FIFA Expects Surge In Women’s World Cup Viewing

The eighth Women’s World Cup kicks off in Paris this evening with 950,00 tickets sold for the tournament, and projections of a worldwide TV audience more than a thousand times greater.

France will meet South Korea at the sold-out Parc des Princes in the opening game.

Six groups of four teams are vying for the 16 places in the knockout phase, on the road to the final on 7 July in Lyon.

The £24 million to be shared by the participating teams in 2019 is double the amount of 2015, but a long way short of the £315 million pot at the 2018’s men’s World Cup.

The last Women’s World Cup, won the USA, pulled 750 million viewers worldwide, and FIFA is predicting this year’s event will reach an audience of 1 billion.

In recent weeks, hundreds of branded videos with content related to the Women’s World Cup have been published online, racking up a combined total of 72 million views across all social media platforms, according to video measurement company Tubular.

With big-budget ads from the likes of Nike and quality short-form productions by FIFA sponsors including Qatar Airways and Visa, marketers have been accumulating millions of interactions.

Have a look at ‘Dream Further’ by Nike, featuring stars including Lieke Martens (Holland), Chinese midfielder Wang Shuang (China) and Crystal Dunn (USA).

On Twitter, the video has racked up more than 19 million views since it was first posted to Nike’s official account last Saturday.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOVkEHADCg4

Australia’s Female Footballers Win Equal Pay Fight

Australia’s professional women soccer players will be given the same base pay as men in a one-year extension to a collective bargaining agreement.

Players in Australia’s W-League will have their annual minimum remuneration hiked 33 percent to A$16,344 ($11,400), with their base hourly rate matching the men’s A-League, Football Federation Australia and the players union said today.

Reuters reports:

“We’re very proud that we have been able to anchor the minimum conditions for W-League players to those of A-League players,” Professional Footballers Australia CEO John Didulica said in a statement.

“It’s a moment in time that the players should be proud of.”

The deal will reduce the gender pay gap in Australian football but male players stand to earn significantly more due to their greater time on the pitch.

The W-League’s regular season ran for 14 weeks in 2018/19, just over half the length of the A-League’s 27 rounds.

The announcement comes days after the PFA launched a campaign demanding global governing body FIFA increase prize money at the upcoming women’s World Cup to reduce the glaring gap with the men’s tournament.

Gender pay disparity in football was put in the spotlight in March when the U.S. women’s team sued their national federation for alleged gender discrimination three months before their World Cup title defense.

Australia has become a global leader in championing better pay and conditions for female athletes in recent years, after having largely neglected women’s sport for decades.

Australia’s contracted women cricketers were given the same base hourly pay rate as men in a five-year collective bargaining agreement struck in 2017, although, like women footballers, they have far fewer opportunities to earn.

FifPro, the international body for professional players, has said FIFA is poised to begin fresh negotiations to close the gender pay gap.

In a statement, FIFPro said: “FIFA has agreed to our request to start negotiating new conditions for women’s national team players after the 2019 Women’s World Cup.”

IOC President Bach: “Rising Nationalism Is Contrary To Olympic Mission”

IOC President Thomas Bach opened the debate about the future of the Olympic Games at the fifth Sport Future Rendez-Vous on Wednesday in Lausanne with some frank observations about the mission of the Games and troubling trends in today’s world.

Organised jointly by ThinkSport and the University of Lausanne (UNIL), the sold-out event attracted more than 200 people from the academic world, sport organisations, United Nations institutions, NGOs, media and the business sector.

President Bach delivered a global overview about the IOC’s vision for the future of the Olympic Games driving the organisation’s reform programme Olympic Agenda 2020, developed under his leadership.

Aimed at strengthening the societal relevance and the uniqueness of the Olympic Games in a fast-changing world, Olympic Agenda 2020 is built on the three pillars of sustainability, credibility and youth.

Bach outlined strategies and results achieved in all of these areas and concluded:

“Olympic Agenda 2020 has brought important results. Half of the world’s population is following the Olympic Games and we have witnessed the important impact of the Olympic Games PyeongChang 2018 in the world.”

