EXCLUSIVE: Inside Nike’s New Esports Deal In China

Exclusive report by Lanxiong Sports —

Nike has signed a four-year sponsorship deal with Tencent for its League of Legends Pro League (LPL), becoming one of the head partners of the top esports league.

The partnership was announced today by TJ Sports, a new joint esports venture created in January by Tencent and Riot Games on January 10.

After landing 10 sponsorship deals for the 2019 season including Mercedes-Benz, KFC, L’Oreal, Alienware, LPL signed its first deal with a sports brand.

Details of the deal are not officially disclosed, but sources familiar with it told Lanxiong Sports, the first sports business content provider in China, that Nike will spend around RMB50 million ($7.5 million, including cash and cash equivalents) a year to buy out the apparel rights of all the 16 LPL clubs.

Nike and LPL will share the sales revenue of the Nike products featured LPL elements at a confidential ratio.

A source close to LPL told Lanxiong Sports that other sports apparel companies also considered to acquire the deal with LPL, including Adidas and Chinese sports brand 361°.

Last year, executives of Adidas attended some LPL competitions and met with executives of the Riot Games several times.

TJ Sports was officially established in January, which to some extent dragged the pace of the deal; Second, there were some problems in the process of trademark registration for several LPL clubs and those clubs had to replace a newly-designed logo, which cost time, too.

The deal between Nike and LPL confirms that sports brands are showing willingness to invest real money into the esports market. For LPL itself, the investment from Nike further affirms the value of their esports IP.

With the title of 2018 League of Legends World Championship won by Chinese esports club Invictus Gaming, LPL has obtained an unprecedented influence in the esports community.

According to data revealed by TJ Sports earlier this year, the total viewership of LPL in 2018 climbed 50% to 15 billion, compared with 2017. And the final game of 2018 League of Legends World Championship had  a record 99.6 million viewership.

But in comparison with the huge viewership, the marketing value of esports has still been underestimated. Even the leading clubs in LPL can hardly have a head partner which are willing to give them RMB10 million ($1.5 million)  or more for a club naming rights fee.

Although RMB50 million ($7.5 million) a year cannot be seen as a huge number, compared with RMB300 million ($45 million) a year for the Chinese Football Association Super League (CSL) and RMB180 million ($27 million) a year of Chinese Basketball Association (CBA), it marks progress for the LPL and the esports industry.

The esports league in China, King Pro League (KPL), which is a mobile esports game also published by Tencent, has already signed an apparel sponsorship deal with HLA Jeans.

A source near the deal told Lanxiong Sports that HLA Jeans will pay around RMB10 million ($1.5 million) a year to KPL as equipment sponsor, and the official announcement will be released on the opening day of 2019 season on March 6.

The new Nike-LPL agreement still has some wrinkles to iron out.

Under the deal, all LPL players, coaches and team staff will exclusively wear Nike apparel on game days. This would create an issue for teams with existing apparel partners, or those looking to sign apparel deals in the future.

Edward Gaming (EDG), for example, was partnered with Chinese local sports brand Li-Ning before the 2018 League of Legends World Championship and the partners had the intention of reaching a long-term deal.

But Yang Guang, Director of Marketing of Li-Ning, told Lanxiong Sports in an earlier interview that the company, was aware that it would not be able to sign a sponsorship deal with EDG without violating the contract between Nike and the LPL.

As to the partition of the LPL commercial rights, Lin Song, former head of Riot Games China and current co-CEO of TJ Sports, told Lanxiong Sports in November 2018, that the league was working out a model referring to the mature sports league like NBA and European soccer leagues.

Even in the biggest leagues, the commercial rights in the apparel sector differ from one to the next. For instance, the NBA collectively sold apparel rights to Nike, but clubs in European soccer leagues can independently sign apparel deal with brands.

In October 2018, Nike collaborated on a campaign with LeBron James to promote the basketball star’s upcoming documentary Shut Up & Dribble, which featured Jian “Uzi” Ziha, a player from LPL team Royal Never Give-Up (RNG). Nike has said that was just a simple marketing campaign.

