Billy Dawson, Sales Executive at Harlequins who spent time with iSportLearn during his time on furlough with the rugby team, explains what he learnt from being involved with iSportLearn.
How did I get into sport?
Having always had a passion for playing sports, it was clear for me that working in sport would be where my career started. After completing my Sport Business Management at Leeds Beckett University, a particularly varied course covering areas such as marketing, sponsorship, strategy, and globalisation of sport I was certain it was the right area for me.
Having exited university I applied to many roles at sports clubs and companies before finally getting my chance with Harlequins Rugby.
How did working at iSportLearn help me?
Something that I wish I had access to during my time at university was an additional learning resource like iSportLearn.
Whilst I enjoyed the theory side of the learning at university, had I been able to have an additional resource with practical industry examples from some of the top sports leaders in the world this would have been a great additional benefit to complement my learning.
When I was put on furlough in 2020 having still been fresh into the role, I was keen not to let the time go to waste and looked for any opportunities available in the sports industry where I could broaden my knowledge during this time.
When I approached iSportConnect to express my interest, they mentioned they had this new learning platform aimed at helping those from disadvantaged backgrounds get a step on the ladder into the sports industry, something which excited me when the prospect of getting involved was voiced.
Speaking to 60 industry leaders about how they could get involved with the iSportLearn programme was a daunting experience at first but one that I learned a lot from, these guys have a wealth of knowledge about the sports industry and being able to talk passionately about how they are helping the next generation of industry leaders and adding them to my network of people wasn’t something I had imagined a few months prior.
Sandy and Joe integrated me into the team straight away and it was great to be on board such a brilliant initiative which I will certainly keep an eye on.
I would recommend everyone from the of 16-24 looking to get into sport to take a look at these programmes, this is the best way of educating yourself on what working in the sports industry is really like through actual examples from those who have been there and done it.
iSportConnect’s Ben Page recently spoke to Adam Collins and Martin Marinov of the International Canoe Federation after their Sprint World Cup in Barnaul, Russia, one of the markets the organisation is targeting for expansion.
How has the restarting process been this year for the ICF, and how did the recent Sprint World Cup go with not long until the Olympics begin?
Martin – Well in 2020 we held only one competition for the whole season and our athletes were hungry for racing, we did a survey and discovered they really wanted to continue racing if it were possible, so we’ve been doing everything to hold events again.
We put safety measures in place like wearing masks, distancing, temperature checks, and we had test centers on site taking PCR tests on arrival and departure plus regular lateral flow tests. Luckily we had no positive Covid tests, so it was a really good experience and the athletes were really good [with the restrictions], because they were thinking about the Olympics where, if they got COVID now, it would be very difficult for them if they need a couple of months to recover. So the athletes were strict in following all the restrictions, protecting themselves and others even more than we asked, so it was a good experience.
“We had to create something sustainable, that we can use for the future as we don’t know how long Covid will stay… we had to learn how to run competitions during this pandemic.”
We tried to create a different approach and told everyone competing ‘Covid is not going to disappear from the world in a month so we have to learn how to deal with it in this environment. We had to create something sustainable, that we can use for the future as we don’t know how long Covid will stay, but we couldn’t just cancel competitions, we had to learn how to run competitions during this pandemic.
That’s interesting, I haven’t heard anyone else speak about the athletes themselves, particularly those going to the Olympics, being even more cautious than the actual organisations that are setting up these events.
Martin – Obviously you get some slight differences between nations. Some are much more wary from what they maybe experienced within their home nation, compared to others. But it really is a big risk for them to potentially affect everything logistically, if they were to catch it and have to quarantine somewhere that affects their training, their flights, so it’s a big deal.
We saw with some who have already booked their place it wasn’t worth trying to go to that extra effort to compete when they already have a place, for instance the Australians, it was almost impossible for them to get out. If they do get out, they’re probably not going to be able to return to Australia before the Olympics.
Looking at a digital perspective, what has the ICF been doing in terms of developing your online presence over the last year?
Adam – It was a challenge for us without any competitions, we rely on them a lot as we have 10 different disciplines. So for that reason we have a lot of events to get through, we’ve got the two Olympic disciplines, sprint and slalom which have a World Championships and World Cups every year, then with the other disciplines, some have World Championships every year and some every other year.
In 2019 we live-streamed 18 events across all the disciplines, which was more than we’d ever done before, which shows how heavy our event schedule is and geared towards the live coverage of those competitions. It was a real challenge for us to think about content outside of that, because we weren’t doing enough of it, but it was also quite good for us to realise that actually there’s more we should and can be doing.
“I’m really happy with 2020 because 2020 really gave us the opportunity to learn what the younger generation wants, using what we can do online, how we can engage people, and how we can improve.”
We did a whole manner of things to engage people and keep content going. We created canoe kids, resources for kids to do at home to try to educate them about the sport. We also did some podcasts, tried new things with athletes and challenges to keep people active by paddling and livestreams for coaching to upskill people. Stand up paddling also had a big uptake once people started to get out of lockdown, so we’ve to help give some tips to beginners through live sessions with athletes.
Martin – I’d also like to add that, actually, I’m really happy with 2020 because 2020 really gave us the opportunity to learn what the younger generation wants, using what we can do online, how we can engage people, and how we can improve.
