The Sports Entrepreneurs Podcast by Marcus Luer
Marcus Luer
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The Sports Entrepreneurs Podcast is an “audio biography” series with the leading Entrepreneurs and Movers & Shakers in the business of Sports & Esports of the past 40 years. Marcus drills deep into the career of his guests, what worked and what didn’t, the learning from the good, bad and ugly. Through his wide network, Marcus is able to host top guests from across the industry and from around the world. As a western Sports Entrepreneur operating in Asia for the past 25 years, it has a certain East-West flavour.
Available episodes
Newest first
Oldest first
Aug 3, 2022
Damian Willoughby, ”Talking Football & Esports”
Damian Willoughby, turned his passion for football, playing in his youth in the UK, then NCAA football to spending his career across Rangers FC, Chelsea FC, Manchester City and the City Football Group till his current and most recent role at EA (Electronic Arts) in Esports. Listen and learn from his experiences at some of the biggest Football brands and now at EA.
Key Highlights
* From playing youth Football in the UK, to NCAA “soccer” and getting his MBA at University of Liverpool in Football
* Leading to his first first role in Rangers FC, leading sponsorship programs
* Despite the huge rivalry between Rangers and Celtic (collectively called “The Old Firm”) on the pitch, both clubs cooperated on sponsorship deals to avoid brands having to split across the fan base. Very clever
* Talking numbers, front of shirt and other revenue streams for Rangers. Very competitive with the big UK clubs at the time due to passionate fan base, 50k fans in stadium, etc. The big Premier League Media income started to make the difference and swing power to English Clubs.
* Next stop Chelsea, Abramovich’s early era and success started to make a difference. Talking Samsung and leveraging the power of the Premier League globally. Discussing the “not invented here syndrome” of global brand sponsorships and how to deal with it. Singha Beer deal discussion.
* Moving into Player Management side with James Grant Sports Group for a couple of years to learn that part of the business, wasn’t his thing
* Manchester City, new Arab owners already in place and club on major trajectory – joining in global sponsorship sales role
* City Football Group (New York, Melbourne, Mumbai, Yokohama, etc) – 12 clubs now globally – (and Ferran Soriano’s role in it)
* How it works from a commercial point of view and creating synergies across the different clubs, leveraging the global power of Manchester City combined with the local strength of the various partner clubs
* Moving to Singapore running global business from there for six years, last few years also CEO of City Football India (Mumbai City FC), last few years during Covid
* How players move around the City Football Group ecosystem
* In the Middle of Covid, mid 2021, Gaming/Esports is booming, next move, VP Partnerships for EA Sports – huge company, US$ 7 billion in revenue, 13,000 people worldwide
* Talking Esports & EA properties, much more than FIFA, leader of sports simulation games (Madden NFL, F1, UFC, NHL, PGA Tour, etc) and other successful non-sports games (Apex Legend, Battlefield, The Sims) – difference between sports and non-sports games
* Huge player base and time spend in the game by Gamers, massive audiences and engagement levels – still lots of education to be done with brands on how to leverage it
* FIFA split, what he could share – big plans for EA Sports FC , nothing changes in the game, the teams and general feel of the game
* Stevenage FC and Burger King, how it went viral, creative thinking on how to leverage a game
About
A highly accomplished and respected global football executive with 20+ years experience in generating and managing over £1.3bn in revenues, motivating large (+65 staff) and globally diverse (13 offices) teams to achieve sporting and financial goals around performance, brand, revenue and fan growth for leading sports properties including City Football Group, Chelsea & Rangers FC.
Most recently CEO of City Football India following the strategic acquisition of a majority stake in Mumbai City FC, worked with CFG and Reliance as shareholders to develop the Club, Indian Super League and Indian football.
Currently VP, Partnerships at Electronic Arts, originally head hunted to develop the commercial strategy for Esports across key global EA franchises (FIFA, Madden & Apex) and now working in a small core executive team to shape the future of the company’s marquee football franchise.
Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast
To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com
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Jun 21, 2022
Sandy Brown, ”American Sports Broadcasting Nomad”
Sandy Brown, another true American Sports Nomad, especially in the Media and Broadcasting space. Listen to amazing stories of Sandy’s globe trotting career around the world from ProServ, NBA, ESPN/Star Sports, Univision, ONE World Sports and more.
Key Highlights
* Growing up playing tennis, made connections through his Tennis Club in Delaware
* How he got started at ProServ, first meeting with Donald Dell, driving his limo around the airport
* Dennis Spencer one of his early mentors (shout out to one of the nicest guys in the industry)
* Pro-Serve, top roster of Tennis and NBA players, tennis tournaments – peak of company
* Before Sportel Monaco days, MIP TV and MIP Com , flogging sports TV rights in Cannes
* Next stop NBA, international TV rights – David Stern his next mentor, early days as Commissioner (know your business better than anyone else was his mantra)
* CCTV story. Happened to me before as well
* ESPN Asia, move to Hong Kong - at the age of 28 (1992)
* Birth of Cable industry in Asia, Satellite distribution just started – DTH business across the region
* US content as a start and Monday night Premier League matches
* Creative deal making in China
* Merger of ESPN Asia and Star Sports in Asia (Murdoch) (new set up in Singapore) – Managing Director of new JV
* Big change in broadcast landscape and shock for Rights holders and agencies
* Two different corporate cultures working together, very focused on turning a loss making entity to break even
* ESPN had carriage fees, Star Sports was free for platform owners (Advertising driven)
* Exploits in India, cable operators in India are another level (try to visualize it) – Chris McDonald/Manu Sawhney (wild west of India, machine guns, etc)
* ARPU blend discussion – penny a sub in China, 5 cent in India to 1 dollar in SEA and Taiwan – retail rate of partners
* Disney/ESPN recently shut the entire network structure down after acquiring FOX Sports globally a few years before, about 30 years later
* Next stop CNBC Asia (NBC Universal) – learning the GE culture, Jack Welsh as CEO
* Business News different thing
* After 15 years, time to come back to the US – biggest take away, working with great people makes the difference
* Univision – President of Sports – launching a domestic US cable sports channel focused on Hispanic population – bringing in new ideas and concepts, pushing Rights holders to new grounds
* ONE World Sports – new platform targeting Asian diaspora in the US (Seamus O’Brien behind the venture)
* From two affiliate deals, pushed up to 70
* Lots of live content, Chinese Super League, KHL (Russian Ice-hockey), ECB (English Cricket), European Football Club Channels, Table Tennis, etc
* Alternative to ESPN, heavy promotions and support to rights holders to market their product in the US
* Eventually shareholders decided to sell the business – to ELEVEN
* Commissioner of Major League Lacrosse – turn around situation, difficult set up with owners and commercial structure
* League had been around for 20 years, lots of cleaning up to do
* Competitive League shows up (PLL), plus Covid gets in the way
* Merging with PLL now, handing it over, winding up MLL
* Poshando Inc – starting his own consulting business just recently (back in Baltimore)
* Final thoughts on Broadcasting/Streaming industry currently, subscription models (Netflix), investor expectations vs industry realities (ARPU blend vs Sub growth) –
* quality of subscribers
* cost of acquisition of subs (cost of broadcast rights
About
Alexander P. Brown joined Major League Lacrosse in February 2018. Since taking the helm, Brown has drastically improved the experience and opportunity for players, teams and fans. During his tenure, he has restructured the ownership group, rebranded the league marks and reacquired the league’s media rights, leading to exponential growth in nationally televised reach. In 2019, Brown welcomed ten new partners to the league, introduced a creative and sophisticated digital team (generating 194% growth in social traffic, 97% growth in social engagement and 393% growth in web traffic) and achieved a 16% increase in total attendance year-over-year.
During the 2020 COVID impacted year, Brown oversaw the most successful year in MLL’s history in terms of overall engagement, generating over 150mm digital impressions over an eight (8) day tournament. Further, the league’s impressions on ESPN and ESPN + increased by 150% and 1600%, respectively.
Brown is an accomplished executive with over 25 years of leadership experience who has spearheaded the launch and growth of multiple sports media outlets. Most recently, he was the President/CEO of One World Sports, where he launched the HD channel across both linear and digital platforms to over 50 million US subscribers through cable and satellite distributors as well as over-the-top (OTT) platforms.
In 2010, Brown became President of Univision Sports, the leading media outlet for Spanish-speaking Americans, where he created and launched Univision Deportes to over 15 million US homes. As part of this effort, Brown oversaw the rebranding of Univision Sports. Additionally, he not only supervised the production of the highest rated primetime sports broadcast in the channel’s history at the time with the Mexico vs. Honduras match in the 2011 Gold Cup, but he developed Univision’s nightly version of SportsCenter, “Univision Deportes Extra” or “UDX” as well as the network’s signature soccer pregame program, “Futbol Central”.
Brown has extensive experience in the international markets. Based in Hong Kong and Singapore, he launched ESPN’s business in Asia while serving as the Managing Director of both ESPN Asia and ESPN Star Sports. Brown’s international work in sports began in the late 1980’s when he was hired by the NBA to oversee their international television interests in over 100 countries.
Brown played lacrosse collegiately at Washington and Lee University and represented the university in the 1985 USILA North South Game.
Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast
To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com
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Jun 7, 2022
Scott Levy, ”NBA Globetrotter”
Scott Levy, a globetrotting senior US sports executive with a stellar resume and decades of achievements in the NBA. Get an inside scoop into the growth of the NBA internationally, and Scott’s role and journey over more than two decades with the organization.
Key Highlights
* Passion for traveling inspired early after University, starting in the advertising world with Y&R and McCann-Erickson in New York City with a goal to combine his passion with work
* Joining the NBA in 1996 working in marketing and moving in Media and international television distribution
* His first decade at the NBA unpacked (1996-2006)
* Massive growth of global distribution, especially country by country deals – media a big focus of then Commissioner David Stern
* Over 20 deals in China alone, Shanghai Media story
* Clear strategy to keep everything in house, not using agencies – Scott explains the reason behind it
* David Stern, always pushing his team to get better, be the most educated guy in the room
* The impact of players on growth, Yao Ming, Dirk Nowitzki and the US superstars from MJ to Kobe Bryant
* The different impacts of Yao and Dirk in their respective territories, Kobe and LeBron, social media exploits and travelling the globe
* Teams travelling globally to promote the League (pre-season games), comparing to European/UK Football Clubs. Decisions are centralized and coordinated by the League
* Initially teams often didn’t want to travel (Coaches preferred to train at home for pre-season) and now it’s a part of their global brand and team building
* Teams been travelling since the 90s, first in Japan, up to 6-8 teams now regularly travelling each year, mostly teams playing each other
* Teams now using Tours to expand fan base, bring in new sponsors, etc, also driven by more diverse group of NBA Team owners
* MJ Global Sports & Media – short 2-3 year break as consultant
* Back into the NBA for the second round (2009-2022)
* Coming back as SVP & Managing Director for NBA Asia based in Hong Kong
* His role, everything in region excluding Greater China (separate NBA China office), firstly “learn about Asia”
* Philippines, highest basketball affinity in the world – mad about the game – Eric Spoelstra visiting the Philippines
* India, important market and development started a decade ago
* Basketball Africa League (BAL) success and model, potential for other regions?
* NBA Digital platforms (NBA League Pass) – variety of feeds (Player, Refs & Mascot cams) different languages, local influencers calling a game in local language, different packages, fourth quarter pass, etc. Very customized to each region and country. As low as US$ 20 dollars (correction to US$ 10 dollars comment) per season
* Rakuten, important partnership in Japan (media partner) and globally
* Short form content, very important for engagement, vertical video format, finding the right mix, longer content demand growing (20-60 min)
* Local partnerships, depends on country, ie. Philippines, Australia and China has strong local partnerships
* Junior NBA program – healthy livestyle focus, more opportunities to grow with local partners
* Scott leaving the NBA, becoming a digital nomad, spending time between Asia and US – next moves
* Consulting companies in Web 3 space
* NBA Top Shot, NBA an early adopter in NFT space – US$ 1 billion dollar worth of transaction
* Scott sees exponential growth in the Web3 space from metaverse to Dao’s – still early days
* NB2K – a form of a metaverse already, NBA Fortnite – NBA All-Star Game content (16 million visiting NBA Hub in Fortnite)
* His focus is on being heavily immersed in this space in the foreseeable future on his own
* Final words on the current NBA Play-offs and teams in the Conference Finals
About
SCOTT LEVY, Executive Vice President & Managing Director, NBA Asia
As Executive Vice President & Managing Director of NBA Asia, Scott Levy oversees development and expansion of the NBA’s branding and basketball initiatives in Asia-Pacific, including Australia, India, Japan, Philippines, South Korea and other countries across Southeast Asia and Oceania. Levy directs all of NBA Asia and NBA India’s business groups, including media distribution, marketing and marketing partnerships, merchandising, events, digital media, and gaming. Levy reports to NBA Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum.
