to that moment, while still enhancing all the other aspects of the experience.”

Katwa believes that bringing tech into the venue is about creating an experience that caters for a global fanbase. “We want to make it great for the fan who’s been watching Spurs for 30 years, but we also want to make it great for the younger fans coming in,” he says.

“All projects are about pushing the fan experience forward. And that’s in order to ensure these buildings continue to be interesting places to go for people, and that WKH\ FRQWLQXH WR EH D JRRG ÀW IRU our cities.”

SportsPro Magazine | 85

FEATURE STADIUMS AND VENUES

BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE As promotional hashtags go, #BuildTheFuture could apply to any self-respecting sports organisation.

For the relocating, rebuilding Milwaukee Bucks, it is a maxim that neatly encapsulates the mindset of a venerable franchise going through a sweeping transformation.

By Michael Long

S

ometimes relocation doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have to mean upheaval.

Sometimes, as the Milwaukee Bucks will attest, relocation simply makes sense.

After a quarter of a century at their current home, the 29-year-old BMO Harris Bradley Center, the National Basketball Association (NBA) franchise are preparing to relocate to the Wisconsin Entertainment and Sports Center (WESC), a US$524 million multi-use development currently under construction in downtown Milwaukee. Designed

by Populous, the project comprises a 17,500-capacity NBA venue as well as the Bucksâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; new state of the art training facility, a public plaza, a medical centre, and retail, residential and commercial spaces. The Bucks will move in next year ahead of the start of the 2018/19 NBA season, and while their new home is situated just a stoneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s throw away from their FXUUHQW RQH WKH VLJQLĂ&#x20AC; FDQFH RI WKH move should not be underestimated. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s literally the physical illustration of us investing in the future,â&#x20AC;? says Peter Feigin, the Bucks president. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re in the mode of constant improvement.

Every day, every minute.â&#x20AC;?

86 | www.sportspromedia.com

Construction of the WESC is the latest chapter in the Bucksâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; renaissance under Wesley Edens and Marc Lasry, two New York hedge fund billionaires who led an investment group that bought the franchise for a then-NBA record US$550 million in April 2014. As part of their takeover Edens and Lasry made a commitment to keep the team in Milwaukee, and after initiating a wholesale rebranding effort in 2015 the new owners stayed true to their word, securing a long-term lease in April of 2016 that will see the Bucks remain in the state of Wisconsinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s largest city for the next three decades.

Now, the Bucks have their sights set squarely on the future. In a bid to restore the glory days of the 1970s and 80s, when the franchise won their only championship crown â&#x20AC;&#x201C; in 1971 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and claimed no fewer than 12 divisional titles in a 15-year period before relocating to the Bradley Center in 1988, they are laying the foundations for the return of NBA championships to one of the leagueâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s smallest markets, both on and off the court.

To that end, the Bucks have spent recent years nurturing a

youthful playing roster, one that has evolved together and now aptly embodies the wider organisationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s #BuildTheFuture mentality. Led by head coach Jason Kidd, the team are beginning to show signs of becoming a regular post-season force if not a viable championship contender, and no player better epitomises their renewed ambition than Giannis Antetokounmpo.

In many ways, the towering frame of the 23-year-old Antetokounmpo VLJQLĂ&#x20AC; HV HYHU\WKLQJ WKH UHEXLOGLQJ

The Milwaukee Bucksâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; new Wisconsin Entertainment and Sports Center is at the forefront of the transformation of both franchise and city

US$524 million

The Wisconsin Entertainment and Sports Center is being built with a US$250 million taxpayer contribution Bucks have come to stand for. Born in Athens to Nigerian parents, the 6â&#x20AC;&#x2122;11 forward emerged as one of the NBAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s breakout stars on his way to claiming the leagueâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most improved player award last season. Now â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;the Greek Freakâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, as he is affectionately NQRZQ Ă&#x20AC; QGV KLPVHOI FDVW DV WKH international face of an increasingly internationally minded franchise, a star on the rise at the sharp end of a team in the ascendancy. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got a young millennial who has an unbelievable story, from nothing to something,â&#x20AC;? says Feigin. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just starting to take off.â&#x20AC;?

The same can be said for the Bucks and their city. While Antetokounmpo is spearheading his teamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s resurgence on the court and helping to bring about wider brand awareness, the WESC is set to breathe new life into the entire organisation as both the physical manifestation of the Bucksâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; refreshed, forward-looking identity, and a catalyst for the wider regeneration of downtown Milwaukee.

The development, which broke ground in June 2016 and is designed for year-round community use, is being built with a US$250 million contribution from local taxpayers. Feigin expects it to have

The US$524 million venue during its construction phase

a transformative impact on a city vying to modernise and shake off its industrial past. Not only will it resuscitate a swathe of previously vacant land, it is projected that the complex will attract up to 200 sports and entertainment events annually. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The ancillary byproduct of this is weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re transforming a major US city in downtown Milwaukee, investing over a billion dollars in infrastructure, not just the arena,â&#x20AC;? notes Feigin. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The arena is the catalyst and the magnet to bring people, but really it will bring a whole district together. â&#x20AC;&#x153;What people donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t realise is this is a 30-acre development,â&#x20AC;? he continues. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The arena is about seven of the acres, of which weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re in construction a little bit over 65 per cent of the land. Incremental tax generation, job creation, building of retail and residential

SportsPro Magazine | 87

FEATURE STADIUMS AND VENUES

and commercial and entertainment spaces - it’s a much bigger ecosystem than just the arena.”

It is for those socio-economic UHDVRQV WKDW FLW\ DXWKRULWLHV VDZ À W to invest so heavily in the project, which will also play host to Marquette University’s men’s basketball team, the Golden Eagles, who have a seven-year agreement to play their home games there. According to the Bucks, the WESC is the largest development project ever undertaken in downtown Milwaukee, and while public funding for sports arenas remains a contentious issue in cities and countries across the globe, Feigin notes the extent to which Milwaukee RIÀ FLDOV DQG ORFDO UHVLGHQWV KDYH EHHQ XQLÀ HG LQ WKHLU VXSSRUW IRU the project after initially voicing reservations.

“The value proposition from a pure economic standpoint really proved to the state, the county and the city what the return was,” he explains. “A lot of that can be proven just on the tax revenue, but, even more importantly, what our owners’ larger vision was – to really create a destination and at the same time transform a major swath of land in the city that desperately needed it and was kind of abandoned for really over 20 years.

“Public sentiment has been just incredible – the enthusiasm, the excitement, the speed at which things are being built. We’ve got overwhelmingly positive support from every sector. It’s no longer bipartisan. Everything is very geared towards the excitement of a new, great building and landmark opening for the city of Milwaukee.”

But the WESC is about more than bringing a community together. Its construction is also an exercise in cementing Milwaukee’s place on the global sporting map; a means through which the city can strive to punch above its weight in an increasingly competitive sports and entertainment landscape.

Feigin certainly sees no reason why the Bucks, as an established member of a globally resonant sports league, should be restricted by their market size. Speaking to

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SportsPro in London in October, he says he has made the trip to spread word of the Bucks’ ongoing rebuilding process as he looks to forge new business relationships ahead of their forthcoming move.

“We’ve been educating, communicating and selling, non-stop,” he says. “Part of our mission here is to tell the narrative of what we’re doing and really position it and sell it to prospective sponsors, prospective music partners and promoters, event partners. And also to become sales people for the city of Milwaukee and the state of Wisconsin.”

With that goal in mind, Feigin points to the San Antonio Spurs and the Oklahoma City Thunder – two similarly small-market NBA teams that have succeeded in creating “a brand that transcends the size of their city” – as suitable blueprints to work from. “In all ways,” he adds, “our vision is to become one of these small-market teams that really captures the hearts and imaginations of the entire world, based on what our player mix is and how our brand is, and how we go and attack the sport.”

The brilliant Giannis Antetokounmpo is a towering symbol of the Bucks’ current promise

The new arena will feature 34 boxes, 200 loft seat areas and three premium clubs

As ever, though, the challenge is an existential one for small-market WHDPV $FFRUGLQJ WR D FRQÀ GHQWLDO report obtained recently by ESPN, the Bucks were among nine of the NBA’s 30 teams to record a loss during the 2016/17 season, even after collecting their cut of the league’s revenue-sharing payout. Feigin himself acknowledges that, over the last decade or so, the franchise has been “at the lower end of NBA metrics” such as attendance, ticket sales, premium suite revenue and local broadcast income.

Still, he remains optimistic that moving to the WESC will eventually bring the team back towards the black. Even faced with the commercial realities of operating in a smaller market, he says the construction of the new arena, coupled with the Bucks’ more international mindset and the NBA’s continued growth in interest overseas, will put the team on a stronger footing than ever. “Corporate partnerships and sponsorships have reached a level that this team and this city has never seen before,” he VD\V ´:H·YH UHDOO\ UHGHÀ QHG WKH way professional NBA basketball is positioned in Wisconsin.”

Commercially speaking, the Bucks’ target for the WESC is to bring on board up to eight founding partners, each of whom are required, according to Feigin, to commit upwards of US$2 million a year over a long-term period. So far four

“Our vision is to become a team that really captures the hearts and imaginations of the entire world.” companies – BMO Harris Bank, Johnson Controls International, Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin, and MillerCoors – have acquired founding partner status.

Each will have a prominent presence plus a range of marketing assets at the WESC, and together they will sit beneath a naming rights partner in what is now a conventional commercial structure for modern sports stadia.

As SportsPro went to press, however, the identity of that entitlement partner was still not known – reports had linked Foxconn Technology Group to the deal, which Feigin himself has previously valued at between US$7 million and US$10 million a year, but the Taiwanese electronics manufacturer is now said to be out of the running. What is clear, though, is that securing the right partner has become a matter of urgency for Feigin, who says his team’s commercial department is working through “a robust pipeline” of potential leads in a concerted effort to get a deal done “as soon as possible”.

“We want to integrate that naming rights partner into the infrastructure and the build of the arena,” he adds. “We’d love that partner to enjoy the buzz of the new arena before the new arena comes. And it’s very helpful ÀQDQFLDOO\ DV ZHOO µ Sponsorship aside, Feigin explains that the new arena has EHHQ GHVLJQHG VSHFLÀFDOO\ IRU basketball and, like other modernday sports venues, is tailored to maximise revenues at every turn.

More concession stands and enhanced catering options should drive up event income, while seating and ticketing services will also be optimised. Whereas, at the Bradley Center, around two-thirds of the seating is located in the less-

Bucks president Peter Feigin says that the Milwaukee public have been united in their support for the WESC after initially voicing reservations

coveted upper bowl, the majority of spectators at the WESC will be housed in the more expensive seats that comprise an enlarged lower bowl, thereby creating extra space upstairs for executive boxes and premium areas, which in turn have been deliberately limited in number to drive up demand.

“If you talk to a lot of football clubs in Europe, they might honestly tell you they might have overbuilt in their boxes,” Feigin argues. “For us, we know our market size. We want to create supply and demand so there’s actually a high demand and a waiting list for it. We’ve built 34 boxes and 200 loft seat areas and three premium clubs. That’s all on the lower end of what new arena builds are, but for us it allowed us to put a premium on it and keep demand high in a smaller market.”

Throughout the building, too, delivering a world class fan experience has informed every aspect of its design. A courtside premium club located near the Bucks’ locker room will offer views of the players making their way to and from the court, for example, while the arena will also be futureproofed to allow for coming evolutions in live presentation, such as innovations in seating or lighting.

Additionally, the building itself deploys an open-plan concept, with concourses that are easily navigable and make for a more social,

transparent spectator experience.

Four public bars on the main concourse will afford uninterrupted views of the court, while many areas will provide panoramic views of the Milwaukee skyline. “You can stand, socialise and eat away from your seat and still see, hear and smell the game,” says Feigin.

“We’ve designed this so that the concourses are as attractive to be in during the performance or a game as your seat, in some cases.”

All that is intended to better cater to the changing needs of fans, of course, but it is also about bringing the Bucks into the 21st century.

This year, the team are celebrating their 50th anniversary as well as bidding farewell to the Bradley Center. Events to commemorate their long history will be taking place throughout the ongoing season, but Feigin says few among the Bucks faithful will be truly sorry to see the back of the place come the end of the current campaign.

“There’s less of a loyalty for this building, perhaps,” he says. “It’s a little bit antiquated. It doesn’t have all the modern conveniences of food and beverage, great sound, great optics and sight lines. I think people are really looking forward to [the new arena], and that’s shown in season-ticket sales and sponsorship interest in general.

“We’ve gone into this season as a celebratory goodbye, to really springboard into a fantastic hello.”

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FEATURE STADIUMS AND VENUES

THE PLACE TO BE Nestled in the heart of Vancouver, British Columbia, BC Place Stadium has developed a reputation as one of Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s premier sports and entertainment venues. With two resident professional teams and the capacity to stage a diverse array of live events, it is a facility that punches well above its weight thanks to the ambition and agility of its operators.

By Michael Long

V

ancouverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s major event hosting history can be neatly charted alongside the three-decade backstory of BC Place Stadium. Opened in 1983, the 54,500-seat venue doubles as both a living legacy of the Canadian cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sporting past, and the physical manifestation of its future as a year-round destination.

Originally built for Expo â&#x20AC;&#x2122;86, the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fair that helped shape and signal Vancouverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s aspirations of becoming the international hub for innovation it is today, BC Place has played a starring role in some of sportâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s blue-riband occasions, from the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympic and

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Paralympic Games to the Fifa :RPHQ¡V :RUOG &XS Ă&#x20AC;QDO RI Together, those events have etched Vancouverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s name into the annals RI LQWHUQDWLRQDO VSRUW DIĂ&#x20AC;UPLQJ %& Placeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s status as a marquee venue in the process.