A lot of our partners were talking for years and years to create virtual competitions and virtual training between people from different areas, by the end of 2020 that was in effect, so we now have options to have virtual competitions and online training between different people which is really positive.
What are the main keys you are looking to gain through your broadcasting and the content that you produce?
Adam – At the moment we’re most committed to exposure and growing the sport, we utilise YouTube for reach and help the SEO of our website to drive traffic to us. The exposure through YouTube is obviously great and has been doing really well, it’s tripled over the last few years prior to the pandemic.
We also started to distribute to other channels, we utilise Facebook Live, and we have developed a Huya channel for exposure in China, which was a new development in 2019 and had huge success as we had up to 500,000 live viewers and 30 million views for the five events we covered, so we’ve continued with it.
It was fantastic because prior to the Olympics there had been no live coverage of canoeing within China and the next step is to build a better connected audience with them.
You just held the recent sprint World Cup in Russia, is this a key market that you’re looking at expanding and what’s the role an event like this can play to do so?
Martin – Russia is one part of what we’re targeting. Russia and all these countries say they’re hungry for more action, and having a competition in a different part of Russia definitely brought a lot of people to the course and also in front of TVs in Russia.
Like Adam said, a couple of years ago we had massive expansion in China and in 2019 they had four gold medals at the World Championships for the first time which was a massive success for them. So Russia and of course the US market is a goal and that’s why we have the ICF Canoe Sprint Super Cup this year in Oklahoma in August, one of our top events with superstars of the sport.
Adam has also successfully managed to gain massive support from India, we’ve seen so many Indians watching our competitions, so our targets are the big countries, also Australia, and, following on from Rio 2016, in Brazil there’s a big interest. Right now we have top guys from all these countries, which really helps us to promote our sport.
As you have so many different events, you can take them to many places, does that give you a bigger opportunity by being able to get closer to those potential fans?
Martin – That was definitely our goal in Russia, and we want to expand our sport outside of Europe. We also want to create a culture that competitors can use rental boats, they don’t have to bring their own boats. We want to have competitions in America, Africa, Asia and Oceania. This was like a pilot project, which was successful, no one complained about the boats, which usually have their colours on and maybe their sponsors, even though it was an Olympic qualifier which brings a lot of stress to the athletes.
What are your current key markets? You mentioned expanding to some major countries, but what are your biggest markets currently?
Adam – As Martin mentioned we are predominately a very European sport at the moment, and I think most of that centres around the boat issue which is what Martin has been trying to solve and did successfully in Russia. The other challenge is thinking about the environmental side. Normally they drive from one event to the other in Europe and can transport the boats much easier, so we have to think about those impacts as well but for that reason it’s a very European sport.
It’s a difficult question to give a single answer because of our different disciplines, they’re almost like different sports themselves. Sprint is huge in Hungary, canoe sprint is like football to them, and then we have a lot of the predominant European nations, UK, France, Spain, Germany, but we know there are markets with good athletes outside that. We worked with Redtorch to do some digging into our social analysis to identify our current and potential key markets across all our disciplines. This has helped to target our developments, America has that culture and history of paddling but are only just having some top athletes come through so we focus on recreation and look to build that bridge to competing.
Martin mentioned athletes from China and Brazil having success, outside of your own content have you involved those athletes?
Adam – The Chinese Federation have really helped develop the sport a lot there, and they have medal hopes for Tokyo. In 2019 they invested a lot into events, we’d never been holding events in China before, suddenly we had three in one year. So when a nation wants to help push the sport that much, we should embrace it and that was a fantastic opportunity for us to do that.
“With Brazil, they’ve got a couple of athletes who are really popular and have really good following, so anything they do on social media goes really and therefore we target them. These are partnerships we’re trying to build.”
Of course you get the challenges with the Chinese, it’s harder for us to communicate and work with them and we need to start working with other agencies to help that through our strong relationship with the Chinese national coach, who actually was doing some commentary for us on our live stream in China.
With Brazil, they’ve got a couple of athletes who are really popular and have really good following, so anything they do on social media goes really and therefore we target them. These are partnerships we’re trying to build and we have been working closely with some of those. One of these athletes was Pepe Goncalves, who’s a Brazilian slalom paddler and also extreme slalom paddler, he’s been fantastic for us, he’s great to work with, and he always goes down really well on social media so we’ve developed for a good relationship with him and hopefully we can do that with more athletes too.
How do you try and capitalise on the boost of the Olympics despite it not being your own event?
Martin – Events like the Olympics are actually a reasonably small competition for us as it’s a small regatta and we are looking at how to spread this between more countries because people are interested to watch their representatives. We want competitors from continents like Asia, America, Africa, so we have methods from each continent to engage these people to watch it.
We do have dialogue with the IOC but it’s quite difficult to implement changes to events as they have so many other competitions, whereas with our own we’re obviously in total control. Then there are restrictions on the sport presentation which Adam can talk about.
Adam – Yes, the promotion of it is a real challenge from our side and always has been with the Olympics because understandably they’re very protective of their brand and their content, which has only being escalated by the Covid situation, the safety is paramount there so it’s going to be very difficult to have any access to athletes.
