Sportspro Podcast

To mark Women’s Sports Week across SportsPro’s platforms, Eoin Connolly speaks to Annie Panter, MD of Ventures at Two Circles, about how women’s sport can maintain its commercial momentum.  She explores the most effective strategies for women's sports bodies and their partners, and explains why rights holders need to focus on events and products that work to keep driving a virtuous cycle. She also reflects on how women’s sport has changed since she won Olympic hockey bronze at London 2012, how the progress of powerful sports like soccer will affect the sector, and what can be learned from recent success stories.

SportsPro news editor Tom Bassam and features editor Sam Carp join Eoin Connolly for another sports industry update, including a look ahead to the World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon.  They ask what impact the track and field showpiece will have and whether the sport can evolve to find a new place in the modern media ecosystem. They also consider Nike’s influence on a hometown event, and World Athletics’ plans to rebuild an American presence ahead of LA 2028.  There is also time to preview golf’s 150th Open and reflect on a busy week for world soccer in the courts.

Jenny Mitton, the women’s sport lead at M&C Saatchi Sports and Entertainment, joins Eoin Connolly and SportsPro news editor Tom Bassam to preview Uefa Women’s Euro 2022.  They look at the expectations being set for the tournament over the next three weeks, the impact it can make in host nation England, and the commercial development of women’s soccer. Mitton also explains what is being learned about the competition’s fanbase - which combines hardcore followers and big eventers - and how brands are approaching the opportunity.  Then, they ask what will come next for the women’s game in Europe and beyond.

Eoin Connolly and SportsPro news editor Tom Bassam are joined by Alex Duff, author of Le Fric: Family, Power and Money – The Business of the Tour de France.  They discuss how the model of cycling’s biggest event has been shaped by the decades-long ownership of the Amaury family, consider its role as an elite global challenge and national showpiece, and ask how the outsized prominence of the Tour continues to affect the wider business of the sport.  They also look to the future of the Tour, including the Zwift-backed women’s event, data partnerships and a new Netflix series.

In another session from SportsPro Live at London’s Kia Oval, Eoin Connolly speaks to Matthew Primack, senior vice president of international development at ecommerce and merchandising giant Fanatics.  Matthew explains how Fanatics has built partnerships with the likes of the NFL, the NBA and Formula One, where it aims to innovate and how its operations are being affected by supply chain and sustainability concerns.  They also discuss the implications of the company’s rapid growth in recent years, with widespread inward investment, the acquisition of collectibles brand Topps, and new projects in web3 and sports betting creating a digital fan platform. 

Eoin Connolly is joined by SportsPro digital editor Tom Bassam and media and tech editor Steve McCaskill to run through another week of industry developments.  As LIV Golf tees off for its first event in St Albans, they ask what the contentious Saudi-backed series aims to bring to the sport and who it can bring along other than its opening field.  Then, as Forbes reports LeBron James to be the first active NBA player worth US$1 billion, they ask what athlete power will look like in the generation ahead, and Steve explains sport’s place in Apple’s latest software rollout. 

Eoin Connolly and SportsPro digital editor Tom Bassam are joined by Paris-based independent comms consultant Dan Tunna to reflect on a dramatic sporting weekend. Dan shares an on-the-ground account of a chaotic Uefa Champions League final at the Stade de France, which was delayed by 36 minutes as fans faced dangerously packed queues, disorganisation and heavy-handed policing outside. The trio also discuss the need to reconsider how major soccer events are run as another major final comes under intense scrutiny. There is also a quick look at a bumper Indian Premier League rights tender and the latest movements in US motorsport.   

In what really is the final instalment of the Playbook Podcast, Matt Rogan is joined by Will Gaffney, the 17-year-old founder of the Bat for a Chance cricket charity. Will discusses how and why he decided to start the charity and reflects on his experiences of pitching the idea to senior chief executives while balancing the running of the organisation with the daily rigours of school life. The pair also consider how the next generation is bringing fresh perspectives to the sports industry, why younger people are more likely take risks and what the leaders of tomorrow look like.  

Sportico’s Eben Novy-Williams returns to give Eoin Connolly an American perspective on the latest sports business developments.  They discuss what Todd Boehly’s US track record – especially his ownership of MLB’s LA Dodgers – suggests about his future as owner of Premier League club Chelsea. Elsewhere in soccer, they look at Uefa’s Champions League reforms and EA Sports’ split from Fifa after three hugely successful decades.  Across the Atlantic, there’s a review of Formula One’s glitzy Miami Grand Prix debut, the WNBA’s prospects are sized up as its season starts, and there’s an update on the sale of the NFL’s Denver Broncos.

Eoin Connolly reviews another week of industry news with SportsPro digital editor Tom Bassam and senior staff writer Ed Dixon.  Tom unpacks more developments in the Chelsea ownership saga, with Todd Boehly’s consortium in place as the preferred bidder despite late interest from Ineos owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe. Then Ed reflects on a historic night in New York, where Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano became the first female boxers to sell out Madison Square Garden.  Finally, GreenPark Sports chief strategy officer Tony Grillo lays out a vision for a mobile fan metaverse for leagues like the NBA and La Liga.  

Matt Rogan is joined by the chief executives at Six Nations Rugby, GB Snowsport and Surrey County Cricket Club for a live recording of the Playbook Podcast at SportsPro Live.