On February 27, the day before the official announcement of the Nike deal, consumers could still find the LPL’s own-branded products on the LOL Official Online Store.

The prices were RMB199 ($30) for a T-shirt, RMB319 ($47) for pants and RMB619 ($93) for coats, relatively low prices compared to the conventional sports apparel. Given that most esports fans are youngsters, whose spending power is questionable, how to price and sell the products are two main concerns for Nike.

According to the official media brochure from TJ Sports, some items of the Nike-LPL products will be put on sale publicly during 2019 LOL Mid-Season Invitation.

As for the official Nike-branded team jersey, we will not see the samples until 2019 League of Legends World Championship, and fans can buy them in 2020.

 

PUMA Deal With City Football Group Is Company’s Biggest Ever

PUMA and City Football Group have signed a global long-term partnership, which will see PUMA supply Melbourne City FC, as well as sister clubs in England, Spain, Uruguay and China.

Starting in July 2019, PUMA will be the official partner of Melbourne City FC, Manchester City FC, FC Girona, Club Atlético Torque and Sichuan Jiuniu FC, supplying all representative teams including men’s, women’s and youth football.

“PUMA’s partnership with City Football Group is the largest deal that we have ever done – both in scope and ambition,” said Bjørn Gulden, CEO of PUMA.

“We are very excited to partner with City Football Group, whose success, ambition and drive for innovation has seen them setting new standards, on and off the field. We look forward to building the most innovative partnership in football by redefining the sports partnership model both on and off the pitch.”

“We want to maximise on-field performance as well as football culture, in areas such as music, gaming and fashion to connect and inspire the fanbase of each team.”

“This announcement marks the start of an exciting new chapter for City Football Group,” said Ferran Soriano, CEO of City Football Group.  “Our relationship with PUMA, covering five City Football Group clubs across four continents, will reset the model for sports partnerships on a truly global scale whilst being locally relevant and authentic for fans around the world.”

“PUMA share our vision for challenging expectations, and we are looking forward to what we believe will be a ground-breaking partnership.”

PUMA and Manchester City are already linked via several player partnerships, including Caroline Weir, Pauline Bremer and Nikita Parris in the Women’s Team in addition to men’s club captain Vincent Kompany, midfielder David Silva and striker Sergio Agüero, who famously scored in the last seconds of City’s final game of the 2011-12 season to clinch the first of three league titles for the club in the modern era.

“Federations Must Become More Creative And Commercial”

In photo above: ASOIF President Francesco Ricci Bitti and Executive Director Andrew Ryan

The Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF) today launched its report on the Future of Global Sport, aggregating the views of thought leaders and decision-makers from sport, business and government, and laying out a vision for the future of sport over the next 20 years.

The report addresses political, social, technological, legal and economic influences, all of which are impacting International Federation decision-making and the model under which sport will be managed going forward.

ASOIF President Francesco Ricci Bitti said: “ASOIF has invested significant resources in this project and we believe the results will help IFs to better understand, anticipate and react to the changes and trends confronting them.”

“In fact, some of the outlined future scenarios may serve as a wake-up call. This report invites us all to challenge our thinking at ASOIF and encourage our members to challenge their own.”

Key findings of the report include:

  • IFs must demonstrate an exemplary standard of governance in order to maintain the confidence of the media, governments, business and the public at large while also protecting the integrity of their sports;
  • IFs will need to develop a more proactive, creative, commercially driven and collaborative mind set, re-evaluating their role and strategies in favour of increased partnership with the private sector;
  • IFs will need to embrace “digital” in earnest, transforming their business models, organisational designs and operational cultures;
  • Today’s sporting event model will evolve so that true partnerships entailing closer cooperation and balanced risk-sharing among and between stakeholders, including business and government agencies will be a requirement;
  • Athletes with sufficient following are gaining influence in today’s disintermediated media landscape and will need to be offered greater incentives to compete in established events;
  • In order to attract new people to participate in and consume their sports, IFs must adapt their strategies to a changing society and to how, in future, people will discover and consume content;
  • If they adapt, IFs will remain widely accepted as unique bodies effectively capable of governing and administrating their sports on a worldwide basis as custodians of the rules, training of judges, managing the events calendar and coordinating and funding global development initiatives etc; and
  • It will become increasingly important to have an effective “umbrella” organisation working to promote and defend the Olympic IFs’ collective common interests given the range of major common challenges that IFs share but can never be expected to address individually.
  • Following-up on these findings, the report concludes with a blueprint for IFs to adapt and take advantage of the opportunities presented by today’s disrupted and competitive sporting landscape. This consists of ten recommendations for IFs related to two equally important themes of governance and entrepreneurialism.