Since Levy’s arrival in 2009, the league has dramatically expanded its local partnerships in Asia-Pacific, resulting in more than 460 retail locations and e-commerce sites, multiple new media and marketing partnerships, the launch of the Jr. NBA across Southeast Asia, and amassing more than 35 million followers from Asia across the league’s social media accounts.
From 2006 to 2009, Levy ran his own consulting company, MJ Global Sports and Media Inc. Levy previously worked for the NBA for 10 years and left as Senior Vice President, International Television and Marketing Partnerships. During his tenure, Levy helped grow broadcast distribution for NBA programming to more than 200 countries and 40 languages. Under his leadership, the NBA launched many new content offerings internationally, including NBA TV, the league’s 24-hour network.
Prior to beginning his first NBA stint in 1996, Levy traveled independently and extensively throughout China, Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand. Levy is on the board of the Global Health Society, a nonprofit organization that conducts camps and develops programs for children with bleeding disorders. He has competed in multi-sport and adventure races, including the New York Marathon, Oxfam Japan Trailwalker and many triathlons raising funds for Fred’s Team and the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Levy is based in Hong Kong with his wife Ilene and sons Matthew and Joshua.
Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast
To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com
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Apr 13, 2022
Oli Slipper, ”Streaming Pioneer”
Oliver Slipper, a true British Sports Entrepreneur, best known for his role building PERFORM (now Stats Perform) and now the Executive Chairman of Pitch International. Lots of great insights into Perform’s business model and his follow up moves as an Entrepreneur with Head Ball and PickGuru to his current role at Pitch International, a leading sports media rights agency in the UK.
Key Highlights
* From playing Cricket to his first job at Accenture. Why athletes bring unique attributes to the business world and learning on the job at Accenture.
* NTL, first project in sports at Accenture. Premium TV – very early days of streaming services in the UK
* Lots of learning from all the mistakes being made in the business, losing money and the flawed business model at the time
* After restructuring the deals with Football Clubs, getting to break even and slowly business model is taking shape
* Winning UK horseracing deal, merging with Inform to launch Perform - Andrew Crocker’s role in setting up the new company
* Perform business model unpacked, doubled revenue every year in next four years – leading to IPO
* WTA deal, switched to buying all rights, not just betting rights anymore.
* Netflix model and distressed media rights market inspired DAZN
* Latency challenges and how to overcome it for bookmakers
* His thoughts on DAZN and current owners end game
* His next moves as an Entrepreneur:
* Masomo, building a great sports game called Head Ball - www.headball2.com, with 200 mil downloads and sold the company after a few years
* Understanding the “K Factor” – key to growing online user base, learning App economy
* PickGuru, how it started during Covid – sports prediction game (App only in the UK)
* Executive Chairman of Pitch International – role since mid 2018 – media rights agency business, leading UK Football, Cricket, Rugby agency
* Four parts to the Pitch business, from content creation to distribution, including sponsorship and Brazil National team Tours
* Some of his investments over the years, from Play Sports Network to Cage Warriors
* Wrapping it up with his non-executive roles, including England & Wales Cricket Board (new event “The Hundred”)
About
Oli Slipper, is the Executive Chairman of Pitch International, the leading Sports Marketing agency.
In a career spanning 25 years, Oli co-founded Perform Group, a pioneer in sports streaming and data and lead it’s IPO and ultimate privatisation.
Subsequently Oli, co-founded Masomo, a mobile studio focused on sports games which was acquired by Miniclip. More recently Oli, co-founded PickGuru, a sports prediction app. In the last 10 years Oli has been an active investor in the sports, fintech and consumer tech space including: Global Cycling Network (GCN), Grabyo, Marshmallow, Cage Warriors, Sixes amongst others.
Oli sits on the Board of the Professional Darts Corporation and Oval Invincibles.
Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast
To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com
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Mar 23, 2022
Philipp Grothe, ”Football Focus”
Philipp Grothe, best known as the co-founder and driving force behind the KENTARO agency in the UK, a true pioneer and entrepreneur in the sports business over the past 20+ years. Great stories from Philipp’s career across UFA, IMG, KENTARO and what he is doing now.
Key Highlights
* Early days, coming out of Law School in Hamburg, Germany, lots of side hustles, own Ad agency, a Band, running two clubs, etc
* First job, UFA Sports, part of Bertelsmann Group in Germany, second largest Media group in the world at the time
* Competition with Kirch Media Group in Munich – small group of young sports marketing pioneers developing industry in Europe
* Interesting time, growth of Private TV networks in Europe, downfall of the Iron Curtain, new Eastern European countries opening-up
* European Football at the height of the “decentralized” era, different agencies from across Europe/UK chasing after pieces of the cake
* Stories on how deals were done both with the clubs and broadcasters, mostly trading with 2ndand 3rd party rights
* The power of Football, closely linked to powerful people in politics, creating entire new channels with key matches
* How the money of the Champions League has skewed the balance of power in the various domestic European leagues
* Next stop, IMG London – or from Guetersloh to Cleveland – learning different cultures
* IMG – key parts at the time, IMG Talent management and TWI Media/production at the time – company not in great shape at the final days of Mark McCormack
* Looking to build the House of Football – including building a Super agency – not everything worked and why
* Being very German and contradicting Bob Kain at the first meeting in Cleveland
* Bundling of rights, the oldest agency trick in the world
* Setting up KENTARO in a hotel in London (Kentaro meaning Lion Mother), good timing, next boom years coming
* Heavy focus on Football and some Boxing (Sauerland), stay focused on core competence important
* Key to early success, quick decision-making process compared to bigger agencies or institutional money and always hungry for the next deal (always as good as your last deal)
* Not always dealing with the person you thought you were dealing with, some painful lessons
* New concept of “two National teams playing in a third country – neutral ground”, starting with England vs Argentina in Switzerland. Brazil World Tour is born, 120 games later and the stories behind it
* Kentaro by numbers, over 500 players under contract, over 150 employees, over E$ 200 mil in revenue at the peak, but also overheads of E$ 20 mil – feeding the beast
* Asian Football stories, Thai FA and how this leads to helping purchase Manchester City for Mr. Thaksin Shinawatra (former Prime Minister)
* Managing egos, the key skill for anyone running an agency & what happened to Kentaro at the end
* Moving back to Germany, this time Berlin, new company Akani – focused on sports and entertainment, football, celebrities, MENA region, etc
* Final thoughts on Covid and impact on Football, industry in review over the past 20 years, agency business never stops, similarity to Investment Banking
About
Philipp started his career after his law degree at University in Hamburg at Bertelsmann’s Ufa Sports in 1994. He was responsible for the international football division of the company dealing with federations, leagues and clubs during a time, where broadcasting rights became "golden dust“ for TV-channels across Europe and the rest of the world.
In 2000 Philipp moved to London and became the Managing Director of the football division of IMG, founded by Mark McCormack and the biggest sports rights agency in the world. In 2003 he set up together with his partners his own agency Kentaro, one of the leading marketing companies in the football business in the following years. Philipp relocated in 2017 back to Germany, where he is still active in the business focussing on digital activities and revenue generation for various rights holders in Europe and the Middle East.
Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast
To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com
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Mar 16, 2022
Patrick Mouratoglou, ”The Coach - Going NFT”
Special Edition with Patrick Mouratoglou, the #1 Tennis Coach on his new NFT project – “The Coach”
Key Highlights
* Quick check in since we last spoke on the previous Sports Entrepreneurs Podcast, new project in Malaysia, etc
* “The Coach” - Patricks’ new NFT project – creating an exclusive Club of 2,000 Tennis fans and Web3.0 enthusiasts
* The Concept - different levels of rarity (Warm up, The Match, The Celebration) – total only 2,000 NFTs
* Wide range of benefits, special coaching sessions, one-on-one interaction with Patrick, future pro players, bringing fans, players and Web3.0 enthusiast together and access to future opportunities of projects Patrick is creating
* All 2000 NFT cards will be sold at the price of $550 (estimated gas fees included)
* Pre-sales start on March 17th and 500 spots are available
* Public sale 26th March (unveiling of NFTs on 27th March)
* Purchase on dedicated website www.thecoachnft.io, secondary market on other NFT platforms (on Ethereum blockchain)
* Support team available to on-board customers who are not familiar with NFTs, purchase via credit card available
* Where did the idea come from and how it started & long term view, learning by doing
Hope you enjoyed this short episode and introduction of an exciting new NFT project. Check it out and let us know what you think.
We have no direct affiliation and/or stake in the project and this is not investment advice. Please do your own research and homework before you invest in any NFTs.
About
THE COACH will see the merging of the NFT and sports worlds into an exclusive, one-of-a-kind club. Using the power of Web3.0, Patrick and his collaborators are creating a new experience, forming a powerful community, and looking to find new ways to improve engagement and interaction with fans.
This meeting of minds is set to change the landscape of both the sporting world and the NFT/crypto landscape — pushing the boundaries of possibilities for fans and players alike.
With only 2,000 NFTs in total up for purchase, across three levels of increasing rarity — Warm-up, Match, and Celebration — fans will have to act quickly to secure their spot in this elite circle. Each NFT will unlock exclusive benefits, unrivaled access, and unique experiences. For those who manage to secure a Celebration card, you could be opening a once-in-a-lifetime experience, from a 1-to-1 tennis session with The Coach himself to the chance to chat side-by-side for an exclusive podcast opportunity.
This is just the start of the NFT adventure. For those who join THE COACH on this first venture, there will be exclusive pre-sale access for future projects yet to come. The mint will be randomly selected and will take place publicly across platforms on the 26th March.
Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast
To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com
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Dec 31, 2021
Ralf Reichert, ”Gaming/Esports Made in Germany”
Ralf Reichert, is considered a founding father of the Gaming/Esports industry, having shaped the industry for the past 20 years as an Entrepreneur. We are unpacking the early days of ESL Gaming and off course the current state of play and plans for the future. Recording from my hometown in Koeln (Cologne), Germany. Happy holidays everyone.
Key Highlights
* Growing up in Oberhausen, the “honest” Coal mining part of Germany with two competitive brothers
* Great learning from his apprenticeship at a BWM dealership while studying in Essen
* How SK Gaming started in 1997, by his brother. 1999 connecting with Jens Hilgers (now Bitkraft Ventures), Alex Mueller (SK Gaming) to start Turtle Entertainment, later called ESL Gaming (Electronic Sports League)
* SK Gaming stories, started with playing Quake World and his involved at the beginning of the team. Later sold shares due to conflict of interest with ESL
* ESL Gaming, the “world’s largest independent esports company”, where everyone can be somebody – creating an ecosystem where Gamers can be stars, from amateur to pro player (From Zero to Hero)
* First 10 years, hard to find sponsors and funding, had to be smart and cost efficient – fight for survival – ESL was a match making platform
* The first big break, Intel Extreme Masters (IEM), 2006, longest running global pro gaming Tour in the world
* Working with Twitch when it was still Justin.tv – 2010 -2014 the golden era and big break through of Esports as an industry
* Bootstrapping the company the first 8-9 years, only small fund raise (US$ 1 mil), being frugal was the key.
* From 2010-2016 growing from a US$ 10 mil company to US$ 100 mil company – the big growth period
* The different events and Leagues 2002 ESL Pro Series, local Pro League in Germany, ESL Pro League 2013, ESL Pro Tour 2018 (local, regional and global competitions)
* Focus on Counter Strike for Pro League, because of the maturity in the Game and longevity
* Individual Tournaments on top of the Leagues, ie. IEM and ESL ONE - world championships type of events
* Prize money and event model – own and operated (ESL branded events), hybrid events in partnership with Publishers, Esports Services (agency model, power Esports for Publishers)
* Global footprint of ESL from Cologne to New York, regional HQs in LA, Singapore, Riyad, etc and production hubs in Poland and Malaysia and local offices in partnership with local partners
* 2000-2010 start up phase, 2010-2015 scale up phase, 2015-2021 globalization phase
* Modern Times Group (MTG) transaction in 2015 (which wasn’t a sale according to Ralf), Swedish group, synergies, neutral and independent
* Constant changes in industry, staying focused on ESL Brand premise (North Star) and making adjustments as industry growth
* New partnership with Immutable X, first dip into NFT space – always trying and investing in new things
* ESL during Covid – going back to roots, being online focused – Esports continued to grow during Pandemic
* Being global is difficult and hard but the best thing the company did and ESL thrived in Covid, setting new processes
* Close to 700 people now, after merger with DreamHack in 2020
* Other activities, advisory roles, etc mostly connected and synergies to main role as CEO of ESL – some angel investment
About Ralf Reichert
Ralf is Managing Director / CEO of Turtle Entertainment the world’s largest eSports company leading the industry in raising eSport production and audience levels to those of mainstream sports. Alongside the creation of Turtle Entertainment, Ralf has been an integral part of the development of ESL Gaming which is now the largest global Esports league, as well as the elite pro gaming tour Intel Extreme Masters which has given out over $3.5million of prize money spanning across 8 seasons. Reichert’s passion for gaming and technology is for all to see, and with over 20 years of experience in the industry, it is no surprise that Turtle Entertainment has been such a resounding success.
Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast
To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com
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Dec 8, 2021
Ben Smith, ”Wealth Management for Athletes”
Ben Smith, a chartered financial planner for the past 10 years, is on a mission to educate young athletes about wealth management, proper financial planning and goal setting. Very important messages for anyone dealing with young athletes and of course for athletes themselves. Listen and learn. (The Podcast was NOT sponsored by FLM)
Disclaimer: No financial advise or recommendations are given. The Podcast is purely highlighting options available.
Key Highlights
* How Ben got into the industry and how childhood lessons shaped his career path and mindset about investing
* Chartered Financial Planner, help clients make great decision with their money, from planning, tax, legal structures, etc
* FLM (Financial Lifestyle Management Ltd) a partnership affiliated to St James’s Place Plc – a Footsie 100 company (150 billion under management), different investment solutions (highly regulated environment in the UK)
* The stats behind the reason for the Podcast and why it’s so important for young athletes to be aware of it
* Early 90s, salaries in Football were only around avg GBP 20k pa, now nearly GBP 2 million per year – high earning in early part of the career (young age), opposite to traditional career path
* Process to engage young athletes – step by step process to educate them in an interactive way and setting goals
* Passive Income and Compound Interest – key to understand it – Jill and Jack example
* FLM focus on Football, Rugby and Golf
* The process, value added services by FLM, fee structure and steps to take by athletes and families
* Athletes as investors beyond their Money – bringing their Name into investments – Athletes are Brands - Whoop example – risk and returns
* FLM’s background and history over the past 20 years (www.Flmltd.com)
About Ben Smith
I help busy, successful people make great decisions with their money. I believe that wealth is dictated by behaviours, not earnings, Everything I do is focused on creating world class money habits that help my clients achieve financial freedom. This is the ability to live life to the full without financial constraints. I believe that in any area of your life, a lack of clarity can be fatal. It can lead to anxiety and hold you back from achieving what is really important to you and your family. When I first joined the industry in 2011, I had studied business, finance and economics throughout my education, yet I knew very little about personal financial planning. From working with many families over the last 10 years, I have found that money is very poorly understood in the UK which really can hold people back in a quest for a better life. With this in mind, I am passionate about financial education and the importance of having a plan. How many of us studied money or personal finance at school? It is also rarely discussed, even between close family members. I really believe in helping my clients learn as we work together, which brings both enjoyment and greater peace of mind. Having a well thought through plan allows you to get on and enjoy life whilst striving towards the things that are important to you. Everyone has a different 'why' which ultimately gets us out of bed in the morning. Maybe you want to send your kids to private school, maybe you want to retire at 45 or maybe you want to own a second home in France. The harsh reality is that, without a clear plan, you are unlikely to achieve these goals. Over the last 10 years I have worked with busy, successful individuals in London to help them establish their ‘why’ and put in place prudent, robust financial plans to meet their goals. Life is as busy as it has ever been, and very few people find the time to put in place adequate financial plans and for those who do, even fewer continue to monitor them over time. I believe everyone has experienced some kind of financial inertia during their life – for some this will be for longer than others. It is arguably the single greatest threat to ones financial plans.
Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast
To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com
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Nov 26, 2021
Chris Lencheski, “Motorsports in the Blood”
Chris Lencheski, also better known as “SKI” in the industry is a true serial sports Entrepreneur from his early days around the Atlanta Olympics to his very successful years across global motorsports. SKI & Company left its mark on the industry on many levels and Chris till today continues to shape the industry. Great insights and learning from his own businesses to the various groups he worked with over the decades (Comcast Spectacor, TPG Speciality Lending, MyyTake India), including an interesting opinion on what happened to MP & Silva. Listen and learn.
Key Highlights
* Starting at The Easton Events Company (spun out from United Media) – involved in the Atlanta Olympic Games and developing the protection of the marks, oversight of licensing rights, building activation plans, a great way to learn the ropes
* Delos Associates – first Entrepreneurial venture
* exclusive event marketing and management company for 1996 US Olympic Team Trials for Cycling; developed Official Corporate Marketing Partners Program
* first look at motorsports
* Next stop, CMDC (Chesapeake Motorsports Development Corporation),
* oversaw advertising, marketing, sponsorship, licensing, real estate, development, co-partnership, sanction, and television deals
* involved in big Pepsi deal for new Venue (NASCAR track)
* MFP Agency (Marketing for Fun & Profits) – first time CEO working for someone else (Legendary Rod Campbell)
* Rod Campbell, founder of Campbell & Company (exclusive agent of Ford Motor Company’s racing efforts globally)
* MFP, was separate entity involved in other motorsports ventures Indycar, F1 (lots of new learning experiences from Rod Campbell)
* Next up, TSI Agency for a few years
* Strategized commercial aspects as COO for organization that fielded teams in NASCAR Busch Series and Winston Cup competitions for Christian Fittipaldi and Kenny Wallace
* Created the "The Cadillac Grand Prix" with George Debidart and the late Don Panoz (founder of ALMS), the first racing event in Washington, DC – comparing with the KL City Grand Prix in Malaysia where TSA was involved
* SKI & Company – back being an Entrepreneur
* General Motors (GM) had a problem and Chris had the answer – great story on how the company got started by helping to fix a problem for the largest automobile company in the world
* GM’s mishap in Golf – bidding against itself for a major sponsorship
* How a white paper turned into the assignment as “Global Agency of record for GM Racing”, developing strategies country by country, brand by brand (from Vauxhall, Opel, Holden, to Chevy - fingers in any and all with blessing from GM)
* GM’s large interests in motorsports around the world, including NASCAR, F1, Le Mans, etc
* Growth comes at a cost – selling the business to principals of former CSS Stellar
* Phoenicia Sports & Entertainment (live after SKI&Company) – transferring the learning and philosophy
* Involved across Motorsports and Football/Soccer (Bologna)
* Next stop, President of Front Row Marketing & Analytics (a Comcast Spectacor company)
* Operated the stadia, sports media commercial rights and entertainment agency inside the greater Comcast ecosystem
* Being part of a huge group and the pros and cons of it - picked up big clients Americas Cup, EPL Teams, French Football Championship Trophee Game (NYC), etc.
* IRG Sports & Entertainment – A TPG Specialty Lending Group company , involved in change management
* From Drag Racing to race tracks around the world & bringing ESPN back and growing Australia business rapidly.
* MP & Silva – Senior Advisor to the Board – Chris’ observation as an Advisor to what happened?
* Everbright Securities & Beijing Baofong investment (at the time of China’s big push into Football/Sports globally)
* Lots of senior leadership was let go and/or advice was being ignored by the Chinese leadership which had different ideas
* Story not finished yet
* Current role at Winning Streak Sports (a Granite Bridge Partners company – linked to Wafra - Sovereign Fund of Kuwait)
* Number One premium licensing company in the world. From Board Member to CEO at request of Board
* From Live streaming, social commerce, media support to premium licensing for major sports franchises globally
* Last thoughts, success is not easy, never linear and not a ladder (more like a spray paint can) & when juggling businesses, especially going through Change Management, the rubber balls are the businesses, clients, etc.,(these balls will bounce) but don’t drop the glass balls (which are the people you work with and the most important part of any pivot - especially in commercial rights)
About Chris Lencheski
* Chairman, Phoenicia Sport and Entertainment January 2009-present
* Chief Executive Officer, Winning Streak Sports March 2019-present
* Board of Directors, MyyTake (India) March 2021-present
* Board of Directors, Electronic Gaming Federation January 2019-present
Chris Lencheski has worked in the global sports and entertainment sector for more than two decades.
As founder and chairman of Phoenicia Sport and Entertainment, a sports and media consultancy firm he launched in 2009, he advised purchasers of Italian top-tier (Serie A) football teams, developed and executed commercial rights programming for Newman/Haas Racing, the IndyCar racing team of Paul Newman and Carl Haas, developed sports television programming for the Sportsman Channel, and has represented a host of traditional sponsorship/media clients, including managing the U.S. sports marketing debut of Chinese solar company, Trina Solar (SHA:688599). From 2009-2010, through Phoenicia, Mr. Lencheski was owner of International Hockey League franchise the Quad City Mallards, an affiliate of the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers. The team was IHL Franchise of the Year during Mr. Lencheski’s tenure.
In March 2019, while a director of Winning Streak Sports, a portfolio company of Granite Bridge Partners, Mr. Lencheski was asked to assume the role of chief executive officer, where he currently oversees all business affairs of both Winning Streak Sports and affiliate Prinstant Replays, which, together deliver the number #1 premium licensed goods and collectibles product line in professional sports by both sales and quality.
Prior to Winning Streak, from 2015 to 2019, Mr. Lencheski was the Senior Advisor to the chairman and board of managers of, MP & Silva, the Italy-based global sports media company. From 2015 to 2017, Mr. Lencheski also served as co-chairman, chief executive officer and a director of IRG Sports + Entertainment, a TPG portfolio company and leading promoter of sports and live entertainment experiences. IRGSE is the parent company of the International Hot Rod Association and the International Drag Bike League and owns and operates Palm Beach International Raceway, Palm Beach Driving Club, Memphis International Raceway, Cordova International Raceway, and Maryland International Raceway. IRGSE promoted more than 1,150 global motorsports, live entertainment, and corporate events annually at its venues and within its series.
From 2011 to 2014, Mr. Lencheski was president of Comcast-Spectacor's (now Spectra) wholly owned subsidiary Front Row Marketing and Analytics (“FRMS”), which managed commercial rights, sponsorship, and analytics for the entirety of the Comcast ecosystem of stadiums, arenas, teams, and Comcast properties. FRMS was acquired by Learfield Sports in 2015. While at FRMS, his work included collaborations with the Americas’ Cup, English Premier League Football, the Olympics, Formula One Racing, and FIFA World Cup projects, as well as a host of international and national properties, including every major sports league in the United States and international sport governing bodies.
In 2002, Mr. Lencheski founded SKI & Company. With offices in New York, London, Dubai, Charlotte, NC, and Be…
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Nov 10, 2021
Michel Masquelier, ”From Intern to Chairman - 35 years at IMG”
Michel Masquelier had an incredible career with IMG over 35 years starting as an Intern and finishing as the Chairman of IMG Media and SNTV. Over that time he had the privilege to work with and learn from the charismatic owners from Mark McCormack, Ted Forstmann to Ari Emanuel at the end. Pioneering a variety of new innovations and setting up new business units over his tenure. Fascinating stories of an amazing career. Also check out Michel’s new book “This is not a Dress Rehearsal” for more.
