Community, Author at iSportConnect

Dugout appoints Shaun McAllister from Copa90 as its first commercial director

Dugout has appointed Shaun McAllister as its first ever commercial director to head up revenue-driving media and brand partnership activity.

Shaun in his current role will be responsible for amplifying Dugout’s story by increasing the platform’s work with brands, driving innovative use of social media and maximising the exclusive content created by Dugout’s partner clubs, players and leagues.

Prior to this, Shaun McAllister served as the EMEA sales director for Copa90, where he led the regional sales for the agency.

McAllister said: “Dugout was founded on the premise that the way the average football fan consumes football content has fundamentally changed. For today’s digital-first, millennial football fan, it’s more than just 90 minutes – they want unparalleled, behind-the-scenes access to their favourite clubs and players, and they want to be the first to share great content with their friends.”

Matthew Baxter, Dugout president, said: “Shaun brings with him fantastic experience of both football and media and we’re thrilled to have him on board. I believe that Dugout offers a great opportunity for brands to do something totally unique, and Shaun’s role in recruiting and supporting these partners will play a big part in building on the success we’ve seen since launch. I look forward to seeing Shaun’s commercial expertise develop the business further over the years to come.”

eFootball.Pro awards esports league media rights to Sportradar

eFootball.Pro, which will be launching a football esports competition together with KONAMI, has signed leading sports data and content developers Sportradar as “Official International Media Rights Distribution Partner”.

Under the terms of the multi-year partnership, the company will be the exclusive agency commercialising the live media rights for the new league’s matches, as well as distributing matchday previews and analysis, highlights, news, interviews, reports and other audiovisual content to provide the public worldwide with everything they need to understand, follow and gain insight into the new exciting league.

Sportradar will also be in charge of production across all this content, including all the live LAN (face-to-face) matches. These fixtures, whose details haven’t been unveiled yet, will be played by top-notch teams and will become a model in the electronic sports space.

eFootball.Pro’s Managing Director Javier Alonso highlights the professionalism of the company: ‘We trust in the quality of the contents produced by Sportradar and its expertise to distribute them. We hope that we together will lay the foundations of the football esports’ future and bring the spectators a unique and exciting product’.

Sportradar’s Director Media Rights Giuseppe Sampino added: ‘This league already has all the ingredients in place to ensure that it takes the world by storm. With the likes
of Piqué involved as President and Founder, Sportradar are delighted to bring our pedigree in the international sports media space together with our existing esports credentials to the table.

Fans as well as industry observers will be watching with keen interest as this league launches, flourishes and excites, and we cannot wait to be part of that evolution’. Sportradar covers more than 350,000 matches from over 50 sports every year, and lists UEFA, NBA, Bundesliga and ESL, the world’s largest esports organisation among its partners.

Sportradar will also be responsible for the distribution of other esports events that esports Media Rights (EMR), which owns eFootball.Pro, will organise. EMR competitions will go beyond football esports and one of them will be unveiled soon.

Wildmoka raises $8 million in Series A funding led by Alven

Sophia-Antipolis and Paris, February 1st, 2018 – Wildmoka, the leading live clipping, editing and publishing platform for broadcasters, announced today a Series A investment of $8 million led by venture capital investor Alven with participation from existing shareowner Apicap.

Wildmoka’s cloud video platform empowers broadcasters and content owners to unleash their fan engagement by clipping the greatest moments from live TV and events as they happen, and sharing them across web, mobile and social to give viewers what they really want – immediate access to the best highlights.

The company works with clients across all media verticals, from sports to news to entertainment. Its automated workflow technology brings one of the most advanced cloud video solutions today, and is capable of assembling and publishing content instantly towards multiple platforms, while optimising editorial effort, growing new audiences & developing innovative monetisation models.

Current customers include major media companies such as NBC Sports, NBC News, France Télévisions, CANAL+, FOX, Orange, beIN SPORTS, MBC Group, Altice (BFM & SFR), the International Tennis Federation, to name a few. In addition to its headquarters in the South of France, the company has five offices on three continents (Europe, US, and Australia).