The report will also provide ASOIF with guidance and a basis for prioritisation, particularly in relation to its work on establishing a solid future role for IFs, as the involvement of both public authorities (governments) and private business interests in sport continues to grow.To see the entire report click here.

Clipper Race: “We’ve Become More International”

It has been 50 years since Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, now Chairman of The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race, made history by becoming the first man to sail solo and non-stop around the globe in 1968-69.

One of nine sailors to compete in the Times Golden Globe Race, Sir Robin set off from Falmouth, with no sponsorship, on his yacht on a voyage that was to last 312 days at sea.

Sir Robin wanted everyone to have the opportunity to experience the challenge and sheer exhilaration of ocean racing and to make it possible in 1995, with William Ward, he co-founded the Clipper Race, one of the biggest challenges of the natural world and an endurance test like no other.

With no previous sailing experience necessary, it’s a record breaking 40,000 nautical mile race around the world on a 70-foot ocean racing yacht.

One of the big changes since the project began is that the crews have become more international.

“In the last race, there were more non-Brits than Brits taking part, the first time that has ben the case,” Sir Robin told iSportconnect in this exclusive interview. “We deliberately tried to make it more international and that’s beginning to work.”

Leadership Masterclass Will Feature Insights From FIFA C-Suite And Sunderland Co-Owner

iSportconnect is pleased to announce that Luis Vicente, Chief Digital Transformation & Innovation Officer of FIFA, will be a guest speaker at the inaugural Leadership Masterclass on Wednesday 6th March 2019 at the offices of EY in the City of London. Joining him on the programme will be Charlie Methven, Director and Co-Owner of Sunderland AFC and Chairman of Dragon Advisory.

Luis became FIFA’s Chief Digital Transformation & Innovation Officer in September 2018, after being a leader in Digital Transformation & Innovation since January 2018. Prior to his role at FIFA, Luis was chief executive of 3vs Sports Partners. He has assumed a leading role as sports transformation evangelist, working in senior executive roles or provide C-level consultancy services to some of the world’s greatest brands in multiple sports: Red Bull, Ferrari, Lotus, A1GP, Manchester City FC and Valencia CF as well as assuming leading roles at commercial and innovation working groups at global soccer organisations such as the Premier League, LaLiga or ECA.

Charlie is an Executive Director at Sunderland AFC and a top international Public Relations expert, ranked by Spear’s Wealth in November 2017 as “outstanding in field” and amongst the top 10 reputation managers in London.

He has run successful Public Relations agencies for over a decade, acting as Managing Director of New Century Media for five years from 2006, before going on to found Dragon Advisory in September 2011. Prior to entering the world of public relations consultancy, Charlie had a stellar career on national newspapers. Starting as a reporter on the Sporting Life, he eventually became a columnist and leader writer on the Daily Telegraph, where he had previously edited the paper’s famous Peterborough column. He has also written for the Spectator, the Evening Standard and a wide range of other periodicals.

Created in response to high demand from our senior executive members, this new Masterclass will help attendees gain greater understanding of the leadership challenges faced by the sports business industry today.

With a maximum of 150 invite-only delegates, iSportconnect provides a media/agency free opportunity to network with influential senior-level sports business executives. We are famous for our intimate and relaxed environment, encouraging ideas exchange and helping to introduce you to the right new connections.

