Supercars Off To Roaring Start In Adelaide

The 2019 Virgin Australia Supercars Championship got underway with bumper TV, attendance and digital numbers this past weekend at the Superloop Adelaide 500.

Fox Sports and Network 10 pulled a combined average viewership up 9.3% from the 2018 event, and 12.1% on peak audience.

Fox Sports recorded its highest-ever Adelaide ratings, with significant increases on each day of its broadcast, including a 20% rise for Sunday’s race, for which attendance at the street circuit was a 90,000 sell-out.

Meanwhile, visits to Supercars.com over the event were up 28% and page views up 21% compared to 2018.

The Supercars Facebook page also passed 900,000 likes during Sunday’s race.

Ford’s new Mustang Supercar was the headline act, and it did not disappoint, with defending champion Scott McLaughlin taking his to a pair of victories.

Supercars Media produces the broadcast on behalf of Fox Sports, TEN, SuperView for international online subscribers, international clients in more than 90 countries worldwide and fans trackside.

The 2019 Virgin Australia Supercars Championship continues March 14-17 at the Beaurepaires Melbourne 400.

Also In The News…

The Rugby League World Cup has announced the first seven projects to receive grants for the provision of capital items, kit and equipment or to refurbish and improve existing facilities.

Applications for CreatedBy RLWC2021 Capital Grants have been open since October 2018, with a total of £10 million available for local clubs and community projects to create a positive impact, of which £9 million will be allocated to large-scale requests costing more than £15,000, with the remaining £1 million being granted to smaller-scale projects.

The government investment, delivered in partnership with the RFL and Sport England, is part of RLWC2021’s ambitious plan to leave a lasting legacy.

Protocol Sports Marketing has been appointed as the worldwide media rights agency for the semi-finals and finals of the World Boxing Super Series, on behalf of Comosa AG, a joint venture between Sauerland Events and Swiss promoter Richard Schaefer, the former CEO of Golden Boy Promotions.

The NBA game between the Golden State Warriors and the Philadelphia 76ers on ABC led U.S. primetime on Saturday in the 18-49 demographic with a 0.9 rating from 8:30-11 p.m.

FIFA Hints At Joint Korean Effort To Host Women’s World Cup

Last week’s de-nuclearization summit may have been a bust, but there continues to be more noise from the Korean peninsula about sporting collaboration between North and South.

Following recent confirmation by the IOC that the countries are planning a joint bid for the 2032 Summer Olympics, now FIFA is getting into the act – with an event that would a decade sooner.

At the International FA Board meeting this weekend in Aberdeen, Scotland, FIFA President Gianni Infantino said: “I have been hearing for the women’s World Cup in 2023, the two Koreas. I have been hearing that — it would be great.”

“It would definitely show the power of football. They have been in a very, very difficult situation until recently.”

The world governing body is believed to have received an “expression of interest” form from the Koreas ahead of next month’s deadline for applications.

Here Are The STA Startup Winners

The STA Startups, part of the Sports Technology Awards Group, in conjunction with Presenting Partner, Sportradar, revealed its 2019 winners today.

In keeping with the nature of the sector, the line-up of emerging stars was revealed by video stream (see video below) across a series of global channels, including Yahoo Sport.

The winners were:

  • Deal of the Year – Vald Performance’s Acquisition of ForceDecks
  • Best Seed Funded Business – Guided Knowledge: the Next Generation of Wearables
  • Best Crowdfunded Business – Incentive Games
  • Series A Funded Businesses – Adrenaline Hunter
  • Series B Funded Businesses – LiveLike
  • Best New Concept – Danu Analytics: a Smart Injury and Performance Analysis System

There was fierce international competition under the scrutiny of a 20-strong panel of industry-leading judges, including Gfinity’s Amanda Lawson, UEFA’s Daniel Marion, the LMA’s Richard Bevan and the FEI’s Stéphane Schwander.

Rebecca Hopkins, CEO of the Sports Technology Awards Group said ‘The Startups serve a highly exciting and dynamic part of the sports technology sector; our aim is to create valuable, third-party endorsement for young companies, which gives winners a tangible commercial edge in a competitive industry. The judges observed that this year’s entries were as diverse as they were exciting and global, and we look forward to great things from them all.’