We’re working on ways we can communicate with them and get content differently from normal, using technology to help give us access to them and using them to upload videos and content to us. So we’ll have to rely on athletes who are proactive there. On the one hand athletes are more focused on performance, and it’s hard to request too much, but now they won’t have the same experience as normal and could just be in their hotel room for large amounts of time so may be more willing to produce content for us.
We will have a lack of content as we’re one of the smaller sports, so won’t have any live coverage on the Olympic channel, which becomes a challenge to try and promote the coverage in different countries as it will come down to the rights holders.
How much of a part do the athletes play in terms of making themselves available in order to promote the sport that they love for someone like the ICF?
Adam – Some athletes really understand that and I think a lot maybe don’t fully get the bigger picture of how it’s all connected and how they can help grow the sport, and themselves at the same time. Some just don’t make that connection. We tend to revert back to the same people, just because we know they’re easy to work with, but hopefully we can build more relationships.
I think when I first started, there was clearly a sort of breakdown in relationship between the Federation and athletes, so we’ve done a lot of work to build on that and work much closer with them and hopefully I think they’re starting to understand the benefits and how we can help each other.
The explosion in digital media channels is posing both a challenge and an opportunity to sports clubs, governing bodies and rights holders, according to a London based sports TV producer that has just launched a new service to help sports navigate the multichannel minefield.
1080 Media TV has launched a new approach to help sports respond progressively through its new SPORTSCAST|360™ service which provides a flexible approach to content creation and repurposing. CEO Clifford Webb said, “The rapidly evolving multichannel world needs new strategies that engage fans and drive revenue growth across a wide spectrum of digital touch points. An omnichannel marketing approach was originally developed by online retailers to stimulate buying decisions through customer interactions on multiple media.”
The company says that many leading retail sports brands have been particularly effective in driving online sales in this way. It is now evolving beyond e-tailing and the pandemic has been something of a catalyst and accelerator in driving a wider ‘omnichannel’ approach to help sports manage the growth in digital media and platforms more effectively. The concept helps maximise reach, drive revenue, build brand value and develop fan and sponsor engagement.
“We’ve had to take a look at how we produce content and reuse and repurpose it.”
A podcast special report has been produced in conjunction with iSportConnect to examine the concept in detail. Chief Strategy Officer, Sandy Case, agreed that we’re living in a multichannel world: “There’s an omnichannel culture out there and it’s becoming apparent that there are now new revenue streams through new technology being created, that people didn’t know existed, so there are now more ways sports can make money.”
Executive Director of the World Match Racing Tour, James Pleasance, agreed: “While TV content is crucial, with the onset of all these new social media channels and the speed at which they’re developing, and the speed at which people are consuming content, we’ve had to take a look at how we produce content and reuse and repurpose it.”
This global sailing series was built on the same discipline as the America’s Cup using matched, single hull yachts, and it’s awarded over $23-million USD prize money since it was established twenty years ago. Yet sailing is seen as a ‘challenger sport’ and can take advantage of an omnichannel approach to build awareness and grow its audience and fan base. They have achieved over three million views of archive footage shared on social media during the pandemic.
“As media channels become more widespread and smarter, so have sponsors, who have explored how they can activate and maximise through those channels – and I think that’s why it’s essential to have these channels available for sponsors,” added Pleasance.
“Now through the explosion of social media we can be smart. Social was about reach, now it’s more about how fans are engaging, and how you engage comes down to how you target them and what content you use. It’s a challenge but also a huge opportunity.”
Host broadcaster and content producer for the World Match Racing Tour is 1080 Media TV and Pleasance admits he learns from their experience with other sports too, in addition to the likes of the NFL, F1 and major golf tournaments. 1080 Media TV’s CEO Clifford Webb agrees, “There are so many different channels and opportunities. We’re focussed on getting the message out to as wide an audience as possible, which requires constant production and editing of a variety of content on each day of an event. We can achieve that very effectively by tailoring content specifically to the audience and the channels we’re targeting, so you have to customise everything.”
Nicolas Marullo is President and CEO of Canadian based media tech company Cinco and heads up their innovation lab, and has been developing responses to develop new multichannel experiences: “We always say that content is King, but context is Queen. It’s important to create content that makes sense. There are now so many touch points – sports need to understand this too.
“Different channels or platforms will achieve different things, but it’s about the passion of the fans: They want to cheer with other fans, they want info from experts; they want to receive exclusive content, they want to have special access and special treatment. If you go back to the basics and capture the essence of why we love sports, and why social media is so important, and why digital is becoming a very important part of our lives; mix it together and do it in a meaningful way and the recipe will bring you success.”
iSportConnect Editor at Large, Jay Stuart, agrees, ‘’In the near future the fandom, the loyalty, the passion, may go to those sports that can deliver a good entertainment experience. I can envision a world where I don’t support that team anymore because they’re not giving me anything in terms of my digital consumption and where I want to be. It’s a challenge for sports and for rights owners. They can say, ‘we’ll always have fans’ but I look at it and say, no, you could be gone. I think that’s the reality that a lot of them have to face’’.
“A sponsor will tell you people are not fans of their product, they might consume their products, but they are fans of sports teams and players and sponsors want to be liked in the same way.”
“People who watch one sport, want to watch others. Omnichannel has to be different things for different fans. A lot of sports fans are omnisports fans, they’re promiscuous in their sports appetites.”
