Bloomberg Business of Sports

Fans, like sports, have changed forever owing to the pandemic, and Angela Ruggiero, CEO and co-founder of Sports Innovation Lab, has the data to prove it. The Olympian and hockey Hall of Famer joins to talk about what her group has dubbed the 'Fluid Fan' and how teams are adapting to meet us where we are. She delves into why English football clubs out-innovate most American sports teams and an eff...

The NBA All-Star Game carried on this past weekend, despite push back from some top players. Jason, Barr, and Lynch discuss the economics of the star-studded event, amid opposition from some athletes. Meanwhile, it's International Women's Day, and Maia Chaka has made history as the first Black woman ever named to the NFL's officiating staff. Plus, there's a new platform elevating women's voices. W...

Professional sports across the board had a tough 2020. Well, it was no different for the Bronx Bombers, Major League Baseball's largest revenue generator. Jason, Barr, and Lynch caught up with the President of the New York Yankees, Randy Levine, to talk about what to expect for opening day, the financial situation coming into a fresh season, and the upcoming collective bargaining agreement. Plus,...

NBA Hall of Famer, gold medal-winning Olympian, and Georgetown Hoyas Head Coach Patrick Ewing joins the podcast to talk about the legacy of fellow hall of famer and Georgetown Hoyas coach, John Thompson. Ewing speaks with Jason and Lynch about the impact Thompson had on his career, professional sports, and society at large. They also talk about the difficulties of coaching and recruiting during th...

Stef Strack built a career at Nike and Rag & Bone understanding the intersection of sport, apparel, lifestyle and culture, especially for women. With Voice in Sport, she's taking it to a new level, combining membership and mentorship. On the first day of Women's History Month, Strack joins the show to talk about the broken economics of collegiate sports, the potential to unlock new markets at...

Ever stood on a youth soccer sideline with a whistle, befuddled? There's an app for that. Legendary media executive Ben Sherwood has launched a new company, Mojo, aimed at the youth sports market, leveraging his experience running TV networks into an all-too-familiar pain point. He joins Jason and Mike to break down the business case, and weigh in on the ever-changing media landscape. Plus, the gu...

After 11 years in the NFL, Ndamukong Suh finally has his championship ring, and his ambitions off the field are similarly super-sized. He's methodically built a sprawling portfolio of assets, notably in real estate and hospitality, carefully cultivating relationships with some of the best-known investors of our time. He talks with Jason Kelly and Mike Lynch about advice from Warren Buffett, shadow...

The pandemic just accelerated the way reporters and journalists gain access to athletes and coaches and changes how sports is now consumed. Jon Wertheim has seen his fair share of sports moments and stories working for Sports Illustrated. And this past year has been no different. He joined Michael Barr and Mike Lynch to discuss changes within the industry. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy i...

Never in his wildest dreams could he have expected this. He trained and put the work in and Michael McDowell still can't believe it. Its a dream come true as he is crowned Daytona 500 champion. McDowell joined Michael Barr and Mike Lynch to discuss what its like winning the "The Super Bowl of Racing" and the long journey he took to get here. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Former NBA All-Star and two-time champion Pau Gasol was never your typical pro ball player. Now, with lessons learned on and off the court, he's directing his attention to investments to make us better at being humans. He joins Jason, Mike and Michael to talk about his goals, getting back on the court and to the Olympics, and the deep influence Kobe had on him as a player and a man. See omnystudio...

After the Super Bowl comes the Super Bowl of racing. It's the Daytona 500! NASCAR President Steve Phelps joined the team to discuss the new season and lessons learned from 2020, when NASCAR was one of the first sports to return to action after shutting down due to the pandemic. He touches on the technology that has transformed the sport and how the sport continues to push to be more inclusive, at...

NASCAR was one of the first sports to return after COVID-19 struck last year. The sport has gone through numerous changes over the years as it relates to sponsorships and safety implementations. Driver Kevin Harvick joined Michael Barr to discuss how they were able to navigate last season and how he is preparing for Daytona 500 this Sunday. They touched on the 20-year anniversary of Dale Earnhardt...