Adam Azor, Sportradar’s Director of Product Marketing, added ‘The partnership between the Sports Technology Startups and Sportradar is one that is extremely important to us; innovation and startups go hand in hand and Sportradar has built its business on the foundation of innovation. We believe startups and their evolution are the future of our industry, so we are committed to staying closely aligned to them.’

Here’s what the winners do:

  • Vald Performance (Australia): Vald Performance’s human measurement systems are used to improve athlete performance and welfare
  • Guided Knowledge (UK): Guided Knowledge creates wearable technologies which observe and assess a user’s performance in 3D; custom, expert advice is delivered in real-time via a mobile app
  • Incentive Games (UK): Incentive Games is a B2B software developer which creates innovative, engaging, accessible games which help businesses acquire, retain and monetise customers
  • Adrenaline Hunter (France): Adrenaline Hunter is the first booking platform for extreme sports and adventure travel worldwide
  • Danu Analytics (Ireland): Danu Analytics has created a gait analysis system for injury and performance management
  • LiveLike (United States): LiveLike’s live streaming platform is a white label product that allows broadcasters to stream regular or interactive content to end users, under their own brand, on mobile and VR

For more information about the Startups or the STA Group, click here

ESPN Rolls Out First Sports Betting Show

With the U.S. regulatory regime changing, ESPN is launching its first-ever sports betting show on March 11.

The Daily Wager, with sports betting news and information, will be an hour-long show running Monday through Friday at 6 p.m. ET, and it will also be streamed live on the ESPN App.

The show will be hosted by  ESPN sports betting analyst Doug Kezirian (in photo), who will be joined by experts, analysts and reporters from various sports for discussion of analytics and point spreads, and how the day’s sports news affects betting.

“ESPN’s mission is to serve sports fans,” said Norby Williamson, ESPN Executive Vice President and Executive Editor, Studio Production. “The sports betting environment has changed, and interest is increasing at unprecedented levels. ESPN is going to have a strong and vibrant presence across our platforms, and the launch of Daily Wager is the next step in what has already been underway for some time.”

Discussion and expert analysis will be combined with ESPN’s stats and information resources and the television screen will be modified to include graphics related to sports betting news, lines and information.

Sports wagering experts will be making picks on the program. But ESPN reporters and analysts will only be offering info and insights. Making their picks remains a no-no..

William Hill Moving Fast In American Sports Market

William Hill has been quick to grow its American business following the legalisation of sports betting in the USA.

The UK-based betting company’s business is now live in six states, with access secured to 17 states in total, and a 34% market share by revenue across all seven regulated states in these early stages. Net revenue from existing American business was up 42%.

Overall, William Hill, with about 2,3000 betting shops in the UK, on March 1 announced group net revenues up 2% to £1.621 billion in the latest financial year, while operating profit slipped 3% to £266.8 million.

William Hill CEO Philip Bowcock said the company has been “first out of the blocks in all states that have regulated sports betting.”

In a statement on the American outlook, the company said: “Through carefully selecting strategic partners and key suppliers in the US we have been able to diversify into all states currently regulating sports betting and have the ability to expand quickly into other states as they regulate.”

As well as having an established brand name in the States through its existing Nevada business (begun in 2012), William Hill became the first business to agree a sponsorship deal with a major American franchise, with the Vegas Golden Knights of the NHL, and it has a similar agreement with the New Jersey Devils of the NBA.

PewDiePie Joins Most Influential Athletes List

Soccer again dominates the list of the most influential athletes in the world on social media in February, according to pioneering spontech research company Hookit, with six active footballers and one retired hero among the top 10, with Lionel Messi back of Barcelona back on top.

Three of the stars play in LaLiga in Spain (for three different teams), two for PSG in France and one for Manchester United.

The exceptions were Tom Brady of the NFL’s New England Patriots, who guided his team to victory in the Super Bowl at the start of the month, MMA champ Conor McPherson… and PewDiePie.