Link to the book: http://getbook.at/NotADressRehearsal Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/m_masquelier/
Key Highlights
* Taking a plunge and heading over the channel from Belgium to the UK to seeking new challenges in London
* Reading Mark McCormack’s book and being inspired to seek employment with the company (1985), working for free at the beginning
* First role in sponsorship activation, with Yves St Laurent and later focusing on sales in Benelux countries
* Winter Olympic Games in Albertville, France – advising the Organizing Committee
* Mark McCormack, first interaction – “you the guy who plays golf before coming to the office in the morning” story
* A man of amazing innovation, vision and anticipation
* Setting up the Office in Brussel, at the start of the European Union
* After 10 years, took a six months break and toured the world – NY Office story
* Next stop, Media Division, selling Media rights, involvement in pioneering projects (China Football story)
* Intrapreneur within the company, building teams, leadership style (Love & Respect)
* Head of Sales Europe, Head of Sales Worldwide to President IMG Media
* European Tour Production deal and Mark’s vision and foresight examples
* The shock and worry when Mark suddenly passes away across the organization
* Ted Forstmann era starts – US$ 750 mil purchase – leader in Private Equity
* New focus on “ownership” in sports, becoming a small shareholder in the business
* Ted initially wanting to replace him due to clashes in strategy before new found respect
* Frustrating moments with Ted when it came to Minimum Guarantees for Media Rights
* Next Super-agent Ari Emanuel backed by PE money takes over (US$ 2.4 billion deal) and his drive and vision for the company (WME -IMG leading to Endeavor)
* Moving from President of IMG Media to Chairman of Events/Media, slowly winding down
* Huge growth from UFC deal to recent IPO at US$ 10 billion valuation under Ari’s leadership and future of industry thoughts (data the new gold)
* “This is not a dress rehearsal”, his book about his experiences and journey – coming out in December 2021
* Reminiscing about the parallels of our careers and philosophy in life
About Michel Masquelier
Michel Masquelier is an Entrepreneur that has spent over 3 decades at the heart of the sports industry. Making his way up the ladder from intern to Chairman, he has become a respected leader in his field, and recognized as peoples manager. He now takes on the role of advisor to governing bodies, media organizations and private equity firms. He is also an active investor, board member and consultant for small enterprise, with a focus on the media industry. Michel is still a compulsive networker, but his passion has shift to stimulating education, especially amongst future generations. In the same spirit of innovation and disruption, he is involved in philanthropic projects, motivational speaking and development of educational programs for young executives. More recently he has been working on a book - This is not a Dress Rehearsal. In this part-memoir, part-manifesto and career guide, all inspiration-from-the-heart book, he shares stories from his early life in Belgium to his unique experiences rubbing shoulders with sports stars, business moguls and media pioneers. With open and honest examples of his triumphs, failures, and everything in between, there is something for everyone – the sports fans, the misfits, the motivated and the intrepid.
Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast
To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com
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Oct 27, 2021
Hide Arai, ”Japanese Influence in Sports”
From his two decades with DENTSU Sports to now 17 years with FIFA, Hide Arai has been at the heart of the Japanese presence in sports marketing globally for decades. Great stories and insights into the Japanese Advertising Giant’s influence in global sports for the last 40 years, driven by the emergence of Japanese super brands. And a short discussion about FIFA’s state of play, with several sensitive topics appropriately edited.
Key Highlights
* How it all started in the mid 80s, producing Japanese TV commercials at Dentsu Advertising
* Dentsu’s first foray into sports marketing started in 1982 at the FIFA World Cup in Spain and 1984 LA Olympics – two Japanese Dentsu executives (Hartori & Takahashi) started to build a close bond with Horst Dassler, the powerful German businessman who controlled adidas and had launched ISL Marketing.
* Coinciding with the growth of Japanese brands globally. Dentsu taking on calculated risk to acquire the rights to certain packages and t…
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Oct 7, 2021
Murray Barnett, ”Media & Sponsorship Unpacked”
Great stories and learning from Murray Barnett’s illustrious career across NBA, ISL, World Rugby and F1 to turning entrepreneur with his own boutique consulting agency during the pandemic. Lots of wisdom and great sharing from his journey over the past 2 decades.
Key Highlights
* Starting at Orbit, Satellite TV space in Rome, Italy and some Italian House Music
* From Rome to Budapest to the NBA Europe in Paris – plan, plan and plan again – amazing level of detail, great lessons from David Stern
* Lessons from being at ISL Marketing for the final years of the agency handling FINA & FIBA accounts. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is too good to be true (ATP disaster)
* Next stop ESPN, Russell Wolf offering a role as Employee #1 in ESPN’s Disney office in London
* His focus at ESPN International – selling rights portfolio to other broadcasters, supervising ESPN channels in Middle East & Africa , identifying new opportunities to build the brand
* Big in…
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Sep 24, 2021
Stephane Schindler, ”Game Changer”
Stephane Schindler, another French industry veteran who has left his mark across the sports world and in particular with CAA Eleven which changed the face of UEFA’s National Team competitions and commercial structures. Lot’s of great stories and details in our discussion. Enjoy.
Key Highlights
* Starting as Intern at EUROSPORT, early days of cable TV in Europe
* Next stop Canal+, Head of Sports Acquisition of sports rights, Sport+ and Jerome Valcke connection
* Connecting with all the major rights holders during the role – early days of Sportel Monaco
* Joining IMG Media in France in 2000, Michael Grach and Michel Masquelier roles
* Great six years at IMG from selling rights to dealing with rights holders, lots of learning in the commercialization of sports rights (Golden Age of industry 1990-2010)
* Meeting Arnaud Lagardere and starting the agency in 2006, because Lagardere being a big listed company, organic growth wasn’t an option. M&A growth model.
* Setting…
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Sep 11, 2021
Andrew Croker, ”Mr Chairman”
Andrew Croker, Chairman of multiple enterprises and one of the most outspoken sports Entrepreneurs hailing from the UK. Fun and colorful deep dive into Andrew’s 40+ years in the industry from his days following his dad around Football club board rooms to successfully launching Perform, the Global Cycling Network and getting Hawk-Eye into Football.
Key Highlights
* How it started, back in ancient history in 1973, his father becoming the General Secretary of the English FA
* Opening doors and hanging out with his dad in Football club board rooms and socializing with everyone in sports
* Joining BSB (later BSkyB) as employee #4-5, drawing up weekly sports schedule
* Finders, Binders, Minders and Grinders. He was always a “Finder”
* How sitting next to Sir Frank Lowe (Advertising Legend) on the Concorde lead to launching Orbit – sports marketing agency
* Next stop, Ian Todd asking him to start IMG Football Division together with Paul Smith
* Sportal – massive rise…
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Aug 19, 2021
John West, "Power of Influencer Content"
John West, a serial entrepreneur across multiple businesses before getting into the exciting world of Sports content, influencers and social media platforms. Started Team Whistle in 2009 after several years of figuring out his next move. Recently partnered and merged with Eleven Sports. Learn about his entrepreneurial journey and amazing stories of how he build a company that now has over 4 billion impressions per months across over 1,600 “Channels” of influencers and online personalities.
Key Highlights
* Early days as entrepreneur in environmental engineering business in his early 20s – company still around till today
* Getting a Harvard MBA while working and sold the business
* Next stop, New York City – Mitchell Madison, new Consulting group – fast growing business
* Silver Oak Solutions – 2nd entrepreneurial company in “spend management”, software to automate spending patterns of private equity firm’s assets – sold successfully as well
* How he got…
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Aug 5, 2021
Harpreet Singh Rai, "Wearable Health And Wellness"
Harpreet Singh Rai, the CEO of OURA Health Ltd, a Finish company which is making a huge splash in the wearable health and wellness space through its smart ring product. He shares his stories how he became involved in the business and where he is planning to take it. Great stories on how the product works and the benefits behind it, to the future growth and plans of the business.
Key Highlights
* Coming out college wanting to be an engineer, spending his first 10 years in the financial world on Wall Street, including Eminence Capital, multi billion dollar Fund, investing in tech
* Combined his passion for health and wellness with his research in the tech space and getting into wearables as an early adopter/user
* Running into the co-founder at a grocery store – and hitting it off
* Personally investing in the company in 2016 and joining the board. Joining the company full time, in 2017 as President/CEO
* Founders from Finland, country with great history in tech and health…
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Jul 28, 2021
Terrence Burns, "Olympic Marketing Unpacked"
Terrence Burns is best known as the “Bidding Guy” (in his own words), having supported and worked on more successful Olympic bids than anyone else in the industry. Lots of great stories and learn from his incredible experiences at Delta Airlines (which inspired several books) to working with sponsors and brands across the world. Great insights into the Olympic Games, from bidding processes and how it has changed, to branding the Games, to emotions which describes what the Rings mean to people. Enjoy the history lesson of the Games while watching the Tokyo Olympics 2020-21.
Key Highlights
* Starting at the bottom of Delta Airlines fresh out of College – Maintenance Utility Employee & working his way up the ranks over a period of 15 years
* Official Airline of the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta – how it all started
* Leading Delta’s sponsorship program of the Games, massive learning curve. Key setting clear KPI’s, to manage the board expectations
* Moving from being…
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Jul 20, 2021
Patrick Mouratoglou, "The Coach"
Patrick Mouratoglou, also known as “The Coach”, currently the most influential coach in tennis, sharing his incredible journey with us, starting with his difficulties in his childhood to overcoming them and turning his passion for Tennis first into a business (Academy) and then into a profession (Coach). Amazing stories and incredible learning on multiple levels. Best warm up story ever on the Sports Entrepreneurs Podcast. I am certain you will enjoy it.
Key Highlights
* Early childhood stories and challenges (from low self esteem and panic attacks) and the lessons from it
* Winning the fight against his body and mind at the age of 11 – (first little victory) – lesson, we are the product of our life lessons (have a little win every day)
* Started playing tennis at the age of 4, playing 8 hours per day – Court was only place where he felt safe and confident
* Age 15, parents “forced” him to stop playing against his will – another turning point in his life – h…
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Jul 1, 2021
Giampiero Rinaudo, "Sports Tech, Made in Italy"
Giampiero Rinaudo, a passionate Italian sports tech Entrepreneur, Founder & CEO of Deltatre. Being the CEO for the past 35 years, managing the growth over three decades with now a team of over 1,000 technologists, designers, and innovators across the world who are driven by a passion to change the way the world consumes content.
Key Highlights
* How it started, at the young age of 20 as a student, started to work part time in “timing support” with Olivetti – in Alpine Skiing and F1
* In 1986, Deltatre was born, with three partners – continuing to service Olivetti in result and timing systems (manual time spotting at F1)
* Olivetti starting to have financial problems, time to be a proper entrepreneur and start offering service to multiple clients
* In 1995, about 40 people, growth in second decade driven by growth in media rights fees, especially Football
* UEFA Champions League, big new client and opportunity, central results system operator
* Staying at the cutti…
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Jun 17, 2021
Clive Bowen, "Racing Resorts"
Clive Bowen is a man truly shaped by his early career experiences; from his days at Rolls Royce to his years working with a large Saudi group before entering into the world of motor racing and him emerging as a world leader in building Racing Resorts around the world:
Key Highlights
* Studying mechanical engineering and landing first job at Rolls Royce (Aerospace)
* Moving on to Wright Machinery (PPM). Amazing experience serving clients in Middle East – commencement of project management responsibility
* Middle East stories from late 80s. A territory which changed dramatically each year for 20 years.
* Great Lessons and stories from running Haldir Ltd., a division of a Saudi group for nine years. Commencement of the ‘always under promise and over deliver’ mantra
* 1997, meeting Paul Berger in Dubai and various other motorsports luminaries. Entry into the motorsport industry, initially as a hobby, then as a profession
* Pitching Dubai Autodrome for four years with Pa…
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Jun 2, 2021
Joachim Hilke, "From Hamburg To The World"
Joachim Hilke, is a German sports marketing Veteran with an colorful career across NFL Europe, UFA/Sportfive early growth story, HSV (Hamburg Football Club) and now with Fanatics in Europe. Lots of great stories on how the NFL started in Europe and the challenges around it, to an insider look into German Football Club thinking and off course a deep dive into Fanatics’ amazing online merchandise retail business globally. Enjoy.
Key Highlights
* From his College thesis to the first job at the NFL Europe with Rhein Fire - great stories how the League and team started (Americana in Duesseldorf)
* Next stop, UFA/Sport 5 -
* HSV (Hamburger Sport Verein – Bundesliga Club) great stories about selling their rights and sitting on the board of a major Club.
* Naming rights of HSV Stadium – AOL Arena – focusing on sponsorship and marketing while the rest of the company is mostly selling TV rights
* UEFA National Team deals – the good old days of maximizing 2nd & 3rd party ri…
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May 19, 2021
Ricardo Fort, "Sport By Fort"
Ricardo Fort spent his incredible career on the "brand side" of the business, deploying hundreds of millions of sponsorship and advertising dollars for the likes of Coca-Cola and VISA to name a few.
Great deep discussion about his views on sports as a platform from the perspective of a true "Advertising Man" who has worked with some of the biggest sports sponsors in the world.
Key Highlights
*
* From studying Civil Engineering to realising that marketing was his calling at Unilever.
* FMCG space, great place to learn marketing, brands spending big dollars
* His dream (which was also mine) working for Coca Cola coming true. The Coke TV commercial that triggered it (featuring Zico). Third time lucky 🍀.
* Starting at Sprite brand before moving to Coca Cola brand. Brazil the 3rd biggest market for the brand.
* First involvements with FIFA World Cups, starting in 2002 Japan/Korea.
* Working across FIFA, UEFA and teams.