Since its Seed Round in early 2016, the company has grown rapidly with platform deployments and has multiplied its customer base tenfold. This Series A financing will be used to further boost Wildmoka’s global commercial expansion and market presence, and to accelerate the investments in its cloud video platform. Raffi Kamber, Partner at Alven, will join Wildmoka’s board of directors.

“Live content distribution on web, mobile and social has become a core differentiator for broadcasters and content owners, both in terms of brand recognition and monetisation. By using next-gen technologies like speech-to-text, video recognition, and machine learning, Wildmoka ensures that its offering is well-timed with fans’ rapidly increasing demand for a highly personalised digital experience.

“Wildmoka provides a powerful solution for the industry and we are thrilled to collaborate with them and support them as they work to build the next media digital hub,” Raffi Kamber explained.

“We couldn’t be more excited about our partnership with Alven,” Cristian Livadiotti and Thomas Menguy, Co-Founders of Wildmoka, said. “We now have a new ambitious partner on board, who provides us not only with capital, but also with a vast strategic experience in the high-tech sector, and a proven track record in fast growth.

“While the funding will help us broaden our sales focus, most importantly, it will allow us to continue driving value for our existing customers. It means they will see more innovation from us at a faster pace.”

About Wildmoka

Founded in 2013 in the Sophia Antipolis technopole, Wildmoka is a live clipping, editing & publishing platform provider. Wildmoka’s solutions empower Content Owners and Rights Holders to deliver their live content in front of the largest digital and social audiences as quickly as possible.

The platform enables them to face the viewers’ demand for growing video content over web, mobile and social, allowing them to increase their fans engagement, grow their audience, and develop new monetisation models. For more information, please click here

About Alven

Paris-based Alven Capital is an early-stage venture capital firm with over $500 million under management. Alven backs primarily ambitious European entrepreneurs in the digital technology space. Alven’s sectors of interest include notably AI, data-driven platforms, Saas, security solutions, as well as disruptive consumer models with a particular focus on marketplaces and web brands.

Past or current investments include Algolia, Dataiku, Drivy, Happn, Wit.ai (Facebook), CaptainTrain (Trainline/KKR), Bime Analytics (Zendesk), Frichti, Tinyclues, iAdvize, Peopledoc and Wynd. For more information, please click here

Australian Open renews broadcast deal with beIN until 2024

The Australian Open has extended its broadcast partnership with beIN until 2024.

As part of the deal, beIN will broadcast lead-in tournaments, AO qualifying and the Laver Cup in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Tennis Australia will also provide quality original programming content year round, including match highlights, player, tournament and city profiles, plus behind the scenes footage.

beIN media group’s executive director of sports content, Daniel Markham, said: “beIN are delighted to continue our long-term relationship with Tennis Australia. Tennis is one of the central pillars of our premium sports content and today’s announcement cements beIN as the continuing long-term home of tennis in the Middle East and North Africa.

“The Australian Open is the perfect way to start the sporting year and we are very excited to bring this event to our audiences for the foreseeable future.”

Tennis Australia chief revenue officer, Richard Heaselgrave, added: “The extension of our partnership with beIN media group now includes the full eight weeks of the Australian summer of tennis, the brand new global event the Laver Cup, along with other quality original content throughout the year.

“BeIN’s commitment to their most comprehensive coverage of the Australian summer of tennis will allow our fans in the MENA region to follow the action right across Australia throughout December and January. With more channels, content and live feed capabilities, we will be able to tell a more compelling story that shows the power, passion and glory of tennis.”

NASCAR bolsters international efforts with new leadership roles

NASCAR has announced a series of new leadership appointments as it expands its international business.

The organisation has named Jim Cassidy as new chief international officer, who will be reporting to Steve O’Donnell, executive vice president and chief racing development officer.

Cassidy will oversee all international competition and commercial operations, building on the success of NASCAR’s three international series with the NASCAR Pinty’s Series in Canada, NASCAR Mexico Series and NASCAR Whelen Euro Series.

