Navigating Sports Business

Matthew Holt - Chief Executive Officer at IC360 - explains why the thousands of available prop bets during the Super Bowl are even more difficult to monitor and regulate than those we see during regular games.   The main difference is whether the prop is decided on the field of play, or whether it's something that can be known ahead of time, like the color of the winning team's gatorade or the dur...

Randy Freer - Media Expert, Former Hulu CEO, & CEO of the Freer Company - shares his unique perspective on streaming, media fragmentation, the new NBA rights deal, and the viability of different models for viewing live sports.   He also discusses the changes he foresees for the next generation of sports fans and media consumers. In the past, it has been the "middle men" who have profited by purcha...

Jared Orton – President of the Savannah Bananas – on the goal of offering affordable tickets to fans despite challenges with the secondary ticket market.   Fake tickets and price gouging are commonplace, and the Bananas are doing what they can to protect their fans and allow easier access to their games.   Listen to the full episode here:  https://nvgt.com/podcast?ppplayer=98f56b6dd6dca41729f186d1...

Kimberly Bolt - CMO at the Washington Nationals - breaks down the art and science of marketing a Major League Baseball team.   She discusses D.C.'s unique identity as a transient city and how to market to those new fans as they move to town. She also shares what her team is doing to reach younger audiences including innovative influencer marketing strategies and a summer concert at the Nationals P...

  Jeremy Bloom – CEO of the X Games, Former NFL & Olympic Athlete, and the Founder of Integrate - tells the story of his legal battle with the NCAA.   By accepting endorsements to fund his gold-medal skiing career, he forfeited his eligibility to play football at the University of Colorado. His story provides a vivid contrast to the current rules surrounding NIL in college sports.   Listen to the...

Quentin Paquelier - CMO of Club América - leads marketing for the biggest soccer brand in North America. Their games average more viewers in the U.S. than any other soccer club in the world.   Quentin considers the U.S. to be a "second primary market" and explains the challenge of engaging with so many fans in different parts of Mexico, the U.S., and beyond, especially with the global spotlight of...

Eddie Hearn – Chairman of Matchroom Sport – on Katie Taylor's trailblazing rise to superstardom, and how she lifted the sport of women's boxing up with her.   Despite his early skepticism of the commercial viability of women's boxing, Hearn took a meeting with Taylor out of respect for what she'd already done for the sport at the amateur and Olympic levels. He was blown away by her passion and per...

Jared Orton - President of the Savannah Bananas - shares the team's evolution from college summer baseball team to international entertainment sensation!   The mission has always been to make baseball fun. That has led to a tidal wave of ticket sales, merchandise, and new revenue streams like televised games and even a fan cruise. As they continue to scale, they are launching an entire league of B...

Tim Zulawski – President of AMB Sports & Entertainment – explains how AMBSE collaborates with brand partners to solve their business problems. AMBSE's perspective: Ultimately it starts with sourcing partners that you know you can positively impact with the tools available to you.   Listen to the full episode here:  https://nvgt.com/podcast?ppplayer=98f56b6dd6dca41729f186d12a4d1251&ppepisode=8414c1...

Jeremy Bloom - Former NFL & Olympic Athlete, and the Founder of Integrate - discusses his public battle with the NCAA, his sister's underground poker game that spawned a Hollywood movie, and the lessons he learned in football and skiing that turned him into a successful founder.   Jeremy also teases a major career announcement that will be coming the day after this episode's release!   Details: 2:...

Daniel Lamarre – Executive Vice-Chairman of the Board at Cirque du Soleil – tells the story of the chance meeting with The Beatles that led to a powerful artistic collaboration.   "There is no pitch. You're a creative force. We're a creative force. We're here to see if we can work together."   Listen to the full episode here:  https://nvgt.com/podcast?ppplayer=98f56b6dd6dca41729f186d12a4d1251&ppep...

Eddie Hearn - Chairman of Matchroom Sport - leads the only global boxing promotional company in the world. However, his empire expands beyond boxing to basketball, darts, snooker, gymnastics, and many other sports.   He discusses his groundbreaking $1 Billion deal with DAZN that brought the biggest fights in the world to streaming, and his thoughts on YouTubers getting in the ring.   Details: 4:05...