In broadening our view of sport to include digital competition, we also need to adjust our definition of sports personalities, and no one illustrates that better than the Swedish YouTuber, whose real name is Felix Arvid Kjellberg.

Known for his Let’s Play commentaries on video games, PewDiePie recently signed a high-profile endorsement deal with gaming mega-brand GFUEL, which calls itself the “official energy drink of esports.”

Formula 1 To Speak At iSportconnect’s 2019 Broadcast Masterclass

iSportconnect is pleased to announce that Yath Gangakumaran, Director of Corporate Strategy and Business Development at Formula 1, will be speaking at our 2019 Broadcast Masterclass on Thursday 4th April. The event will be held at Fieldfisher in the City of London, and will bring together senior level executives in the industry to focus on new ways for media companies, rights owners and technology partners to prosper, thrive and grow as the digital revolution continues to disrupt the sports broadcasting market.

Yath leads the Corporate Strategy and Business Development department at Formula 1, providing long term strategic direction for the sport as it undertakes a fundamental shift in approach to better engage fans around the world. The remit is extremely broad, covering all aspects of the organisation from Commercial and Motorsports to Corporate projects. Example Strategy projects include developing the plans to grow in key target markets, assessing prospective race locations and determining new formats for racing. On the Business Development side, his team creates new initiatives that provide incremental commercial return for Formula 1, such as the unique MIT business conference partnership.

Prior to Formula 1, Yath was a Senior Strategist at Sky Sports working on channel development, sports rights assessments and business development. He was also a Strategist at Channel 4 and began his career at professional services organisation, PwC, as a Strategy Consultant advising media and sports organisations on corporate strategy and commercial due diligence.

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 Broadcast Masterclass, please contact Chloe McCombie at info@isportconnect.com

Invitation Policy: The Broadcast 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 Millns at info@isportconnect.com

 

Tokyo 2020 Sets Strict No Smoking Policy

All the venues for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games will be 100 percent smoke-free, the organisers announced yesterday.

At most sporting venues in Japan, there are designated areas for smokers to use but this will not be the case at Tokyo 2020.

“Based on the development of the law and regulations and guidance from the IOC, Tokyo 2020 has decided to adopt a stricter non-smoking policy to protect the health and safety of athletes, spectators and officials,” the organisers said in a statement.

A similar policy to that enacted during the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018.

Unlike at London 2012 and Rio 2016, there will not even be designated smoking areas outside of venues.

In 1964, the last time Tokyo hosted the Summer Games, the event actually had a tobacco sponsor, and one cigarette brand even featured the Olympic rings on its packet.

In his book Olympic Turnaround, former IOC Marketing Director Michael Payne recounted that “one of the most successful licensed Olympic products ever produced” was the Olympias brand of cigarettes,designed to generate funds to support the organisation of the 1964 Tokyo Games. Olympias generated over $1 million in revenues for the Organising Committee.

Payne wrote: “A popular Japanese cigarette brand, Peace, ran a promotion where each package was sold with a numbered premium ticket. This entitled anyone drawing a winning ticket to claim a prize of a further 365 packs. Even back in the 1960s, marketers realized that the Olympic rings could draw consumers’ attention to a product. Every packet of Peace cigarettes, carried the Olympic emblem.”

Juventus Enjoys Jump In Product Sales

Merchandising revenues have soared for Juventus in the first half of the 2018-19 financial year, in the first season with Cristiano Ronaldo in black and white.

Income from products and licenses was €26,51 million, up 81% over the same period in the previous year.

However, the cost of products rose by even more, according to Calcio e Finanza.

Juventus paid €12.18 million for products to sell in its retail outlets and online, an increase of 107% on the comparable period last year.

Juventus and Inter Milan are neck and neck in terms of sponsorship revenues generated during the first six months of the 2018-19 financial year.

Juventus took in €61.4 million in sponsorship and advertising, up 42% from the first half of 2017-2018.

Inter earned €60.7 million (via Inter Media and Communications), up 41%.

During the period, Inter’s revenue included €5.3 million from main sponsor Pirelli and €5.0 million from technical sponsor Nike.