In addition to serving as the permanent home of Vancouver Whitecaps FC, the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise, the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and the BC Sports Hall of Fame, Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s third-largest stadium hosts an annual round of the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series, as well as major concerts, consumer shows, community events and conferences. Having re-

A CAN$653 million renovation in 2011 conďŹ rmed BC Placeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s status as a central hub of Vancouver sport

opened its doors in September 2011 following an extensive renovation â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a CAN$563 million project that included the installation of a striking, semi-retractable roof â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the facility is now one of the busiest hubs for sports and entertainment LQ WKH 3DFLĂ&#x20AC;F 1RUWKZHVW â&#x20AC;&#x153;In the last few years weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve really excelled in our international sport,â&#x20AC;? says Graham Ramsay, the director of business at the BC Pavilion Corporation (PavCo), the public entity which owns and operates the stadium. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think what fundamentally changed after the renovation is the community supported the events and BC Place was the perfect venue to make it happen.â&#x20AC;?

Ramsay explains how the renovation, which, besides the new roof, included sweeping upgrades to the venueâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s concessions, luxury suites and other amenities, helped set BC Place on a new course, emboldening the stadiumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s operators to be more proactive and ambitious in their efforts to attract major events. Not only was it a tangible upshot of the 2010 Winter Olympics and the catalyst for bringing MLS to Vancouver, the revitalisation project inspired PavCo to change the perception of what BC Place could be. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We see ourselves as Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s national stadium,â&#x20AC;? says Ramsay, a BC Place veteran who is responsible for sales, marketing, communications, live entertainment and event management at the venue. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We have essentially a brand new building that has state of the art turf, has state of the art connectivity, video â&#x20AC;&#x201C; all those different aspects that really allow us to be the premier venue.â&#x20AC;?

Situated just a stoneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s throw from downtown Vancouver, BC Place is perhaps the standout landmark in a city revered more for its natural geography than its manmade architecture. Its cable-supported fabric roof â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the largest of its kind in the world â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and jutting steel supports are prominent features of Vancouverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s high-rise, glassLQĂ HFWHG VN\OLQH JLYLQJ WKH YHQXH the air of an iconic stadium that feels much grander in scale than its size would suggest.

7KHQ EH\RQG WKH FRQĂ&#x20AC; QHV RI the building itself, there is the unique appeal of Vancouver, a vibrant, modern metropolis that sits invitingly on a compact beach-fringed peninsula located between verdant, snow-capped mountains and the 3DFLĂ&#x20AC; F 2FHDQ ´:H OLYH LQ D EHDXWLIXO part of the world,â&#x20AC;? says Ramsay, himself a lifelong Vancouver resident. â&#x20AC;&#x153;British Columbia is an outstanding area and Vancouver is a beautiful city, so you immediately start with a positive response. People want to come to Vancouver.â&#x20AC;?

Yet BC Placeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s setting is more than just a photogenic backdrop. As

western Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s major economic and commercial centre, Vancouver is a hotbed for corporations with existing links to sport, and is regularly ranked among the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most liveable cities by The Economist â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a ranking that is DGPLWWHGO\ PRUH UHĂ HFWLYH RI WKH cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s natural environment, liberal attitude and active, outdoor lifestyle than its climate and affordability. ,W LV DOVR D ODUJH JURZLQJ DIĂ XHQW and ethnically diverse market.

2IĂ&#x20AC; FLDO Ă&#x20AC; JXUHV LQGLFDWH WKDW WKH median household income in Metro Vancouver, which comprises a population of nearly 2.5 million, 45.9 per cent of whom are of Asian descent, grew 11.2 per cent to hit CAN$72,662 (US$56,740) in 2015.

That enviable mix of demographics and location, not to mention the notorious passion among Vancouverites for all manner of sports, has contributed to BC Placeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s success, says Ramsay. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our reputation is extremely strong out there,â&#x20AC;? he posits, â&#x20AC;&#x153;and more importantly we sell a lot of tickets to events. You look at that and if youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re an event promoter or an association, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re thinking thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a great reason to come here.â&#x20AC;?

For Rugby Canada, the Torontobased national governing body for rugby union, Vancouverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sporting centrepiece has become something of a home away from home in recent years. As well as staging regular 15-a-side national team matches at BC Place, the organisation is currently halfway through a four-year agreement with PavCo to host its annual Canada Sevens tournament there each March. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Without a doubt, thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a reason why we have our sevens

PavCo director of business Graham Ramsay

BC Place hosted nine matches during the 2015 Fifa Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s World Cup and will bid to stage games in the menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s edition in 2026

stop there,â&#x20AC;? says Allen Vansen, Rugby Canadaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s chief executive. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a fantastic stadium. We have between 38,000 and 40,000 spectators a day for our sevens tournament; they service those spectators exceptionally well, they help us market, promote ticket sales, promote the excitement around those matches. â&#x20AC;&#x153;There are not many stadiums like that â&#x20AC;&#x201C; that are in a downtown core, are very accessible from a transit perspective, great for our athletes. Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re in the heart of the city and Vancouver is such a world class city. I think BC Place is a big part of that story that rugby has been able to tell around Canada and around the world.â&#x20AC;?

For the Lions, too, BC Place is the ideal home. Vancouverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s oldest professional sports franchise, the team have played at the stadium since LWV RSHQLQJ ZLQQLQJ Ă&#x20AC; YH RI WKHLU VL[ CFL championships during that time.

According to George Chayka, the Lionsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; vice president of business, the venue is not only â&#x20AC;&#x153;the best stadium in Canada and one of the best in North Americaâ&#x20AC;?, PavCo are also â&#x20AC;&#x153;true partners in every senseâ&#x20AC;?. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re all working towards the same thing, and thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s to build our IDQEDVH DQG Ă&#x20AC; OO %& 3ODFH 6WDGLXP Âľ says Chayka. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been very cooperative in helping us do that. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s in the best interests of both of our parties to maximise the attendance at BC Place and theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been very receptive in trying to make the best experience possible for our fans.â&#x20AC;?

Aside from football and international rugby, BC Place has also become synonymous with soccer at both the club and

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FEATURE STADIUMS AND VENUES

national team levels. The Whitecaps were original tenants, alongside the Lions, back in the early 1980s, ZKHQ WKH\ FRPSHWHG LQ WKH Ă&#x20AC;UVW now-defunct iteration of the North American Soccer League (NASL).

7KH WHDP IHDWXUHG LQ WKH Ă&#x20AC;UVW PDMRU sporting event held there in 1983, a match against the Seattle Sounders that drew over 60,000 spectators, before folding a year later along with the NASL itself.

Some 25 years later, the Whitecaps got their pass back into the big leagues when Vancouver was awarded an MLS expansion franchise in 2009. Around that time, a group of investors had been exploring the possibility of building a new 20,000-seater stadium on the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s waterfront, but when PavCo came calling with an offer to play at a soon-to-be-renovated BC Place, those plans were shelved.

The outsized stadium was by no means a ready-made home for the Whitecaps, however. Prior to moving in, the clubâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ownership negotiated a provision for PavCo to include retractable pitch-level seating DW HDFK HQG RI WKH Ă&#x20AC;HOG DV SDUW RI their renovation, bringing fans closer

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to the action. It was also agreed that a system of sail-like drapes should be installed to cordon off the upper bowl, creating a more intimate setting tailored for MLS. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We needed to ensure the building was capable of providing a cosy atmosphere,â&#x20AC;? recalls Bob Lenarduzzi, the Whitecaps president who has been involved with the club for four decades, Ă&#x20AC;UVWO\ DV D SOD\HU WKHQ DV D FRDFK general manager and director of soccer operations. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve probably done better than we expected, and the capacity is there for future growth if we can continue to grow the season ticket memberships.

There is massive potential there.â&#x20AC;?

Having succeeded in attracting the Whitecaps, who currently average just under 22,000 fans for each home game, PavCo has since set its sights on bigger prizes in soccer. Spurred by the success of staging a total of nine matches during the 2015 Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s World Cup â&#x20AC;&#x201C; an event that followed their hosting of the Concacaf Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Olympic Qualifying Tournament in early 2012 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the operators are now in the process of bidding for the

The Canadian Football Leagueâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s BC Lions are an anchor tenant of the venue

right to stage matches during the menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s edition in 2026.

Canada is vying to host that tournament as part of a three-way â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;United Bidâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; along with the USA and Mexico. Earlier this year, a PavCoOHG SLWFK WR EULQJ Ă&#x20AC;[WXUHV WR %& 3ODFH¡V DUWLĂ&#x20AC;FLDO WXUI ZDV VKRUWOLVWHG by the United Bid committee ahead RI D Ă&#x20AC;QDO GHFLVLRQ LQ HDUO\ â&#x20AC;&#x153;From a venue standpoint, I know we could deliver it,â&#x20AC;? Ramsay tells SportsPro, unfazed by the prospect of hosting the planetâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s largest single-sport event. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the key for us. In the end, where Canada lands, where the bid lands, I can tell you that if we had to host it tomorrow, we would be ready to go. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We have hosted the world here.

Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve had such vast experience, between the Olympics and hosting WKH Ă&#x20AC;QDOV IRU WKH :RPHQ¡V :RUOG Cup. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re in meetings and weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re like, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Yes, we understand, we get it.

Tick that box.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;?

Landing the World Cup would FHUWDLQO\ EH D VLJQLĂ&#x20AC;FDQW ERRQ IRU Vancouver, not to mention another feather in the BC Place cap. But it would also tie into PavCoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s broader strategy of positioning the venue

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FEATURE STADIUMS AND VENUES

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Coldplay perform at BC Place in September

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SportsPro Magazine | 94

FEATURE TECHNOLOGY

FIGHTING SMART

Though a ďŹ&#x201A;edgling operator in the IT services sector, Bornan Sports Technology already boasts a workforce with an enviable track record of delivering major events. Roberto Garcia Riopedre, the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s managing director, explains how his Lausanne-based startup plans to take on the big guns.

B

ornan Sports Technology may only be a few months old, but the Lausanne-based IT services company harbours big ambitions. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Within a couple of years,â&#x20AC;? says Roberto Garcia Riopedre, the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s managing director, â&#x20AC;&#x153;we will have a name in the market and the credibility to be a real competitor.â&#x20AC;?

Founded earlier this year, the Lausanne, Switzerland-based startup provides customised IT solutions to local organising committees of various single and multi-sport events, delivering a broad range of services including event management systems; timing, scoring and results; TV graphics; scoreboards and video walls; streaming capabilities; and websites and mobile apps. While it has only been in operation since May, Bornan in fact boasts years of experience delivering major sporting events.

Garcia Riopedre himself has spent the past two decades in the IT services sector, most recently working at Atos, where he served as head of sales and marketing until April of this year. Prior to that role he worked at MSL Group, a Spanish supplier of timing, scoring, graphics and games management software services that was acquired by Atos, the worldwide IT partner for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, in 2012. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I was not happy with some of the decisions being made by the management [at Atos],â&#x20AC;? recalls Garcia Riopedre, whose wife, commercial lawyer Eva Maria

96 | www.sportspromedia.com

CĂłrdoba Garcia, serves as the president and primary shareholder of Bornan. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I left and by that time I was with some private investors.

They suggested to me to get some good, key guys in the world of sports â&#x20AC;&#x201C; from the Olympic committee and from Atos â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and create a company like MSL.â&#x20AC;?

After persuading several of his former colleagues to join him in his new venture â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Bornan now employs more than 20 people formerly of Atos and MSL â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Garcia Riopedre went on to team up with Conersys, a company run

by Miguel Angel Pablo, a former innovation manager at MSL who ventured off alone after the Atos takeover and was already working on major sporting events and properties. â&#x20AC;&#x153;By acquiring that company,â&#x20AC;? he says, â&#x20AC;&#x153;we already had in place 12 sports clients, so we were not starting from zero.â&#x20AC;?

While Bornanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sales and marketing departments are housed in Lausanne, the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s administration and development WHDPV DUH EDVHG LQ DQ RIĂ&#x20AC;FH LQ Madrid. University staff across both cities are also assisting the company on research and development, while additional sales support is provided by a commercial representative in Mexico City whose area of responsibility covers Latin America.

To date, much of Bornanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s focus has been on Spanish-speaking markets â&#x20AC;&#x201C; in early October, for instance, it won the IT contract for next yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s XVIII Mediterranean

Bornan Sports Technology president Eva Maria CĂłrdoba Garcia and Roberto Garcia Riopedre, the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s founder and managing director

Games in Tarragona, Spain. Under that deal, which is worth a reported â&#x201A;Ź1.29 million, the company will handle timing, results and other technology services for the event, which is due to take place in June of next year.

The Tarragona 2018 deal is Bornanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s headline contract to date, yet the curious process through which it was awarded has been heavily scrutinised within the industry. Observers have noted how Bornan did not even exist when the contract was put out to tender in July, and how it was conspicuously incorporated on 10th August, one GD\ EHIRUH Ă&#x20AC;QDO ELGV ZHUH GXH IRU submission. Indeed, eyebrows were raised when it emerged that the organisers had opted for a newly created company that had seemingly no history whatsoever of working on multi-sports events, with Bornan selected ahead of WKUHH Ă&#x20AC;UPV ZKR DSSDUHQWO\ ERDVWHG far greater experience and expertise.

7ZR RI WKRVH Ă&#x20AC;UPV +RQJ .RQJ based AllOne and Atos, had both

been excluded from the process at the technical analysis stage, while Italian company Microplus lost out WR %RUQDQ LQ WKH Ă&#x20AC;QDO HYDOXDWLRQ despite requesting a slightly smaller fee. AllOne and Microplus are now pursuing legal action against the organisers of the Games, alleging WKDW %RUQDQ KDG IDLOHG WR IXOĂ&#x20AC;O WKH technical requirements set out in the tender documents and in fact received favourable treatment from the local organisers.

