Member Insights: How sports organisations can thrive in a changing world

In this article, Heikki Rotko Chairman of Choicely, looks into the issues facing the world’s smaller sports.

The event that inspired me to write about this was a iSportConnect Masterclass which was held at the Maison du Sport Internationale in Lausanne Switzerland. Attendees represented global sports federations, teams and leagues accompanied by global sports tech suppliers.

How can a small sports club, league or a federation thrive against the big players? How will different sports disciplines do in the future, as consumer behaviour changes? These were the topics I thought about the most after I left the Masterclass.

The group was made up of 40-50 experienced thought leaders from well-known global, regional, and even local sports organisations.

Not all questions got final answers but the discussions was lively.

My main takeaways from the workshop are listed below and fueled by my own views around the discussed topics:

  • The Big 10 getting (almost) all the attention
    • Opportunities in broadcasting and direct to consumer distribution
    • Since all sports is produced live, how to get the signal to the fans?
    • Has the role of social media giants become too big in the ecosystem?
    • How to secure first party data capture for those who own the content and the brands?
  • How to guarantee visibility and fan connection for the remaining 790+ sports disciplines?
  • Sustainability and integrity have become really important in all of sports

Here is the outcome for me who have dealt with these issues throughout my professional life.

The Big 10 getting (almost) all the attention

There are approximately 800 to 8000 different sports in the world.

It is common knowledge that the top 10 biggest sports and the federations and leagues of those disciplines* get 95% of the attention in general discussion even among sport business professionals.

These Tier One organisations also generate a very high percentage of the total revenue of sports. Is this good or bad? In my opinion it is just a fact.

On the other hand, the time has never been so good and favorable for mid-size and smaller teams, leagues and federations to get more visibility, attention, fans and revenues. The thing called ‘the internet’ has made this possible, now the question is more about competence, attitude, and willingness to innovate in these SME’s of sport.

Opportunities in broadcasting and direct to consumer distribution

Big broadcasters and streamers will own 99% of the top 10 sports content, distribution and money involved. Still, there are more opportunities for the remaining 790+ sports disciplines that have suffered from not having even their fair share of the visibility.

The big broadcasters and streamers have a lot more capacity in their channels than they used to have, and therefore they have realized that if they will not pay attention to the SME’s of sports, someone else will. They also follow the trends in sports and they know that they also have to renew their offering in order to attract younger audiences.

The new kids on the block, and there are hundreds of them who would like to get relevant sport content on their platforms to attract bigger audiences and make more revenue. There is a huge gold rush going on within this segment. As things go further, the big boys will acquire the winners of this gold rush and then your content and brand will keep on getting the visibility.

Your own actions and platforms (direct-to-customer) can make a big difference if you do it right and respect your loyal fans and sponsors. You have to build it from the group up, but it is doable with the resources that you have.

You just have to make sure that you have parallel rights to your precious content, you have to partner with the right tech and marketing partners and you have to be loyal to your mission, learn from the fan data that you own, reward the fans over and over again and you will realize the positive loop that you have created.

Since all sports is produced live, how to get the signal to the fans?

As Jan Olsson, Head of Sports at TV4, Sweden said: “as all sports is produced live, now we just have to make sure that the signal reaches their fans.” Production has become so much easier and cheaper and so has distribution. A good example of this is one of Europe’s largest junior football tournaments Helsinki Cup that had 20 000+ attendees and 4000 matches were live streamed into their app and website over the course of just 6 days. And the fans, parents and coaches paid for the stream.

There is also a large amount of new streaming platforms that offer good enough streaming service to the fans of a given sport. I believe that the key here is to make brave and clever partnerships between the rights owner, their marketing partners, tech companies and media owners. And when I say media owners, I mean big, small and anything in between.

Has the role of social media giants become too big in the ecosystem?

Talking about media – social media giants are certainly by far the biggest new factor within sports and media business in the past 15 years. They have changed the game quite radically with their massive audiences fueled by clever and catchy algorithms and super user-friendly mobile apps that allow anyone of us to start being a media company.

They have also made massive revenue growth which is almost mainly based on advertising type of revenues taking already a 40+% share of global media investments. Hats off – well done.

Many sports organisations rely quite heavily on these platforms in their content distribution and PR and marketing strategies. There is only one thing that is often forgotten. These tech giants will own all the data that in this case the world’s sports industry feeds into them.

In the last three years, it has finally become more clear for content owners how important it is to own first party data of your customers, fans, and other stake holders. It is the only way to be the “landlord” and not the “tenant”.

And don’t get me wrong. I am not against these platforms. I just want to remind that how important it is to have a healthy balance with your own and operated channels (web, app, email, brick and mortar) and these platforms.

How to secure first party data capture for those who own the content and the brands?

Coming back to my previous point, I want to give you some food for thought, how you can balance these items.

Yes, it used to be very difficult to build and operate a website for a sports organization, and even more complex with mobile apps.

So, it has been a very easy choice to utilize social media platforms, give them your content, get likes and keep going. The user experience with the mobile optimized platform apps is so very good, plus everybody talks about them whether it is a consumer or a business person. It started with Youtube, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat and TikTok. BeReal or something else will be next.