To register your interest in attending the 2019 Leadership Masterclass, please contact Chloe at info@isportconnect.com

Invitation Policy: The Leadership Masterclass is a complimentary event for iSportconnect members who are from governing bodies, sports teams, brands and broadcasters. There is no fee to become an iSportconnect member. No sports agencies, professional service providers & suppliers are allowed.

For limited partnership opportunities, please contact Hugo at info@isportconnect.com

“New Davis Cup Will Give Global Tennis Stability”

This year’s edition of the Davis Cup will be the 108th in the history of the biggest international team tennis competition, and the very first in a brand-new format that promises to give the event a huge boost in profile and popularity

There will be 18 teams taking part in the Finals from November 18-24 in Madrid, as the World Group becomes a single event focusing global attention. A total of 133 nations have been competing this year.

In this exclusive interview, David Haggerty, President of the International Tennis Federation, offers an inside perspective on the transformation taking place under the ground-breaking investment by Kosmos Group, founded by Barcelona FC star Gerard Piqué.

“We were very proud that an outside company came in and told us, we love tennis, and we want to invest significantly in tennis and be your partner,” Haggerty said in the interview at the ITF headquarters in London

The ITF has been exploring how to reinvigorate the Davis Cup for about five years, the federation president told interviewer Ben Barker, the Commercial Director of digital fan experience specialist Monterosa.

“The new format will give our member nations greater confidence and stability for a minimum of 25 years, so that they can drive the development of tennis,” Haggerty said.

The new Finals will feature shorter showdowns between nations with best-of-three matches replacing best-of-five (and each match will also be best-of-three instead of best-of-five).

 

Table Tennis Names 12Bet Partner For World Championships

The ITTF has confirmed 12BET as Official International Betting Partner for the biggest table tennis event of the year, the Liebherr 2019 ITTF World Championships, taking place in Budapest from April 21-28.

The partnership will see digital and social media activations carried out during the World Championships, promoting the 12BET brand throughout the world and particularly in Asia, whilst driving fan engagement through competitions and the chance to win special prizes!

Following the successful partnership with 12BET at the 2018 ITTF Team World Cup in London, the ITTF is looking forward to teaming up again to enhance the brand and user experience during the sport’s most followed event of the year.

Last year’s World Championships in Halmstad, Sweden, drew a worldwide TV and OTT audience of approximately 725 million people, almost 550 million impressions across ITTF social media channels (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Weibo) and close to 1 million video views on YouTube.

Rory Anderson, 12Bet CEO for Europe, said: “12BET is very pleased to have secured a second partnership with the ITTF following the 2018 ITTF Team World Cup, a superb event which achieved impressive marketing and media results.”

“With the World Championships being the biggest Table Tennis event in the annual calendar, we are excited to be on that global sporting and marketing platform again and look forward to witnessing the very best players from around the globe compete for the most coveted world titles.”

Jonny Cowan, ITTF Europe Marketing Manager, said: “It was a pleasure to work with the 12BET team last year at the 2018 ITTF Team World Cup, and we are very pleased that 12BET are extending their relationship with table tennis. The ITTF is committed to building long-term partnerships with our sponsors, and we believe we have the events, TV viewers, data and social media strategy to generate significant ROI compared to other sporting properties.”

Join Our New Global Sports Industry Research Panel

iSportconnect is pleased to announce the launch of iSportconnect insights, powered by Goodform, a new global research panel for sports business professionals, exploring key trends within the sports industry.

Designed specifically to shape industry discussion and to understand the views of those working at the heart of the sports industry, iSportconnect insights will give sports business professionals the opportunity to have their say on the most topical and thought-provoking issues of the moment – with all insights shared back directly with those who take part.

The panel launches today with the initial survey focusing on sports betting, and it also gives you the opportunity to tell us which topics you’d like future surveys to focus on.

“We are excited to be launching this initiative with our friends at Goodform,” said iSportconnect COO Ray James. “Their research expertise across high profile sport industry clients makes them the ideal partner in iSportconnect insights, which will not only create valuable information that we can share with our community but help us to serve our members more effectively.”