Garcia Riopedre, however, refutes the suggestion that his company lacks the experience and know-how WR IXOĂ&#x20AC;O WKH *DPHV¡ ,7 UHTXLUHPHQWV +LPVHOI D YHWHUDQ RI PDQ\ PXOWL VSRUWV HYHQWV LQFOXGLQJ Ă&#x20AC;YH 2O\PSLF and Paralympic Games, he notes that many of his employees have at least 15 yearsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; experience in sports technology, and while he concedes that winning the Tarragona 2019 contract was â&#x20AC;&#x153;a surpriseâ&#x20AC;? to him and KLV WHDP KH LV FRQĂ&#x20AC;GHQW %RUQDQ FDQ and will deliver. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We were working for a month to put in place a strong proposal with our knowledge and we managed WR IXOĂ&#x20AC;O DOO RI WKH UHTXLUHPHQWV Âľ he argues, adding: â&#x20AC;&#x153;The LOC has already replied and they said they were following all the procedures and Bornan were providing, on time, all of their requirements. They keep saying, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;No, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not going to change because we did it properly and there is nothing to hide.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;?

Regardless of the ongoing legal challenge, Bornan has pressed on in its business development efforts, signing agreements and securing contracts with a handful of international federations. This year, it has been working with the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) on the 2017 Menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s World Cup in Liège, Belgium, and the Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s World Cup in Markham, Canada, as well as providing IT support and services to various Spanish properties, including the annual ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Madrid.

Speaking in November, Garcia Riopedre explains that the Bornan team is now in the process of presenting for contracts to some

of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s biggest multi-sports HYHQWV KH VSHFLĂ&#x20AC;FDOO\ PHQWLRQV formal discussions for upcoming Pan American Games, the Universiade, and the 2019 European Games in Minsk, Russia. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We are quite close to a data deal with a big multi-sport event,â&#x20AC;? he adds, â&#x20AC;&#x153;and also three international federations, who in the next month will close a multi-year deal with us to provide them with all their technology, results systems and websites, etc.â&#x20AC;?

Besides obtaining more contracts and building out its in-house workforce â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a marketing director will soon join the company to KHOS UDLVH LWV SURĂ&#x20AC;OH DQG YLVLELOLW\ worldwide â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Garcia Riopedre says Bornanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s overriding aim is to bring a startup mentality to a sector he believes is in need of innovation having been dominated until now by a limited pool of companies.

By providing a fresh approach and introducing new technologies to the marketplace, he says, Bornan has already received positive feedback from prospective clients in the industry who are looking for alternative options. â&#x20AC;&#x153;One of the challenges that we had in Atos was that we were not really able to grow,â&#x20AC;?

KH UHĂ HFWV ´$W WKH HQG LW¡V MXVW WKH nature of a multinational â&#x20AC;&#x201C; they have some rules and policies that they have to follow. We were looking for some freedom, the freedom that we had at the beginning with MSL. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Now, we are using the latest technology on the market. I met with the general secretaries from the big governing bodies and they say that at the moment there

Headquartered close to a host of sporting bodies in Lausanne, Switzerland, Bornan also has teams based in Madrid

is a monopoly between AllOne, Microplus and Atos. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;They are asking for 15 or 20 million and we have to accept it because there is no competition. Now, to have a company like MSL who are more Ă H[LEOH EULQJLQJ EHWWHU WHFKQRORJLHV and, of course, better market prices is more than welcome.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;?

As a challenger brand without an established name or footprint to speak of, however, Garcia Riopedre accepts that his company must do things differently in order to stand out from the existing players. To that end, he says his team has brought on board former Olympic athletes to assist in product development and also struck up partnerships with the likes of Microsoft and Amazon, working with both companies to develop cloud-based services that will help reduce the required investment in tech infrastructure for governing bodies and event organisers. On top of that, he adds, Bornan is seeking to drive down costs and deliver greater value for clients by tailoring its technology offerings to the major social platforms, including Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. â&#x20AC;&#x153;After months of workshops and brainstorms we decided how to build our company, taking the best technology on the market and the EHVW RI RXU NQRZOHGJH RI WKH Ă&#x20AC;HOG of sports,â&#x20AC;? he says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;By merging this, we started to develop all the new innovations that Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m sure will be a revolution. We will offer something completely different than what our competitors are providing currently.â&#x20AC;?

SportsPro Magazine | 97

FEATURE RETAIL

STRAIGHT TO THE FAN

Florida-based Fanatics is already a leading player in licensed sports merchandise, but only a tenth of its annual sales come from outside North America. With an ambitious overseas expansion plan, a new president of international at the helm, and a scheme to bring reactive â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;v-commerceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; strategies into sport, that might not be the case for much longer.

By Michael Long

A

s one of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s largest licensed sports merchandise retailers, Fanatics Inc enjoys household-name status in the United States. Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, the company operates more WKDQ RQOLQH DQG RIĂ LQH VWRUHV running e-commerce operations for all of North Americaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s major sports

98 | www.sportspromedia.com

leagues as well as a host of other professional and collegiate properties including golf â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s PGA Tour, Nascar and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).

7KRVH KLJK SURĂ&#x20AC; OH SDUWQHUVKLSV have helped cement Fanaticsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; status as Americaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leading seller of jerseys, caps and other branded team gear, but outside of its Stateside

Steve Davis began his new role as president of Fanatics International in early October

stronghold the company is not quite so well established. Today, just ten per cent of the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s US$2 billion annual sales is generated from outside its domestic market.

In an effort to grow that percentage, Fanatics is now implementing a strategy to replicate its home market dominance and capabilities in licensed sports

merchandise internationally, and the man tasked with overseeing that drive is Steve Davis, who began his new role as president of Fanatics International in early October.

With a career in retail and e-commerce spanning more than two decades, Davis arrives at Fanatics from the world of fashion, where he most recently served as chief executive of fast-fashion retailer Rue La La. He does, however, have history with his new employer, having previously served as head of global operations at GSI Commerce, the e-commerce and marketing solutions company from which Fanatics was effectively spun off around the time GSI was sold to eBay in 2011. â&#x20AC;&#x153;For me, coming back to Fanatics, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a little bit of a back to the future VLWXDWLRQ Âľ UHĂ HFWV 'DYLV ZKR says he has known Michael Rubin, Fanaticsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; largest shareholder and executive chairman, and Doug Mack, the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s global chief executive, for the best part of 20 years. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m coming back to the business that I helped incubate back in 2000 and yet the business has moved so far along since that time.â&#x20AC;?

Originally formed as a footballfocused company in 1995, Fanaticsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; impressive growth has seen it expand from a half a billion dollar valuation just a few years ago to over US$4 billion this year. Now, the company has the global marketplace Ă&#x20AC;UPO\ LQ LWV FURVVKDLUV DQG LW LV down to Davis to pull the trigger. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re going to grow the licensed sports industry around the world and make it more valuable for clubs and allow fans to tap into their love of the clubs more frequently and in more ways,â&#x20AC;? he says, speaking exclusively to SportsPro on the

The 2016 acquisition of Kitbag transformed Fanaticsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; reach outside the US, particularly in European soccer

A US$1 BILLION INVESTMENT FROM SOFTBANK IN SEPTEMBER GAVE

FANATICS AN OVERALL VALUATION OF

US$4.5 BILLION

day of his appointment. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a US$25 billion global business, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s just not growing the way it should because it doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have the level of innovation that has been brought to other industries.â&#x20AC;?

SHIFTING GEAR Davisâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; arrival comes after a period of aggressive overseas expansion at Fanatics. In February of 2016, the company made its biggest international play to date when it acquired Kitbag, the Manchester, UK-based online retailer, in a deal valued at around UKÂŁ11.5 million.

That deal, as Mack explained to SportsPro shortly after its completion, gave Fanatics immediate overseas scale, rapidly accelerating the growth of its business by adding more than US$100 million in global revenue and a strong foothold in soccer, with Kitbag maintaining relationships with several top European clubs including Manchester United, Real Madrid, Manchester City and Paris SaintGermain, as well as other retail partnerships with the likes of golf â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Ryder Cup, Wimbledon and the Tour de France.

The aim now is to ramp up the rate of expansion, a process that will be accelerated thanks to an injection of fresh capital from such LQĂ XHQWLDO EDFNHUV DV WKH 1DWLRQDO

Football League (NFL), the NFL Players Association and Major League Baseball (MLB), which all purchased equity stakes in Fanatics earlier this year. Those investments were seen as ringing endorsements of a business model that has helped Fanatics quintuple its revenue since 2010, but in reality they are just the tip of the iceberg.

This September, investor FRQĂ&#x20AC;GHQFH LQ WKH RXWORRN IRU Fanaticsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; business was further underlined when the company closed a US$1 billion funding deal with SoftBank, whose US$100 billion â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Vision Fundâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; has been earmarked for investments in disruptive companies across a range of industries. That particular agreement elevated Fanaticsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; valuation to some US$4.5 billion, more than twice its expected revenue for the current year. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We are excited about having the capital to build out this business on a global basis but SoftBankâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s investment in us is really a validation of our vision and the track record and momentum we have as a EXVLQHVV WR GLVUXSW WKLV VSDFH Ă&#x20AC;UVW and foremost,â&#x20AC;? says Davis. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Secondly, SoftBank is a great partner. [It was] an early investor in $OLEDED RQH RI WKH Ă&#x20AC;UVW LQYHVWRUV in many leading e-commerce and digital companies around the world.

SoftBankâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Asian strengths are really JRLQJ WR EH D EHQHĂ&#x20AC;W WR XV DW

SportsPro Magazine | 99

FEATURE RETAIL

Fanatics holds long-term partnerships with all of the US major leagues, including the NFL

Fanatics and help to build out our Asian business in a really big way.â&#x20AC;?

Further investment came in November with the expansion of a partnership with Major League Soccer (MLS), for which Fanatics has been providing e-commerce services since 2015. MLS has now also taken a stake in the organisation.

DATA-DRIVEN â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;V-COMMERCEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; According to Davis, capital from the recent investments is to be deployed into growing what he calls â&#x20AC;&#x153;the three legs of the Fanatics FDSDELOLW\ VWRROÂľ 7KH Ă&#x20AC;UVW DUHD he explains, is in the continued development of advanced e-commerce technology and â&#x20AC;&#x153;an omni-channel retail approachâ&#x20AC;? that encompasses online stores, mobile apps, bricks and mortar outlets, and

100 | www.sportspromedia.com

in-stadium or on-site merchandise operations.

To further build out this core area of the business, Davis says Fanatics will look to establish dedicated teams in local markets that will operate and enter into new commercial relationships with sports brands and teams, supported by the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s global network. +H LGHQWLĂ&#x20AC;HV *HUPDQ\ DQG China as likely expansion markets for within the next six months, thereby creating a global network of regional hubs to complement H[LVWLQJ LQWHUQDWLRQDO RIĂ&#x20AC;FHV LQ Tokyo and London. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s really about the globalisation of this business,â&#x20AC;? he says.

The second area for investment is in raising awareness of the Fanatics brand in the global marketplace, while the third area of focus concerns what

Davis calls â&#x20AC;&#x153;verticalisationâ&#x20AC;?. The idea, he explains, is to further develop Fanaticsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; worldwide manufacturing and distribution infrastructure, establishing a sophisticated, streamlined and scalable supply chain that facilitates real-time merchandising and, as a consequence, the ability to get products to market quickly.

Davis notes how Fanatics has already successfully implemented this â&#x20AC;&#x153;v-commerceâ&#x20AC;? model across North America, where the company has dramatically scaled up its design, manufacturing and distribution capabilities whilst securing an enviable portfolio of valuable sports licensing rights.

In May, for instance, Fanatics acquired VF Corporationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Licensed Sports Group, which includes the Majestic apparel brand. That deal followed the signing of the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s major new partnership with Under Armour to take over exclusive manufacturing and retail rights to all MLB apparel, including RQ Ă&#x20AC;HOG MHUVH\V IURP RQZDUGV Together, the two strategic moves mean Fanatics effectively controls both ends of the MLB supply chain, and company bosses hope this joined-up approach will encourage properties across the global sports industry to rethink their merchandising strategies going forward â&#x20AC;&#x201C; but that is not to say it hasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t been used elsewhere already.

Davis explains that the model is, in essence, inspired by retailers such as Zara and H&M â&#x20AC;&#x201C; two companies that have â&#x20AC;&#x153;innovated and disruptedâ&#x20AC;? the online fast-fashion industry by making smart use of big data to adapt their supply chains to an increasingly fast-paced, demand-driven retail landscape. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We live in this on-demand world where data is available and coming at you from all different directions,â&#x20AC;? he says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You can really leverage that data and build a supply chain that reacts of the moment. â&#x20AC;&#x153;In a traditional fashion cycle, if youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re buying a Burberry product for your retailer, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re buying that Burberry product six to nine months in advance. Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re deciding what

styles you want, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re trying to guess the quantities, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re trying to guess the colourways that are going to be best-selling, and youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re going to hope youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got it right. And, inevitably, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be very, very wrong. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Clearly Zara and H&M are vertically integrated, and theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not making bets six or nine months in advance. Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re looking at the data of whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s selling today in their stores and theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re completely changing the assortment the next week.â&#x20AC;?