O’Donnell said: “Jim brings nearly two decades of racing operations and industry leadership experience. He has worked tirelessly to grow our existing motorsports properties outside of the U.S and will lead our efforts to identify important growth opportunities internationally for our sport and its growing fanbase.”

Cassidy added: “NASCAR racing is broadcast in over 185 countries and territories, with race fans engaging stock car racing in person at events in Canada, Mexico and across Europe. The demand for NASCAR racing internationally has never been stronger and we look forward to bringing our sport closer to race fans everywhere.”

Meanwhile, Chad Seigler has been appointed as the vice president, International Business Development and Celeste Griffin-Churchill as senior director, International.

NASCAR additionally named Ben Kennedy as general manager, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. Kennedy will oversee all aspects of NASCAR’s truck series, working closely with Brad Moran, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series managing director, and Jeff Wohlschlaeger, managing director, Series Marketing to continue to deliver great racing, fan experience and marketing across this series.

Kennedy will report into Elton Sawyer, vice president, Competition and will work closely with O’Donnell and Steve Phelps, executive vice president and chief global sales and marketing officer.

ITF announces major restructure of professional tennis with 2019 transition tour

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) has today announced details of the new ITF transition tour that will be launched in 2019 as part of a major restructuring of professional tennis.

The tour aims to provide a more effective pathway linking the ITF Junior Circuit and the senior professional game, and also ensure that prize money at professional level tournaments is better targeted to enable more players to make a living.

The creation of the transition tour is based on ITF research that shows that while over 14,000 players compete each year in professional tournaments, only around 350 men and 250 women break even financially without consideration of coaching costs.

The transition tour will be staged within a more localised circuit structure that reduces costs for players and tournament organisers. This will also increase opportunities for players from more countries to join the pathway and be supported in their transition to professional tennis.

The transition tour forms part of a new worldwide tournament structure that has been agreed between the ITF, ATP and WTA in order to address the current challenges at entry level.

This structure is expected to reduce the number of professional players with ATP and WTA rankings from 3,000 players to approximately 750 men and 750 women.

Women’s tour structure 2019:

Men’s tour structure 2019:

ITF President David Haggerty said: “The new worldwide tournament structure in which we have collaborated with the ATP and WTA will help address the issues of transition between the junior and senior game, and enable more professional players to make a living.

“The introduction of the transition tour will allow players to take the first steps towards becoming a future champion within a more targeted and affordable circuit structure.”

Chris Kermode, ATP Executive Chairman & President, added: “The new points structure from 2019 will lead to significant enhancements to the player pathway through men’s professional tennis, providing a seamless link for players to progress upwards into ATP Challengers and beyond.

“We look forward to the successful implementation of the new structure through our continued extensive collaboration with the ITF.”

Steve Simon, WTA Chairman & CEO, commetned: “It is the goal of many talented young tennis players to compete on the WTA Tour. We support the restructuring of the pathway to professional tennis that is being announced by the ITF which is designed to simplify the forward progress of talented young players through different tournament levels.

“These efforts will provide more targeted job opportunities for players, and ultimately establish a clear pathway structure for players to move up to the WTA professional level.”

iSportconnect adds Canal+ and Olympic Channel to Broadcast Masterclass lineup

iSportconnect is pleased to announce that two additional guest speakers have been added to the lineup for the Broadcast Masterclass on February 28, 2018.

Sebastien Audoux, Head of Sports – Canal OTT (Canal+ Group), and Federico de Mojana, Head of Programming at the ‎Olympic Channel, will take part in the day’s first panel focusing on the new generation of video platforms.

Discussion topics are set to include how pay-TV operators can keep customers, the challenges for rights owners creating direct-to-consumer platforms and whether pay-TV & OTT offerings can co-exist.

Audoux will bring valuable insight to the content programme, with his current role encompassing the structuring and negotiating of a wide variety of deals relating to the development, production & acquisition of programming content, plus digital media and technology.

De Mojana is a thought leader in his field and is responsible for the content strategy of the Olympic Channel, including the creation of content partnerships with production companies, rights holders and international federations.