* HQ roles, developing global…
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May 5, 2021
Mark Pannes, "From Basketball To Football"
Mark Pannes is a highly accomplished US sports executive with an incredible career across the US and Europe, from his early days at the New York Knicks, to leading a large European Football Club (AS Roma) on behalf of a US Owner and learning the inside workings of one of the largest Banks in the world (HSBC Private Bank). Mark has accumulated a wealth of knowledge and his views are well heard (through his own Podcast/Clubhouse talks) and respected in the industry. With the European Super League “fiasco” just over when we spoke, we off course took a good stab at the topic as well. As always, lots of learning and great insights throughout the discussion. Enjoy.
Key Highlights
* How it all started, a High School dream to have a career in professional sports, leads to studying sports at UT in Austin and a summer internship with the New York Knicks
* First job on the operational side at Madison Square Garden (MSG), 19 different trade groups (Unions) working in the buil…
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Apr 19, 2021
Paul Berger, "Middle East Sports Stories"
Paul Berger is a true Middle East insider, having been based in Dubai, UAE for nearly three decades and done it all from advertising, motorsports, helping to build the Dubai Autodrome to now running EMEA for the Arena Group, one of the leading temporary event structures groups in the world for sports, music, exhibitions to cultural events.
Key Highlights
* Paul’s early days in Advertising in the UK and his route to Dubai. BBDO took him to Dubai.
* From Advertising to Karting – setting up his first business (Leisure Karting) in Dubai – great stories (races in Oman, Bahrain, Abu Dhabi)
* Dubai Autodrome & Business Park - how it all started and where it is now (www.dubaiautodrome.ae)
* Clive Bowen of Apex Circuit Design, designed the track (www.apexcircuitdesign.com)
* What worked and didn’t work and what is happening on the track now
* Next Entrepreneurial venture – Sports Marketing Global – focused on motorsports & brands from the Middle East…
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Apr 8, 2021
Hrish Lotlikar, "The Superworld of NFTs"
Hrish Lotlikar is a living example of a successful digital nomad Entrepreneur. A former Investment Banker turned VC, turned Tech, Blockchain and Crypto Entrepreneur. Besides covering Hrish's amazing career we take a very close look at his latest venture "Superworld", the relevance to sports and the connection to NFTs, the currently hottest trend in the Crypto and sports, music, arts IP (Intellectual Property) world.
Key Highlights
* From High school to Navy Reserved Officer and Surgical Technician removing eyes
* Pursuing Triple Degree (MBA, MPH, MD) in graduate school then taking him into Management Consulting and Investment Banking and his first Entrepreneurial exploit creating "The Wall Street Program", teaching how to get a Wall Street job.
* Next stop Venture Capital (VC), bio-tech and other tech companies with "world changing ideas"
* From New York City (after the crash in 2008/09), traveling across Eastern Europe for 1.5 yrs. Great story on how to start a…
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Apr 1, 2021
Sophie Goldschmidt, "From Tennis, Basketball, Rugby to Surfing"
Sophie Goldschmidt, has been recognized as one of the most influential/powerful Women in sports by multiple publications/organizations from Forbes, Adweek, Leaders in Sport, Sports Business, etc, working across the globe in leadership and senior positions from the WTA, NBA, England Rugby to the World Surf League. All very different sports, with different opportunities and challenges along the way. Great stories and learning from her exciting career over the past 20 years.
Key Highlights
* Journey from Baylor University playing NCAA tennis and landing at Adidas USA in Portland
* Working in the Adidas Tennis division, Indian Wells, Roland Garros, dealing with top players from Hingis to Kournikova, Henman, Safin, etc
* Moving to WTA during the time the William sisters, Sharapova all becoming big stars, working with Larry Scott in the commercial and marketing space
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* Sony Ericsson WTA Tour – US$ 88 million (5-6 year deal) – breakthrough deal
* P…
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Mar 23, 2021
Frederico Pena, "Brazilian Football"
Frederico Pena, better known as Fred is a "Jerry Maguire" inspired Brazilian Sports agent, working across Brazilian Football for 20 years, including many years with the leading Agency, Traffic. Great inside look into Brazilian and South American Football, the rise and demise of Traffic and how we worked together in Asia.
Key Highlights
* How the movie "Jerry Maguire" and Brazil winning the 1994 World Cup in the US inspired his career path
* The Mueller Sports Group and Jeff Slack saved him from a boring Banking job
* Working on due diligence for Mueller Sports Group and Hicks & Muse buying Traffic
* Traffic deal. Mr Hawilla, the owner, amazing deal maker, sold 49% for USD 125 mil and then bought it back for a fraction when Hicks/Muse ran out of cash during Dotcom crash. TNT - Traffic & Torneos partnership holding key rights.
* First role in Traffic, exploring Internet concepts as we all did during that time in 2000.
* Moving into TV sales - working with TSA i…
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Mar 11, 2021
Andreas Heyden, "Football Gone Digital"
Andreas Heyden, is a German web/digital native, learning from the tough times of the dotcom boom/bust days and the 2008/09 global financial crisis and now leading Digital Innovations at the Bundesliga (DFL - German Football League). Great insides into the Digital innovations and projects of one of the leading Football Leagues in the world, which also aims to be the most innovative Football League in the world. Plenty to learn for anyone in this space. Listen closely.
Key Highlights
* Early days in Andreas’ career and how that leads to his roles in the digital space and the learning of cycles across the past 20 years
* Crisis leaves clues and creates new opportunities Web 2.0 came after the dotcom crash, Social Media boom after the 2008 financial crisis, what will come after Covid?
* RTL Interactive (part of RTL Bertelsmann, one of the biggest Broadcasting Groups in Europe) – video on demand, taking a traditional broadcaster into Web 2.0 world after the dotcom c…
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Mar 3, 2021
Jeff Slack, "From MJ To Football & F1"
Jeff Slack, the new Managing Director of the Aston Martin Cognizant F1 team is a highly respected American Sports Executive with a truly global CV, having worked at Pro Serve & FAME in the US, Wassermann Media and IMG in the UK, Inter Milan in Italy and a few others in between besides running his own agency the last few years out of London. His unique experiences are bar none across the globe and he is excited over the new chapter and challenge in F1. Listen carefully and learn.
Key Highlights
* Early days at Pro-Serve (Donald Dell's Agency) in Washington. Experience working with Donald Dell and David Falk and the learning as a young man.
* Working with/for Michael Jordan (at David Falk’s FAME) – extraordinary experience
* Joining the Mueller Sports Group in New York, launching PSN.com in South America partnering with Hicks, Muse, Tate and Furst – and what went wrong
* Next stop CEO of Inter Milan as an American executive - bringing US best practis…
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Feb 25, 2021
Bernard Stewart, "ESPN - An Insider's Story"
Enjoy our deep dive into the world of ESPN the "worldwide leader in Sports" through Bernard Stewart's eyes and stories.
Bernard has had an illustrious career at ESPN for 30 years, from the early days of the truly first Sports Network in the world to overseeing its expansions globally and many other roles. Learn how ESPN started, expanded, the challenges and growth stories told by a true insider.
Key Highlights
* Coming out of College and Air Force teaching Film and starting independent projects in TV & Movie Production
* Start working at a Capital City company, WTNH TV New Haven – first break and being taught the world of “Broadcast Politics”. Created Program called “First Edition”
* ESPN – the start of the first Sports Network (1979) - father and son founding team (Bill and Scott Rasmussen) - RCA’s first Satellite helps to distribute the channel across the US, start-up funding from Getty Oil (US$ 10 million)
* ESPN = Entertainment Sports Programmi…
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Feb 11, 2021
John Gleasure, "Sports Media Distribution - from Betting to OTT"
John Gleasure has been on the forefront of sports media distribution from his early days in BskyB to the dotcom boom days of Sportal to launching 3G applications for Hutchison Whampoa. And then starting Inform with a group of fellow sports executives 15 years ago which turned into PERFORM and now DAZN (the leading Sports OTT platform globally). Incredible journey and learning along the way.
Key Highlights
* Playing some decent football can get you a good job, ask John. His early days at EMI Music
* BskyB, learning the ropes in the cable industry, Marketing Manager for Sky Sports, Sky Digital, his true University in business and sports
* Dotcom days, Sportal – interviewed by Andrew Croker, incredible team of people, launching various websites (portals) for sports properties, wild ride – dotcom crash
* Leading to role at Hutchison Whampoa, Head of Sports – 3G rollout, video clips, etc – learning, it takes a lot longer than you expect for technology and co…
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Jan 28, 2021
Lucien Boyer, "Championing French Sports Globally"
Lucien Boyer, a rock star with a French accent in the world of Sports marketing, with an amazing career and stories to back it up. Enjoy our journey through Lucien’s career across France, Australia and the UK, from the America’s Cup to FIFA World Cup and Coca-Cola to Louis Vuitton. Lucien has leveraged the power of major global competitions and major commercial partners throughout his career. Enjoy the stories and the learning. Plenty of it.
Key Highlights
* As a student getting involved in raising money for the French Challenger’s Boat for the America’s Cup, which takes him to Australia
* Eyes opened to the power of sports and combining his passion of sports with interest in marketing
* From Saatchi & Saatchi to Larousse Lamborghini Formula One - driving revenue from 20 mil to 120 mil French France (pre EURO)
* Learning activation, telling stories for sponsors, branded content and content marketing
* Lifestyle Marketing Group (LMG), his first startu…
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Jan 22, 2021
Craig Thompson, "Champions League And Beyond"
Craig Thompson has been on the forefront of Sports Marketing across the globe for over 30 years. We are taking a close look into his remarkable career with a deep dive into his role as a Founding Member of TEAM Marketing and the creation of the UEFA Champions League in the early 90s. Amazing stories and lots of great learning as always from a true veteran of the industry.
Key Highlights
* From professional Beach Volleyball in California to Lausanne, Switzerland with FIVB and not a happy start/ending
* Next stop FEI (Equestrian) leading him to ISL, working with Peter Sprogis on IAAF events
* Credits and accolades to Horst Dassler for being one of the true founding father of our industry, unfortunately passed away too young
* From ISL to a founding member of TEAM Marketing with Juergen Lenz and Klaus Hempel
* The “TEAM” started from ground Zero again, the big opportunity, tendering for the Champions League project (had to raise Swiss France 200 million as part o…
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Jan 14, 2021
Andrew Craig, "40 Years Of Olympics & Racing"
Andrew Craig, is a true industry veteran, from being an early executive member of ISL Marketing to rising to Deputy CEO, to leading CART as their CEO to a successful IPO, before spending the last 20 years as Consultant with his own business (The Craig Company) across successful Olympics Bids, International Sports Federations and motorsports.
Key Highlights
* His early days, getting started at Nestle as a Sales Executive in the 70s before moving into the Advertising world and starting his first agency in PR & Marketing
* Early involvement in motorsports and with Adidas
* Which turns out to be a fork in his career and lead to joining ISL as Marketing Director just shortly after it was founded by Host Dassler (son of Adi Dassler, founder of Adidas), with Juergen Lenz and Klaus Hempel leading the charge (early 80s)
* ISL’s Glory Days in the 80s – representing FIFA & UEFA, creation of SRI, first research firm in the industry, etc
* The Olympic TOP Program and the tru…
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Jan 7, 2021
Pete Vlastelica, "Internet Entrepreneur Turned Esports League Builder"
Pete Vlastelica is a true product of the Internet and Silicon Valley boom era, studying in Stanford in the late 90s and later getting an MBA at Berkeley. From his entrepreneurial exploits building, growing, raising funding and eventually selling Yardbarker to FOX Sports to his most recent role as President & CEO of Activision Blizzard Esports (including Commissioner of the Overwatch League), building the Overwatch and Call of Duty Franchise Leagues. Incredible stories and insights into his illustrious career and close up look into the world’s first franchise Esports Leagues.
Key Highlights
* Coming out of Stanford into Disney Internet Group in late 1999, going to London
* Back to New York working in a design and software agency
* Back to California for an MBA at Berkeley, focus on Entrepreneurship – while studying focused on starting his own company
* First idea failed, fractional ownership of Music rights (too complicated)
* Started Yardbarker with four…
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Dec 29, 2020
Seth Berger, "A Coach at Heart - from AND1 to Sixers Innovation Lab"
Seth Berger has seen it all, took the risks as an Entrepreneur, build an iconic brand in the process (AND1), sold the business, with success and failures along the way. He shares his amazing stories here with us with a smile and laughter. The Sixers Innovation Lab gives him now the playground to follow his passion, being a Coach at heart. Listen and learn. Tons of incredible Entrepreneurial lessons in here. Key Highlights
* How it all started - coming out of Wharton Grad School - AND1 Database Marketing business early days...