Davis adds that this type of integrated, reactive approach is now â&#x20AC;&#x153;critically importantâ&#x20AC;? in sport, where agility and speed to market are vital given results and spikes in interest are rarely ever SUHGLFWDEOH +H VSHFLĂ&#x20AC;FDOO\ SRLQWV to the example of Leicester City, the 5,000-1 shot who memorably claimed the Premier League title in 2016. According to Davis, the club might have sold â&#x20AC;&#x153;ten to 20 times more merchandiseâ&#x20AC;? following their unlikely triumph had they only had D PRUH HIĂ&#x20AC;FLHQW VFDODEOH VXSSO\ chain to call upon. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know what teams are going to be hot and lead the table,

Davis believes that lessons can be learned from â&#x20AC;&#x153;fastfashionâ&#x20AC;? retailers in order to react to fansâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; desire for timely products, even during events

and which teams are going to be cold,â&#x20AC;? he continues. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know what player is going to have a breakout year and what player is not. You donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know what moments, micro-moments, what player is going to break a goalscoring record or things of that nature. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You need a supply chain that is inspired after the likes of these fast-fashion retailers, that delivers against this opportunity in sports, and clubs can maximise against the opportunity.â&#x20AC;?

THE NEXT WAVE OF E-COMMERCE To highlight the operational HIĂ&#x20AC;FLHQFLHV LQKHUHQW LQ WKLV â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;v-commerceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; approach, Davis suggests the way in which it could transform in-stadium merchandising, which is one area in which he sees particular scope for innovation.

While some clubs and venues are already offering click-and-collect services or in-seat ordering for fans looking to purchase products from their phones as the event unfolds, he foresees a time when real-time manufacturing carried out on-site will enable clubs to offer newly created merchandise â&#x20AC;&#x201C; perhaps commemorating an historic moment that happens on a given day, such as the breaking of a goalscoring record â&#x20AC;&#x201C; even before a

game has ended. â&#x20AC;&#x153;These are the things that weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re going to bring to that stadium and that fan experience, to just enhance the live event itself,â&#x20AC;? he says.

Looking ahead, Davis says his goal is to help Fanatics grow into a genuinely global business with US$10 billion in annual sales, â&#x20AC;&#x153;approaching half â&#x20AC;? of which will come from outside of its domestic market. In order to reach that target, he says, overseas growth will be driven through a combination of developing Fanaticsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; existing business verticals and, where it makes sense, further acquisitions. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We are going to focus on an organic build,â&#x20AC;? he says, â&#x20AC;&#x153;but where we see the opportunity to acquire a company that can complement what weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re doing or accelerate some of our existing plans, we will look at those seriously and consider an acquisition to help us. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s really game-changing to the industry is the introduction of this â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;v-commerceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; model, which we believe is the next wave of e-commerce and whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s going to drive growth over the next decade: using data, fully integrated, realtime merchandising and creation of merchandising trends.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;This vertical e-commerce play is at its early stages and I think will create the most exciting phase of the business that has existed to date.â&#x20AC;?

SportsPro Magazine | 101

FEATURE INVESTMENT

Moneyball Cross-border investment is a fact of life in the sports industry but the direction of flow is always changing – particularly in soccer. With China having already made its move, other regional forces could soon come into play.

By Adam Nelson

I

n October, at the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), Xi Jinping celebrated half a decade as the president of the most populous and, arguably, most powerful nation on earth. It was an event which revealed much

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about the chairman’s plans for the QH[W À YH \HDUV DQG EH\RQG In adding Xi’s thought to the country’s constitution, the CPC FRQÀ UPHG KLV SODFH DV WKH PRVW powerful Chinese leader since Mao Zedong, with speculation rising that he is settling in for the

long haul as president as his rapid transformation of the country into the preeminent global economic superpower continues. As the man who has done more than anyone to encourage China’s recent multi-pronged attack on the world of sport, the consecration of his

position will have a profound effect on the industry at large. â&#x20AC;&#x153;President Xiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s policies are certainly at the forefront of the changes weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve seen in the sporting landscape in China over the past Ă&#x20AC; YH \HDUV Âľ VD\V $GULDQ 6WDLWL executive vice president of global SDUWQHUVKLSV DW /DJDUGqUH 6SRUWV who oversees the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s day-to-day sales operation across Asia. Lagardère has itself recently RSHQHG D QHZ RIĂ&#x20AC; FH LQ 6KDQJKDL hoping to take better advantage of the opening up of the sports market there.

7KHUH DUH VD\V 6WDLWL WKUHH ´WLHUVÂľ RI FKDQJH ZKLFK DUH KHOSLQJ to propel Xiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s long-term sporting plan. â&#x20AC;&#x153;One is growing the appetite for sport in China by the people; second, I think, is the strength of the emerging middle class there and the absolutely massive growth of the middle class there; and third is the backing of youth and local talent and development of young kids getting into the sporting

VSDFH Âľ KH VD\V ´, WKLQN WKHVH WKUHH tiers have really been the catalysts along with Xiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s vision which HYHU\RQH LV JHWWLQJ EHKLQG Âľ Billions of dollars have already been pumped into the Chinese sports market, with soccer by some GLVWDQFH WKH ELJJHVW EHQHĂ&#x20AC; FLDU\ â&#x20AC;&#x153;If you look at the appetite for sport, China has always been a sporting culture and I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t WKLQN WKDW¡V DQ\WKLQJ QHZ Âľ DGGV 6WDLWL ´%XW PD\EH WUDGLWLRQDOO\ there would have been a focus on 2O\PSLF VSRUWV VSHFLĂ&#x20AC; FDOO\ RQ Olympic achievement or at multisport games, and also basketball.

But in recent times, with football being the biggest sport in the world, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve seen even more of a ERRP WKHUH ZLWK FDVK Ă RZLQJ ERWK into and out of the country on a PDVVLYH VFDOH LQ WKH VSRUW Âľ The reasons for Xiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s desire to push money into sport are manifold, but some are more straightforward to understand than others. Unlike most forms

â&#x20AC;&#x153;China has always been a sporting culture and I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t think thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s anything new.â&#x20AC;?

Chinese investment in soccer has come at home - in the Chinese Super League and abroad, but conditions may be changing

RI HQWHUWDLQPHQW VXFK DV Ă&#x20AC; OPV RU television, which have to overcome cultural and linguistic differences, any given sport will be largely the same the world over, meaning that WKH &KLQHVH 6XSHU /HDJXH &6/

is easily exportable to a European RU 6RXWK $PHULFDQ DXGLHQFH Likewise, products such as the Premier League are ready-made for importing to a hungry soccer audience in China, particularly if there is a deeper reason for a Chinese audience to latch on to a team â&#x20AC;&#x201C; such as, for instance, being owned by a Chinese

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corporation which is launching a charm offensive based around fan engagement in the country.

For many companies â&#x20AC;&#x201C; such DV FRPPHUFH JLDQW 6XQLQJ WKH owner of Italyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Inter Milan DQG WKH &6/¡V -LDQJVX 6XQLQJ RU multinational conglomerate Wanda, which owns a 20 per cent stake in AtlĂŠtico Madrid â&#x20AC;&#x201C; sport represents, as much as anything else, an unrivalled branding opportunity.

6LPLODUO\ PDQ\ &KLQHVH EUDQGV have launched major strategic partnerships with sporting bodies, pumping billions into worldwide sponsorship deals. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Brands like these are seeing sport as a platform where they can grow their brand, they can grow their EUDQG¡V SURĂ&#x20AC;OH WKH\ FDQ JHW DFFHVV WR intellectual property and leverage that IP and they want to get involved in WKH SKHQRPHQRQ Âľ VD\V 6WDLWL +H OLVWV the likes of internet giant Alibaba, which this year joined the Olympic TOP sponsorship programme; HOHFWURQLFV EUDQG +LVHQVH ZKLFK KDV used tie-ups with Fifa and Uefa to push its products into the European market; and telecoms brands Vivo and Oppo, which have leveraged the

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Fifa president Gianni Infantino meets Xi Jinping in China in Beijing in June

might of the Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 cricket tournament to secure a presence in a major market for them. $OO RI WKHVH EUDQGV VD\V 6WDLWL are capitalising on Xiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s relaxing of the reins when it comes to global investments in sport, using it to engage with a wider number of people than any other form of advertising would allow.

That Chinese dĂŠtente has also RSHQHG RWKHU RSSRUWXQLWLHV 6WDLWL suggests, allowing brands from around the globe to gain access to the 1.5 billion-strong market. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You have a lot of brands looking outward because theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re international brands like the ones I named, but then thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a lot of other brands looking to invest in sport and looking for opportunities within &KLQD Âľ KH VD\V ´6R ZH KDYH outbound into China, and then inbound out. Both of those roads ULJKW QRZ DUH KHDYLO\ WUDIĂ&#x20AC;FNHG which is good for the sports industry, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s good for sponsorship. â&#x20AC;&#x153;As long as weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re able to deliver solid value to brands â&#x20AC;&#x201C; whether itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the ones going in looking for assets like the Asian Football

&RQIHGHUDWLRQ WKH &6/ WKH Chinese Basketball Association, NBA China, golf events in the country, or the ones looking out â&#x20AC;&#x201C; as long as theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re getting good value and a proper return on what they want to accomplish then I think this is going to continue.

We donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want them to just spend for the sake of spending because, as President Xi has said and the government have said, we want them to spend because theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re actually seeing the value and getting D UHWXUQ RII LW Âľ Xi has indeed intervened, with statements seemingly intended to curb spending on sport within China â&#x20AC;&#x201C; particularly with the 100 SHU FHQW ´WUDQVIHU WD[Âľ LQ WKH &6/ which required clubs to pay an amount equal to any transfer fee into a communal fund to develop youth facilities in the country.

It was widely felt, however, that these measures were meant to prevent a short-termist approach, encouraging investors to instead take a wider view of their spending within the sector and look toward WKH ZLGHU EHQHĂ&#x20AC;WV IRU &KLQD RQ WKH global stage. As well as being a tool

for brands communicating with the masses, sport represents a fantastic venue to exercise political and industrial soft power. â&#x20AC;&#x153;For the brands, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s about promoting themselves and taking the opportunity of â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Chinaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s momentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; to showcase their products, their services and use sport as the vehicle IRU WKDW Âľ VD\V 6WDLWL ´$UH WKHUH IULQJH EHQHĂ&#x20AC;WV WKDW FRPH ZLWK WKDW" 6XUH )RU WKH JRYHUQPHQW DQG IRU Âś&KLQD ,QF¡ WRR Âľ This can be seen in the pattern of Chinese ownership in British soccer over the past year. Chinese investment in European soccer so far has been diverse â&#x20AC;&#x201C; with over 20 clubs across the continent now UHFHLYLQJ VLJQLĂ&#x20AC;FDQW IXQGLQJ IURP China â&#x20AC;&#x201C; but the bulk of Chinese interest has fallen on the UK, with its globally lucrative Premier League the golden goose of soccer leagues.

Much of the movement in the UK has clustered around the West Midlands, an area which had been seeing economic decline since deindustrialisation in the 1980s but has increasingly attracted overseas investment. The region has endured fallow recent years in soccer, currently boasting a single top-tier side in West Bromwich Albion, now under the ownership RI <XQ\L *XRNDL 6SRUWV IRXQGHU /DL *XRFKXDQ 6HFRQG WLHU FOXEV Birmingham City, Aston Villa and Wolverhampton Wanderers are all also now under majority Chinese ownership.

The desire of Chinese individuals and corporations to get involved ZLWK JOREDOO\ UHFRJQLVHG KLJK Ă \LQJ soccer brands like AtlĂŠtico Madrid or the Italian giants Inter and AC Milan is perhaps understandable, but the interest in and around the UKâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s second city is harder to FRPSUHKHQG DW Ă&#x20AC;UVW The most puzzling purchase so far came earlier in 2017, when *XDQJ]KRX EDVHG 86SRUW purchased a controlling stake in third-tier side Northampton Town.

Upon completing the acquisition of 60 per cent of the shares in the FOXE 86SRUW FKLHI H[HFXWLYH 7RP Auyeung commented that, having

â&#x20AC;&#x153;President Xiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s policies are certainly at the forefront of the changes weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve seen.â&#x20AC;?

English secondtier soccer rivals Birmingham City and Aston Villa are both now under Chinese ownership

looked at a range of English teams over an 18-month period, â&#x20AC;&#x153;none ticked as many boxes for us as 1RUWKDPSWRQ 7RZQÂľ This is a club, it should be noted, who have spent a total of four years in its entire history playing LQ WKH Ă&#x20AC;UVW RU VHFRQG GLYLVLRQV All of those seasons came in the 1960s, when the Cobblers achieved their most notable feat to date â&#x20AC;&#x201C; becoming the fastest side to rise from the bottom tier of English soccer to the top and back down again, which they accomplished in just nine years. Northampton itself â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 60 miles from the capital in London, 50 from Englandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s second city of Birmingham â&#x20AC;&#x201C; does not necessarily appear a natural location for the exertion of Chinaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s soft power.

6R ZKDW H[DFWO\ ZHUH WKRVH ER[HV WKDW ZHUH WLFNHG" $ JODQFH at the proposed route for the UKâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s +LJK 6SHHG +6 UDLOZD\ OLQH might help to shed some light on the matter. The new route will allow travel between London and

Birmingham in considerably less than an hour and passes within miles of Northampton. It is expected to transform the economic fortunes of the entire region.

Chinese companies getting involved in soccer clubs gives them access to not only crucial surrounding infrastructure but also, it is hoped, the hearts and minds of the local populations, with one of the biggest economic powerhouses in the world just a VKRUW WUDLQ ULGH DZD\ 6KRXOG WKHLU clubs reach the promised land of the Premier League, companies such as Fosun International, owner of Wolverhampton Wanderers, will consider their huge outlays more than worth the investment. ´,W LV GHĂ&#x20AC;QLWHO\ D ORQJ WHUP view, a long-term project and development process by the entire VSRUWV FRPPXQLW\ LQ &KLQD Âľ VD\V 6WDLWL %DFN LQ &KLQD VLJQLĂ&#x20AC;FDQW investment is being made into so-called sport cities and sport towns, with a plan to establish 5,000 dedicated sporting schools across the country over the next Ă&#x20AC;YH \HDUV 7KH XOWLPDWH ORQJ WHUP legacy is Xiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;vision 2050â&#x20AC;&#x2122;, with the president harbouring ambitions for Chinaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s national soccer team to qualify for and then win a Fifa World Cup, and for the nation to host the tournament, within the next 30 years.