However Stuart recognises sports ultimately have the upper hand: “A sponsor will tell you people are not fans of their product, they might consume their products, but they are fans of sports teams and players and sponsors want to be liked in the same way. So sports is in a very special position and there are just more and more opportunities for them to benefit from this new omnichannel world.”
You can hear much more in the podcast, compiled and presented by media producer and consultant Jonathan Levy, who is also a former Global Communications and Partnerships Director with an international sport.
You can listen to the full podcast here:
1080 Media TV has produced The Omnichannel Playbook – a free guide which outlines a 5-point plan to: Grow fan and sponsor engagement; Build global reach; Develop live, highlights, hybrid events, social content and human stories; Create an interactive community; Drive revenue and build brand. It comprises 25 key considerations, case studies, background, statistics, a comprehensive media matrix and implementation tips. To request your free copy email info@1080media.org, or use the contact page of their website at www.1080media.org
After the high demand from broadcasters, fans, and sponsors WBSS AG is delighted to announce Season III of the World Boxing Super Series; one tournament, one weight class, and one winner to be the first woman to raise the Muhammad Ali Trophy.
Ali Trophy winners Aleksander Usyk, Callum Smith, Josh Taylor, Naoya Inoue, and Mairis Briedis forever testaments to what this sport can be when you match the best fighters in the ring. It catapults our champions into true greatness. It elevates the entire sport.
Women’s Super-Featherweight is the sixth edition and third season of WBSS since September 2017.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQ-DWUUb50o
Andreas Benz, CEO of WBSS AG:
“Boxing is and has always been much more than a sport. It is a metaphor for life. The fighters walk into the squared circle with big dreams of winning and glory and sometimes even, a better life. In no other sport is so much at stake.”
“In Season I and II we delivered the best tournaments in men’s boxing, but it was always our dream to not only deliver the best tournament in men’s boxing but to prepare a worthy stage for women’s boxing and support these fantastic fighters, too. Now it’s time to realise it!”
“It will be much more than the greatest women’s boxing tournament. We plan to strategically help to broaden women’s boxing, both at the grassroots and elite level, and develop a professional environment where talents and profiles can grow and legacies are born.”
“As always, the WBSS will do everything to deliver the best fights and productions possible and we are dedicated to entertaining boxing fans around the globe. We can’t wait to turn the lights back on!”
Kalle Sauerland, WBSS Chief Boxing Officer:
“It’s been something we have talked about since our inauguration and it gives me great, great pleasure – and us great pleasure at the World Boxing Super Series to announce Season III; the women, the super featherweights.”
“The sport is an amazing place. Competition is hotter than ever. The super featherweights we feel is a division that has such depth and also allows those in the divisions around it to take part. We feel that this is the time, the right time, women’s boxing has never been this good. We are looking forward to a spectacular season.”
“Women’s boxing goes back to a time where it was banned to times where it was non-existing is a male-dominated sport. It goes back to fighting for places on cards to get any sort of attention.
“I remember the first world title fight I promoted for Cecilia Brækhus two decades ago. It took place on an undercard. Cecilia went on to unify the sport and became a headliner in her own right, a national hero, a global ambassador for the sport.”
“Many other greats have also held the flag of female boxing. Going back to Regina Halmich, Jane Couch, Nicola Adams, Holly Holm, Katie Taylor. There are so many. But the opportunity the World Boxing Super Series brings for female boxing is second to none.”
“In short, the quest, another quest, for the Muhammad Ali Trophy has begun. The WBSS is back!”
Announcement on the Season III roster and schedule will be made in due course, in the meantime check the new WBSS webpage and social channels for updates.
Boxer reactions to the WBSS Season III news:
Jane Couch MBE, Britain’s first licensed female boxer and former five-time Champion: “I want to send a massive, massive shout-out to the World Boxing Super Series for doing great things for women’s boxing. Massive luck in Season III and good luck to all.“
Regina Halmich, Germany’ former Flyweight Champion and Hall of Fame member: “This is very good news for women’s boxing. It was about time that my sport gets more credit. I really believe this will be a great tournament. I’m looking forward to great fights and new superstars.
Callum Smith, Britain’s WBSS Season I Super-Middleweight Champion: “It’s good to see the women get a chance to lift the trophy this season. I want to wish everyone involved a massive ‘good luck’. I’m looking forward to watching a great tournament.”
The WBSS: The World Boxing Super Series (WBSS) is a first-of-its-kind boxing tournament organised by WBSS AG since 2017. Each weight class features eight boxers competing in a knockout competition with the champion taking the Muhammad Ali Trophy, The Greatest Prize in Boxing.
Muhammad Ali Trophy winners: Season I: Aleksandr Usyk (Cruiserweight), Callum Smith (Super-Middleweight) Season II: Josh Taylor (Super-Lightweight), Naoya Inoue (Bantamweight), Mairis Briedis (Cruiserweight)
Pedro Febrero, Head of Blockchain at RealFevr dives deep into bitcoin and blockchain technology and discusses the power of smart contracts and how these technologies can be adopted by the Sports and eSports industry, enhancing clubs, companies, fans and every single individual operating in the space.