For sports organizations, especially those tens of thousands that don’t have unlimited budgets and resources within their reach; the times have become better than ever. By utilising the latest, most modern SaaS-based tech you can build or update your own and operated digital platforms (web, email, app, ticketing, merchandising, real time stats, fan engagement, etc.) with budgets and resources that you already have. The market between the big boys and small boys is finally getting more equal, more democratic.

Use social media to get attention to your brand and direct the fans to be active also on your own and operated channels were you will do your actual ROI: serving the fans with the content they love, ask their opinions and have constant dialogue with them, serve them first on you own channels, give them offer son tickets, merchandising and promotions. Learn of their behaviour of the first party data that you receive and what you own – and keep serving them even better. It is a positive loop that will never end. Your fans will love you – and so does the other stakeholder of your brand.

How to guarantee visibility and fan connection for the remaining 790+ sports disciplines?

Nothing is given. ”big boys” like to stay big and “small boys” are always dreaming of becoming big. By innovation around the sport itself and by making record breaking marketing, media and promotional deals, also the SME’s of sport business can start to grow their importance, media coverage and revenues.

I think that the best example of this is women’s sport that has made substantial leaps in the past few years and I don’t see an end to this. Same with Paralympics and many smaller and newer disciplines, like Triathlon, Surfing, Skateboarding, Paddle, just to mention a few.

Sports must change and adapt more to the tastes and trends of younger generations

American football is commercially the biggest sport in the world, but it has only 21 minutes of active play time on average and the game lasts over 3 hours. Not very intensive – but still hugely popular…

In Golf, LIV, the tour that started in 2021 and is funded by the Saudi-Arabian Public Investment Fund has challenged PGA in a very dramatic way. Many hate them, many love them and their money and the attitude for innovation.

There are dozens of examples of sport disciplines of how they have renewed themselves and gained continuous success and how some keep going with the old recipe and are still successful – but for how long – is the question.

Younger generations want to consume more and faster tempo sports content, snackable highlights and fun stuff on top of the real outcome and result.

Sustainability and integrity have become really important in all of sports

There are many new sports leagues that have been born on the idea of being more sustainable than the former version of the same discipline, mentioning FormulaE and many others alike.

Scandals like what has happened among many sport organizations like the Canadian National Hockey team are catastrophical signals from the past and hopefully will be a quickly diminishing trend among sports. Fans and sponsors who are a crucial lifeline for any sport organization will become even more vocal and more concretely vote with their wallets and budgets. Good and “bright” is just so much better than evil and dark.

International Tennis Federation announces Gainbridge as title partner of Billie Jean King Cup

The International Tennis Federation has announced the signing of Gainbridge Insurance Agency, a Group 1001 company, as the new official title partner of Billie Jean King Cup, the women’s World Cup of Tennis.

The new partnership will provide further support for the ITF’s Advantage All programme, which focuses on developing and maintaining tennis as an equal advantage sport for all.

Together with the ITF, and through their commitment to driving positive change in communities, Gainbridge will support the goal of equivalent prize money for women and men in the World Cup of Tennis.

For 2022, this means the players participating in the Billie Jean King Cup Finals and the Davis Cup Finals will receive equivalent prize money. 

The six-year partnership will commence from this year’s Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge Finals, which takes place in Glasgow from 8–13 November.

It will continue across the entire Billie Jean King Cup tournament from 2023–27 inclusive, which sees over 100 women’s national tennis teams competing.  

ITF President David Haggerty said: “The Gainbridge title partnership is very exciting for the Billie Jean King Cup. As an organisation which invests in partnerships that create equal opportunities for all, Gainbridge is well-aligned with the ITF goals. Through our Advantage All programme, the ITF’s aim is to continue to inspire and empower women on and off the court now and in the future. 

“BNP Paribas has made a large contribution to the Billie Jean King Cup as title sponsor since 2005. We are proud of the great work we have achieved together, and we look forward to continuing our relationship in other areas.” 

Established in 1963 as the Federation Cup (or Fed Cup) the Billie Jean King Cup has become the largest women’s team tennis competition worldwide as the women’s World Cup of Tennis.

The event was renamed in 2020, making Billie Jean King the first woman to have a major international sports competition named after her. King won the tournament 10 times combined — as a player or a captain. 

Dan Towriss, CEO & President of Group 1001, said: “Billie Jean King epitomizes the best in sports through winning, commitment, and standing for equity for all. By supporting the Billie Jean King Cup, along with our recent partnership with golf legend Annika Sorenstam and our work through Gainbridge’s sister company, Parity, we seek to bring more awareness to women’s sports. Group 1001 is committed to investing in and growing women’s sports as a means to attack the pay disparity issue.”  

Recognised as one of the greatest tennis players of all time, Billie Jean King has continually fought for equality and inclusion — both on and off the court.

She has been influential in the fight for equal prize money in both men’s and women’s tournaments, and in 2009 she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama for her advocacy work. 

Billie Jean King said: “Thanks to the commitment of sponsors like Gainbridge who invest in women’s sports, we have a terrific opportunity to elevate Billie Jean King Cup, the women’s World Cup of Tennis, and continue to set the bar as the leader on what’s possible when women’s sports are given the same amount of financial, emotional and time investment as men’s sports.”

As part of its mission, Group 1001 and its subsidiaries, including Gainbridge, are focused on service and community transformation with investments in key partnerships that help transform lives through sports and education.