The event offers a unique opportunity for leading executives to learn more about a crucial sector of the sports industry. A range of panel discussions, presentations and case studies will also focus on the future of the broadcast rights landscape, deepening audience engagement, monetising mobile audiences and adapting to new platforms.

Confirmed speaker lineup:

Peter Hutton, CEO of Eurosport

Jonathan Licht, Director of Strategy at Sky Sports

Aarti Dabas, Head of Media Rights, Broadcast & Digital at the International Cricket Council

Shane Warden, Director of Broadcast & Technology at ATP Media

Ian Holmes, Director of Media Rights at Formula 1

Ralph Straus, Commercial Director at the International Equestrian Federation

Stefan Kürten, Executive Director of EBU Sport

Sebastien Audoux, Head of Sports – Canal OTT

Federico de Mojana, Head of Programming at the ‎Olympic Channel

The event will be held at K&L Gates’ offices in central London. No agencies or press will be in attendance and, as Chatham House Rules will be strictly adhered to, all discussions will remain confidential.

Additionally, a series of intimate networking sessions will give delegates an opportunity to forge new relationships and discuss potential partnerships in a relaxed atmosphere.

Want to attend? See our invitation policy below:

There is no fee to attend this event. However, the Broadcast Masterclass is open exclusively to senior sports business executives from broadcasters, rights holders and sponsorship brands only.
No agencies or press can attend and, as we follow Chatham House Rules, all discussions will remain confidential.
Capacity is capped at 150 delegates allowing intimate access to key decision makers in the sports industry.

Please contact Chris Edbrook (chris@isportconnect.com) to register your interest in attending.

The SPOT hits the mark with exceptional list of speakers and innovative programme

What do the Founding Director of the Sports Innovation Programme at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the Global Head of Research at Nielsen Sports and a former Director for Federal Cybersecurity Policy on the White House National Security Council have in common?

Answer: They will all be guest speakers at the first edition of The SPOT, which will take place on 15-16 May 2018 in Lausanne, Switzerland.

ThinkSport has unveiled a number of knowledgeable speakers along with details on the programme of a pioneering new event that aims to stimulate progress in sport by bringing together bright minds and fresh innovations inside and outside the industry.

Senior Manager at Exponent, Inc. and former MIT Sports Innovation Programme founder Kim Blair, who has also an interesting background as a NASA aerospace engineer, will discuss new technologies.

Mike Wragg, Global Head of Research at Nielsen Sports, will share his insights into the global expansion of e-sports, while Dr. Earl Crane of Emergent Network Defense, a former National Security Council member, will give a presentation on digital security.

Anything but conventional, The SPOT will offer the following:

• A Marketplace and Demo Zone, where participants will be able to present and discover innovative products and solutions;
• Numerous networking opportunities allowing new cross-sector partnerships and projects to come into being;
• An engaging conference and workshop programme, created to connect participants with pioneers in innovation;
• An international start-up competition to promote and reward new business ideas.

The two-day conference and workshop program is structured around the themes of Connecting the World, Information is Power, Future Athletes and Future Sport. Discussions will take place in an open space and a dynamic atmosphere. Speakers will share their insights with participants and then engage in thought-provoking conversations with each other and with attendees.

The start-up contest targets young companies with innovative business ideas that help to promote sport and physical activity in any form. Start-ups have until 20 April 2018 to sign up for the event, where they will be given the opportunity to make three-minute pitches of their concepts on a dedicated stage.

Each start-up will then partake in three-minute Q&A sessions with a panel of experts. A handful of shortlisted start-ups will then advance to the final, to be held in front of an audience that will include investors. Start-ups can benefit from interesting event packages as well as the early bird rate.

Anna Hellman, Director of ThinkSport, said: “We have been thrilled by the interest shown in The SPOT by people from all kinds of sectors and backgrounds. As a result, we have lined up some great speakers and contributors. We will continue to work hard to create a valuable event that brings together people of all different backgrounds who are keen to think outside the box. It is about offering different angles on various topics that will have an important impact on the future of sport.”