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â&#x20AC;&#x153;The amount of corporations, individuals, people, communities getting behind this vision are spearheading a lot of it, and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m VXUH LW ZLOO KDSSHQ DW VRPH SRLQW µ VD\V 6WDLWL ´$OO RI WKLV LV NLQG RI feeding the growth of the Chinese sporting market and really thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s EHHQ LQ WKH ODVW Ã&#x20AC;YH \HDUV ,W ZDV WKHUH SULRU WR WKDW EXW LQ WKH ODVW Ã&#x20AC;YH years itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s really grown exponentially and I think these are a lot of the UHDVRQV EHKLQG LW DQG VSHFLÃ&#x20AC;FDOO\ WKH government initiative to push this agenda forward. â&#x20AC;&#x153;If youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re going to build 50,000 soccer pitches around the country and youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re going to develop sports cities or sports towns and youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re investing in your domestic infrastructure to make sport better, LW KDV WR EH D ORQJ WHUP SOD\ µ

Rising centres of inï¬&#x201A;uence: Where to look next SAUDI ARABIA â&#x20AC;&#x153;When you talk about Asia, you donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want to exclude the Middle

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East, and the ambitions and goals RI 6DXGL $UDELD LQ VSRUW ULJKW QRZ DUH TXLWH LQWHUHVWLQJ µ VD\V 6WDLWL For the last decade or more, the 6DXGLV KDYH VDW UHODWLYHO\ TXLHW DV their neighbours on the Arabian Peninsula in the United Arab Emirates and Qatar have been lavishing extravagant amounts of money on sport around the world.

The Abu Dhabi United Group has transformed the ownership structure of global soccer, buying up clubs around the world to the point that it owns major teams on four continents. Meanwhile, Oryx 4DWDU 6SRUWV ,QYHVWPHQWV RZQHU RI )UHQFK VRFFHU WHDP 3DULV 6DLQW Germain, is continuing to leave an indelible mark on the landscape of the European game, most recently shattering the global transfer record by signing Neymar Jr for â&#x201A;¬222 million.

1RZ 6DXGL $UDELD LV ODXQFKLQJ an offensive of its own on the sector, beginning with the construction of a 334-squarekilometre â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;sports clusterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; in Qiddiya, south-west of the capital, Riyadh. Led by the countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Public Investment Fund, the complex will offer a range of cultural and

Saudi Arabian investors could capitalise on changing political conditions at home and in the Gulf region to make their move in sport

sporting facilities intended to generate interest in sport across the country and build up a grassroots youth movement. Qiddiya will offer state of the art training facilities for athletes, serving as the Kingdomâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ¶SLRQHHU KXE· DV 6DXGL $UDELD DOVR plots far greater success in future Olympic Games.

The project is a major part of a wider programme known as Vision 2030, established by the Kingdomâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Crown Prince Mohammad Bin 6DOPDQ DQG LQWHQGHG WR GLYHUVLI\ the countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s economy away from its current dependency on oil. :KLOH QR RIÃ&#x20AC;FLDO PRYHV KDYH \HW EHHQ PDGH D 6DXGL DGYDQFH LQWR European club soccer, following the leads of Abu Dhabi, Qatar and China, is increasingly likely at some point over the course of the next few years. Also to be expected is a much wider range of sporting HYHQWV WR EH KHOG LQ 6DXGL $UDELD These activities coincide with DQ H\H FDWFKLQJ SHULRG LQ 6DXGL domestic affairs under the crown SULQFH 6RFLDO SROLF\ LV EHLQJ liberalised in some areas, by national standards, with women to be allowed to drive and attend sporting events. November also saw

VFRUHV RI 6DXGL SULQFHV DQG ORFDO businessmen placed under house arrest at the Riyadh Ritz-Carlton ² RIĂ&#x20AC;FLDOO\ DW OHDVW DV SDUW RI D clampdown on corruption.

While there are sound economic reasons for the push into sport, much of it is also motivated by regional politics and rivalries.

The awarding of the 2022 Fifa World Cup to Qatar â&#x20AC;&#x201C; however that decision ultimately came about â&#x20AC;&#x201C; was widely known to have caused much consternation ZLWKLQ 6DXGL $UDELD ZLWK ZKLFK the tiny state of Qatar shares its only land border. A recent boycott and blockade of Qatar, led by 6DXGL $UDELD ZDV FRQĂ&#x20AC;UPHG

by Lieutenant General Dhahi Khalfan, head of Dubai security for the UAE, to have been at least in part an attempt to have it stripped of the World Cup when he tweeted: â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;If the World Cup leaves Qatar, the crisis will go away, because the crisis is created to break itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;.

The politicking around the most politically charged World Cup is VHW WR FRQWLQXH DQG 6DXGL $UDELD will likely exercise whatever power it can to remove the event from Qatar. Given that Qatar Airwaysâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; recent massive sponsorship deal with Fifa was viewed from some quarters as a bulwark against Ă&#x20AC;QDQFLDO SUHVVXUHV LW PD\ EH WKH 6DXGLV¡ UHWDOLDWLRQ WDNHV WKH IRUP RI even further investment.

LATIN AMERICA :KLOH 6RXWK $PHULFD LV D FRQWLQHQW where sport is revered like nowhere else â&#x20AC;&#x201C; particularly in the world of soccer, where it has provided three of the eight Fifa World Cup winners to date â&#x20AC;&#x201C; it has also been commercially underexploited, with its domestic leagues underexposed and often viewed by players as feeder leagues to the more Ă&#x20AC;QDQFLDOO\ VXFFHVVIXO (XURSHDQ competitions.

A recent joint venture between two sport industry giants â&#x20AC;&#x201C; global sports management company IMG and digital content specialist

A new partnership between IMG and Perform should unlock the value of the Copa Libertadores, won this year by GrĂŞmio of Brazil

Perform â&#x20AC;&#x201C; has suggested that that could all be about to change. Earlier this year, the two entered into a PDMRU QHZ SDUWQHUVKLS ZLWK 6RXWK Americaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s soccer confederation, Conmebol, with the deal set to see both agencies provide consulting services as part of the marketing, sale and after-sale of commercial assets of Conmebolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s continental club competitions â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the Copa /LEHUDWRUHV &RSD 6XGDPHULFDQD and the Recopa â&#x20AC;&#x201C; along with several other tournaments. The dedicated FRPSDQ\ ZLOO EH Ă&#x20AC;QDQFHG DQG UHVRXUFHG E\ ERWK Ă&#x20AC;UPV HTXDOO\ and will also consult Conmebol on the growth and development of its competitions, as well as digital strategy.

The four-year deal, which runs from 2019 to 2022, is reportedly ZRUWK DURXQG 86 ELOOLRQ RU 86 PLOOLRQ D \HDU ZLWK WKH rights for the Copa Liberatores DQG &RSD 6XGDPHULFDQD FOXE competitions thought to make up URXJKO\ 86 PLOOLRQ RI WKDW Ă&#x20AC;JXUH 7KLV LV D VLJQLĂ&#x20AC;FDQW LQFUHDVH on Conmebolâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s previous rights cycle, with those same competitions JHQHUDWLQJ MXVW 86 PLOOLRQ annually in the four years to 2018.

The deal comes in the aftermath of the FBI-led corruption investigation which led to the GRZQIDOO RI VHYHUDO PDMRU Ă&#x20AC;JXUHV within Conmebol. One of the

key players in that scandal was WKH 7UDIĂ&#x20AC;F *URXS D SUHYLRXV rights partner of Conmebol whose owner and founder, JosĂŠ +DZLOOD SOHDGHG JXLOW\ WR FKDUJHV of racketeering conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy, and obstruction of justice. While corruption was far from the only thing holding sport LQ 6RXWK $PHULFD EDFN WKH FOHDULQJ of the air after the prosecution RI PDQ\ Ă&#x20AC;JXUHV LQYROYHG KDV opened the continent up to fresh investment from sporting bodies around the globe, with the greater Ă RXULVKLQJ RI VSRUW WKHUH SHUKDSV an unforeseen consequence of the operation.

Conmebol itself has also shown a greater desire for collaboration with its neighbours â&#x20AC;&#x201C; as it did in 2016 for the Copa AmĂŠrica Centenario, KHOG LQ WKH 86$ LQ FRRSHUDWLRQ with the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (Concacaf) â&#x20AC;&#x201C; which should help encourage global brands to get involved with sponsorships and partnerships there. With the growing popularity RI VRFFHU LQ WKH 8QLWHG 6WDWHV which is currently bidding for the 2026 Fifa World Cup alongside neighbours Mexico and Canada, further events like the Centenario should foster an even greater environment for investment.

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DEALS REVIEW

DEALS REVIEW Sports industry deal-making highlights from October and November 2017 Eurosport renews US Open rights deal Pan-European broadcaster Eurosport has renewed its partnership with the United States Tennis Association (USTA) to secure the rights for the US Open Grand Slam tennis tournament for a further five years.

The new deal will see the network exclusively broadcast the annual hard court competition across Europe until 2022. The agreement further enhances Eurosport’s tennis portfolio, which includes the rights to show the Australian Open and French Open Grand Slam tournaments in more than 50 countries, as well as The Championships from Wimbledon in 34 territories across the continent.

The deal excludes the UK and Ireland, where The Guardian is reporting that Amazon has taken the rights for an estimated UK£30 million (US$40 million) over the same period, following

up on the deal it agreed for the ATP World Tour.

Amazon also showed the inaugural ATP Next Gen Finals around the world in November.

Peter Hutton, chief executive of Eurosport, said: “The US Open is always a special occasion, an invitation to the world to join a two-week party to conclude the story of the Grand Slam year. We are excited to extend our partnership with the USTA until 2022 and strengthen our position as the place for fans in Europe to follow every thrilling moment of Grand Slam action.”

Lew Sherr, chief revenue officer for the USTA, added: “Eurosport is a deeply valued broadcast partner that has significantly invested in highquality production and proven they can grow the audience for the US Open. We are very pleased to extend our relationship with them for another five years.”

Banco Santander inks three-year Uefa Champions League deal Uefa, the governing body for soccer in Europe, has announced that Banco Santander will be an official sponsor of the Uefa Champions League, European club soccer’s premier competition, for the 2018 to 2021 cycle.

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The three-year deal with the Spain-based banking group, which operates in various markets across Europe and the Americas, also covers the Uefa Super Cup, an annual season curtain-raiser contested by the reigning champions of the Uefa

Champions League and the second-tier Uefa Europa League. It also includes the Uefa Youth League Finals and the newly formed Uefa Futsal Champions League Finals.

Santander’s rights package will include pitchside and television advertising slots, as well as tickets, client hospitality events and various other benefits. The agreement is the third partnership secured as part of the 2018 to 2021 sponsorship sales process for the Uefa Champions League, and follows renewals with Dutch beer brand Heineken and Japanese carmaker Nissan.

Guy-Laurent Epstein, marketing director for Uefa Events SA, said: “Santander has a great heritage in sport and this partnership will allow the Uefa Champions League to further engage with football fans in Latin America and around the world.”

Ana Botín, Banco Santander’s executive chairman, added: “Santander’s partnership with the Uefa Champions League, the world’s most global and aspirational sporting competition, builds on our support of Libertadores [South American club soccer’s premier competition] and, more recently, Racing Santander, the local football team of the Cantabrian city where our bank was founded 160 years ago. We will continue our support of sport because it is a valuable way to contribute to the prosperity of the communities where we work.”

NFLPA creates brand management and licensing firm REP Worldwide

Airbnb checks in for PyeongChang 2018 Airbnb has become an official partner of the 2018 Winter Olympic Games in PyeongChang, South Korea.

The online marketplace and hospitality platform will be listed in the online accommodation marketing services category for the Games. In return, the company will work with the local community to offer accommodation options for fans visiting PyeongChang and its adjacent cities for the duration of the multi-sport event.

Earlier this year, Airbnb signed a separate agreement with the Gangwon Province to provide lodging solutions and promotional support during the Games, which will see the company promote Gangwon tourist attractions on its website and mobile app.

MLB slugger Aaron Judge signs endorsement deal with Pepsi Major League Baseball (MLB) hitter Aaron Judge has signed a multi-year personal endorsement deal with Pepsi.

The 25-year-old will lend his image to the soft drink giant’s media campaigns, with a particular focus on MLB’s opening day in 2018.

Despite being one of the league’s emerging stars during the 2017 season, the American

The announcement comes amid growing concerns over a lack of rooms and high prices in PyeongChang. South Korean news agency Yonhap said that following the Gangwon agreement the number of Airbnb accommodations in the area increased 30 per cent in six months from 1,650 in December last year to 2,134 in June.

Chris Lehane, Airbnb’s head of global policy and public affairs, said: “With the eyes of the world focused on PyeongChang, our community is stepping up and providing guests with unique and local travel experiences.”

The PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games will be the 23rd edition of the event, and is scheduled to take place from 9th to 25th February.

specifically told his agent Page Odle to hold off on endorsement deals until the campaign came to an end.

Judge, who was named the American League’s rookie of the year after hitting a league-leading 52 home runs in his first full campaign, is now expected to have a host of offers during the off-season.

The New York Yankees right fielder already holds agreements with US sportswear brand Under Armour and equipment manufacturer Rawlings, and the only in-season deal he signed was an exclusive autograph licensing agreement with online retailer Fanatics. Last week, he was also announced as the cover athlete for the MLB The Show 18 video game.

Pepsi has been the official soft drink of MLB for the past 20 years but Coca-Cola penned an agreement in April to take over the role as of 2018. Pepsi still has deals with a number of the league’s teams, including Judge’s Yankees.