* Great Entrepreneurial start up stories not to be missed
* The real AND1 started in a Pizza place
* As an Entrepreneur you are winning and losing every day.
* Ego is the brother of insecurity. And Seth has no time for either
* Focus on 16 year old Basketball consumers - AND1 T-Shirts were born
* Some luck - MJ retired for the first time and his brand stopped selling and retailers were looking for something new
* From T-Shirts to Shorts to Basketb…
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Dec 19, 2020
Drew Sheinman, "Private Equity With a Heart"
Drew Sheinman’s career is a 40 year smorgasbord in the world of sports, sports marketing, entertainment and now Private Equity from MLB, MSG, Coca-Cola, Breeders Cup, Endeavor to now Brand Velocity Partners. Incredible journey from the humble days of a management trainee in the MLB in 1979 to now running his own Private Equity partnership. As always, enjoy listening and learning.
Key Highlights
* Starting his career as one of the first Management trainees in the MLB
* Baltimore Orioles stories, working with new ownership, winning the World Series in 1983
* Next stop New York Mets, as a Yankees fan, creating new marketing and revenue streams. “Let’s go Mets” rally song for 1986 World Series Champion – according to Rolling Stone Magazine, the greatest anthem in baseball. https://youtu.be/2N4VIXM1RJk
* Two World Series Rings from Orioles and Mets days. Started his first own company, integrating sports and entertainment. Investor pulled the plug.
* Madi…
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Dec 4, 2020
Chris Smith, "Gaming/Esports 101"
Chris Smith, a true Gaming/Esports expert turned Entrepreneur based in Australia. We are going BIG into Esports & Gaming, learning from Chris’s background and then a deep analysis into the difference between Esports and traditional sports, including detailed discussions on numbers and revenues for Gamers and Influencers.
Key Highlights
* Early days, pathway into the industry, turning his passion into a career, started as a player in a top four team in Australia (playing Battlefield, CSGO)
* Commentating on games, promoting LAN Parties – connecting into the industry through various roles, learning the different parts of the industry
* Thermaltake Australia – Marketing & Esports Community Manager
* CCC (Chris Creative Collective) – first taste of entrepreneurship – online marketing, events, websites and other services
* EGAA (Esports Games Association Australia) – board member & PR/Communication
* BIG Esports – esports, gaming and influencer busine…
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Nov 27, 2020
Claude Ruibal, "40 Years of Learning in Sports"
Claude Ruibal is another true Legend in our industry, with nearly 40 years across multiple major companies and roles over his career. It’s a bit longer than the usual podcast as it was impossible to put four decades of incredible experiences in the usual 60 min. Hang in there, it’s worth every minute, learn from his stories, from his early days at the LA 84 Olympics to his roles at ISL, Coca-Cola, Universal Sports Network, YouTube, Infront to now consulting with start-ups.
Key Highlights
* Early days, out of law school, getting involved in the LA 84 Olympics with two years to go to the Games – negotiating deals as part the Olympic Families team
* Learning to work as a team and overcoming the Russian pullout, was the big learning
* Next stop, Democratic Presidential Campaign – Michael Dukakis
* United States Football League – new American Football League – managing player relations, contracts – one of the owners was Donald Trump (and listen to what h…
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Nov 13, 2020
Michael Broda, "From Eastern Europe to Esports"
Michael Broda originally from Cologne, Germany (my hometown) is now building an Esports Group from Prague, Czech Republic. Insiders know that Eastern Europe is a hot bed for start-ups with smart tech entrepreneurs in the region. Michael plays both across his native German-speaking markets and Eastern Europe and is now looking to conquer the world with ESPL, a new gaming platform for the casual gamer. Lots of great insights into the Esports ecosystem and tech side of the business. Enjoy.
Key Highlights
* Michael’s early days being a Banker in Commerzbank Cologne, at that time it was cool to be a banker
* Moving from Cologne to Prague (Czech Republic), back to his parents’ roots in a CFO role for a strong midsize company (EURO 400 mil turnover) in his mid-late 20s
* Start of Delta Capital, 15-20 investments, using his own money. Started with turn-around of distressed companies and then start-ups. Combining old and new economy.
* Starting his first…
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Nov 5, 2020
Alex Dreyfus, "From Poker, Online Betting to Fan Token"
Alex Dreyfus, originally from France, now living in Malta, one of the betting and Blockchain hubs of the world. Alex is a true serial “net-preneur”, having started several internet related businesses, exited some successfully and struggled with some others. We are diving deep into the world of Blockchain, Tokenization (Club Token) and his current platform Socios.com powered by ChiliZ. Alex, is raw, open and shares it like it is (enjoy the colourful language).
Key Highlights
* Started off as a computer geek in his hometown in France, first computer at the age of six and build his own Online Forum at the age of 14
* Left school at the age of 18 without any degree & without parents approval, in 1995, created his first company Mediatis which he sold later to Publicis Group
* Next act, Webcity.com – initial great success and then company went bankrupt (lesson, not as important to be first….)
* Took a short term job to survive and then started working on his next m…
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Oct 31, 2020
Patrick Murphy, "From Dublin to Taking Over Asian Football"
Patrick Murphy's fascinating career path, took him from selling door to door Junk Mail in Dublin to working in Newscorp in Hong Kong, TEAM Marketing in Switzerland and back to Hong Kong to now managing one of the largest Sports IP in Asia, the Asian Football Confederation’s commercial rights through his new partnership (FMA). Great stories and lots of insights into the future of Asian Football.
Key Highlights
* Getting started by selling Junk Mail in Dublin after school (1984-85) – door to door sales
* His decade in the TV world, from ITV in the UK to Star TV in Hong Kong (Newscorp) in the 90s
* Murdoch’s focus on Sports – creating Sports Corp inside a broadcaster (ESPN-Star Sports) – creating IP
* Journey back to Europe, joining TEAM Marketing in Switzerland (exclusive agent of UEFA Champions League)
* UEFA Champions League – billion dollar property – sponsorship & media deals
* UEFA taking a stake in TEAM eventually
* International Champions…
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Oct 24, 2020
Razlan Razali, "From Hosting F1 To Leading A MotoGP Team"
Dato Razlan Razali is living his childhood dream from running Sepang International Circuit (SIC) for over a decade, hosting F1 and MotoGP races and turning the loss-making facility into a sustainable business to turning his passion for motorcycling into being the Team Principal of the Petronas Yamaha Sepang Race Team which is taking MotoGP by storm the last two seasons and is on the verge of winning the Championship. Listen, learn and be inspired by his stories on how to build a successful Racetrack and how those learnings helped him to create a very successful MotoGP racing team.
Key Highlights
* His career start, selling his first company, starting a concert company with his brother and his first job interview for the CEO role of Sepang International Circuit (SIC) which didn’t go so well. Persistency paid off and he became the CEO of SIC in 2008, few weeks before the MotoGP race.
* Early days at SIC, he inherited a mess and had a culture shock, rolled up his sle…
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Oct 16, 2020
Robert Müller von Vultejus, "From UFA, Lagardere To SPORTFIVE Again"
Robert Müller von Vultejus has been on the forefront of Sports Marketing for decades, as would appear in many different companies, but in reality, these groups were often an “iteration” of previous legacy businesses. Operating for 25 years from Hamburg, Germany, Robert gives us a great inside look into all the companies and is now one of the key executives to take Sportfive 2.0 back to its glory days globally. Listen to his fascinating career and stories across UFA Sports 1.0, Sportfive 1.0, Lagardere, UFA Sports 2.0 to now Sportfive 2.0 again.
Key Higlights
* Robert's start into the industry, studied Sports Management in Bayreuth, while studying and DJ-ing started his first agency
* UFA Sports 1.0, in Hamburg, his boss Bernd Hoffman, ownership by Bertelsmann Group/RTL - the old Media Rights arbitrage game, buy/sell rights
* Merger of UFA Sports with Sport + (Sports marketing arm of Canal+) and Jean Claude Darmon (French sports marketing group) – new gr…
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Oct 11, 2020
Chris Pepe, "Road to LA28"
Chris is sharing stories of his illustrious career from being a founding executive member of Major League Soccer, to working at FIFA World Cups and Olympics at the client-side with Yahoo and VISA which has led him to his current role as the Chief Commercial Officer of the LA 2028 Olympics and the US Olympic & Paralympic Properties. With eight years out, it’s a long and interesting road ahead.
Key Highlights
* Accidental entry into sports, not the typical lawyer career path. Doug Logan, a client and first Commissioner of Major League Soccer got him involved in the new League
* Working at the MLS – with industry Tycoons from Lamar Hunt, Phil Anschutz and Bob Kraft and Alan Rothenberg. From Team names to Venues, tickets, etc starting from scratch
* Credit to founders for keeping the League alive to the big success it is now
* Yahoo Days, dot com era. Yahoo became Partner of FIFA on 9/11 (announcement on the fatal day) and Chris’s role, FIFA World Cup in Japa…
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Oct 2, 2020
Oleg Butenko, "From Russia To Gaming"
Oleg Butenko has an incredible life journey, coming to the US as a young boy from Kazakhstan and then moving back to Russia in his twenties to build hugely successful businesses there and now back in the USA for more. He is an extraordinary Entrepreneur and sees emerging trends before others and then goes after them like there is no tomorrow. From his huge success in building and selling tech businesses in Russia over 20 years to now building a new Gaming business in the US with a global focus. Listen, learn and be inspired.
Key Highlights
* Late 80s/early 90s, at the age of 13 he moved to California from Kazakhstan
* Dot.com boom in late 90s, everyone building online products and he saw the need for engineer talent from Russia in the US
* Early 2000, went to Moscow living out of a suitcase initially which turned into a 20 year journey in Russia
* Digitizing content, from older Soviet movies to News shows and sold the company to a Russian Newsgroup
* Creating new di…
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Sep 21, 2020
Nigel Rushman, "From Major Events To Structured Visual Thinking"
Nigel, has been around the block for nearly 40 years in our industry, and in his typical no-nonsense British style, delivers a masterclass in Events Operations, starting with his first event in the 80s to his role as Advisor of the FIFA World Cup 2022 Bid in Qatar. Nigel is a true entrepreneur who understands the value of working with tight budgets, putting his own money on the line and using “strategic thinking” as a key tool. Learn about “Structured Visual Thinking” and how Nigel uses this across many new projects around the world now.
Key Highlights
* His start in early 80s at a major Athletics Events in the UK and working on the America’s Cup Victory Challenge (Media & PR)
* 1991 Rugby World Cup, first major gig (Media & Accreditation Services). Alan Callan negotiated a deal for all commercial rights to the Rugby World Cup in perpetuity story (CPMA & Rushmans partnership) and the growth of the rights
* Moto GP story and how important it is to build rel…
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Sep 7, 2020
Dan Ghosh-Roy, "From Music to Fight Sports"
From aspiring Music DJ, turned Music Executives working with some of the biggest labels and artist to Chief Digital Officer at the PFL (Professional Fighters League). Learning from the music industry and how platforms evolved and disrupted the industry and how that relates to sports now and how the PFL is leveraging the new trends to its advantage by launching its own OTT.
Key Highlights
* From Liquid Audio, to Napster to EMI Music – the first decade in the music industry operations
* Early learning, the power of data, if it’s not collected and recorded properly, no revenue from it
* EMI Music – growth of ring-tones for Mobile devices globally – platforms starting to emerge
* Katy Perry story, Last Friday Night release on Facebook through a “fake” profile
* Calvin Harris, how he became a big EDM star, new way of promoting an artist
* Beyonce, launch of Lemonade Album (Parkwood Entertainment), from Super Bowl Half time show to other creative…
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Sep 1, 2020
Seven Volpone, "From Musician to Entrepreneur of Sub-cultures"
Seven Volpone is a true artist turned entrepreneur, from singer, songwriter to starting several businesses and now leading the Big Block Family Office and Sub-Nation to new heights across various “sub-cultures” from Esports, Gaming, Music, entertainment, Sports, etc.
Key Highlights
* Early days as music artist from Pop Rock to Country Harmony
* We3Kings, the first business, created Music IP for TV shows, Sports teams Theme songs, brands, etc
* From Hit TV Sitcoms to Green Bay Packers – G-Force – helping win the Super Bowl
* Secret Futurist, looking at leading technology, and tech for the future , focused on Digital ecosystems
* Push Point Management & Media Group – lead him to work with ESL and getting into Esports
* Adidas story, in the early days of Esports
* Realizing the power of Esports to connect with younger generations through the “lifestyle and culture” part
* Connecting with Bruce Bendell and setting up the Family Office, Big Block…
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Aug 22, 2020
Ravi Krishnan, "From Australia to India"
Ravi Krishnan is a true pioneer in Indian sports, from Australia with Indian origin, he was part of the team which set up IMG India 25 years ago and later on lead the organization. We take a good look into what has happened over those 25 years in Indian sports and where it is heading in the future, including his own venture Stepathlon. Enjoy the history lessons.