In addition to the recently announced LPGA tournament, “The Annika Driven by Gainbridge at Pelican,” other Group 1001 partnerships that work specifically through sports and education include: Indiana Sports Corp, Pacers Foundation, Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation, Everfi, Indy Women in Tech, Rev Racing, Parity, and RISE. 

China Telecom announced as presenting partner of 2022 ITTF World Team Table Tennis Finals

China Telecom was unveiled today as the Presenting Partner of the 2022 ITTF World Team Table Tennis Championships Finals Chengdu. The telecommunications giant will provide full technical support to the event via its cloud service provider, China Telecom Cloud. 

ITTF President Petra Sörling commented, “I am delighted to welcome China Telecom as a Presenting Partner for the 2022 ITTF World Team Table Tennis Championships Finals in Chengdu. China Telecom is a leader in the telecommunication industry and cloud technological innovation. With the support of our global and local partners such as China Telecom, we are excited to make this a memorable and successful World Championships.”

By leveraging its technology and experience, China Telecom will provide high-quality network support and comprehensive intelligent information services throughout the event, presenting sports enthusiasts worldwide with a spectacular table tennis experience.

China Telecom, one of the world’s largest providers of integrated telecommunication services, has unwaveringly strived to enhance its capabilities in maintaining its global footprints while addressing changing demands. Headquartered in Hong Kong, China, China Telecom has established its presence in 41 countries and regions and offers services worldwide to help global customers accelerate their business transformation journeys.

The 2022 ITTF World Team Table Tennis Championships Finals Chengdu, presented by China Telecom, will begin on 30 September.

DP World Tour and Emirates extend partnership agreement

The DP World Tour and Emirates have signed an extension to their partnership agreement that will see the international airline remain an Official Partner of golf’s DP World Tour until the end of the 2024 season.

As part of the agreement, Emirates will benefit from highly visible branding across 21 DP World Tour tournaments and the Tour’s media and digital platforms, as well as enjoying access to the Tour’s premium hospitality services and exclusive Pro-Am experiences. Emirates will also have Official Tournament Partner status at 14 events on the DP World Tour calendar each season. Emirates will continue to be a partner of the Tour’s Virtual Eye, which is an animated graphics system delivered through live television broadcasts, providing real-time positioning and information about player performance and statistics. In addition, a new Emirates Fly Better Moments content strand will showcase exciting moments from tournaments for fans via the Tour’s digital platforms.

Emirates is one of the world’s largest international airlines connecting customers to more than 130 destinations across six continents via Dubai with its modern fleet of Boeing 777 and Airbus A380 aircraft. The partnership between Emirates and the DP World Tour stretches back over 30 years, after Emirates became Title Partner of the Dubai Desert Classic in 1989. Emirates then became a Partner of the season ending DP World Tour Championship, Dubai in 2009, and became an Official Tour Partner and Official Airline of the Tour in 2014.

Sir Tim Clark, President Emirates Airline, said: “We’re delighted to extend our partnership with the DP World Tour. The tour continues to grow in prominence, attracting the best international golf players and providing us a platform to engage with golf fans on a global scale. Fittingly, the DP World Tour Championship culminates in Dubai, bringing visitors and global attention to Emirates’ home city which has also grown to become one of the world’s leading golfing destinations.”

Since 2009, the airline has carried more than 600 professional golfers to Dubai to play in the season ending DP World Tour Championship, bringing together more than 200,000 golf enthusiasts to watch the exciting tournament.

Guy Kinnings, Deputy Chief Executive and Chief Commercial Officer of the European Tour group, added: “Emirates are one of our longest serving partners and I’m delighted that they have decided to extend our partnership until the end of the 2024 season. As an airline that connects the world, they continue to benefit from aligning their brand with a truly global Tour – and our footprint continues to expand into new countries each season. We also benefit from Emirates’ extensive sports partnerships experience and proven track record in connecting sports fans to their passion.”

British Basketball League announce partnership with WSC Sports

The British Basketball League (BBL) are thrilled to announce a three year partnership with WSC Sports, the automated AI based video company who will ensure British Basketball fans see more content from the league than ever before. 

WSC Sports are one of the most experienced and very best content service providers in the world, working with over 250 sports leagues, clubs and organisations across the world. Their automated AI highlights creation system will allow the BBL to deliver content across all of its platforms, clubs, players and to media outlets across the globe. 

The new BBL season tipped off last weekend and following the announcement, fans will now be able to enjoy more near real time video content across all channels than ever before. Top Ten montages, condensed game highlights and short clips of the best plays are just some of the highlights that fans can expect throughout the 22/23 season.

The move to partner with WSC Sports highlights the BBL’s commitment to ensuring that it is driving awareness to the league across as many platforms as possible, as the league continues to build on an extremely exciting past 12 months on and off the court. 

The BBL’S Head of Marketing and Communications, Joe Edwards, said: “We’re absolutely delighted to be partnering with WSC Sports, their system will allow us to effectively provide an unprecedented amount of the best video content to our loyal existing fanbase, as well as new supporters around the world. With every game live across YouTube, BBL Player and Sky Sports this season, this partnership adds to our growing desire to highlight the growth of the league during an exciting time for the sport. I’m sure supporters will be excited to see all of the content across our various platforms this season!”