Eoin Connolly and SportsPro digital editor Tom Bassam are joined by a series of guests at SportsPro Live 2022, an in-person return for the flagship conference.  Event host Kait Borsay and SportsPro CEO Nick Meacham explore inclusivity and representation in the industry and the growth of women’s sports. SportsPro senior contributor Matt Rogan and GB Snowsport CEO Vicky Gosling lay out the challenges facing businesses in 2022.  Sam Shave, co-managing director of sustainability consultancy thinkBeyond, reflects on green initiatives trialled at the Kia Oval, and Elena Razzano explains how the European Space Agency’s activities could help develop new sports innovations. 

In this special excerpt from the StreamTime Podcast, SportsPro CEO Nick Meacham talks to Jonathan Licht, managing director of UK pay-TV powerhouse Sky Sports. Jonathan reflects on the development of the Sky Sports offering through an era of rapid change in delivery and the rights market, explaining what the company has learned about sports broadcasting and audiences across three decades.   He also reveals how the growth and diversification of the Sky group and platform has influenced its thinking about its consumer positioning, as well relationships with sports like the Premier League and Formula One and its own media competitors.  

In this episode of the Playbook Podcast, host Matt Rogan sits down with a business leader whose organisation has successfully ridden the storm of the pandemic. Heatley Tector is the former owner of Move Media and was in the middle of establishing HBV Studios, a Dublin-based audiovisual production company, as the health crisis started to unfold. An experienced TV and radio presenter, Tector has a longstanding connection with sport. He talks to Rogan about the challenges of managing the new business during a pandemic and offers his reflections and learnings as the company emerges on the other side.  

Eoin Connolly and SportsPro digital editor Tom Bassam are joined by Sportico’s Emily Caron to reflect on a busy spell of US sport.  Emily reviews the return of college basketball’s March Madness, and explains the implications of an expanding sports betting market and opportunities created by new NCAA name, image and likeness (NIL) rights rules for student-athletes.  There’s also time to discuss a landmark week for sport in Las Vegas, with Formula One confirming a Grand Prix and Oak View Group planning a US$3 bllion campus, as well as women’s sports stories on both sides of the Atlantic and beyond.

In this special edition of the Playbook Podcast, regular host Matt Rogan chats to SportsPro editorial director Michael Long about the release of the CEO Playbook 2022, a free and interactive how-to guide for business leaders in sport. Rogan reflects on why he teamed up with SportsPro to launch the Playbook in March 2020, a time when the sports industry was reeling from the impact of the Covid pandemic amid a prevailing sense of shock and uncertainty. Additionally, he picks out his personal highlights and takeaways from more than 24 hours of conversations recorded since the Playbook Podcast debuted a little over 12 months ago. There’s also a look ahead to Rogan’s forthcoming in-person session at SportsPro Live, where three top executives - Surrey County Cricket Club's Steve Elworthy, Vicky Gosling of British Ski & Snowboard and Six Nations Rugby’s Ben Morel - will be on hand to share their views on the major challenges and changes impacting the role of the CEO in 2022.

Eoin Connolly is joined by SportsPro digital editor Tom Bassam and media and tech editor Steve McCaskill to review another week of industry news. Steve reviews his trip to the season-ending SailGP event in San Francisco, explaining the series’ sustainability incentives and team ownership experiment with a blockchain-enabled decentralised autonomous organisation (DAO).   Then the trio discuss a US$1.4 billion stadium deal for the NFL’s Buffalo Bills, involving up to US$850 million in taxpayer funding, and compare it with European projects. There’s also time for a quick take on scripted sports content, EA Sports and Fifa, and sport climbing’s Discovery deal.

Eoin Connolly talks to Peter Hutton, director of sport at social media giant Meta, about the company’s relationship with sport and the future of live experiences in the metaverse. They discuss how Meta approaches its partnerships in sport and the role played across each of its platforms, from Facebook and Instagram to the messaging service WhatsApp, and the prospects for greater adoption of Oculus virtual reality products. Hutton also shares how his understanding of sports storytelling has evolved in his time at Meta and his media career at companies like Sky and Discovery-owned Eurosport.

The Athletic football news reporter Matt Slater returns to join Eoin Connolly and SportsPro digital editor Tom Bassam and cover a busy week in the soccer business. As the Raine Group receives plenty of bids for Chelsea, discussion centres on an accelerated sales process at Stamford Bridge and what lies ahead for the English soccer giants, as well as asking what influence the prospective new owners could have on the wider game. They also reflect on a Deloitte Money League table that has Manchester City at the top for the first time and tells a story of the Premier League’s financial dominance.

For this episode of the Playbook Podcast, SportsPro senior contributor Matt Rogan is joined by Allistair McCaw, a leading consultant and advisor on maximising human performance, team culture and leadership. The author of multiple best-selling books and a five-time duathlon world championship competitor, McCaw has spent more than 25 years working with Olympic gold medalists, Grand Slam champions and Fortune 500 companies, as well as NCAA colleges and professional sports teams. Having spent recent weeks exploring the many areas on a chief executive’s to-do list, this episode focuses on the specific skills required to lead an organisation. The conversation sees the pair discuss ways in which you can develop and look after yourself as a leader, and they also share some actionable insights to apply to your own time.