(how bitcoin works, by CryptoNerds)
Bitcoin was the first cryptocurrency that ever existed and the catalyst for developing the plurality of blockchain technology projects we see today. Without bitcoin, there would be no blockchain.
Bitcoin is also a network and a protocol, as much as it is a currency, which makes it even harder to understand. It’s a way for anyone in the world to send a message that contains financial information.
There are core technologies that the Bitcoin protocol uses, which we think are critical to fully understand before we move forward into how the blockchain and cryptocurrency will revolutionize the sports and Esports industries. The most important are:
Encryption and anonymity: the Bitcoin protocol uses standard encryption (PGP) and a hashing algorithm, SHA256, to anonymize and link transactions and blocks. Some users confuse “privacy” with “anonymity”. Bitcoin grants users some level of anonymity because transactions are pseudo-anonymous. In the Bitcoin network, we can see the amounts transacted and the addresses of users.
Proof-of-Work(or high energy requirements): Bitcoin mechanism to mint new bitcoin and validate transactions is called mining. Essentially mining requires users to spend enormous amounts of computational power to participate in each minting round. We dive deeper into mining in the next module but think of mining as the same process humans need to find gold. It’s energy-wasteful and needs a bunch of resources, including the capital. This makes each bitcoin unique and impossible to counterfeit. High energy requirements make Bitcoin transactions immutable.
Peer-to-peer (P2P): to make Bitcoin usable, each transaction must be done directly from user to user. Essentially, if you own your private keys, explained further down the road, it means you’re able to spend your bitcoin directly, and you can do it without a central trusted party. Information is sent directly between nodes which anyone can run from anywhere in the globe. Pretty cool, right?
Open participation: one of the most important characteristics of Bitcoin is that no single entity owns the network. Because the software is open-source and the network is decentralized (P2P), anyone can contribute to the Bitcoin protocol by developing or testing code, mining, running a node to validate transactions or simply by buying and “holding”. Bitcoin is censorship resistant since no single entity can block others from participating. Additionally, the Bitcoin network is a public network.
The blockchain (or time-locks): Each bitcoin transaction gets stored in a block. And each block receives linked to a previous block containing previous transactions. There is a time sequence we can follow to connect transactions outputs. Meaning, each block links to the last block by a hash, which creates a barrier for double-spending or counterfeiting. If we change one block, all consequent blocks need to be changed as well. Because Bitcoin requires massive amounts of energy to create a single block, it’s near impossible to change past blocks. Hence, accountability increases since we can link transactions through time.
Monetary incentives: finally, we need a system to incentivize participants in the Bitcoin network to maintain good behaviour. Bitcoin was built with positive game-theory assumptions like people will behave according to the rules if the protocol awards good behaviour. Hence, miners who maintain the Bitcoin network alive and participate in the mining process will be rewarded several bitcoin, such as a block reward, decreasing with time. Additionally, users pay transaction fees to block validators, or miners, when their transactions are posted.
The power of blockchain and smart contracts
Now that you’ve understood why bitcoin is unstoppable, you may extend that into other areas related to cryptocurrency, namely smart contracts.
Essentially, by creating code that runs on top of a blockchain (i.e., Binance Smart Chain), one can make it genuinely unstoppable. As long as smart contracts creators respect the rules of the underlying protocol and smart contracts users respect the rules of the smart contracts, this means anyone can run the code and verify its operations.
Not only that, but anyone can run nodes that contain those smart contracts and the entire history of the blockchain. Therefore, what are the main advantages of blockchain and smart contracts?
Improved accuracy by removing human involvement in verification,
Cost reductions by eliminating third-party verification,
Decentralization makes it harder to tamper with,
Transactions are secure, private, and efficient,
Transparent technology.
Open participation by any player who follows the rules of the protocol and smart contracts.
While there are many critical advantages for the use of smart contracts and blockchain technology in various industries, we argue that no other field will benefit as much as Sports and eSports. Let’s discuss why.
Blockchain in sports
We’ve previously discussed how bitcoin works and why it empowers its users. Next, we’ve seen the advantages of using blockchain and smart contracts. Now, we’ll finally dive into how both technologies are changing the face of the Sports and eSports industries forever.
According to Statistica, the global sports betting industry surpassed $203 billion in 2020 alone. Not only that, but by 2024, there are expected to be 577.2 million viewers of Esports worldwide, a significant increase from the 397.8 million in 2019. This is an enormous market that blockchain can streamline with cost and efficiency thanks to the nature of the technology.
For example, blockchain is widely used to incentivize fan interaction and create unique experiences, with digital collectibles like RealFevr is soon releasing. Blockchain also allows athletes to crowdfund performances by utilizing income share agreements. Blockchain technology in the sports industry is reimagining the fan experience to create innovative fan engagement opportunities.
“Blockchain has created new revenue streams for teams and clubs while monetizing fan engagement through tokenized teams and loyalty reward schemes.”
Furthermore, blockchain has created new revenue streams for teams and clubs while monetizing fan engagement through tokenized teams and loyalty reward schemes. To conclude, right-holders will also benefit from royalties generated through smart contracts and content creators will also see their IP protected by unchangeable code that runs in a decentralized platform.
Also, blockchain is rapidly developing in the collectible and gaming worlds, pushed by organizations like RealFevr that are currently building the next-generation fantasy games and collectibles marketplaces.