Alexandra Kyrke-Smith, Head of Research & Insight at Goodform, said: “Understanding what fans and participants think and feel is an integral part of what we do at Goodform, and we’re looking forward to delving deeper into the views of those working within the industry via this new panel. The panel has been designed with a view to delivering value to those taking part and to informing discussion around key issues impacting the direction of the sports industry – and we’re excited about the insights it will produce!”

The new platform will carry out six short surveys a year.

Learn more about the initiative in the short video below in which we hear from Alexandra Kyrke-Smith, Head of Research & Insight at Goodform.

To take part in the first survey and sign up to the panel, click here.

LaLiga Dives Deep Into New Technologies

LaLiga presented some of its most recent technologies today during an interactive showcase on the sidelines of Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona revealing, in collaboration with Mediapro, some of the latest innovations behind Spanish football.

The LaLiga Innovation Showcase at the RCD Espanyol de Barcelona stadium focused on artificial intelligence, the technology that makes VAR possible, as well as technological advances in audio-visual broadcasting and the evolution of Virtual Reality.

“More than ever before, a football match is a unique experience thanks to recent technological advances which have improved the standing of Spanish clubs, the professionalism of its technical bodies, as well as the fan experience,” said Joris Evers, LaLiga’s Chief Communications Officer.

“VAR has become the protagonist of each football match, enabling more even-handed referee decisions, adding prestige to our league, and more drama and new experiences for our fans, whilst making use of the most innovative tools,” said Evers.

“At a time when there is much talk about artificial intelligence and machine learning, LaLiga is demonstrating its leadership as we start to use these technologies to optimise scheduling of our matches,” added Evers.

Calendar Selector/Sunlight Broadcasting Planning

Optimizing TV viewership and stadium attendance using Artificial Intelligence is the objective of “Calendar Selector.” This new tool used by LaLiga applies machine learning and algorithms to suggest optimal match schedules. The application, located in the Cloud, takes into account historical viewing and attendance data and about 70 additional variables.

Alongside this application, LaLiga has started using “Sunlight” software. This is a complementary technology to the Calendar Selector, which predicts the natural light conditions for each match. This program indicates the areas of sun and shade in the stadium, revealing how the sun will affect the television image, fans and players, and also help with match scheduling. To achieve this, LaLiga uses 3D reconstructions of stadiums.

Video Assistant Referee (VAR)

VAR uses audio-visual technology to help referees avoid clear and obvious errors regarding goals, penalties, direct red cards and identity confusion.

Together with technology provider EVS and the official producer of the competition, Mediapro, LaLiga has shown how the multi-angle review tool Xeebra offers referees the most accurate technology for making decisions on the field. In addition, the built-in artificial intelligence accurately calibrates the playing field to allow the insertion of graphic overlays to support decision making.

During the first 19 match days of LaLiga Santander, totaling 190 matches, the VAR system reviewed 2,280 incidents, after which the referee modified his final decision on 59 different occasions. In total, VAR averaged 3.2 interventions per match.

Mediacoach

LaLiga also uses cutting-edge innovations to provide its clubs with valuable tools aimed at improving the performance of teams and players. Mediacoach is the suite of advanced tools and match analysis services, developed in conjunction with Mediapro, which LaLiga makes available to the coaching staff of all teams in order to analyse in depth the characteristics of the game, before, during, and after each match.

This tool also helps to improve audio-visual broadcasting. In this regard, this year’s technology includes the intelligent detection of the ball’s position on the pitch. The movement of the ball is used to locate precisely, and in real time, where the action of the game is. Ambient microphones distributed around the stadium are automatically activated to give more realism to the sound of the broadcast and bring the action closer to viewers.

No other football league has a platform like Mediacoach with such an advanced suite of tools, which also includes for the first time a set of services and specific guidelines for referees.

Virtual Reality (VR)

Mediapro’s R&D teams, together with LaLiga, are experimenting with Virtual Reality (VR) technology. During this edition of LaLiga’s Innovation Showcase, attendees were able to enjoy through the Samsung Gear headset, recaps of the 2018-19 season in 3D (Stereoscopic) virtual reality.