Key Highlights
* From being an inspiring youth tennis player in Australia to getting even more inspired reading an article about Mark McCormack and his route to get into IMG
* Part of the team to set up IMG India in the mid 90s, getting the basic right
* Hospitality of Cricket World in India in 1996 opened the doors to all the corporates, building relationships which lasted till today
* Sahara Cup in 1997, India vs Pakistan in Toronto, another game changer (it’s war minus the shooting)
* First ATP tournament in India in 1996, still around till today, not an easy start and not a huge initial success…
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Aug 16, 2020
Jeff Marks, "Power of Contractual Obligated Income (COI)"
Jeff Marks is a true Sports Entrepreneur, having started several agencies from an early age and now leading a “best in class” COI (Contractual Obligated Income) Agency which is breaking grounds around the world, including a recent huge deal with FC Barcelona to manage the branding of the Nou Camp Stadium and new facilities. Tons of learning and insights into the world of COI.
Key Highlights
* Early start during MBA days, Managing Director of a 2 Man Consulting business with his Professor. Stubhub story, the one that got away.
* Started Sports Business Ventures, Venture Capital Pledged Fund dedicated to Sports, partnered with Alan Rosenberg and other big hitters
* Premier Partnerships, premier Naming rights agency. Generating massive COI, for large US teams and franchises.
* Premier Ventures, advisory agency, another run at Venture Capital
* Innovate Partnership Group (IPG360), starting of a new business development group to help sports IP owners generate lo…
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Aug 5, 2020
Greg Economou, "Sport goes to Hollywood"
Greg has had an incredible journey and with it great stories to tell from his Pro-Basketball playing days at Greek’s Olympiakos to launching his first Agency and selling it to SFX, working with David Stern at the NBA, joining Madison Square Garden, Guggenheim Media, Ticketmaster in senior roles to now bringing his passion for sports to Hollywood with game1. Listen, learn and get inspired.
Key Highlights
* From playing basketball at the University of Connecticut to going back to his roots with Olympiakos in Athens, Greek
* SME Branding story, after re-branding “The Patriots” (no not those Patriots), over 1,500 re-branding assignments across sports from Colleges to athletes
* Acquisition of SME by SFX Sports in late Nineties
* BrandThink, his new baby, taking branding to a strategic level
* Call from David Stern, after re-branding Detroit Pistons successfully, re-positioning of the League globally
* Early days of the Charlotte Hornets franchise – tough jo…
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Jul 27, 2020
Rahul Sood, "Betting on Esports"
Rahul Sood, founded VoodooPC, straight out of High School on his credit card and turned it into a global brand before selling it to HP. Next stop was launching Microsoft Ventures which lead to connecting with his now partner Karl Flores to start “Unikrn”, the largest Esports betting platform in the world. Great deep dive into Rahul’s world, his passion for Gaming and Esports and why Unikrn will become the next Unicorn by building the future of digital gambling.
Key Highlights
* Voodoo PC, from a passion project started in a garage to a global brand (now HP Omen brand)
* Microsoft Ventures Fund – starting a venture found from scratch, building accelerators to connect start ups to Microsoft customers, leading to a valuation of over US$ 4 billion by the time he left
* Unikrn – how it all started with his buddy Karl Flores, raising funds, bringing in high profile investors
* Uni-coin ICO and reasons for launching it and the compliance behind it
* What is Unik…
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Jul 17, 2020
Patrick Sweeney, Fear Guru
Patrick Sweeney’s, fellow YPOer, recent best selling book “Fear is Fuel” and his life experiences are perfect for the current state and level of “Fear” globally. We take a deep dive into Patrick’s sports career, his entrepreneurial success and off course the “brick” that hit him when he was 35 years old and changed his life. The Patrick Sweeney 2.0 version is a very different man on a mission. Incredible stories and learning inside.
Key Highlights
* His early days as the “wimpy kid”, turned world-class rowing champion touring the world and the dream of winning an “Olympic Medal”
* “Could have been” an Olympic Champion and “could have been” a Billionaire if not for decisions out of fear
* Life either happens “to you” or “by you” depends on your mindset
* Transition to Entrepreneur – goal 40 by 40
* Fear of failure and fear of success, what worked and what didn’t as an entrepreneur
* First company and mistakes which cos…
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Jul 10, 2020
Stacey Allaster, World Leader in Tennis
Stacey is and has been truly a world leader in Tennis for 30 years, I call her the “First Lady of Tennis” but she felt that this should be reserved for a player like Serena Williams. That gives you a great sense of her character, always there to serve the game first and not out to take credit for the amazing work she has done over three decades. Enjoy the deep dive into the rise of the WTA Tour under her leadership, how she learned from David Stern’s playbook and hear how she is planning to host the US Open in August this year. Very timely discussion on so many levels and excited to finally have a female voice on the Podcast.
Key Highlights
* How she got started in tennis, as an 8th grader in summer camp
* Her purpose in life, generate the funds to bring Kids into the sport and create a career path
* More than 50% of Female leaders have played competitive sports, so it’s a great foundation for the future
* 15 years at Tennis Canada
* WTA Tour stories…
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Jul 3, 2020
Papa Massata Diack, African Sports Entrepreneur
Papa Massata Diack is a true African Sports Entrepreneur from Senegal and has been involved in some of the biggest events and deals across the world of sports. He is no stranger to controversies and in this Podcast you will hear “his” side of the story. Listen and then you decide what you think happened in those IAAF corridors. Plus some great insights into the world of African sports. Enjoy.
Key Highlights
* His early days at ISL Marketing, projects in Qatar, South Africa across Football, Athletics, etc
* Starting Pamodzi Sports Marketing & Consulting in 1997 with offices in South Africa, Togo, Senegal, etc
* Getting involved in IAAF after ISL’s bankruptcy and Dentsu’s take over of the contract
* Involved in Football projects across Africa
* Appointed as IAAF consultant across 9 Emerging Markets via AMS (China, India, Middle East, Africa, Mexico, etc) bringing in over US$ 200 mil in revenue from big emerging market companies (Samsung, Sinopec, etc)
* W…
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Jun 26, 2020
Andrew Collins, Being a Laowai Entrepreneur in China
Andrew Collins, came to China as a true Laowai (Alien) and made it, building the biggest Sports Digital Media Consulting business in the country and is now taking it globally. Amazing stories of how he got started, stuck with it despite all the challenges and made it work.
Key Highlights
* How Andrew got started as an Entrepreneur winning a University competition and catching the China bug early
* Never wanting a full time job, lessons from Jack Morton, sold his small retail business and decided to move to China
* Dream was starting a publishing business (in China), bought a company called Mailman in Shanghai which was an old postcard media sales business, losing money and owned by another foreigner
* The journey from Mailman’s original business to becoming a powerhouse in Sports Social Media consulting (Mailman & Seven League)
* Great examples of Mailman’s work and clients across Leagues, teams, athletes, sponsors
* China Social Media and new digital…
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Jun 21, 2020
Rainer Schuettler, From Top Tennis Pro to Entrepreneur
Rainer has lived the dream of any young boy/girl who grew up playing and loving the sport of tennis. From starting at the age of 10 to going Pro at 18/19, getting to a Grand Slam Final, cracking the top 5 ATP Tour ranking and retiring with an amazing career behind him at they age of 36 and then becoming an Entrepreneur by buying a license for an ATP event. Rainer has lived it and been there and is sharing his thoughts, emotions and learning from his amazing tennis journey.
Key Highlights
* Tennis professional by mistake – started playing at age 10
* At 16-17 starting to take it serious, playing ITF Junior Tournaments around the world, getting on Junior World Ranking
* His coach, Dirk Hordorff was instrumental in taking pressure off him and setting him up for a successful transition from Junior to professional player
* Making the ATP Ranking at the age of 18-19
* Learning from losing & winning, always look where you want to be 6 months in the future, improved rankin…
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Jun 14, 2020
Dr. Marcus Elliott, From Harvard Medical School to Entrepreneur in Applied Sports Science
Dr. Elliott gives us incredible insights into the world of Applied Sports Science and how this is a potential game-changer for athlete training, injury prevention and using big data to create a winning formula. This is “Moneyball” with human movement data. Anyone who is involved in managing a team, club or professional league needs to hear this and pay close attention.
Key Highlights
* His start after graduating from Havard Medical School, building a career track which didn’t exist
* His days with the New England Patriots, how a doctor can win two Superbowl rings, by reducing injuries to the athletes
* Waste of a world class education, over qualified personal trainer?
* MLB, Seattle Mariners days, solving the next problem
* SPORTS with the highest skill component has the most slack in athletes physical development compared to other Olympic sports
* Applied Sports Science – the new era of athlete development – the “applied” part is the key
* T…
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Jun 2, 2020
Dominik Schmid, FIFA in the 90s & its Legendary Agencies
Dominik takes us back in time, what happened in the 1990s and early 2000 in World Football. How Fifa and its powerful agencies from ISL, Prisma to later Infront controlled the game and the commercial rights. And his trials and tribulations as an Entrepreneur. Fascinating stories, enjoy.
Fifa's report into ISL scandal is just window dressing:
https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/22355455
About ISL:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Sport_and_Leisure
Key Highlights
* Getting a job at the Goliath of Sports Agencies in the early 90s, ISL Marketing
* ISL Marketing’s rights portfolio from the FIFA World Cup, Olympics, UEFA, African Nations Cup, etc
* Creation of new licensing (EA Sports deal with FIFA) and sponsorship programs, big money coming into sports
* Two parts to ISL. One side ran the business, the other ran the politics with the Federations
* “Foul”, money destroys the beautiful game
* FIFA had no clue about marketing or the commercial side o…
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May 27, 2020
David Abrutyn, From Intern to US$ 700 Million in Dry powder
David gives us a fascinating look into his amazing career from being an intern at the Washington Capitals to leading IMG's global Consulting Business to now being a founding Partner of Bruins Sports Capital and sitting on USD 700 million in Capital to invest. Enjoy the journey.
Key Highlights
* Early days, from internship at the Washington Capitals to the Sports Business Daily
* Learning the business, how to sell, cold calling, building a network leads to the next opportunities at the NHL and then IMG
* IMG – over 15 years building a new Consulting practise on the back of IMG’s global resources and knowledge in sports
* Educating Brands on how to leverage sports assets and the power of sports
* How to navigate potential conflict of interest, ie not being seen as just selling IMG properties
* Insights into Mark McCormack’s, legendary founder of IMG, leadership style
* IMG 2.0 under Ted Forstmann, how Private Equity changed the business discipline and ma…
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May 20, 2020
John Dykes, "Becoming a Brand - A Career in Front Of The Camera"
John has been the voice and face of Football and in particular of the English Premier League for over a decade across Asia and the world. In this episode, we go in front of the camera and have a look at how John’s career took him from being a face/voice to becoming a “brand” himself. Great storytelling by the man with the smooth voice and of course great insights and learning for anyone who has an aspiration in this space and/or likes to learn what it takes to be in front of cameras.
Key Highlights
* Early days as a journalist at the South China Morning Post and host on TVB (Hong Kong)
* Making the decision to be in Sports full time and concentrate
* Dos and Don’ts of broadcasting as a presenter/anchor
* Premier League, from ESPN/Star Sports to Premier League Content service
* His most interesting interviews (from Thierry Henry to Michel Platini)
* The John Dykes Show – how it started and story behind it (how to create an engaging show without ‘live’ conten…
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May 4, 2020
Marcus Luer, From Two Decades of Learning
This time, I am sharing some of my stories of 27 years in the trenches of Sports Marketing, how I got into the industry and my 23 year journey as a Sports Marketing Entrepreneur in Asia. Hope you enjoy some of the stories and insights into TSA and our evolution as a company.
Key Highlights
* How I got started, from tennis in Cologne, Germany to University at TCU in the US
* American Airlines experience, Official Airline of the FIFA World Cup 1994 (Concacaf Gold Cup)
* First real job in Hong Kong with Asia Sports (World Sports Group – now Lagardere Sports)
* Start of TSA in 1997 during the Asian Financial Crisis
* TSA 1.0 to 5.0
* TSA 1.0 - WWE agent in Asia story – US$ 170 million later
* TSA 2.0 - Media agent, representing US Open tennis, BWF, ITTF, PSM and other premium content
* TSA 3.0 – started with a painful experience, internally created and launch of GLORY Kickboxing, new revenue streams, Branded Real Estate
* TSA 4.0 – Digital expe…
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Apr 27, 2020
Unmish Parthasarathi, Watching Cricket for a Living
Unmish talks us thru his 20 years of experiences and learning sitting on different sides of the table, from his time at agencies, rights holders and broadcasters.