Sports and Esports blockchain use-cases
To go further down the rabbit hole, we would like to take a more expressive look at some of the most critical use cases, ones that RealFevr is developing, that will have an immediate impact on how both industries operate.
Fantasy Leagues
Similar to real-life sports betting, blockchain technology has created the opportunity for fans to create and monetize their own fantasy sports teams. Through the use of tokenized assets, fans may soon be able to purchase a non-fungible token (NFT) of their favourite player that could be valued based on performance, for example. Blockchain-based games allow participants to use their NFTs in-game or trade on an NFT marketplace, such as the RealFevr Marketplace coming out soon.
Token Leagues (wagering)
Token leagues have a similar format to Fantasy Leagues, with the main difference being fans are able to wager tokens. Let’s use Real Fevr’s case as an example.
Not only can fans compete in free leagues, but they will also be able to bet tokens, like FEVR, into matches. This way, the competition becomes far more interesting because there is a final prize to win, per round. Still, use-cases do not stop in fungible tokens (ERC20) with a limited use case of fan service.
Sports Collectibles
One of the excellent blockchain use cases in esports and the traditional sports industry is verifiable authentication of memorabilia and collectibles. Organizations and clubs can securely sell merchandise directly to their fans and remove intermediaries. Also, this creates a new way for fans to show their support and commitment to a team.
Additionally, the technology can potentially eradicate counterfeit sporting merchandise and goods. Using blockchain, each branded collectible item or memorabilia can be given a unique digital identity.
However, in RealFevr’s case, it does not stop here. Collectibles can also be used in Fantasy and Token Leagues.
Subscriptions
Subscriptions work as a “staking” model, where fans can lock cryptocurrencies during a fixed period to receive periodic NFTs. Let’s dig into RealFevr’s use case.
Fans who wish to receive packs regularly may lock FEVR tokens in a specified smart contract that will award them a fixed number of packs per drop. Hence, instead of waiting in a queue at each drop or avoiding missing packs every time there is a new drop, fans can adopt the subscription model.
The price for each subscription depends on the number of spots available.
Borrowing and Lending
A final example of how NFTs are helpful in sports is borrowing and lending digital collectibles, so that fans can use them in-game.
“Instead of waiting in a queue at each drop or avoiding missing packs every time there is a new drop, fans can adopt the subscription model.”
Instead of just selling the digital asset in the marketplace, fans can borrow and lend video collectibles from and to other fans, maximizing their utility.
When a fan lends a video collectible, he will get extra FEVR tokens. When a fan borrows a video collectible, he will pay FEVR tokens to the other fan. However, because the asset is returned to the original owner, the amounts charged will be much more affordable.
What does the future look like?
Adding to the use cases above, we’ve identified a plurality of additional use-cases that will also play a major role in clubs, players, fans and agents involved in the Sports and eSports industries:
Ticketing
Using NFTs, an additional blockchain use case for esports and the sporting industry is digital tickets. Cryptographically and mathematically verifiable, unique, blockchain-based sports tickets mean token fraud could soon be a thing of the past.
Player Rights
There is much detail that goes into creating a player transfer contract. Mandatory in every contract is the breakdown of the players’ rights when signing to a new club.
“Players now have blockchain-backed protection with their club contracts through the use of immutable smart contracts.”
Players now have blockchain-backed protection with their club contracts through the use of immutable smart contracts. Adding to that, it’s much easier to fractionalize one’s contract through NFTs and cryptocurrencies.
Doping Management and Regulation
Introducing blockchain technology in the sports industry brings with it increased transparency and liability. Any medical data provided to a blockchain is immutably stored, meaning it can not be altered or removed. Different types of medical data could be stored between public and private blockchains. This would protect an athlete’s data, but additionally, be publicly transparent about any test results.
This would increase the honesty and liability of players as it would be near-impossible to cheat or lie about drug test results. Only if a player managed to tamper with the result before it being appended to the blockchain could this technology provide inaccurate information.
Player Analytics
Like players’ rights and doping management, another blockchain use case in the sports industry is storing and viewing player analytics. Through immutable smart contracts, multiple data types about a player can be stored in one convenient place.
Moreover, this information could be accessed publicly or securely, using a private key given to potential employers or sponsorships.
Conclusion
Cryptocurrency and blockchain is rapidly becoming critical technology in various fields. Sports and eSports will soon enjoy massive gains with the adoption of both technologies.
With blockchain technology and smart contracts, it’s possible to decentralize and remove middle-man, as well as to give power to network participants in a simple form: by entitle them to rewards such as cryptocurrency or digital collectibles (NFTs).
Not only that, but other protocols will enable commerce to develop around these digital assets, greatly empowering its owners.
RealFevr is connecting all the above technologies with the best fantasy football app built to date. We believe that this nouveau and next level game architecture will be the catalyst to a cambrian explosion of new types of applications that shift the incentives from the platform, to the user.
iSportConnect would like to congratulate our Chief Operating Officer Ray James on his election to the board of Table Tennis England this week.
Ray was one of three new board members selected from 20 applicants, and officially begins his four-year term today after attending yesterday’s meeting.
Ray says: “I’m truly delighted and excited to be joining Table Tennis England as a Non-Executive Director and look forward to adding my experience to an already strong and diverse board.”