Ross Munro, Head of Commercial, UK, at WSC Sports said:  “We’re excited to partner with BBL at such a pivotal time for the league. The sky’s the limit for the growth of British basketball and we’re delighted that our technology is being used to contribute to that growth, while at the same time delivering more BBL action to basketball fans in the UK and around the world.”  

Member Insights: for the world’s fastest growing sport to live up to the hype – only a risk taking philosophy will win the day

Ben Nichols has previously worked at Premier Padel Paris Major at Roland Garros supporting the International Padel Federation (FIP) with Strategy and International Relations. In this article he looks into one of sport’s newcomers and what it needs to do to grow in a crowded market place.

With the seismic global events that the world has witnessed this year, most notably the recent death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and the outbreak of war in the Ukraine some months previous, it is easy to forget the array of other developments that have taken place globally.

For sport, as ever for this relatively young industry, there has been the steady flow of stories percolating, whether they be on-field events, governance related, political, commercial or personal. That, one can agree, is par for the course as far as sport in 2022 goes.

Yet, there’s one sport – a still relatively unknown one, at that – which is undergoing a rapid and tumultuous shake-up at the professional and the grassroots level – and that sport is padel.

As someone that has grown up with racket sports, I confess to having a significant dose of bias. Yet bias or no bias, padel is causing waves far beyond the low-hanging-fruit-tennis-playing-audience that should be easy pickings for this modern, inclusive, sociable, fun-loving sport.

Outside its Spanish-speaking and Latin heartlands – namely Spain, Italy, Argentina, Mexico and Portugal to name a few – and outside the racket sports community, the sport is starting to make some real noise.

For this 31-year-old-start-up sport – the sport’s fascinating juxtaposition is that the International Padel Federation (FIP) was established 31 years ago yet the majority of countries worldwide are only just waking up to smell the padel coffee – there is chatter in sporting circles and media coverage a-plenty causing huge hype for this sport which, for want of a better description, is a cross between squash and tennis played in a four-glass-walled perspex-come-cage box and usually in open air surroundings.

Take The Times newspaper which, ahead of Wimbledon this year described padel as ‘the sport that’s rapidly becoming a big hit’. Another mainstream British newspaper the Daily Mail cited the sport’s ability to attract other major sporting stars such as David Beckham, Lionel Messi and Rafa Nadal in a similarly-timed article.

And, pretty much anywhere you read about padel, it is sweepingly referred to as ‘the world’s fastest growing sport’ – though how one defines this is still up for debate. All this said, padel is undoubtedly, on the move.

Yet, with the sport growing at the grassroots level ever-faster in non-traditional padel markets such as the Netherlands, France, the UK, the UAE – and soon to be, I would imagine, Australia and the Asia Pacific region – it is what’s happening at the higher echelons of the sport, the professional elite level, which is the cause of growing attention and interest.


As was reported widely in the sport industry news earlier this year, the arrival of what promises to be a transformational new tour for the sport, Premier Padel, looks set to accelerate the growth in awareness of this sport amongst the sport-loving masses.

With Qatar Sports Investments-backed Premier Padel aligning with the global governing body FIP to accelerate and transform the sport at the elite level on one hand, and the Estrella Damm-beer-owned World Padel Tour having having reached its tenth anniversary this year, once the dust has settled on the power struggle at the top of sport, the greatest winner in the coming years will surely be padel itself.

Yet, whilst all this plays out – as background noise to those that want to pick up a padel racket and fans whose curiosity has been piqued by the chatter surrounding this sport – it is surely some bold risk-taking by sporting leaders that will truly lead to the game’s acceleration, because as it stands it is positive PR that is ahead of the reality of where the game finds itself at the global level.

Whilst good PR is just that – good – should the sport’s planners and administrators opt to take the sport’s top events to the Spanish-speaking heartlands, its comfort zone territories, to ensure full stadia and energised fans, then the sky isn’t the limit.

As a 31-year-old-start-up sport which has the benefit of learning from how other more traditional mainstream sports grew over much longer life spans – what sports did well, what sports didn’t – here, surely, is an opportunity, for padel to be bold, to do things differently and to demonstrate intent by venturing into new markets where the word padel is as yet an unspoken, foreign language.

If padel is to be the modern, edgy, slightly left-field, provocative new sport many profess it will be, then the sport needs a strategy that plays out this way.

Padel has made steady progress in this way in the Middle East. Whether by accident or design, the sport has cut into the mainstream in the expat-heavy markets of the UAE and Qatar. It also made the decision last week to stage an upcoming Premier Padel P1 tournament at New Giza in Egypt – the first time the sport has played a tournament of this level on African soil. It’s on track.

But what about real intent that lives up to the hype. Intent at a time when the sport has a greater spotlight shining down on its four glassed walls than ever before.

The sport should be going flat out to cement its place at next year’s Asian Games in Hangzhou, China – a major multi-sport event that would open up the gates to an entirely new, non-traditional padel market.

The Olympic Council of Asia has announced that it has begun a discussion with the International Padel Federation – namely by establishing a Task Force – to advance steps for inclusion at the Games.

This is a positive step – for the game to live up to its hype and become a truly global sport, however, a collaboration between the Asian Games and padel cannot come soon enough.

The same could be said about the Commonwealth Games – a major multi-sport event which has just hosted two successful editions of the Games (Gold Coast 2018 and Birmingham 2022) for countries covering one third of the world’s population.