He continued: “However, for the future we have to realise that we are against the Zeitgeist at the moment. We have a Zeitgeist changing from a healthy patriotism, one we appreciate in sport, to a nationalism which we don’t want to see in sport.”

“We see a Zeitgeist where societies are becoming more and more divisive – as well as relations between nations. International institutions are increasingly ignored.“

“These tendencies are contrary to our mission – which is to unite the world without any form of discrimination and in solidarity, enabling the world to join the Olympic Movement.”

“In sport we are all equal and if we achieve this universality, the Olympic Games can be a great symbol of humanity. This remains our ultimate goal.”

Hookit Boosts Tough Mudder In Enlisting New Partners

Tough Mudder’s sales team leveraged Hookit data as a tool in the partnership sales process as a way to provide insightful analytics of predicted sponsorship ROI to its potential brand partners.

Data from sports sponsorship analytics and evaluation platform Hookit helped Tough Mudder secure deals with more than a half-dozen new commercial partners.

By tailoring the pitch to what each brand was already talking about, Tough Mudder could demonstrate that it would be a world-class partner for the sponsor, helping that organization achieve their sponsorship objectives.

Tough Mudder was able to convert the data into new deals with brands such as Chipotle, Nexcare, ACE, Every Man Jack, Navy Federal Credit Union and others.

Tough Mudder is uniquely positioned as both a brand sponsoring athletes and influencers as well as an event property bringing on other brands as sponsors.

In order to stay as the best-in-class partner, Tough Mudder sought to identify ways to drive more value for current and prospective sponsors.

Using the Research tool within the Hookit platform, Tough Mudder was able to identify potential sponsors and show how their organization could:

  • Optimize campaigns aligned with that brand’s messaging
  • Target the desired audience of that brand
  • Pair influencers and brands to drive maximum ROI on sponsored content

“Hookit is a key tool in the sponsorship sales process, allowing us to bring on new sponsors and increasing our sponsorship revenue,” said Tony Kim, Business Development@Tough Mudder.

 

Notts Forest Signs Football Index In Club’s Biggest Ever Shirt Deal

Football Index is delighted to announce an agreement with Nottingham Forest Football Club as the new front-of-shirt partner, in what represents the biggest shirt sponsorship deal in both the brand’s and the club’s history.

By becoming Forest’s shirt sponsor, Football Index will now proudly display its logo on the front of the club’s first-team and adult replica shirts from the beginning of the 2019-20 Championship season.

Football Index is a revolutionary gambling platform and the world’s first football stock market.  The platform allows traders to buy and sell shares in over 3,000 professional footballers with real money – offering football fans a chance to bet on the future success of football players, rather than gambling on the short-lived outcome of football matches.

The platform operates with all the characteristics of a stock market, with traders buying units of footballers (known as “shares”), building their football portfolios and trying to sell at a profit. The model presents a responsible and sustainable alternative to regular betting whilst enabling fans to profit from their football knowledge.

Football Index’s partnership with Nottingham Forest builds on its presence in the professional game following the platform’s previous kit deal with Bristol Rovers.

The agreement represents another sign of Forest’s growing commercial stature within the UK and is the start of an exciting partnership with one of football’s newest platforms.

Neil Kelly, Chief Executive Officer of BetIndex Ltd, Football Index’s parent company (at left in photo above), said: “We’re thrilled to have Football Index front and centre on the new Nottingham Forest kit – a club steeped in history with an expansive and proud fanbase. We’re very excited to see this partnership build awareness of the Football Index brand across an engaged football audience for 2019/20 season.

“This landmark partnership marks a significant milestone in the brand’s journey and illustrates the ambitions we hold for the platform. We look forward to working with the team at Forest to deliver a successful sponsorship that truly benefits all stakeholders – from the fans to Football Index’s loyal customers.”

Nottingham Forest Football Club’s Chief Commercial Officer, David Cook, said: “The club are delighted to announce this new partnership with a growing and exciting brand. Like Nottingham Forest, Football Index has a pioneering spirit built in their DNA and the brand fit has shone through during our various discussions.