ThinkSport has signed up seven sponsors for The SPOT already: Be.care (Health Services), digitalswitzerland (Swiss Digital Network), EVS (Broadcast Production Services), Medbase (Medical
Centres), Mindmaze/ Gait Up (Motion Analysis Solutions), Nielsen (Research & Insight) and Penceo (a digital communication agency).

Negotiations with other companies are ongoing. Click here to find out more about supporters of The SPOT.

Whether you work in the sports industry or elsewhere, come from Switzerland or abroad, The SPOT is sure to engage people with an interest or stake in sport, physical activity and technology and those keen to think outside the box. Secure your early bird rate by registering at www.thespot2018.org by 25 February 2018.

SportAccord 2018 confirms initial speaker line-up for Bangkok conference programme

SportAccord has confirmed close to 25 speakers for the upcoming SportAccord World Sport and Business Summit. SportAccord will be held from 15 – 20 April 2018 at the Centara Grand & Bangkok Convention Centre, Thailand.

“We have an amazing SportAccord lined up for 2018, across the conference, the exhibition and the many programmes and events that comprise SportAccord, said Nis Hatt, Managing Director of SportAccord.

“Attendees will have the opportunity to experience many new elements this year, most notably the new HealthAccord conference stream, additional events, hospitality and networking areas, as well as the unique Thai Pavilion. We’re looking forward to hosting the most prestigious annual sports business event for sport and industry, towards creating a better future for the global sports community and citizens worldwide.”

This year’s SportAccord Summit (Plenary) is focused on “Uniting A Global Audience: Marketing and Sponsorship for the Future.” Continuing the theme of ‘sponsorship and marketing’ throughout the conference programme, speakers will be representing organisations across the entire sports business landscape including industry, international sports federations, cities and regions, as well as legal and medical experts. Confirmed speakers include:

Weerasak Kowsurat, Minister, Ministry of Tourism and Sports, Thailand
Adolfo Bara, Managing Director Sales & Marketing, La Liga
Caroline Baxter Tresise, International Consultant, Social and Human Resources, UNESCO
Charmaine Crooks C.M. Olympic Medalist, President, NGU Consultants
Craig Howe, CEO & Founder, Rebel Ventures
David Eades, Journalist and Anchor, BBC World
David Simon, President, Los Angeles Sports Council
Frederique Reynertz, Director of Legal and Business Affairs Department, IAAF
Giles D. Morgan, Independent Advisor and Former Global Head of Sponsorship & Events, HSBC Holdings PLC
Guy Port, Managing Director Asia, Nielsen Sports
Hayden Opie, Senior Fellow (Melbourne Law Masters), University of Melbourne
James Pearce, Sports Broadcaster, BBC
Jeff Benz, CEDS, JAMS Mediator and Arbitrator and former General Counsel of the United States Olympic Committee
Kim Andersen, President, World Sailing
Laurie Cavan, GM Parks, Recreation & Culture, City of Surrey, BC, Canada
Margo Mountjoy, Chair, ASOIF Medical + Scientific Consultative Group, IOC Medical + Scientific Commission-Games Group FINA Bureau
Matteo Vitello, Business Relations Manager, Technogym SPA
Matthieu Reeb, Secretary General, Court of Arbitration for Sport
Melanie Duparc, Coordinator, Smart Cities & Sport
Michael Lenard, Vice President, ICAS
Prof. Fabio Pigozzi, President, FIMS (International Federation of Sports Medicine) & Member of the IOC Medical and Scientific Commission – Medical and Scientific Group
Stephen Townley, Chairman, Active Rights Management Ltd
Thomas Lund, Secretary General, Badminton World Federation
Troy Pugmire, Managing Director, Gramercy Global Media

The SportAccord 2018 conference programme comprises five key streams including: The Summit, CityAccord, LawAccord, MediaAccord and HealthAccord. The conference programme, exhibition, networking and cultural events can be attended by delegates who register at www.sportaccord.com.