Throughout his career Ray has worked for a number of the most high-profile organisations in British sport and he is a vastly experienced sports business executive. His CV includes Chelsea Football Club, Sky Sports, City Football Group and Millwall Football Club and we are sure he’ll be a fantastic addition to the board at Table Tennis England.
In the announcement, Table Tennis England Chairman Sandra Deaton commented: “The three successful candidates were all delighted to be appointed and will bring different and important skills to the Board. I wish them all a warm welcome and look forward to working together.”
Kwadjo Adjepong and Dr Emma Vickers join Ray as the two other applicants appointed to the Board of Table Tennis England.
José Miranda, Founder and Game Architect at RealFevr, looks at some of the key reasons RealFevr was born and how the fantasy sports industry has developed through some keywords.
On its own, the expression Fantasy Sports could mean many different things, but for a continuously growing mass of people, it defines not only the game that they spend most of their time on but also a new layer that was added to Sports, enhancing them into a level of addictiveness like no other.
For us, at RealFevr, this is what we do: a game. Or games, to be more specific, given the different types of fantasy games we are currently providing. And RealFevr was born from this addictiveness, molded by it.
GAME
A competitive activity involving skill, chance, or endurance on the part of two or more persons who play according to a set of rules, usually for their own amusement.
Born in the US of A, somewhere in the early 60s (you can know more about its origins in the ESPN documentary “Silly Little Game”), it was just natural that American sports, with their box scores, the old habit of collecting data, registering games, evaluating player production, keeping track of everything, worked as the perfect vehicle for a new kind of game. Apparently, having records back to the 19th century had an unforeseen value that football missed along its path.
DATA
Individual facts, statistics, or items of information.
At the turn of the millennium, the massification of computers and Internet access opened the doors of fantasy sports to the big crowds, putting what was, until then, a niche hobby that was played by fax between friends into the spotlight of the public eye. Big corporations, like Yahoo and CBS among many others, and professional leagues, like the NBA, stepped in, creating their own fantasy sports models, cross-selling their product to users throughout the United States and Canada (and also small communities around the world of sports followers) using several types of competitions to fuel fan engagement.
COMPETITION
Rivalry between two or more persons or groups for an object desired in common, usually resulting in a victor and a loser.
This new reality, where you could compete with thousands of other users at the same time, in a subject where everybody sees themselves as experts in the matter, built the foundations for the first growth spurt of Fantasy Sports.
“This perfect storm, of amazingly fast connectivity, detailed real-time data, and a user-base eager to follow suit with the game’s evolution, allowed for the Fantasy Sports industry to enter a whole new dimension.”
Coincidentally, at the same time, a new standard of operations was catching steam in American sports and its clubs, after Michael Lewis kicked off the Moneyball era in the Oakland A’s office. By fighting the established conceptions on player analysis, with the introduction of a mathematical and scientific approach that goes not only deeper than what the eyes of the analyst can perceive but also fighting most of the cognitive biases that are natural to human perception, he started a revolution in the analytics field like never seen before. One so big that it generated its own movie, with Brad Pitt as the main character.
The development in the sport itself, around a new winning formula, prompted a reeducation of the fan base, subjecting them to a series of new terminologies and statistics that were being invented almost on a weekly basis.
ANALYTICS
The analysis of data, typically large sets of business data, by the use of mathematics, statistics, and computer software.
This perfect storm, of amazingly fast connectivity, detailed real-time data, and a user-base eager to follow suit with the game’s evolution, allowed for the Fantasy Sports industry to enter a whole new dimension, becoming a multi-billion-dollar industry in less than ten years.
And while this was happening across the pond, football (soccer for some) albeit taking its first steps into this new era had an awfully specific nuance to this process, as unlike the North American reality, and many other sports, where the latest discoveries and new theories were brought up for discussion, in Football most of the developments were made with the same secrecy as the Manhattan Project.
“Nowadays, people show up with good ideas on Twitter and a few weeks later they may find themselves working for a football club, with the current need for data scientists that can translate football into numbers and back into football.”
The football community, specially the online one and all the kids that played every single version of Championship Manager or Football Manager, was starving for this, for this evolution in the game we love. And so were we at RealFevr, in order to continue to lay out our development plans, expand to new game models and more intricate scoring systems.
EVOLUTION
Any process of formation, growth, or development.
It took some time for Football to overcome its natural conservatism, a sport in which the usual box score had only two numbers that really mattered: home score vs. away score. The process was slow, as only now, almost 20 years after the Michael Lewis book and 10 after the Brad Pitt movie, we can honestly say that analytics are a vector to be reckoned in the decision-making processes of many clubs around the world, throughout the several moving parts of their operations: signing and releasing players, game-plan preparation for weekly matches or the daily analysis of practice sessions and conditioning of players.
This is where we find ourselves now, with all the conditions in place for a perfect storm to happen again, this time in the football sphere, with the certainty that recent successes like the ones of Leicester and Brentford are the signs of a revolution that will not stop.
Nowadays, people show up with good ideas on Twitter and a few weeks later they may find themselves working for a football club, with the current need for data scientists that can translate football into numbers and back into football.
REVOLUTION
A radical and pervasive change in society and the social structure.
Football is now on a path where professionally managed clubs, with proper orientation and a defined set of goals can achieve competitive heights well beyond their perceived and expected level.