The National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) has announced the creation of REP Worldwide, an athlete representation company that will work with players and properties across a range of sports.

The new venture, described by the NFLPA as ‘groundbreaking’ and ‘a first-of-its-kind group player representation business’, will provide licensing and brand management services to ‘athlete-driven sports properties’.

The NFLPA will serve as a majority shareholder in the company, with its licensing and marketing arm, NFL Players Inc, joining as a founding partner along with the US Women’s National Team Players Association (USWNTPA) and the Women’s National Basketball Players Association (WNBPA).

Each of the founding partners will have representation on the REP Worldwide board, which will include athlete advisory and executive positions filled by representatives from each entity.

Services offered by REP Worldwide will include: strategic planning; leveraging athlete intellectual property group rights; structuring licenses and sponsorships; consulting on marketing activation strategy; driving support for players and licensees at retail; and developing content opportunities through ACE Media, the NFLPA’s content and production subsidiary.

An NFLPA statement said REP Worldwide will be seek to emulate the success of NFL Players Inc, which was founded in 1994. The NFL Players Inc business model allows NFL players to share in revenues generated through global licensing programmes and which fund their union’s activities.

NFL Players Inc, which has licensing deals in place with the likes of Panini, EA Sports and Fanatics, generated US$150 million in revenue in 2015. By 2020, that figure is projected to surpass US$200 million.

For more information on these deals and daily updates from across the sports industry, visit www.sportspromedia.com

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DEALS SECTION TEXT HERE DIRECTORY

DIRECTORY OF SPONSORSHIP DEALS Signed in October and November 2017 Manchester City to replace Nike with Puma

Audi retains FIS Ski World Cup sponsorship

PyeongChang 2018 banks major donation

English top-tier soccer side Manchester City are set to sign a deal with German sportswear brand Puma to replace Nike as their official kit supplier, according to UK media. The Daily Mail reports the agreement to be worth as much as UK£50 million (US$67 million) per year - a significant increase on the club’s current deal - from the 2019/20 season. Nike agreed a six-year kit partnership with City in 2013 worth UK£72 million (US$109 million) in total, but the American sportswear company’s existing partnership is due to come to an end at the close of the 2017/18 season. The Puma agreement would be the largest commercial deal in the Blues’ history. Puma is the official kit supplier of Premier League side Arsenal, who agreed a fiveyear deal in 2013 worth UK£30 million (US$40 million) per year. City are heavy favourites to win the Premier League this season.

Length of contract: 5 years Annualised value: US$67 million Overall value: US$335 million Sport: Soccer

German carmaker Audi has extended its title sponsorship of the FIS Ski World Cup until 2022.

The new deal represents an early renewal of a partnership that has been in place since 2002, with Audi’s previous contract, signed in 2012, due to run until the end of next year. Financial terms have not been released but Audi’s previous deal, thought to be the biggest ever signed by the International Ski Federation (FIS), was estimated to be worth nearly €5 million (US$6.5 million) per year. A major backer of winter sports worldwide, Audi has used its flagship partnership with the FIS to promote its all-terrain Quattro brand. As well as elite alpine skiing, the company also sponsors the FIS Ski Cross World Cup and other FIS-sanctioned events in the Nordic disciplines.

Length of contract: 4 years Annualised value: US$6.5 million Overall value: US$26 million Sport: Skiing

South Korea’s National Federation of Banks has made a KRW20 billion (US$17.9 million) donation to the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games. The deal comes after KEB Hana Bank, an official sponsor of next year’s multi-sport event, and the National Federation of Korean Banks agreed a cooperation last month in order to ensure the success of the Games.

The payment is the second contribution made by the company, which agreed in September to purchase KRW1 billion (US$894,000) worth of tickets for the Games following initial news of poor ticket sales. The signing of the contract was attended by Lee Hee-beom, president of the PyeongChang 2018 organising committee, and representatives of the finance committee of the Korea Development Bank. “This donation will be a great help in promoting the PyeongChang Olympic Games and the successful hosting of the Olympic Games,” said Lee. Length of contract: 1 year Annualised value: US$17.9 million Overall value: US$17.9 million Sport: Olympics

FFF extends with Volkswagen NFL lands one-year Microsoft renewal The National Football League (NFL) has renewed its partnership with technology giant Microsoft for a further year. As the league’s official sideline technology sponsor, Microsoft will continue to supply its Surface tablets for referees to use for video reviews until the end of the 2018/19 season. The tablets will also be provided for coaches and players to examine footage of previous plays during matches.

Microsoft has had an exclusive partnership with the NFL since 2013, when the two parties agreed a deal worth a reported US$400 million over five years. Yusuf Mehdi, corporate vice president at Microsoft, said: “We’re excited to help the NFL change the game with Surface devices being used by players and coaches on the sidelines to make more informed decisions, referees using Surface for instant replay to enhance the speed of the game, and teams using Microsoft products in their business and football operations.”

Length of contract: 1 year Annualised value: US$80 million Overall value: US$80 million Sport: Football

110 | www.sportspromedia.com

The French Football Federation (FFF), the governing body for soccer in France, has renewed its commercial partnership with automotive manufacturer Volkswagen until June 2023. Volkswagen, which has been a major partner of the FFF since 2014, will continue to support French men’s and women’s national teams as well as the various age representative teams. The German company will also lend its name to France’s premier club knockout competition, the Coupe de France, and support all amateur soccer in the country. The original five-year agreement from 2014 was thought to be worth around €4 million (US$4.8 million) annually but the financial terms of the revised agreement have not been officially released.

“We are delighted to extend this adventure with Volkswagen,” said Noël Le Graët, president of the FFF. “The renewal of this major partnership with one of the largest car manufacturers is great for the FFF as a whole.” France have been drawn with Australia, Peru and Denmark in the first round of the 2018 Fifa World Cup. Length of contract: 4 years Annualised value: US$5 million Overall value: US$20 million Sport: Soccer

Kyle Larson continues with Credit One Credit One Bank has renewed its commercial agreement with Monster Energy Nascar Cup Series team Chip Ganassi Racing (CGR). The financial services provider, which is the official credit card of Nascar, will be the team’s largest sponsor and have the most prominent logo on Kyle Larson’s number 42 Chevrolet for multiple races in the 2018 season of the premier US stock car series. Long-time CGR sponsor Target ended its support of the number 42 at the end of the 2017 Nascar season. Target was Larson’s primary sponsor for 19 races in his previous campaign, while Credit One was his primary sponsor for 11 races. The American bank will also appear as an associate sponsor on the number one Chevrolet of Larson’s teammate Jamie McMurray in 2018. Trends in Nascar would suggest that Credit One Bank will be paying CGR somewhere in the region of US$400,000 to US$800,000 per race.

Length of contract: 1 year Annualised value: US$12 million Overall value: US$12 million Sport: Motorsport

Jordan Brand nets French basketball deal The French Basketball Federation (FFBB) has confirmed a new multi-year partnership with Nike’s Jordan Brand. The clothing and footwear manufacturer will provide playing kits for France’s men’s and women’s national teams, along with their 3x3 and youth sides. Rumours of the agreement were first reported in March by French sports daily L’Equipe, which estimated that the deal could be worth as much as €2 million (US$2.1 million) annually. Jordan Brand, which is endorsed and created by former NBA star Michael Jordan, replaces Adidas in the role.

Length of contract: 4 years Annualised value: US$2.1 million Overall value: US$8.2 million Sport: Basketball Microsoft has renewed its sponsorship deal with the National Football League for another season

LG signs three-year deal with the FA English soccer’s Football Association (FA) has signed a three-year sponsorship deal with LG. The global consumer electronics giant will be granted brand exposure across venues and media assets in all rounds of the Emirates FA Cup club knockout competition and home games played by the England men’s team. It will supply digital screens to the England team for use at Wembley Stadium and at their St George’s Park training centre, while it will also fit the Club Wembley premium spectator area with home entertainment products and home appliances. Reports in the British media value the deal at UK£2 million (US$2.62 million) a year.

Length of contract: 3 years Annualised value: US$2.62 million Overall value: US$7.86 million Sport: Soccer

Fitzgerald Glider Kits extends with Penske

Ooredoo sponsors Tunisian soccer team

Fitzgerald Glider Kits has announced an expansion of its partnership with Team Penske to serve as a primary sponsor of the number 22 Ford Mustang in 16 races of next season’s Nascar Xfinity Series.

The kit assembler will sponsor the stock car championship team for the season-opening race at Daytona International Speedway in February, the season-ending race at Homestead-Miami Speedway, and both series races at Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennesee. In addition, the company will be an associate sponsor in all races in which it is not the primary sponsor. Fitzgerald’s commitment is likely to be worth a sum of around US$5 million.

Length of contract: 1 year Annualised value: US$5 million Overall value: US$5 million Sport: Motorsport

The Tunisian Football Federation (FTF) has entered into a four-year commercial agreement with Ooredoo. Under the terms of the contract, the telecommunications company will have a strong brand presence through LED bands and step-and-repeat boards at all of the Tunisia’s men’s national soccer team’s home fixtures. According to Tunisian news outlet Kapitalis, the deal is worth TND$2.5 million (US$1 million) per year.

Tunisia have been drawn with Belgium and Panama in Group G of the 2018 Fifa World Cup in Russia and will begin their campaign against England, just as they did at France 98. The Eagles of Carthage will be making their fifth appearance at the global soccer showpiece, returning for the first time since 2006. They are yet to make it past the opening round.

Length of contract: 4 years Annualised value: US$1 million Overall value: US$4 million Sport: Soccer

Clemson signs with Founders Federal South Carolina’s Clemson University has agreed a seven-year partnership with financial services company Founders Federal Credit Union. The USbased company will be the official credit union partner of the university’s athletics teams, the Clemson Tigers, as well as the university itself, in a deal valued at a reported US$6 million. Under the terms of the agreement, Founders is to have visibility in athletics and greater integration into campus life and student events, including being a partner of Clemson’s bike-sharing and recreation programmes. Additionally, the credit union will offer its members a Clemson cobranded debit card this autumn.

Length of contract: 7 years Annualised value: US$855,000 Overall value: US$6 million Sport: College sports

Adidas swoops for Golden Eagles The athletics division of the University of Southern Mississippi has announced an eight-year deal with Adidas. The German sportswear giant will serve as the college’s official athletic footwear, apparel and accessory partner until the end of the 2024/25 season. The agreement will be activated when the university’s current five-year deal with Russell Athletic expires, when Adidas will begin to provide all Golden Eagles and Lady Eagles teams with headwear, apparel, footwear and accessories.

The Hattiesburg American reports that a source close to the deal has indicated that it is worth more than US$4 million.

Length of contract: 8 years Annualised value: US$500,000 Overall value: US$4 million Sport: College sports

Comdirect signs German volleyball deal The German Volleyball Association (DVV) has named online banking company Comdirect as its new innovation partner. The contract will see the two collaborate for three years, with Comdirect paying somewhere in the region of €750,000 (US$880,000) annually to the DVV, according to the German sports industry news outlet Sponsors.de.

Length of contract: 3 years Annualised value: US$880,000 Overall value: US$2.64 million Sport: Volleyball

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DEALS SECTION TEXT HERE DIRECTORY

RCR drive home Liberty National deal Motorsport team Richard Childress Racing have announced a new partnership with Liberty National Life Insurance Company. The deal will see the Texas-based insurance firm serve as the primary sponsor of Ryan Newman’s number 31 Chevrolet Camaro for four races during the top-tier 2018 Monster Energy Nascar Cup Series season, while also being an associate sponsor for the entire campaign. The agreement includes at-track activation along with a range of digital and social media assets. Based on similar deals in Nascar, Liberty National is likely to be paying a figure between US$1.6 million and US$3.2 million for the primary sponsorship of the stock car.

Length of contract: 1 year Annualised value: US$2.5 million Overall value: US$2.5 million Sport: Motorsport

Sydney FC take a gamble with The Star Australian soccer champions Sydney FC have announced a shirt sponsorship deal with the Star Entertainment Group. The two-year deal will see the gaming company’s Sydney casino become the club’s front-of-shirt sponsor in a deal valued by the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper at nearly AUS$900,000 (US$510,000) per season.

The Star also has sponsorship agreements with the likes of rugby league’s NSW Blues, Australian Football League side Sydney Swans and Big Bash League cricket team Sydney Sixers.

Length of contract: 2 years Annualised value: US$510,000 Overall value: US$1.2 million Sport: Soccer

South Point backs Las Vegas Nascar race The South Point Hotel, Casino and Spa has been named the title sponsor of the Monster Energy Nascar Cup Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (LVMS). The venue’s multi-year agreement with the hotel sees the stock car series race become the South Point 400 from 2018. Michael Gaughan, owner of the South Point Hotel, Casino and Spa, has sponsored races at LVMS since 1998, and has also sponsored race teams led by his son Brendan Gaughan in the Nascar Camping World Truck Series and Nascar Xfinity Series. Race title sponsorships in Nascar’s top-tier Cup Series are believed to be worth around US$1 million a year.

Length of contract: 1 year Annualised value: US$1 million Overall value: US$1 million Sport: Motorsport

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Electronics brand Philips has renewed as a third-tier partner of Bundesliga soccer club Hamburger SV

Philips powers on with Hamburg

Nordwest Handel sponsors DHB

Top-tier German soccer side Hamburger SV have renewed their agreement with technology company Philips. The electronics brand will be a third-tier partner of the Bundesliga club for three more years. Sources in the German sports business media have reported that the deal is worth a six-figure sum. Further details of the estension have not yet been disclosed. Philips agreed to sponsor Hamburg in August 2016 as the team’s official medical technology partner.

The Dutch company’s other soccer partners include Spanish La Liga sides Real Madrid and Real Betis, as well as French Ligue 1 team Olympique Lyonnais.

