Wendell J. Haskins

#Wicked's box office success may only be matched by the number of brand collaborations featuring the movie. I examined the growing use of brand collaborations and how #sportsbiz #partnership professionals can capitalize on the trend in my latest John WallStreet column.

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Fanáticos! As media has fragmented, sports—especially live sports—are playing a bigger role in media and advertising. As Hispanic fans drive new trends in sports viewership, brands, leagues, teams, and media rights holders have a unique opportunity to connect with a passionate, growing and influential audience! Colleagues of mine here at Nielsen used a combination of our Audience Measurement tools, Nielsen InfluenceScope, and Nielsen Fan Insights to publish a report providing brands with deeper insights into how Hispanic fans engage with sports media and are shaping the future of U.S. sports culture. See the message below to download your copy of Nielsen’s playbook on Hispanic audiences, sports and media engagement to discover opportunities for fan and brand engagement with Hispanic trendsetters. ¡Vamos! #sportsbiz

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Multiple baseball teams set records for single game ticket sales revenue during the 2024 playoffs. That achievement is the byproduct of strong demand for Major League Baseball (MLB)’s postseason product and a savvy –albeit debatable– ticket sales strategy intended to recapture revenue leakage. Clubs recognize that “fans are agnostic to where they get their tickets and have started making pricing decisions for both the primary market, which they obviously control in full, and large portions of the secondary market, which is a mix of the organization and other sellers,” one BI executive said. That is why the two have moved more in concert with one another this fall than typically seen. But while the blending of ticketing markets is enabling teams to maximize gate receipts, it is also contributing to a potentially troublesome trend across sports: loyal fans are getting priced out. “The short-term gain that comes with overcharging your core fans is juxtaposed with the long-term problem that creates with fandom in general,” the club exec said. #sports #sportsbiz #ticketing #ticketsales #strategy cc: JohnWallStreet Shripal Shah Ryan Dastrup, PhD Randall Friedman Jacie Brandes https://lnkd.in/ejrBAAfu

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This partnership between #MajorLeagueBaseball and #Mastercard highlights the connection food has with baseball and sports overall, from traditional items like hot dogs, popcorn, ice cream, and peanuts to unique choices such as fried chicken donuts at #CitiField and the Mac Bat at #TropicanaField, a cone filled with Mac n Cheese. Utilizing the connection with culinary in your market can also bring the rewards of engaging both inside and outside your venue. Minor League Baseball and "Home Run Foods" Minor League Baseball (MiLB) partnered with local eateries to offer "Home Run Foods," delivering stadium favorites to fans' doorsteps. This initiative boosted fan engagement during the pandemic, achieving a 20% increase in merchandise sales tied to food orders. ECHL Inc. and "Fan Feast" The ECHL's "Fan Feast" program, launched in collaboration with regional food vendors, provided fans with team-branded meal kits. This initiative saw a 15% increase in online fan engagement and helped sustain local businesses. Local Quick Service Restaurant (#QSR) partnerships are crucial for community connections. They provide unique, regional flavors that resonate with local fans, enhancing the authenticity of the at-home experience. These collaborations also support local businesses, fostering community goodwill and creating a mutually beneficial relationship. ❇ Tips for Finding Local QSR Partners 1. Identify Popular Local Eateries: Look for restaurants with a strong local following or reflect the community. 2. Evaluate Brand Alignment: Ensure the QSR’s brand connects with your team’s values and fanbase preferences. 3. Leverage Existing Relationships: Utilize existing sponsorships or vendor relationships for potential partnerships. 4. Consider Logistics: Choose partners capable of handling high volumes and maintaining food quality during delivery. Building Community and Revenue Implementing these food delivery programs creates a strong community connection, and loyalty and generates new revenue streams. A simple, easy-to-activate idea is to collaborate with a popular local food provider to offer team-branded meals for delivery during home and away matches. This enhances the fan experience and supports local businesses, driving engagement and sales. Consider what your local culinary providers might offer your fans. #Sportsbiz #FanEngagment #Partnerships #Community #Baseball #Food #Concessions