“Across the partnership we look forward to offering our fans some great benefits and incentives whilst providing a strong platform for Football Index to achieve their marketing objectives. As a club, we are delighted that we have been able to secure the biggest shirt sponsorship in our history and it shows Football Index’s commitment and belief in Nottingham Forest.”

FIFA Expands Digital Reach In China

FIFA has extended its digital outreach in China by launching official accounts on popular digital platforms Douyin and Toutiao.

Building on FIFA’s existing presence in the country with Weibo, FIFA will now be able to offer more content to fans across China through the two platforms and will expand its digital presence in country to four platforms, with FIFA accounts already active on WeChat and Weibo.

Douyin, a short-form video platform, has become one of the most downloaded apps worldwide with an estimated 500 million monthly active users. News aggregator Jinri Toutiao currently has 700+ million users and will provide Chinese fans with a new way to engage with FIFA.

Luis Vicente, FIFA’s Chief Digital Transformation and Innovation Officer, said: “In March 2018, FIFA launched its first digital platforms for Chinese fans. With the growing desire for football content on FIFA’s digital channels from fans in the country, we are excited to expand our digital presence and to better serve football and efootball Chinese fans on a daily basis.

“Through these new accounts, Douyin and Toutiao will enable FIFA to entertain, inform, and engage millions of football fans in the country and wider region, as well as forming an important part of our commitment to build, nurture and engage long-lasting football fans communities in China to assist and accelerate the further development of football in the country.”

FIFA launched its Chinese digital channels in March 2018, becoming the first football organisation to launch a WeChat Mini Program and growing over 10 million social followers in the first 12 months, becoming the fastest growing sports organisation online in China.

 

iSportconnect’s Madrid Summit Draws High Praise From Guests

The iSportconnect Madrid Summit, in partnership with LaLIga, last Friday was a fitting preamble to Europe’s biggest and richest football occasion of the year.

The event attracted more than 100 invited high-level delegates for valuable discussion and networking at the Cines Callao in the centre of the city, the day before the Champions League final at the Wanda Metropolitan Stadium.

Speakers were unanimous in their praise for the event.

“iSportconnect events are fantastic to attend,” said Ellie Norman, Formula 1 Director of Marketing & Communications. “Lots of insight, lots of learning, they’re fantastic.”

“It was a wonderful opportunity to connect with people from the industry,” said David Arroyo, Digital Director of Dorna Sports.

“It’s always great to be able to meet with people who are sharing some of the same challenges and hear about what they’re doing, and help your business,” said Mark Parkman, General Manager of the Olympic Channel.

David Hopkinson, Real Madrid’s Global Head of Partnerships, summed up: “I think we have a duty to show up and be part of these fine events.”

Re-elected FIFA President Infantino: “The Toxic Times Are Past”

Gianni Infantino was re-elected FIFA president unopposed at the congress of world football’s governing body in Paris on Wednesday as he claimed to have turned the organisation from being “toxic and almost criminal” back to its core values.

Infantino’s re-election was marked by a round of applause from the congress after the statutes were changed earlier in the day to no longer require a vote if there was only one candidate for the position.

Reuters reports:

The 49-year-old Swiss-Italian lawyer now has a four-year mandate to try and accomplish his grandiose plans for football which were partly frustrated in his first term.

He has been in charge of FIFA since February 2016, after succeeding Sepp Blatter in the wake of a damaging corruption scandal that Infantino claimed the body had now shaken off.

“Nobody talks about crisis at FIFA any more or rebuilding it from scratch. Nobody talks about scandals or corruption, we talk about football. We can say that we’ve turned the situation around,” he told the congress in a lengthy speech at Paris Expo.

“This organisation has gone from being toxic, almost criminal, to being what it should be — an organisation that develops football and is now synonymous with transparency, integrity.”

“Today everything is open and transparent. It is not possible at FIFA to make hidden payments of do anything unethical with our money. There is no more place for corruption,” he claimed.

Infantino said FIFA’s previously precarious financial situation was now looking rosy with the organisation’s budget increased from $5 billion to $6.4bn and reserves up from $1bn to $2.75bn.