For Commonwealth Sport – a sporting brand which has faced questions over relevance in recent times – and for a sport such as padel which needs to become truly global it would seem a win-win opportunity for both padel and the Commonwealth to embrace this modern progressive sport and take it to the next edition of the games in Victoria 2026, in sports-mad Australia no less.

And there are other opportunities no doubt. Other lateral, out-of-the-box thinking opportunities – that can open the gates for padel in the English-speaking market – the market really needs to capture if it is to ensure its growth runs in parallel with the positive PR.

To ensure it lives up to the hype and, perhaps above all, to ensure it attains the holy grail of Olympic inclusion which, ambitiously and pointedly could come at Los Angeles in 2028 – could there be a better signal of intent for padel to “break America” than launching its Olympic life in California – or, more likely, Brisbane in 2032.

The recent announcement of the launch of North America’s first professional padel league in 2023 is a step in the right direction – yet, it often takes generations to immerse a non-traditional sport in a new culture and that’s why bold, statement-making strategic decisions are needed by the sport.

They say in life that you will never achieve greatness until you step out of your comfort zone. Surely for padel, if it is to be a truly great and global sport as we hear its destiny, it is time to take a bold step where it has not yet gone – to take the sport into new territories and venture into markets where padel is still a big unknown. It’s time to take this radical new sport on a daring, exciting journey.

NBA launch new global app to create ‘all-in-one’ destination for fans of every team

The NBA today announced the launch of the reimagined global NBA App, the all-in-one destination for NBA fans of every team. 

With entirely new personalization features, the NBA App will provide wall-to-wall content from every NBA game and feature social-style vertical video, unprecedented behind-the-scenes access to players and teams, new and existing shows and series, and access to the NBA vault for free.  The NBA App – a product of NBA Digital, the league’s joint venture with Turner Sports – is free to download. 

Additionally, the NBA has launched NBA ID, the league’s new global membership program offering fans benefits and rewards from the league, teams and its partners.  NBA ID, which is free to join, will link a fan’s experiences across existing products like NBA League Pass and NBA Pick’Em.  Throughout the season, NBA ID members will get access to new original content and fan favorites from the NBA vault.  Additionally, there will be enhanced members-only experiences from NBA partners, ticket promotions, prizes through predictive and sweepstakes-style NBA Pick’Em fantasy games, voting campaigns and other rewards.  

The NBA App is powered by the NBA’s new integrated digital platform, which was built in partnership with Microsoft, the NBA’s official cloud and AI partner.  The NBA App now includes a sleek new design and a first-of-its-kind “For You” experience, with content recommendations based on fan preferences and personalization powered by Microsoft Azure and Azure AI.  Within the app’s “For You” page, fans can tap into a social-like vertical video experience – with vertical scrolling – that features real-time highlights of all NBA games in progress.  

The league’s direct-to-consumer subscription offerings – NBA League Pass and NBA TV – will be integrated into the NBA App, giving fans the ability to watch live games and highlights and check scores, statistics and standings, all in one place.  For NBA League Pass subscribers, the live streams will feature higher video quality, lower streaming latency and a seamless user experience for consuming live NBA content. 

NBA League Pass returns this season with a new bundle and at its lowest pricing ever.  For a limited time, the standard package is now available for £14.99 per month (£99.99 for full season) and the premium package for £19.99 per month (£129.99 for full season).  Subscribers will automatically receive the NBA TV direct-to-consumer offering as part of the new bundle.    

“Launching our new NBA App and digital platform is a major milestone as we continue to build and strengthen our direct-to-consumer offerings,” said Chris Benyarko, NBA Executive Vice President, Direct-to-Consumer.  “We are thrilled to deliver a reimagined product that will enhance and personalize the way NBA fans engage with the league on a daily basis.” 

“The relationship between Europe and basketball goes beyond the countless players from the continent who have made an impact at the highest levels of the game,” said NBA Head of Fan Engagement and Direct-to-Consumer for Europe and the Middle East, George Aivazoglou.  “The Hoops Cities series showcases the individuals, communities and stories that have shaped the history of basketball in Europe and fueled fandom for decades.  We think that this series – that will premiere on NBA League Pass within the new NBA App – will resonate deeply with our passionate European fans and unite them around their love of the game.” 

Content highlights on the NBA App include: 

Live Programming and Social-Style Content: 

  • Gameday Experience – Fans will be immersed in game-day content all day long and, for the first time, get live access to streams of all pregame and postgame NBA press conferences and media days from every major event.  In addition, NBA ID members will have access to teams’ pregame shows for NBA League Pass games.  

     
  • Lifestyle – Social-style content series looking at the lifestyle, culture, fashion, music and more around the game and off the court, including NBA Kicks, NBA Fits, Jersey Drop, Ride Along, Celebrity Row and NBA Ink, among others.
  • “CrunchTime” – A free weekly whiparound show taking fans live to crucial moments of each game and providing real-time updates and analysis, produced by NBA TV and hosted by Jared Greenberg.
  • “NBABet stream” – A weekly stream produced by NBA TV with betting expert Tim Doyle and a selection of top contributors to provide the latest betting information during live game coverage.
  • Live NBA League Pass Programming – In addition to 24/7 NBA TV programming and out-of-market live games, NBA League Pass subscribers will have access to expanded options for personalized viewing experiences through a wide variety of alternate streams, including additional camera angles, betting-focused streams, influencer-led and analytics-driven options, and in-language feeds with commentary in three languages (Spanish, Portuguese and Korean).  “NBA HooperVision” returns for its second season with former NBA players and hosts Nate Robinson and Quentin Richardson.