At RealFevr, this is not the only revolution that we are currently putting ourselves behind, trying to motor it forward. If our evolution so far has taken advantage of the recent advancements in analytics, the ones that paved the way for better and more accessible stats, our future steps should go beyond that. We must not stay within the confines of our industry, we should not isolate ourselves from what is happening around us. Instead, we should dig deep into our community and beyond that as well.
“We must not stay within the confines of our industry, we should not isolate ourselves from what is happening around us.”
We have been able to continuously upgrade our offer, widen the number of available competitions for our users, making use of this new reality of in-depth real-time data to be used in different ways throughout our platform, taking our games a little bit further every time we iterate them, making them more interactive, engaging, and challenging.
And that is why we are stepping into the world of blockchain, creating our own NFTs, a marketplace to go along with it, and an utility token that fuels an entire new ecosystem of fantasy games.
NFT
Short for non-fungible token, cryptographic assets on blockchain with unique identification codes and metadata that distinguish them from each other.
Not only do we seek to be on the forefront of games, sports and technology, we thrive from it. With the upcoming developments in the RealFevr universe, set for this summer, I believe we will expand our goals even further, delivering what is an absolute game-changer, not only for the growing number of fantasy players orbiting around us but also for the industry itself.
NFTs may be just another small step for RealFevr. But they are a giant leap for Fantasy Sports.
The author José Miranda is Founder and Game Architect at RealFevr, fantasy league expert, analytics aficionado, football lover.
Global sponsorship will showcase how Pega is the right partner for the Ryder Cup, while highlighting the importance of problem solving and teamwork throughout the competition
The Ryder Cup and Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ: PEGA), the software company that crushes business complexity, have announced a multiyear agreement establishing Pega as a worldwide supplier of the 43rd and 44th Ryder Cup. Pega’s sponsorship will contribute toward the distinguished experience both teams and spectators have come to expect from this event. Pega will also work with Ryder Cup broadcast partners to create online content on the value of partnerships.
Established in 1983, Pega creates software that helps enterprises make better decisions and get work done. Delivering meaningful business outcomes as clients look to digitally transform, its scalable architecture and low-code/no-code platform help enable even the biggest organizations to stay streamlined, agile and ready for what’s next. Ryder Cup spectators, golfers and event staff have likely already used Pega in their daily lives – including when they travel, use a credit card, call a company for service or perform other everyday tasks.
“Pega is known for problem solving and delivering the right solutions to the world’s most sophisticated enterprises,” said PGA of America CEO Seth Waugh. “At its core, the Ryder Cup is about turning challenge into opportunity which makes Pega a natural fit as a partner for our next two competitions.”
“We are delighted to welcome Pega to the Ryder Cup commercial family for the next two editions,” said Guy Kinnings, European Ryder Cup Director. “The Ryder Cup is all about partnerships and teamwork, and we look forward to Pega’s innovation helping us to continue to deliver a first-class service for everyone involved in the biennial contest.”
“As Pega continues to push boundaries to meet our ambitious goals, we are seeking opportunities to increase awareness for our brand and the great work Pega is doing for our clients,” said Hayden Stafford, President of Global Client Engagement, Pegasystems. “Given the prestige and excitement around the Ryder Cup, it is a natural fit for Pega to sponsor, as we continue to grow our business and help the world’s leading organizations achieve breakthrough outcomes.”
Pega’s sponsorship includes the 43rd Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits in Kohler, Wisconsin, from Sept. 21-26, 2021; and the 44th Ryder Cup at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Rome, Italy, from Sept. 26-Oct. 1, 2023.
More than ever, brands are at the heart of the business of sport. iSportConnect Brands Masterclass will provide an exclusive opportunity to engage with thought leaders in a challenging and fast-changing global business.
We’re therefore very pleased to be able to announce our esteemed speakers who will be joining us live on the day: Michael Robichaud- SVP Global Sponsorships, Mastercard and Willem Dinger – Global Sponsorship Director, Unilever.
Join the debate with thought leaders on the future of apps, smart storytelling and other key topics in learning how data can help separate the real digital opportunities from the hype – and the practical limits of data.
The event will be taking place on Thursday, 1st July between 2-5pm BST.
Michael Robichaud- SVP Global Sponsorships Mastercard
As a senior-level strategic executive, Michael has an in-depth insight into today’s evolving sports and entertainment marketing programs in key areas such as creative development, media planning, and product integration. With a unique combination of executive management and operations leadership experience, He has earned a proven track record of developing, executing, and maximizing lucrative opportunities for major corporations such as Mastercard and Sprint Nextel.
At Mastercard, Michael built sponsorship platforms vital to supporting 5 business regions with key contributions to new card activation and usage by hundreds of millions of cardholders. He also developed new programs which rose above traditional sponsorships and drove improvement across all metrics, while lowering media spend. Additionally, Mastercard won Clio Awards for sports and entertainment programs worldwide.
Willem Dinger – Global Sponsorship Director Unilever
A results driven marketing and sponsorship specialist with over 17 years of experience within the sports and entertainment industry.
Have worked within client, rights-holder and agency environments building strategic partnership portfolios and activation plans across a broad selection of sports, music, lifestyle and celebrity properties.