Length of contract: 3 years Annualised value: US$250,000 Overall value: US$750,000 Sport: Soccer

Construction equipment manufacturer Nordwest Handel AG has announced a three-year deal with the German Handball Association (DHB).

The company will be a third-level partner of the DHB until the end of 2020, in a deal reported by German online sports news site Sponsors to be worth €125,000 (US$150,000) per year. Nordwest Handel’s brand Promat is to feature on LED screens and on-court branding for DHB handball games. In addition, the manufacturer will have a brand presence at the 2018 European Men’s Handball Championship in Croatia, as well as the 2019 World Men’s Handball Championship in Denmark and Germany. The new agreement is Nordwest Handel’s first sports sponsorship.

Length of contract: 3 years Annualised value: US$150,000 Overall value: US$450,000 Sport: Handball

AOK signs with TBV Lemgo

Uganda national soccer side renew with Airtel

Health insurance brand AOK has signed a three-year sponsorship deal with German hanball side TBV Lemgo. The company will become a third-tier partner of the DKB Handball Bundesliga (HBL) club, with its branding set to appear on the chest of their jerseys and on the playing floor of their 5,000-capacity home arena, the Lipperlandhalle. According to German reports, the agreement is worth an annual fee of around €150,000 (US$175,000).

Length of contract: 3 years Annualised value: US$175,000 Overall value: US$525,000 Sport: Handball

Airtel has extended its partnership with the Federation of Uganda Football Association (Fufa) to sponsor the Ugandan men’s national soccer side for the next four years. The deal is reported

by Ugandan media to be worth SH10 billion (US$270,000). Under the terms of the agreement, the Indian company will collaborate with Fufa to organise soccer development activities in Uganda, and will sponsor the national team and their regional tours, as well as the Fufa Junior League and the annual Fufa awards.

Length of contract: 4 years Annualised value: US$67,500 Overall value: US$270,000 Sport: Soccer

Business insight and news across the top series in motorsport

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INDEX ISSUE 97

Issue 97

www.sportspromedia.com

THE PROFILE KIM MCCONNIE

FEATURE EQUESTRIANISM

Giving it a bash

THE OTT Elegance in OLYMPICS equine form A

Australia is playing host to men’s and women’s Ashes series this summer, resuming an age-old rivalry with England, but at the heart of its cricket season are a pair of youthful events with a focus on the future. Kim McConnie, a new arrival from PepsiCo with big-time sports entertainment experience, is the new woman in charge of the Big Bash Leagues.

By Eoin Connolly

INDEX OF COMPANIES AND PEOPLE

Equestrian dressage brings rider and horse together in perfect artistic unison, attracts a global audience of 393 million and has been a stalwart event at the Summer Olympic Games since 1912. Now, the International Equestrian Federation is seeking to build out the commercial offering for a discipline it sees as the peak of horse training.

By George Dudley

25

Setting sights on the future of men’s tennis

21ST CENTURY FOX

20

A Abodi, Andrea

22

AC MILAN

102

ACTIVISION BLIZZARD

34

AD AGE

86

DALLAS COWBOYS

72

Fogel, Bryan

BMW

34

24

FIA

BOEING

76

DANISH ASSOCIATION OF SPORTS MEDICINE

Bolt, Usain

34 96

DANISH SOCIETY OF SPORTS PHYSICAL THERAPY

24

BORNAN SPORTS TECHNOLOGY Bosomworth, Kate

22

Daubitzer, Jörg

22

FOSUN INTERNATIONAL

98

FOX SPORTS FOXCONN TECHNOLOGY GROUP

Bowman, Bob

62

Davis, Steve

AEG

66

Bratches, Sean

34

DAZN

34

Ainslie, Sir Ben

22

Brawn, Ross

34

Diack, Lamine

34

AL SHAQAB

76

BRAZILIAN OLYMPIC COMMITTEE (COB)

34

DISCOVERY

34

DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

62

56

Djokovic, Novak

66

56

Donaldson, Jared

66

DRONE RACING LEAGUE

34

34, 56, 102

ALINGHI

22

BRIDGESTONE

Al-Khelaifi, Nasser

34

BRIGHTCOVE

ALLIANZ

34

BRISBANE HEAT

6

96

Brisius, Richard

22, 34

ALLONE AMAZON

Antetokounmpo, Giannis APPLE ARSENAL FC ARUBA AS MONACO

20, 34, 62, 66, 96, 116 86

80, 118 80 34

ASIAN FOOTBALL CONFEDERATION

102

ASTON VILLA FC

102

ATLANT OCEAN RACING

22

ATLANTA FALCONS

80

ATLÉTICO MADRID ATOS ATP

BROOKLYN NETS

34

Dujardin, Charlotte

76

Brooks, Amy

22

DURACELL

20

Brown, Stephen Browne, Philip

34, 80

102 96 34, 66, 96, 116

8 8

BUNDESLIGA INTERNATIONAL

22

BURBERRY

98

C

62

CHANNEL 4

34

CHINESE FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION

50 102

20

34, 56

Balata, Mauro

22

CHINESE SUPER LEAGUE

Bale, Gareth

20

CISCO

90

Ciz, George

66

Clarke, Sarah

118

34, 56, 62

BAR TECHNOLOGIES

22

Barmsby, Jemma

6

Barnett, Jonathan

20

BBC

17, 34

BC LIONS

90

BC PAVILION CORPORATION

90

BCCI BEIN MEDIA GROUP

34 34, 56

Berg, Peter

56

Berger, Eugene

80

Bierhoff, Oliver

24

BIRMINGHAM CITY FC

102

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Coe, Lord Sebastian

34 22

CONCACAF

34, 102

CONMEBOL

102

Cordella, Rick

34 56

Córdoba Garcia, Eva Maria

96

Ćorić, Borna

66

CRICKET AUSTRALIA

ERICSSON 4 ESPN

72

22

INTERNATIONAL TENNIS FEDERATION

34

INTERNATIONAL WORLD GAMES ASSOCIATION

19

96

Gates, Bill

76

IOC

Gates, Jennifer

76

8, 12, 34, 56, 62, 102

IPL

34, 50, 72

G Garcia Riopedre, Roberto

34, 72

76 22 17, 20, 34, 86 6

GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS

IRFU

50, 80

8

IRIS WORLDWIDE

22

ITALIAN TENNIS FEDERATION (FIT)

66

ITV

34

GOOGLE

80

J

Gozzi, Antonio

22

Jeter, Derek

98

JIANGSU SUNING

102

JOHNSON CONTROLS INTERNATIONAL

86

JUVENTUS FC

34

GSI COMMERCE

H H&M

98

Hamilton, Lewis

34

Hawilla, José

102

34

K

HBO

62

Kaepernick, Colin

34

HEAD

66

Katwa, Sanjeev

80

22, 34

Hearn, Eddie

34

Hester, Carl

76

KELLY SLATER WAVE COMPANY

24

34, 56, 62

80

Kelly, Jon

22

Kermode, Chris

66

KFC

72

Everard, Anthony

72

HEWLETT PACKARD ENTERPRISE

Exarchos, Yiannis

56

Hill, David

F FACEBOOK

8, 17, 34, 50, 56, 96, 116

FANATICS

98

FC BARCELONA

34

Federer, Roger

34, 66

22, 66

HISENSE

102

Khachanov, Karen

HISTORY CHANNEL

116

Khan, Sadiq

HORSE AND HOUND

76

Khodabakhsh, Ivan

34

HOUSTON ROCKETS

34

Kidd, Jason

86

HRH Queen Elizabeth II

118

Kim, Jong-un

34

Klein, Robert

22

90

Klitschko, Wladimir

34

HULU

20

Kraft, Robert

34

34

FEI

76

HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH

34

L

Feigin, Peter

86

Hyeon, Chung

66

LA LIGA

Fertita, Tilman

34

I

6, 8, 12, 20, 34, 90, 102

66 118

HSBC

FEDEX

D 34

FUTURES SPORT + ENTERTAINMENT

EUROSPORT

FIFA

DAILY MAIL

INTERNATIONAL TABLE TENNIS FEDERATION

96

34

EUROPEAN TOUR

102

Cole, Michael

Cookson, Brian

EQUINE ADVERTISER

ESPNCRICINFO

Bach, Thomas

BAMTECH MEDIA

ENGLAND AND WALES CRICKET BOARD

102

Fury, Tyson

22

CBS INTERACTIVE

56

22

GERMAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE (DFL)

50

50

INTEL

INTERNATIONAL HANDBALL FEDERATION

56

Enders, Claire

INSTAGRAM

86

ELEVEN SPORTS

50

12, 20, 34

FROEDTERT & THE MEDICAL COLLEGE OF WISCONSIN

22

ENDERS ANALYSIS

Infantino, Gianni

19

86

34

34, 102

86

EF LANGUAGE

34, 80, 118

INDIAN PREMIER LEAGUE

INTERNATIONAL FLOORBALL FEDERATION

Edens, Wesley

22

CHINESE BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION 66

Australian cricket’s biggest Bash yet

INTER MILAN 22, 50

24

CARLTON FOOTBALL CLUB

CHICAGO CUBS

102

34

Carlos, John

22

22, 34

GERMAN FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION (DFB)

34

AUSTRALIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE

FORMULA ONE GROUP

Gatlin, Justin

EMIRATES TEAM NEW ZEALAND

80

22, 34

34

34

90

FORMULA E

98

Carey, Chase

Chayka, George

22

Ecclestone, Bernie

EMIRATES

CHASE

34

76 | www.sportspromedia.com

EBAY

90

34

BABOLAT

E

CANADIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE

AUDI

B

Venue tech and the fan experience

It has been a successful approach, ZLWK À JXUHV VXJJHVWLQJ DQ DXGLHQFH WKDW is younger and newer to cricket, and a concept that has CA’s old rivals at the England and Wales Cricket Board building their own new tournament in its image. As IUDQFKLVH 7 WRXUQDPHQWV KLW GLIÀ FXOWLHV around the world – with the launch of South Africa’s new Global T20League SRVWSRQHG IRU D \HDU DQG RWKHUV À QGLQJ holes in their business models – the BBL’s clear sense of its own identity and purpose is becoming an ever more powerful asset.

Allied to the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL), created in 2015 to further the professionalisation of the women’s game, it is showing early signs of being able to gather an Australian cricketing community of and for the 21st century.

The responsibility for continuing the progress towards that goal will fall to a newcomer this season, with Anthony Everard moving up to the role of executive general manager of events and leagues. Kim McConnie (left) is his replacement as head of BBL and WBBL, returning home to Australia from a KLJKO\ LQÁ XHQWLDO VWLQW ZLWK IRRG DQG beverage giant PepsiCo. There, McConnie went from marketing GLUHFWRU UROHV LQ WKH $VLD 3DFLÀ F UHJLRQ WR take on the enormous task of overseeing the group’s sports marketing activities as VHQLRU GLUHFWRU LQ LWV JOREDO RIÀ FH $PRQJ her responsibilities in New York, as well as maximising the impact of PepsiCo’s many partnerships within sport, was creating plans for the biggest crossover event for sport and entertainment: the Super Bowl Halftime Show.

72 | www.sportspromedia.com

BMO HARRIS BANK

118

ALIBABA

ustralia has arguably been cricket’s major power in the last 20 years but when Twenty20 arrived, it’s fair to say they didn’t quite know what to make of it Down Under. England dished out a WKXPSLQJ WR WKH PHQ LQ \HOORZ LQ WKH À UVW T20 international in 2005, while early games against New Zealand featured retro kits and comedy moustaches.

By the time the multi-billion dollar Indian Premier League powered into life in 2008, Cricket Australia seemed at a similar loss as to what to do with T20 on a domestic level. The original KFC Twenty20 Big Bash launched in 2005, bringing the six traditional state teams into the shortest format, but struggled to capture the popular imagination.

A few years later, the governing body rethought its priorities and retooled the competition. Rather than attempting to appease traditionalists or pursue the big STORIES THAT spenders on the subcontinent, it imagined the competition as a way into the sport SHAPED 2017 for those with no prior experience.

The tournament re-emerged in 2011 as the KFC Big Bash League. It would now feature eight city-based franchise teams, with two rival sides apiece from Melbourne and Sydney. High quality and overseas signings were still encouraged but from an experience standpoint, particularly inside the venue, the event was forensically targeted at newcomers, families, and children. The competition would be played through the heart of the Australian summer – the school holidays – with healthy exposure on free-to-air television each night.