Super Bowl LV is in the books and our crew breaks down the big game. Jason Kelly, Michael Barr and Richard Trueman discuss the winners and losers of Super Bowl LV, Tom Brady’s legacy and how the NFL made it through the covid-19 season.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ahead of Super Bowl LV, host city Tampa finds itself in all sorts of uncharted territory. There's the global pandemic and the extraordinary measures the city and the NFL are taking to ensure player and fan safety. There's the economic consequences of a scaled-down run-up. And there's the happy matter of having the home team playing in the game for the first time ever. We break all of that down wit...

Ahead of this weekend's Super Bowl, we catch up with Mike Tannenbaum, a front office fixture in the National Football League who now works at ESPN. The former Jets GM goes deep on the economics underneath the recent blockbuster trade, the drama around the Texans and their unhappy quarterback and talks about his early days as a Saints intern learning the vagaries of the salary cap. See omnystudio.c...

Arizona has hundreds of millions of dollars flowing in each springtime, when half of Major League Baseball shows up for spring training. But health concerns are outweighing economics in 2021 and the Cactus League has called for a delay. Bridget Binsbacher, executive director of the Cactus League, joins the show to talk about the gravity of the decision, and how an eventual spring training could lo...

As Boston's former favorite adopted son preps for another Super Bowl with a different team, we check in with Dan Shaughnessy of the Boston Globe for his take on Tom Brady, Curt Schilling and a lot more. He and Lynchie go deep on the big moments across the decades of Boston sports, and discuss a fan base that's created some of the most valuable franchises in all of sports. Plus, part of Jason's int...

The world will (virtually) descend on Tampa in a couple Sundays and Tom Brady could add some more hardware if the home team can claim a win. With reigning champs in the NHL and a World Series runner-up (not to mention a recent NBA champion from Toronto camping out), the Florida city is taking the sports world by storm. Jason, Michael and Mike discuss the economic ups and downs of winning and hosti...

In a sports world of giants, few stood taller than the late John Thompson, Jr., long-time Georgetown coach, activist and agitator. Jesse Washington co-authored Thompson's critically acclaimed autobiography, published after the coach's death last year. Like the man whose story it tells, it's a complicated, funny, insightful and moving work. Jesse joins Michael, Mike and proud Georgetown Hoya Jason...

With the NHL back on the ice -- albeit realigned, geographically restricted and enforcing reams of health rules -- Commissioner Gary Bettman joins the show to discuss the economics of another strange season of hockey. New, novel sponsorship deals (naming divisions, helmet decals) are all about "revenue retention" as half the normal money is coming in -- since fans have to stay home. Still, the lon...

In a world awash with content but missing in-person sports, FITE has expanded beyond its combat sports roots into a broad array of pay-per-view content. Mike Weber, FITE's chief operating officer, joins the show to talk about leveraging his experience in pro wrestling and other sports. Streaming services have reintroduced the debate around who will pay how much, for what, and when, and the pandemi...

To commemorate MLK Day, we go deep on The Players Alliance. It's a group formed by current and former Black baseball players to educate and mobilize around issues of social justice and economic inequality. Curtis Granderson, Chris Young and Chris Dickerson join the show to explain the founding values, the state of the game and reflect on their own experiences as pro athletes of color in 2020.  See...

Thirty Five Ventures is the very model of a major athlete's ambitions well beyond the court. Rich Kleiman, co-founder with Kevin Durant of Thirty Five Ventures. The day after Durant got a new partner on the Brooklyn Nets with James Harden, his long-time manager and business partner Kleiman joins for a wide-ranging conversation on where the Nets go from here, Kleiman's roots in the music business,...

John Burns watches NFL a little differently: He's got a lot of business riding on the GOAT. The CEO of TB12 is building an empire around what makes Tom Brady keep going, bringing the secrets of training and nutrition underpinning an all-world, still-going career to the rest of us. Burns and Lynchie swap Brady stories and the group explores how the pandemic has made the wellness business both more...

We catch our breath after a weekend full of high-octane NFL playoffs, including the games that set the stage for next week's Drew Brees/Tom Brady showdown -- a network programmer's dream. On deck, the College Football Playoff championship, itself a product of business-driven negotiations that contemplated all the TV money, and Justin Fields' future prospects as a pro. Plus, the NBA postpones a gam...