Made to Play

Communicating and Connecting: Jason Pearl - San Francisco Giants

As the 2020 Major League Baseball strives to become a tangible reality, the ability of MLB clubs to communicate and connect with their communities, fan bases and sponsorship partners is a strong indicator of how relevant and successful they will be coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our conversation with Jason Pearl, SVP of Partnerships & Business Development with the San Francisco Giants covers his team's considerable efforts to maintain that relevance in the Bay Area and beyond during this time of crisis.

We’re Still Talking: Abe Madkour, Sports Business Group

Well into this whole COVID-19 conundrum, we are still left without the basic information we need to plan and prepare for what is to come when sports eventually return. So in the true spirit of speculation, we keep talking about the "what if's", because that's all we've got right now. So, in that vein, I sat down with Abe Madkour, Executive Editor of the media offerings at Street & Smith's Sports Business Group, to get his read on where we're at based upon his conversations with the movers and shakers in our industry. 

Sports Business and COVID-19 Economics

In this latest installment we take a look at some of the (very) basic economic impacts of the global health crisis on the sports business with a focus on broadcast rights holders and the properties that are fed by those investments. I am joined by two of Octagon's best and brightest - Dr. Simon Wardle, Chief Strategy Officer of Octagon Worldwide and Daniel Cohen, Senior Vice president and leader of the company’s Global Media Rights Consulting division.

Chris Hibbs - Legends Global Partnerships

In this incredibly complex and uncertain environment, the route to successful navigation of branded sponsorship programs requires an entirely new roadmap. How to find and activate the properties and assets that deliver reach while appropriately addressing brand objectives in the midst of the global pandemic has arguably become the single greatest challenge the sponsorship industry has ever faced.

I sat down with Chris Hibbs, recently named as President of the Legends Global Partnerships group for an insightful discussion of that challenge and his outlook on the near and long term future of sponsorships both at home and around the world.

Fan Passion in a COVID-19 World (Part One)

Dr. Simon Wardle, Chief Strategy Officer at Octagon Worldwide, joins me to share his views on the current state of affairs relative to sponsorship in the midst of the global pandemic. From how this unprecedented environment of uncertainty is impacting fan behavior to how sponsors, properties and broadcasters are addressing the challenges, we cover a lot of ground in this first installment.

Simon will be back for more next week - but this was a great start and his well-informed insights make for a great listen.

TX Rangers/Globe Life Field - Joe Januszewski

As baseball's era of retro ballparks and modernization continues, the focus is on making the fan experience as enticing as it can possibly be. When the Texas Rangers take the field at the newly constructed Globe Life Field in Arlington on March 23rd, it will be the 25th new ballpark built for Major League play in the past 30 years. We spoke to Joe Jauszewski, the Rangers' EVP/Chief Revenue & Marketing Officer about the project and what's in store for fans.

eSports/Misfits Gaming Group - Greg Stangel

By the end of this year, revenues from esports properties will reach over $1.1 billion. But while the esports industry continues to grow, the crowded and undefined landscape is often a challenge for brand marketers looking to capitalize this next wave of fan passion.

Greg Stangel is the Chief Revenue officer for Misfits Gaming Group and talked to us about how a traditional sports marketing guy has transitioned into this new world and what the opportunity is for brands looking to break through the chaos and make eSports work for them.

Displaced Fan - Rob Haberfield

Technology has made the world small enough that the comforts of home and hearth can be there for us no matter how far away from there we may be. These days, being a displaced fan doesn't mean you're any less “placed” than the people watching in the stands at the home stadium or local watering hole. Displaced fans are everywhere - and properties, broadcasters and digital marketers are embracing these passionate out-of-towners more than ever before. 

We spoke to Rob Haberfield, a Tottenham Hotspur fan and Englishman who moved to Seattle 15 years ago. Rob sheds some light on what being a Hotspur fan means to him and how he stays connected to his passion for the club.

LA28 and Team USA - Chris Pepe, Chief Commercial Officer, United States Olympic and Paralympic Properties

The last time the United States hosted an Olympic Games was 2002 in Salt Lake City. Twenty-six years later, the Games will return to the US when Los Angeles welcomes the world to their production of the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The joint venture between LA28 and the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee - known as US Olympic and Paralympic Properties (USOPP) - is offering potential sponsors a groundbreaking eight year partnership with Team USA, the LA28 Games and broadcast rights holder NBC Universal. And while the opportunity for sponsors is substantial - the cost is expected to be just as impressive. We spoke with Chris Pepe, USOPP's Chief Commercial Officer, about what makes this version so different from previous iterations, both in terms of the assets and the asking price. 

MLB Playoffs - Ben Valenta, Fox Sports

Major League Baseball’s relevance for major marketers is a hot topic. The folks at MLB are in an all-out battle to win over the next generation of loyalists, and with their allies across the sponsorship and media landscape, will be pulling out all the stops to wage this war with a “win at all costs” mentality. Since 1996, FOX Sports has placed a huge bet on baseball, holding broadcast rights to Major League Baseball's top jewel events, including the MLB All Star Game and World Series. Ben Valenta is FOX Sports' Senior VP/Strategy & Consumer Insights, responsible for leveraging consumer insights and data analytics in support of strategic planning, production, sales, marketing and public relations.