     

    External Content Contributors:  
  • All-Access Directly from Teams – Behind-the-scenes storytelling from teams’ social and digital channels. 

     
  • Partner Content – Content produced by popular basketball and sports-highlight creators, including Turner Sports, featuring content from the hosts of “Inside the NBA”, Grant Hill and Greg Anthony, as well as FanDuel, DraftKings, Action Network, Bleacher Report and more. 
  • Influencers – Influencer-created content from popular creators including Thinking Basketball’s Ben Taylor, Jesser, Kris London, Lethal Shooter, Devin Williams, Tristan Jass, and more focused on fashion, lifestyle and NBA culture both on and off the court. 

Exclusive Original Programming: 

  • “Gold Blooded” – A new seven-episode docuseries telling the story of the Golden State Warriors’ journey to the 2022 NBA championship.  Narrated by Andre Iguodala, the series features never-before-seen footage and new interviews with team executives and players, including Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green.  The first episode is available on the NBA App today. 

     
  • “Pass the Rock” – Fans will get an exclusive look at the league’s next generation of stars and their lives on and off the court throughout the 2022-23 season.  The multi-part series is slated to begin in late November. 
  • “Inside the App” – An exclusive weekly segment from TNT’s “Inside the NBA” team that will spotlight the hottest storylines and most topical events from around the league.    
  • “NBA Real Training Camp” with the Philadelphia Sixers (October 29) and Dallas Mavericks (October 30) – A special all-access show produced by NBA TV during the opening week of the season providing exclusive look-ins at the teams’ practices and interviews with players, coaches and front office personnel.  

     

    NBA Vault: 
  • Archived Games – Fans will have access to archival footage from the NBA vault, including 500 of the best classic games in NBA history.  Every NBA Finals game since 2000 will also be available, with more Finals and popular games being released throughout the season.  

     
  • Archived Series – Documentaries and all-access series from NBA Entertainment’s archives will be available on-demand, including “Dream Team”, “The Doctor”, “Wilt 100”, “The Association”, “Unscripted”, “Inside Stuff” and more. 

     

     

    International-Focused:  
  • NBA’s International Games – The NBA App will be the go-to destination for fans to engage with and watch The NBA Japan Games 2022 Presented by Rakuten & Nissan (Golden State Warriors vs. Washington Wizards on Friday, Sept. 30 at 6 a.m. ET and Sunday, Oct. 2 at 1 a.m. ET) and The NBA Abu Dhabi Games 2022 (Milwaukee Bucks vs. Atlanta Hawks on Thursday, Oct. 6 at noon ET and Saturday, Oct. 8 at noon ET). 

     
  • “Hoop Cities” – An eight-part, in-language docuseries produced by the NBA’s Europe and Middle East team that explores the local culture, history and basketball communities surrounding the game in key European cities.  Launching on NBA League Pass on Sept. 29 with the first three episodes: Belgrade, Serbia; Bologna, Italy, and Paris, France, the remaining five episodes will be released on a weekly basis including Kaunas, Lithuania (Oct. 6), Cologne & Leverkusen, Germany (Oct. 13), Seville, Spain (Oct. 20), Istanbul, Turkey (Oct. 27) and Thessaloniki, Greece (Nov. 3). 

Sky Sports announce broadcast extension with SPFL

Sky Sports will broadcast more Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) matches than ever before under a new agreement with the League. The four-year extension to the current deal means Sky Sports customers can continue to enjoy the biggest matches from the SPFL live every week of the season until 2029.

In addition, and for the first time, football fans will be able to watch exclusively live fixtures from the Scottish Women’s Premier League (SWPL) on Sky Sports from this season. The broadcaster will become an official partner of the SWPL and the title sponsor of the SWPL League Cup for the next seven seasons.

The new broadcast agreements include:

  • Up to 60 SPFL matches exclusively live each season from 2024/25, more than ever before, with scope to increase this over the term of the deal
  • Broadcasting live from each cinch Premiership ground up to five occasions each season from 24/25 – one more than in the current deal
  • A minimum of five SWPL or League Cup matches exclusively live each season from 2022/23, with scope to increase further during the term
  • All cinch Premiership clubs being able to sell Pay Per View streams within the UK and Ireland of up to five league home games per season, with immediate effect, subject to certain conditions including no matches during blocked hours
  • The latest Scottish football news across skysports.com and app, including exclusive features and interviews, plus dedicated live blog coverage and in game clips from games live on Sky Sports
  • Free-to-watch highlights of every Scottish Premiership game on Sky Sports’ digital platforms, YouTube, Sky Q and Sky Glass
  • Alongside coverage and visibility for the SPFL across all Sky Sports’ main social media channels, the bespoke Twitter channel @ScotlandSky will continue to be the home of all Scottish football content on Sky Sports
  • Dedicated weekly highlights show on Sky Sports Football

In addition, the only 24-hour sports news channel in the UK – Sky Sports News – will continue to bring viewers the latest news, exclusive interviews, results and best stories from all the teams in both Leagues, making Sky Sports the destination for fans of Scottish football.