Michael Alford – Vice President and Director of Athletics at Florida State – on the national brand that is FSU athletics, and how they're able to compete for market share with NFL teams, without having to follow the same regional restrictions.   Listen to the full episode here:  https://nvgt.com/podcast?ppplayer=98f56b6dd6dca41729f186d12a4d1251&ppepisode=d673c4611a03e742750bbd3c18d30857   For more...

Tim Zulawski - President of AMB Sports & Entertainment - manages a portfolio of properties that includes the Atlanta Falcons, Atlanta United FC, the state-of-the-art Mercedes-Benz Stadium, and Atlanta Drive GC.   He talks about how Atlanta United is using data to maximize the massive opportunity around soccer with the U.S. set to host the Men's FIFA World Cup in 2026. He also shares how drasticall...

Umar Hussain – Head of Media at Navigate – on his experience negotiating multibillion dollar deals down to the smallest detail. He also talks about launching ESPN+ and the direct-to-consumer platform for NBA TV.   Listen to the full episode here:  https://nvgt.com/podcast?ppplayer=98f56b6dd6dca41729f186d12a4d1251&ppepisode=85a49c2005d45c7def8aca7dbc9d0504   For more insights, visit our  LinkedIn p...

Daniel Lamarre - Executive Vice-Chairman of the Board at Cirque du Soleil - on the origins of one of the world's most creative performances and the challenges they've overcome, including going from $1B in annual revenue to $0 overnight during the pandemic in 2020.   He also discusses the meeting with Paul, George, and Ringo that led to Cirque's collaboration with the Beatles.   Details: 2:00 - Cir...

Alex Martins – CEO of the Orlando Magic – on leading both the business and basketball sides of an organization.     The mission statement for the Magic is "to be world champions on and off the court, delivering legendary moments every step of the way." But due to the cyclical nature of the NBA, you have to be find ways to succeed as a business, even when the team is isn't competing for a champions...

Michael Alford - Vice President and Director of Athletics at Florida State - on the current and future challenges surrounding college sports.   He discusses the role of analytics in projecting future revenue streams, and the possibility of private equity investment into athletic departments.   Details: 3:55 - The role of analytics in collegiate athletics 6:35 - Pro sports vs. college sport 9:40 -...

Greg Sankey - Commissioner of the SEC - on balancing what's best for his conference with the long-term goals of Division I at large.   He emphasizes the role of automatic March Madness bids as a key motivator for conferences wishing to maintain the current system.   His opinion is that the responsibility to guide college athletics into the next era doesn't rest solely on the SEC and Big Ten.   Lis...

Umar Hussain - Head of Media at Navigate - joins our second ever internal podcast. He shares stories from his previous roles at ESPN and the NBA, along with predictions for the next era of sports media.   He and Anne also discuss the biggest stories of the day including the NFL on Netflix and the NBA/WBD lawsuit.   Details: 1:50 - Umar's background 11:35 - A new role at Navigate 14:35 - The value...

"We've always had to do things differently to be able to compete at the level that we want to compete, which is at the highest level."   Rob Mullens – Athletic Director at Oregon – on the move to the Big Ten and what it means for the Ducks' future.   Oregon athletics has become a global brand through years of creative planning and strategic investment. Still, they are an underdog in many ways comp...

Alex Martins - CEO of the Orlando Magic - discusses what it's like to oversee both the business and basketball operations of the organization.   He started with the Magic at the inception of the franchise in 1989, and has worked on some of the biggest project types in sports business, like the development of the Kia Center. He shares how the Magic maintain a partnership with Disney World to train...

Jeehae Lee – Founder & CEO of Sportsbox AI – on how leveraging the world's largest database of golf swing data unlocks new techniques for training and improving anyone's golf game.   Her team can even predict how Bryson DeChambeau is going to play on a given day, using the data from hundreds of his warm up swings.   Listen to the full episode here:  https://nvgt.com/podcast?ppplayer=98f56b6dd6dca4...

For our 100th episode, we invited back one of our very first guests for an update on the conversation that he and AJ had in 2020 .   Greg Sankey - Commissioner of the SEC - discusses what it's been like to lead his conference through arguably the most unpredictable era of college athletics. He shares his vision for the future, and how he's setting out to tackle the challenges in front of him.   De...

Andrea Hopelain – GM & SVP of Publishing at EA SPORTS – on the groundbreaking NIL deal that led to the return of EA's College Football title after more than a decade.   She explains their motivations behind bringing the game back, and how they were able to work with student-athletes to create the ultimate college football experience for fans.   Listen to the full episode here:  https://nvgt.com/po...