Five 360º cameras allow the spectator to watch from their seat, just as they would if they were in the stadium.  They would be able to see the arrival of fans and players, the changing rooms, the stadium, as well as the exit to the pitch – a truly unique user experience.

LaLiga is now using this type of VR experience on a regular basis, for example in LaLiga Corners, an innovative experiential space which is situated in four El Corte Ingles centres across Spain.

 

Replay360 

LaLiga has pioneered the use of Replay360, the technology that allows you to recreate 3D replays of any move and give viewers around the world a unique perspective from any angle.  38 cameras installed throughout the stadium allow spectators to fly over the action or even position themselves from the point of view of a player.

Six LaLiga stadiums already have this technology, and more will receive it for next season.

  • Season 17-18: four stadiums: FC Barcelona (Camp Nou), Real Madrid (Santiago Bernabeu), Atlético de Madrid (Wanda Metropolitano), Sevilla FC (Ramon Sánchez Pijuan)
  • Season 18-19: two additional stadiums: Athletic Club de Bilbao (San Mamés), Valencia CF (Mestalla)
  • Season 19-20: two additional stadiums: Real Sociedad (Anoeta), Betis (Benito Villamarin)

 

Bixby

Coinciding with the recent announcement of Bixby, Samsung’s artificial intelligence platform, and its presentation at the MWC, LaLiga has presented its intelligent virtual assistant, which seeks to improve contact with fans, offering them as much information as possible through voice and text.

 

Thanks to the use of Artificial Intelligence and cognitive services, fans can use voice and text on multiple devices to get all the information about the competition and the clubs, such as schedules, classification, results, statistics of players and even videos of the most outstanding plays.

The goal is to make the LaLiga assistant available on all major chatbots and virtual wizards.

MLB’s New Sportradar Deal Includes Integrity Safeguards

Major League Baseball and Sportradar today announced a wide-ranging, multi-year partnership to enhance and expand distribution of MLB’s real-time game statistics around the globe.

Starting with the 2019 season, the deal, which encompasses media and gaming rights at both international and domestic levels, propels MLB content into a new era.

Across international markets outside of the USA, Sportradar will have exclusive distribution rights for official MLB real-time game statistics, as collected at every ballpark via the league’s proprietary technology and stat operators, to both media companies and regulated sports betting operators.

It also will have exclusive rights to distribute live industry standard audio-visual game feeds to gaming operators outside the U.S. in territories where sports betting is legal.

In the States, Sportradar will have the same exclusive rights for official real-time statistics distribution to media entities in their coverage of Major League Baseball.

Sportradar will also serve as the official supplier of MLB’s real-time betting data feed in the U.S. where distribution to regulated sports betting operators will be on a non-exclusive basis through Sportradar and additional authorized distributors.

In addition, with unique access to MLB’s Statcast data, among other statistics, Sportradar will collaborate with MLB to develop and distribute exciting new products to further engage fans and drive additional interest in the sport.

Alongside the commercial partnership, MLB will incorporate Sportradar’s Integrity Services into its existing game integrity protection measures. Sportradar will be monitoring and analyzing every MLB game via its award-winning fraud detection system and providing the MLB with educational components, as well as access to its intelligence and investigations services.

“A high-quality, reliable, and fast official data feed is the building block to creating engaging gaming products for MLB fans,” said Kenny Gersh, MLB Executive Vice President, Gaming & New Business Ventures. “Sportradar, a proven industry leader in data distribution, is perfectly positioned to help MLB deliver an exceptional Official MLB betting feed. We are excited about the opportunities that this partnership will unlock as the sports betting landscape continues to unfold in the U.S.”

“We are truly excited to be working with Major League Baseball as its official global data partner,” said Carsten Koerl, Chief Executive Officer of Sportradar. “This is not only a tremendous opportunity for Sportradar, but ultimately it opens up new doors for MLB fans who have historically shown a proclivity for sophisticated data. We look forward to utilizing our vast global experience as the global leader in the data, AV, and integrity spaces to give fans and partners an unmatched experience.”