Stephen van Rooyen, Sky’s EVP and CEO UK and Europe said: “Every time we extend our partnership with the Scottish Professional Football League, more football fans are watching. With this latest extension of our long running partnership, Sky Sports customers will continue to be treated to the biggest games and even more live matches. For the first time they will also have access to Scottish Women’s Premier League matches as well, as we look to continue to bring the best football to an even wider audience.”

Scottish Professional Football League CEO Neil Doncaster said: “This is a very significant financial and promotional deal for the SPFL and I’m delighted our clubs have overwhelmingly supported deepening their relationship with the UK’s leading sports broadcaster. Today’s announcement represents a major financial boost for our 42 member clubs at a time when the UK economy is facing significant headwinds, and will increase the exposure of Europe’s most exciting and passionate league.

“We have much work to do to achieve our target of paying fees to member clubs of £50million per season – but this is an important and significant first step towards that target. Sky has an unparalleled track record of capturing the spectacle and passion of our sport and this partnership will bring Scottish football’s action-packed drama to an even wider audience.”

SWPL Managing Director, Fiona McIntyre said: “This is an historic moment for the SWPL and an enormous step forward for the women’s game in Scotland. This deal brings significant financial investment to the new leagues and enhances the visibility of the SWPL at this crucial time for the game. I’m delighted that Sky Sports recognise the value and potential of the SWPL and will be a key partner for us as we enter into this new era.” 

“Our clubs have invested considerable resources and we can now see the rewards of that work, with increasing commercial interest. This deal will allow clubs to invest further and will put the SWPL on the map as one of the most progressive women’s leagues in the world.”

Sky Sports is the home of domestic football in the UK and Ireland, with more than 400 games per season across the SPFL, Premier League, WSL, and EFL.

DAZN Group announces acquisition of ELEVEN Group

DAZN Group, a leading global sports platform, has today announced an agreement to acquire the ELEVEN Group’s global sports media businesses. The deal expands DAZN’s capabilities in the live sports streaming sector and establishes DAZN as a global leader in this rapidly evolving space.  The benefits are threefold.

New and expanded territories. The transaction, when completed, will propel DAZN to become the broadcaster of top football leagues in Portugal and Belgium, two enthusiastic European footballing nations. ELEVEN Group’s businesses will also complement DAZN’s existing market-leading positions in Italy, DACH and Spain, where DAZN holds top tier domestic football rights. ELEVEN also has a presence in Taiwan and other Southeast Asian markets, giving DAZN a greater foothold in the region where it has a market leading business in Japan. 

This geographical expansion gives DAZN access to new audiences as it builds out its global platform and becomes a one-stop shop for everything a sports fan wants – a place for them to access the largest library of live and on-demand content, analysis, highlights, merchandise, ticketing, gaming, and betting.  It strengthens the business and drives economies of scale.

New revenue stream in social media. The acquisition of Team Whistle, the ELEVEN-owned media business, will enable DAZN to reach younger audiences, diversify and expand its fan engagement capabilities, and maximise the value of DAZN’s rights portfolio. Team Whistle is ranked within the top ten US media sports properties on ComScore with over 700 million followers across its channels, and a growing distribution network that generates around five billion views per month across social platforms. Combining the complementary business of Team Whistle with DAZN’s content rights creates a powerful proposition.

Expanded football rights. The acquisition cements DAZN as a global home of football through the integration of ELEVENsports.com and the 40,000 games it streams each year. Through a strategic relationship, ELEVEN plays a key role in FIFA’s OTT service FIFA+, supporting the production, delivery, and distribution of live games from over 90 FIFA Member Associations. Of note, combined, the companies will create the world’s biggest portfolio of women’s football content. ELEVEN boasts women’s content drawn from across six confederations, adding to DAZN’s impressive roster of UEFA Women’s Champions League, Liga F in Spain, the English FA Women’s Super League and the Women’s FA Cup, and Japanese WE League, among others.

The deal introduces a growing c.$300m a year to DAZN Group’s revenues.

Shay Segev, CEO, DAZN Group said: “The acquisition adds scale to our business. It is a big step forward in our mission to be the leading global sports platform. I have a great deal of respect for what Andrea, Marc and the team have achieved and look forward to working with them as we further expand our ambitions. Together we form the strongest and most credible management team in the sector. DAZN has invested in building a revolutionary digital sports platform, where fans can enjoy the full range of interactive sport entertainment. We are looking forward to expanding these capabilities to new markets as well as leveraging ELEVEN’s capabilities in DAZN.” 

Marc Watson, CEO Eleven Group, said: “We see DAZN as the future of digital sports broadcasting and the ideal home for ELEVEN. Sport is global entertainment and joining with DAZN will be transformative, allowing us to access greater economies of scale and a global platform for our talented team. We couldn’t be more excited about this deal, and I’m really looking forward to working with Shay and the team at DAZN.”

Kevin Mayer, DAZN Chairman, said: “This deal marks an acceleration of our strategy to diversify our offerings and leverage our fantastic sports properties and our platform into new markets and business models. Team Whistle is a growing business that has a proven track record in monetising short form content. It will be hugely valuable to DAZN as we look to generate the maximum value from our enviable rights portfolio, creating new formats of content to reach new audiences and generate powerful incremental revenue streams. We look forward to welcoming all our new colleagues.”