LADIES EUROPEAN TOUR

IAAF

34 20

Figueres, Christiana

22

Iger, Bob

Finchem, Tim

34

IMG

102

34, 56 34

LAGARDERE SPORTS

102

Lai, Guochan

102

Lambert, Margaret Lancaster, John LAND ROVER BAR Lappartient, David

56 116 22 34

LAS VEGAS LIGHTS FC

34

Lasry, Marc

86

LEARFIELD COMMUNICATIONS

22

LEGA SERIE B

22

LEICESTER CITY FC LIBERTY MEDIA

98 22, 34

Mohammad Bin Salman Monahan, Jay

34

MONSTER ENERGY

34

MONUMENTAL SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT

34

Moustafa, Hassan

22

MSL GROUP

96

Murdoch, Rupert

Sityodtong, Chatri

72

SKY SPORTS

PERFORM

102

Perry, Kerry J PEUGEOT PGA TOUR

116

Pincus, David PONTIAC

NASL NBA

34, 66 34, 72, 98 90 22, 34, 50, 72, 80, 86

PREMIER LEAGUE Prost, Alain

96

Lippi, Marcelo

20

NBA CHINA

LOS ANGELES CHARGERS

34

NBC

34, 56

Quinzi, Gianluigi

NETFLIX

20, 34

LOS ANGELES DODGERS

24

R

NEULION NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS

M&C SAATCHI

22

NEW YORK YANKEES

M&C SAATCHI SPORT & ENTERTAINMENT

22

Neymar

Mack, Doug

98

MAJESTIC

98

NFL

80

Manica, David

80 86

Martin, Cathy

76

Mayweather, Floyd Jr

34

Mbappé, Kylian

34

McConnie, Kim

72

McGregor, Conor

34

McIlroy, Rory

34

McQuaid, Pat

34

MEDIACOM

22

Medvedev, Daniil Meis, Dan MERCEDES-BENZ

66 118 34, 80

Merkel, Steffen

22

MIAMI DOLPHINS

24

MIAMI MARLINS

34

MICROPLUS

96

MICROSOFT

96

MILLERCOORS

86

MILWAUKEE BUCKS

86

Mitidieri, Leandro

34

MLB

MLBAM MLS

20, 24, 34, 50, 72, 98

102

56 24, 34 34 34 24, 34, 72, 80, 116

NFLPA

98

NHK

56

SONY PICTURES INDIA

34

SPEED COMMUNICATIONS

22

SPORT ENGLAND

22

SPORTEL

62

SPORTRADAR

56

SPORTS MEDIA WATCH

34

76 118

50, 80, 98, 116 22

QATAR AIRWAYS

102

Quénethas, JeanFrançois

34 66

76

34

Rubin, Michael

98

NORTHAMPTON TOWN FC

102

Rublev, Andrey

66

Nuzman, Carlos

34

O O2 OAKLAND RAIDERS

66 24, 34

RUE LA LA

98

RUGBY CANADA

90

RUSADA

34

RUSSIAN FOOTBALL UNION (RFS)

12

RUSSIAN OLYMPIC COMMITTEE

56

OCTAGON

22

OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER

86

S

OLYMPIC BROADCASTING SERVICES

56

Salén, Johan

OLYMPIC CHANNEL

56

OMAHA WORLDHERALD

76

ONE CHAMPIONSHIP

34

OPPO

102

22, 34

22

Tebas, Javier

34

Whitmarsh, Martin

TED

90

Wilder, Deontay

34

6

Williams, Serena

34

TEAM SCA

THE CRICKET MONTHLY THE ECONOMIST THE FA

90 8

THE NEW YORK TIMES

12

THE SPORTING MEMORIES FOUNDATION

118

102 22

Williams, Venus

34

WME | IMG

34

WNBA WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS FC WORLD RUGBY

THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY

20, 34, 62

WORLD SURF LEAGUE

T-MOBILE

50 102 8, 24, 90 24, 50

20, 34

WTA

34

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR FC

80

WWE

34

TOYOTA

56

X

Trump, Donald

34

Xi, Jinping

Tsai, Joseph

34

Y

20, 102

UBER

80

Zaslav, David

UCI

34

Zuckerberg, Mark

116

UEFA

50, 102

Zverev, Alexander

66

UFC

34, 98

22 90

Paparesta, Gianluca

22

Paranjape, Grant

34

Seavey, Dallas

62

76

WEST BROMWICH ALBION FC

U

SEATTLE SOUNDERS

56

Werth, Isabell

24

Seamer, Sean

Paull, Michael

34

34

SAN DIEGO PADRES

22

Parkman, Mark

Takam, Carlos

80

WBC

34

Schunk, André

50, 62, 90, 98

T

Waters, Mark

SAN DIEGO CHARGERS

22

34

34

TURNER

ORACLE TEAM USA

Park, Geun-hye

WASHINGTON WIZARDS

34

34

62

34

SAN ANTONIO STARS

SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS

34, 98

WASHINGTON MYSTICS

20 102

102

86

80

PARIS SAINTGERMAIN FC

12, 34

SAN ANTONIO SPURS

ORACLE

P

34 22, 34

22

22

76

VOLVO OCEAN RACE

34

50

Romney, Mitt

VOLVO

98 102

WASHINGTON CAPITALS

34, 50

RENAULT E.DAMS

Romney, Ann

VIVO

Warburton, James

Reed, Dan

34

VF CORPORATION

118

22

20

34

STAPLES

66

NISSAN

90

VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS

WANDA

SUPERCARS CHAMPIONSHIP

NIELSEN

Vansen, Allen

WADA

SUPER TENNIS

62

90

102

66

NHL

34

VANCOUVER WHITECAPS FC

Staiti, Adrian

98

12, 34

Valcke, Jérôme

W

RED BULL

22

V

66

REAL MADRID CF

RICHMOND FOOTBALL CLUB

22

SSE

STELLAR GROUP

8

50

USA GYMNASTICS

76

SUNING

RFU

UNIVISION

76

90

118

34

Springsteen, Jessica

Ramsay, Graham

REUTERS

UNITED SOCCER LEAGUE

Springsteen, Bruce

STAR SPORTS

Rodchenkov, Grigory

NITTO

MARQUETTE UNIVERSITY

62

Q

LINKEDIN

MANICA ARCHITECTURE

SONY

34

50

34, 50, 98

98

Powell Jobs, Laurene

LIGA MX

MANCHESTER UNITED FC

34

SOFTBANK

34

22

34, 98

SOCCEREX

PORSCHE

NASCAR

MANCHESTER CITY FC

66 34, 62, 98

12

Nadal, Rafael

M

62

Mutko, Vitaly

34

34

SNAP INC

86

Lichtenhein, Mark

Smith, Tommie

34 34, 116

22

POPULOUS

N

102

22

PEPSICO

66

98

Lieutenant General Dhahi Khalfan

Penny, Steve

Murray, Andy

LICENSED SPORTS GROUP

Liddle, Cain

102

Shapovalov, Denis Sharapova, Maria Sherman, Bruce

118 66 34, 118 34

SHOWTIME

34

Simmer, Grant

22

34

Turner, Mark

22, 34

YOUTUBE

TWITTER

17, 56, 96

YUNYI GUOKAI

56

UNDER ARMOUR

98

UNHCR

56

UNITED NATIONS FRAMEWORK CONVENTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE

22

102

Z ZARA

UN

19, 56

98 62

SportsPro Magazine | 115

UNOFFICIAL PARTNER

SPORT IS THE PRODUCT Facebook is on a charm offensive.

It’s toured the autumn conference halls and offered its execs up to the sports media, who have asked the same question in different guises over and over again: will Facebook pay for sport?

Luckily, I’m a journalist who lived through the last 20 years, so I’ve seen this movie before.

There are seven key scenes.

1. THE GOLD RUSH YEARS This starts around 1992 and finishes, for the purposes of column relevance, in 2018.

It’s an era of unprecedented growth when sport grew fat on money from bloated TV subscription bundles, the ripple effect of which was felt far beyond football.

Hobbies were elevated to the status of niche Long Tail rights categories; slalom canoeists got agents and privately educated windsurfers felt emboldened to moan about Olympic lottery funding.

2 THE COMPLACENT LONGING FOR DISRUPTION A large proportion of people working in the sport business are conformists.

They were good at school, did their exams and excelled at PE, where they developed a ‘passion for sport’.

They suit the rule-bound world of sponsorship with its good guys and bad guys, official rights holders and ambushers; everything has its place in a natural order, from elite sport down to the grassroots.

116 | www.sportspromedia.com

So when it comes, the idea of disruption is thrilling.

It speaks to the latent outlaw that lurks within all good boys and girls.

3. THE SUDDEN IMPULSE TO GIVE YOUR WORK AWAY FREE TO PEOPLE WEARING HOODIES Like great sex, creative destruction is something that tends to happen to other people.

From inside the sports bubble, it’s inconceivable that we’d make the same mistakes as our trendy but naïve counterparts in music or news.

“There are no lessons to be learned from the past because we’d just never do that now, we’re far more sophisticated. We’ve got data and robust business models.”

These are the same people who watch the History Channel and wonder how our great grandparents could be so stupid as to sleepwalk into the First World War.

4. THE ZUCKERBERG SEDUCTION I share a trait with many sports rights holders in that I’ve spent my life chasing people who don’t really like me.

This leaves me vulnerable to glamorous people showing affection.

It started in the fifth form with Anne Lynch. She shunned my advances in favour of the caretaker’s burly son, whose name – Glenn Pluck – fitted perfectly into a crude and libellous limerick on the toilet door of the science block. Children can be very cruel.

(For the purposes of clarity, in the preceding scenario I play the sport business and Anne Lynch is Facebook. I can’t work out what or who Glenn Pluck represents and am frankly beginning to tire of the whole metaphor.)

5. THE CREATION AND WILLING ACCEPTANCE OF NARRATIVE FALLACY To make Facebook’s relationship with sport easier to understand it has been shoehorned to fit the Sky Sports Story, with Mark Zuckerberg in the Rupert Murdoch role.

This sees a cold, calculating billionaire use football as a battering ram into peoples’ homes, creating a valuable monopoly that takes regulators a generation to untangle.

This story is not true but, importantly, it feels right.

Like all great myths, the Facebook Story has an air of inevitability because cause and effect seem to be perfectly aligned.

To quote Poirot, Facebook has both the motive and the opportunity.

It is very cash-rich and is in the game of capturing and reselling attention that craves the sort of huge numbers that live sport delivers.

But there is scant evidence that this scenario will actually happen.

ATP tennis?

Obviously, this is not just about tennis – is anything? – it’s about the future relationship between sport and Big Tech.

If Amazon buys tennis, then the inevitable next step is someone will pay US$10 billion for global Premier League rights in every market.

OK, if you say so.

7. THE SLOW, NAGGING FEELING THAT YOU’VE REALLY FUCKED UP

6. THE OVER ANALYSIS OF RED HERRINGS

It’s hard to register the exact moment when you know you’ve been had.

It’s like trying to remember when the rain started.

And then we wake up to realise that much of sport’s value has been lobotomised.

The transcendent moment that was once valuable ‘must-have content’ has been reduced to clickbait, between the Russian fake news bot and the NFL cheerleader in a see-through shirt.

As John Lancaster wrote in the London Review of Books: ‘Access to an audience – two billion monthly active users – is a wonderful thing, but Facebook isn’t in any hurry to help you make money from it. If the content providers all eventually go broke, well, that might not be too much of a problem.’

What’s not to Like?

So we go in search of evidence to stand the story up.

And has there been a mid-market rights deal so relentlessly scrutinised for meaning as Amazon’s move for

Richard Gillis is author of The Captain Myth: The Ryder Cup and Sport’s Great Leadership Delusion, published by Bloomsbury in the UK and US.

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THE SCRIBBLER

by The Scribbler

Grounds for dismissal What’s with all the shenanigans in the stadium sector these days? Just as London mayor Sadiq Khan takes control of the city’s former Olympic Stadium citing a ‘catalogue of errors’ and ‘bungled decision making’ in its post-Games transition, the operators of Sydney’s Olympic centrepiece announce their

venue will be demolished and rebuilt less than 20 years after its construction. Such ineptitude and shortsightedness are laughable given Detroit’s decrepit Pontiac Silverdome somehow managed to survive a demolition attempt. Clearly, they don’t make ‘em like they used to.

Blow the whistle Recent events have shown how the scourge of doping runs deep, but The Scribbler could never have predicted a drug scandal in the previously untainted world of dogsledding.

If you haven’t heard, it’s some story: a proper whodunnit mystery that has rocked the mushing community, making a punch line of the Iditarod, the world’s most famous dog-sled race, and Dallas Seavey, a four-time champion whose dogs tested positive for Tramadol, a banned opioid painkiller. Seavey has howled in protest, insisting his dogs’ samples were tampered with. Drugs in sport are no laughing matter, of course, but at least the Iditarod’s anti-doping police are doing their job. Who needs a whistleblower when you have highly trained husky handlers?

Oli Scarff/PA Archive/PA Images

Hot property

Nice news Good, genuinely heartwarming news can be hard to come by in the current climate, so The Scribbler was delighted to learn that Reuters has released thousands of sports photos from its Action Images picture library collection to The Sporting Memories Foundation, which runs groups across the UK that bring older fans together to tackle dementia, depression and loneliness. Uplifting, too, was the news that Arsenal Football Club have created a sensory room at their Emirates Stadium, providing a safe, comfortable environment for children with special needs and their families to watch matches.

118 | www.sportspromedia.com

When she’s not playing tennis or dabbling in dubiously prescribed TUEs, Maria Sharapova (below) has shown herself to be a master brandbuilder, hawking everything from confectionery to fashion. Now, according to Ad Age, the Russian is pinning her likeness to real estate, partnering with Staples Center architect Dan Meis to design health and wellness facilities for hotels and resorts around the world. It’s an intriguing development but let’s hope, for the sake of everyone involved, it goes better than the luxury housing project she endorsed in New Delhi, India. That scheme, Ballet by Maria Sharapova, never took off because its developers did instead, allegedly with tens of millions of rupees in down-payments.

Rarefied surroundings The constant back and forth, the pomp and pageantry, the pervasive waft of privilege and elitism, the silly attire: British parliamentary proceedings often feel like a day out at Wimbledon. Who better to take on the role of Black Rod, then, than Sarah Clarke? The former director of The Championships has become the first female bestowed the honour of carrying out ceremonial duties in Great Britain’s highest legislative chamber. Handpicked by the Queen herself and armed – the Scribbler can only assume – with a devilishly good forehand smash, Clarke should fit right in.

P R I VA T E J E T S / A I R L I N E R S / H E L I C O P T E R S

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With over 25 years’ experience chartering aircraft for the football industry, we specialise in flying teams, sponsors, press and fan groups - most recently for the Confederations Cup in Russia earlier this year. Whether you need a helicopter transfer, private jet or commercial aircraft for next year’s World Cup, be sure to contact us for a bespoke solution.

Should you be considering arranging aircraft charters for your clients during the World Cup, please visit www.ACS-WorldCup.com