* Starting his career with TWI in the production space, great learning
* Early days of New Media 1998-2000
* BBC Days, developing new media platforms, more learning experiences
* ESPN/Star Sports – developing new media platforms and services for broadcast clients
* New Media turns Digital
* ICC (Cricket), monetizing non-linear, short form content
* The different forms in Cricket, T10, T20 and the difference to other sports
* Current services and projects of his own agency
* What changes are we seeing in digital from Covid-19
About
Unmish brings a rare mix of competencies that includes multi-media content creation, video-based product development, strategy & sales coupled with a deep understanding of partnership development and cross-cultural collaboration in Asia & Europe.
Unmish's inte…
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Apr 19, 2020
Jim Wright, The Commercial world of Motorsports
Jim is taking us on a great journey through the commercial world of motorsports from his humble beginnings in UK motorsports to his career in Formula 1 to Formula E now. He is one of the most creative and talented commercial guys in Motorsports I know. His thinking and approach for how to create stories and sponsorship programs works for any sports. As a “commercial guy”, I love this talk. Anyone can sell a hot property, like the FIFA World Cup, the Team or athlete that just won a big Championship. In that space, it’s less about creativity but about managing the demand and getting top value for the client/property. When you sell a back/mid-table team or a new franchise, you have to be a whole lot more creative and come up with new angles. Jim is a master of that. Enjoy the lessons and give us your feedback.
Key Highlights
* His passion for motorsports from his teens and how he got into it step by step
* His knack for the commercial side of the business
* His W…
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Apr 9, 2020
Sam Li, The world of Sina Sports
Sam takes us into a deep dive tour of the fascinating world of SINA Sports, part of Sina- Weibo Group, China’s largest Social Media group (the Facebook, Twitter, Instagram of China, all rolled into one).
Key Highlights
* China perspective on Covid-19, Sina Sports planning
* Early eye on sports thru law Degree – well established route
* Go back to his roots – NBA China first role in sports
* China Sports Social Media 101 – Sina – Weibo (Micro Blog)
* Weibo – the Twitter, Facebook, Instagram blend of China (biggest open Social Media platform in China)
* Wechat – closed social media in comparison plus other functions (Whatsapp on steroids)
* Business model – advertising driven, driven by large traffic
* Sina Sports – how it started and where it is now
* The Crazy years of Chinese Sports Media rights
* Monetization of Content, Chinese learning & the same challenge everywhere
* Sina Sports three pillars :
* Digital Media
* Social…
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Apr 5, 2020
David Falk, The NBA Super Agent Goat
Having the opportunity to interview one of the true Superstars of our industry was a privilege and honour. David, is not just the well known “Super Agent” of Michael Jordan but he is truly someone who changed the face of our industry and still is at the age of 70. Listen, learn and enjoy. Tons of wisdom in that 1.5 hours.
Key Highlights
* Suburb of New York upbringing and his parents influence
* Always had a passion for Law & having College Basketball players as his buddies
* 1972, early days of Sports Agents - trying to get a meeting with Donald Dell (called him 17 times in 4 hours)
* Start working for Donald for free while finishing his Law degree, just to get into the industry
* At 25 big break to handle major clients, became Donald’s Chief of staff
* Developing his own style of negotiations “always overprepare”
* Michael Jordan and Barry Bond story about work ethics
* His style of negotiations and how it changed over time (building relati…
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Mar 27, 2020
Maurizio Barbieri, "Maurizio's Digital Journey to Twitter"
Maurizio's story has been all about digital for 20+ years of his career, from the early days of sports websites, to streaming content, to other digital ventures, some worked, some were too early. His journey lead him to Twitter. And he is loving it. Enjoy his stories.
Key Highlights
* His early days in Basketball Coaching, always with an eye on technology and data
* Working with Ricardo D’Silva and launching the first Basketball portal in Europe (MP Web)
* Breaking ground, first to produce content for Mobile phones in early 2000 and starting live streaming on websites
* Venture with Thomas Martens, early days of social media . First deal with YouTube
* Branded content on Social media, too early
* Samsung time - #1 Consumer brand in the world
* His views on streaming, content delivery and monetization for rights holders and platform owners
* Twitter – maybe the largest sports Venue in the world
* His role in Twitter, helping global content owners an…
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Mar 11, 2020
Joe de Sena, "Spartan Tough"
Spartan Tough - Amazing insights and awesome “raw” sharing by Mr Spartan himself, Joe de Sena. His mindset and philosophies for business and life are perfect for the current climate and global challenges.
You have to be “Spartan Tough” to make it through all the obstacles which are currently out there. Business is a “Combat sport” (surprised he didn’t say “Spartan Race”) and he prepares for it with that in mind.
When I asked him after the interview about the Corona Virus and the impact on his events, he just said “what Virus”. “Where your focus goes, energy flows”, famous words by my mentor Tony Robbins.
Hope you enjoy the podcast as much as I do.
Key Highlights
* Joe’s very early days (pre-teen), growing up in a crime infested neighbourhood and his tough life lessons (be indispensable, be early and don’t ask for money)
* From his Pool cleaning business to Wall Street
* His mum’s impact on his life from Yoga to running
* In his…
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Feb 10, 2020
Alistair Gosling, "Mr Extreme", A 25 Year Journey
Key Highlights
* Al talks about how he got into the business of Extreme Sports thru his passion for that type of Sports in his youth
* How he felt Dyslexia has helped him to be mentally tough and ready for a role as an Entrepreneur
* How the business was scaled and the first big break thru launching the Extreme Sports Channel with UPC as investor (raising US$ 35 million)
* Al talks us thru the different facets of the business now, selling the channel to Liberty Media and focusing on building the “Extreme” brand
* New digital media space, short form content, new revenue streams (10 year journey)
* Extreme Events and Marcus’ story about “Danny Way - Great Wall of China Jump” (2005)
* Al goes into details on the new projects in Saudi Arabia and his role developing Extreme Sports in the Kingdom (Tourism Vision for the country)
* Key Learning from his 25 years, all about People, having the right team and how to manage them
* His thoughts on institutional…
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Jan 7, 2020
From Radio, PayTV, to Facebook ... Peter Hutton's Journey
Highlights
* Early days at TWI story, producing Football Mundial show around the world and how many times it went wrong
* How he got started during University days as a Sports Radio commentator
* Learning from his early days in Pay TV at BSB/SKY UK, Ten Sports, ESPN Star Sports – growing pains to success
* Is OTT the new PAY-TV world? Great learn opportunities in start-up environment
* Challenge of traditional broadcasters to re-invent themselves in new OTT environment – challenge in leadership
* Amazon Prime, Premier League streaming, Peter’s thoughts on their experiment and different model
* Short-form vs long-form content, different audience behaviour around the world
* Facebook’s tools for Rightsholders, teams, athletes and sponsors. New ways to monetize content
* Facebook’s investments in Sports content, La Liga in India, NBA in the Philippines, UFC in Germany. Partnership model
* Other ways to use Facebook to generate new revenue streams,…
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Dec 18, 2019
Scott O'Neil, From Mail-room to C-Suite
Key Highlights
* Scott shares his early days, coming out of college and how he got started (the hard way) in the industry (at the New Jersey Nets)
* How he found his groove, valuable lessons for any student and inspiring sports executive
* How is own experience shaped his Leadership style now
* His NBA days and lessons learned there – relationships and communication (face time)
* His view of falling in love with the power and influence of Sports
* Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment – most talented sports executive group ever assembled
* Strong Community Services philosophy
* Winning or Losing seasons – Building a long term winning mentality & culture
* Scott’s take on E-sports and Sixers Innovation Lab and products coming out of it
* Unique partnerships with other organizations from San Francisco 49, Live Nation/Ticketmaster, etc
* Eye on China and lessons for opportunities outside of the US
About Scott O'Neil
Scott O’Neil is the Ch…
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Dec 10, 2019
Hot Topic with Phil Lines - Black Out Rule & Amazon Prime's Premier League Debut
Hot Topic with Phil Lines - Black Out Rule & Amazon Prime's Premier League Debut.
Marcus Luer interviews Phil Lines, the man best known for taking the Premier League Media rights globally to new heights in the early 2000. Phil started his illustrious career as a Journalist before spending time at ISL and Formula One and then later at the BBC and ITV in the UK.
Phil set up the world’s first sports news television agency which indirectly landed him the job at the Premier League. Working directly with Richard Scudamore, the Chairman, Phil grew the rights fees for the League globally from £60 million to over £500 million per season. After the EPL, Phil spent time at major agencies from CAA to Lagadere before starting his own Consultancy firm, Nootka in 2014.
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Dec 1, 2019
Michael R. Payne, Father of Olympic Branding - Part 2
Michael Payne has been at the forefront of the sports marketing industry nearly forty years – having led the global marketing effort for the Olympic Movement for more than two decades, from 1983 to 2004 as the IOC’s first ever Marketing and Broadcast Rights Director. Michael Payne now runs his own global strategic advisory group – Payne Sports Media Strategies SA, serving a diverse group of clients and Boards.
Nominated as one of the world’s most influential marketers by Advertising Age, Michael oversaw the development of the first ever global marketing strategy for the Olympic Games, which has turned into one of the most successful marketing initiatives ever seen.
During his tenure at the IOC, Michael lead the marketing team for over 20 years, that would generate in excess of $15 billion in broadcast and marketing revenues.
On leaving the IOC, following the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, Michael founded his own strategic consultancy, Payne Sports Media Strategies SA working wit…
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Nov 18, 2019
Michael R. Payne, Father of Olympic Branding - Part 1
Michael Payne has been at the forefront of the sports marketing industry nearly forty years – having led the global marketing effort for the Olympic Movement for more than two decades, from 1983 to 2004 as the IOC’s first ever Marketing and Broadcast Rights Director. Michael Payne now runs his own global strategic advisory group – Payne Sports Media Strategies SA, serving a diverse group of clients and Boards.
Nominated as one of the world’s most influential marketers by Advertising Age, Michael oversaw the development of the first ever global marketing strategy for the Olympic Games, which has turned into one of the most successful marketing initiatives ever seen.
During his tenure at the IOC, Michael lead the marketing team for over 20 years, that would generate in excess of $15 billion in broadcast and marketing revenues.
On leaving the IOC, following the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, Michael founded his own strategic consultancy, Payne Sports Media Strategies SA working wit…
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Nov 1, 2019
Phil Lines, From Poacher to Premier League Gate keeper
Marcus Luer interviews Phil Lines, the man best known for taking the Premier League Media rights globally to new heights in the early 2000. Phil started his illustrious career as a Journalist before spending time at ISL and Formula One and then later at the BBC and ITV in the UK.
Phil set up the world’s first sports news television agency which indirectly landed him the job at the Premier League. Working directly with Richard Scudamore, the Chairman, Phil grew the rights fees for the League globally from £60 million to over £500 million per season. After the EPL, Phil spent time at major agencies from CAA to Lagadere before starting his own Consultancy firm, Nootka in 2014.
Key Highlights:
* Phil shares how he got started in the industry and selling the FIFA World Cup and Olympic rights at ISL in the early days
* Phil shares insider stories of the reasons for the tremendous growth of the Premier League rights globally, including the real reasons behind the 12 noon…
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Oct 17, 2019
Donald Dell, A Living Legend Sharing His Secrets
Marcus Luer interviews Donald Dell, a living legend in the sports industry. Many considering Donald as one of the founding fathers of the sports marketing and sports agent business together with IMG’s Mark McCormack.
Donald has had an illustrious career, starting as a tennis player during the Amateur era in the 1960th and representing the US Davis Cup Team, to winning the Davis Cup as the Captain in 1968/69 and being inducted to the Tennis Hall of Fame.
He started his law firm after his playing career which quickly turned into PRO SERVE, a giant agency with over 300 people across 16 offices around the world. Pro Serve represented top players from Arthur Ash, Stan Smith, Jimmy Connors to Michael Jordan and Patrick Ewing in Basketball.
Donald also wrote two best-selling books (Minding other People’s Business & Never Make the First Offer (except when you should)) and teaches Sports Law at Virginia Law School till today.
Key Highlights:
* Donald shares his stor…
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Oct 17, 2019
Introduction
Introduction to Sports Entrepreneurs Podcast by Marcus Luer.
Visit : https://marcusluer.com/podcast
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