This was despite increased spending on development projects in FIFA’s 211 member associations. FIFA spent $1.1bn in the period 2015-18 and will increase the sum to $1.75bn from 2019-2022, he added.

Infantino claimed 11 areas of progress during his tenure, from financial health, women’s development, the fight against racism and a scandal-free 2026 World Cup bidding process. However, he said the implementation of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) system had been his major triumph.

“It’s the biggest success story. It has become an integral part of football inside one year. It doesn’t change the game, but it helps and cleans the game. It brings justice to the game. It’s not perfect but it’s very close to perfection,” he said.

Infantino also used the opportunity to promote the new-look 24-team Club World Cup, which starts in two years’ time but is under threat of a boycott from Europe’s top clubs due to concerns over fixture congestion.

“We know that clubs are the heartbeat of the game, they train the players. We need to offer clubs a chance to shine on a world stage and to challenge for a World Cup,” he added.

Chinese Tech Giant ByteDance Invests In Hupu

Hupu, a leading China online sports community, has raised 1.26 billion RMB ($182 million) in pre-IPO round funding from ByteDance, a Chinese internet tech giant operating several popular machine learning-enabled content apps globally including Toutiao (‘Headlines’), one of the largest content discovery platforms in China, and short-form video app Tik Tok, the world’s most downloaded app in 2018.

Sources from Hupu, which has 30 million registered users, confirmed the deal today exclusively to Lanxiong Sports, the first sports business content provider in China, a key partner in the first iSportconnect Summit in China in 2018.

This round of funding is the largest amount of money raised by Hupu since its founding in 2004 and gives ByteDance a 30% stake in the company.

ByteDance and Hupu have collaborated prior to this investment. After ByteDance became an official global partner of the NBA for short-form content, Hupu started using ByteDance’s Xigua Video as the default video platform when redirecting users.

ByteDance has been accelerating its business in sports by landing short-form mobile content rights from top rights owners including China Super League(CSL), ITTF, China Volleyball League (CVL) and WWE.

ByteDance’s Toutiao has also agreed partnerships with CBA, UFC, the English Premier League, La Liga, PGA Tour and other rights owners.

In March, ByteDance reached an agreement with the International Cricket Council to deliver ICC World Cup content through Tik Tok and its Helo social media platform.

Hupu confirmed its IPO intentions to the Shanghai Securities Regulatory Bureau in March, and its capital strategy has been supported by ByteDance.

However, it’s not yet clear what changes the latest funding injection will bring to the current stakeholder structure of Hupu. Cheng Hang, Hupu’s co-founder and CEO, now holds 44.056% share of the company by his own and two of his subsidiary companies.

3D Digital Venue’s Experience With Cleveland Cavaliers And Its VIP Spaces

Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse is located in Cleveland, Ohio and is home to the NBA Cleveland Cavaliers. The venue boasts a seating capacity of 19,432, which is one of the largest in the NBA.  As the organization continues to provide the best fan experience possible, new technology now offers a unique experience to guests before they even step foot into the building.

The Cavs use Ticketing3D from 3D Digital Venue and AXS to enhance the ticket buying process by allowing guests to virtually see the view from any seat in Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse before purchasing tickets.

The same experience is also offered to guests interested in purchasing premium seating inside of Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, which includes more than 60 suites and five lounges. Because VIP sales are such a large part of revenue for the venue, it was important to the Cavaliers that guests would be able to navigate through the premium spaces and to see an accurate and detailed view of each space from all aspects. 3D Digital Venue individually created each space with respect to the elements that give each room its own personality.

The challenge of accurately recreating the spaces and ability for guests to navigate in through the space Virtual Reality required a level dedication and detail that the team at 3D Digital Venue has been improving for years.

3D Digital Venue, conceived in 2012 in Barcelona is a global technology solutions company focusing on building 3D Digital Venue Management Solutions for the Sports and Entertainment Industry. Equally unique and diverse in its offerings, 3D Digital Venue has been successfully building best in class 360-degree 3D interactive solutions that excel in delivering greater fan satisfaction, increasing season ticket holder renewal rates and providing special viewing for prospective VIP buyers.