Andrea Radrizzani, ELEVEN Founder & Chairman and Owner of Leeds United said: “We have developed a successful sports media company in the last six years with ELEVEN, and we’re delighted that this journey continues. The merger will provide greater opportunities as a group to continue to build a global destination for sports fans, which was our mission from day one.”

Upon completion of the deal, Andrea Radrizzani, ELEVEN founder, will join DAZN’s board as an executive director, and will support the DAZN Group’s business development.

Established in 2015, ELEVEN is a sports media destination delivering world-class entertainment to fans around the world, broadcasting over 65,000 hours of live content over the past year. From the world’s biggest sporting events to the best local sport and award-winning original programming – fans enjoy a 24/7 offering of the best live and non-live content across the ELEVEN Group.

As a global, digital sports entertainment platform, DAZN is fast becoming the daily destination for sports fans across the world. DAZN’s ambitions go beyond broadcasting. DAZN’s platform is becoming a one-stop-shop for everything a sports fan wants. Soon, DAZN customers will be able to not only watch live and on-demand sport, but listen to and read about sport, play games and bet, buy sporting NFTs, tickets, and merchandise.

The deal is subject to anti-trust review; as such, the completion date remains unknown.

Guggenheim Securities acted as financial advisor to ELEVEN Group on this transaction.

Guild Esports and Sky Broadband announce new partnership

Guild Esports, a global team organisation, and Sky, one of Europe’s leading media, entertainment and connectivity companies, join forces to offer UK gamers a next generation esports experience.    

With over 17m passionate gamers playing over seven hours a week across the UK, the gaming revolution is set to continue, which is why Sky, with its fast and reliable full-fibre broadband, and Guild are coming together to help enhance the experience for gamers.  

Together, Sky and Guild are committed to supporting and developing the gaming community, with initial focus in three core areas: 

  • Women in gaming – providing greater opportunities for women in the esports industry 
  • Driving esports performance – leading the way in player performance and best practice coaching developments   
  • Engaging audiences – bringing esports to Sky customers with exclusive competitions and experiences across all of Guild’s titles  

As part of the partnership, Sky will be Guild’s official HQ, Wi-Fi and Broadband and Mobile Network partner for the next three years and the Guild Esports performance centre in the heart of London’s Shoreditch will be named the Sky Guild Gaming Centre. To transform the gaming experience, Sky Full-Fibre Broadband will power the centre, with its reliable and game-changing speeds, giving Guild’s professional players a faster edge as they learn, train, and compete online.  

Sky’s branding will feature in a striking outdoor mural on the building and be the headline partner on Guild’s team jersey for the 22/23 season. The new jersey will be worn for the first time by Guild X, Guild’s all female Valorant team, as they play in Riot’s Game Changer tournament this week.  

And for gamers at home, Sky Broadband offers full fibre to millions of homes across the UK, with gigafast speeds of up to 900 Mb/s, so more people can benefit from an ultra-reliable in-home gaming experience. 

Rory Moran, Director of Global Partnerships at Guild Esports, said: “We are incredibly proud to welcome Sky to Guild Esports, and be the first major partnership for Sky in esports. Sky is a media, entertainment and connectivity powerhouse that will help drive Guild to the highest levels of performance in competitive esports globally. 

“This landmark partnership is built on a shared vision for success and a commitment to driving the esports sector forward, through initiatives powering women in gaming. Not only does this partnership represent Guild’s successes to date and plans for the future but it’s also a testament to the values that sit at our core.”

Stephen van Rooyen, EVP & CEO, UK and Europe at Sky, said:“Sky transformed the way families watch TV, now we want to transform the gaming experience. In esports every second counts, so Sky’s full fibre broadband will be perfect for Guild’s gaming HQ. Speed and reliability, hallmarks of Sky’s broadband service, will give the Guild team and gamers across the nation the edge over the competition.”

David Beckham, Investor in Guild Esports, said: “It’s great that Guild Esports has a fantastic new partner in Sky and I’m pleased to welcome them to the Guild family.”

Women in gaming
Building on the success of Guild’s all female Valorant team, Valorant X, signed in September 2021, the partnership will see Guild launch a new all-female Rocket League team. With the ambition to foster greater female participation in gaming, Sky and Guild are committed to creating an inclusive environment through thought leadership, education, promotion and by establishing suitable professional opportunities for women in esports. 

Driving esports performance
Establishing the UK as a top-five nation in the global esports landscape, the Sky Guild Gaming Centre will support esports players from grassroots to professionals and act as a hub not only for top tier players, but for the wider gaming community – powered by Sky’s ultrafast, full fibre broadband to provide a seamless gaming experience with speed, reliability, and low latency. 

Engaging audiences
Bringing Sky customers closer to Guild’s teams and players, Sky and Guild will work together to deliver exclusive esports competitions for Sky customers across all of Guild’s titles, alongside access to exclusive merchandise and bespoke digital collectables. 

Sky Broadband Gigafast is perfect for gamers with full fibre speeds of 900 Mb/s and the ability to connect more than 100 devices at the same time. Offering a high performance, seamless and reliable connection, Gigafast gives you the freedom to simultaneously game, stream and work online, whether it be via live stream on Twitch, Discord or holding a gaming online party, and lets you download games and buffer large game updates all at the same time. 

The agreement was identified and brokered by MediaCom PLAY, the Global gaming, metaverse & web3 experts.