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The future of sports is bright! Fitch Ratings projects a stronger financial outlook for the industry in 2025, fueled by global expansion, growing interest in women’s sports, and favorable economic conditions like lower U.S. interest rates. Key drivers include robust income streams from media rights, sponsorships, naming rights, and premium seating, alongside increased demand for sports content and concert tours utilizing professional facilities. “The rise of women’s sports and global engagement are unlocking exciting new revenue opportunities,” says Fitch’s Ben Munguia. The game is changing—and the opportunities are boundless! #SportsBusiness #WomenInSports #GlobalExpansion

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What an incredible few days at the IMG xRedBird Summit. It was a pleasure to welcome some of the brightest minds from across the sports and entertainment industries, with a renewed focus on ‘Raising the Game’ – how we future-proof our industry and better meet the needs of tomorrow’s fan, today. Nothing moves people like sport. And in a world where the battle for attention and need to raise our game as companies, organisations, leagues, and teams is only increasing, our goal was to unite, inspire and engage, knowing that together, we do remarkable things. Many thanks to our partners RedBird Capital Partners, our event team who delivered an incredible experience, and to everyone who attended. In a programme full of thought-provoking moments hosted by the inspirational Alex Scott, sharing just a few: Ariel Emanuel and Gerry Cardinale set the tone of the event in a conversation with Matthew Garrahan on the evolution of sports media and ownership, the impact of private equity on sports valuations, and the future of sports rights. We were lucky to hear from the one and only Andy Murray talking post-tennis life with Karthi Gnanasegaram including a growing passion for golf! Sara Fischer led a fascinating conversation between George Cheeks and Jon Miller hashing out the dynamic inter-play between linear TV and emerging digital platforms, and the crucial role of live sports, proven by record ratings on Super Bowl, the Olympics and more. Two of football’s most influential individuals Patrice Motsepe and Javier Tebas Medrano discussed their views on globalisation and African, European and global football with the fantastic Julia Stuart. Both underscored the importance and need for a balanced global calendar, youth development, and the unifying power of football. Our own Hillary Mandel hosted a discussion on investment strategies in football with Amanda Staveley Giorgio Furlani and Lorin Parys debating the challenges, opportunities, and future of attracting and deploying investment in a sustainable way. Sally Bolton OBE Daniel Rossomondo Graham Neff and Mark Dowley discussed the shifting dynamics in the economics of sport with IMG’s Barney Francis. Diving into everything from dynamic pricing, ‘Americanizing’ AC Milan, and college athletics’ transition to a professional model with NIL, to the urgent need for a collaborative approach to tackling piracy. Ben Francis MBE and Noel Mack of Gymshark gave us an in-depth look into what it takes to become one of the world’s fastest-growing brands and truly understanding your audience with Olivia Buzaglo Gerry and Jeff Shell shell brought us home, with a discussion on the convergence of sports, media, and entertainment. Their enlightening conversation spanned everything from sports rights becoming global, to the value proposition of the bundle, the rising power of women audiences, and ownership and league governance. A fantastic, inspirational week for all. #raisingthegame

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What's going to expedite growth of a sports property faster: Growing audiences through the power of athletes' social media vs the traditional coverage given by the major broadcasters? On top of big rights fees, it's the special sauce newer broadcast platforms can't fake. As sports properties, we need to build audiences and engagement between the live events if you stand a chance of growing audiences and fandom. Relying on live audiences alone is fools gold. So when sports properties like the WNBA are looking at how they grow the league, where do you put your bets and limited resources? In this day and age of the athlete economy playing such a powerful role, I'd be giving more support and rights to the athletes then be restricted by the models in place by traditional broadcasters limiting what you can and can't do with content. Let's stop defining fandom just by how many people watch a live game, and playing the same playbook we've been playing far too long to grow a sport. Full breakdown on the latest StreamTime Sports podcast. click below or find on your platform of choice: https://lnkd.in/eFgJTpxE

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Interesting read

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The National Football League (NFL) continues to set the standard for global fan engagement and as their official data partner, Genius Sports is bringing several breakthrough innovations to life. Last night, we announced alongside NBC Sports and EA SPORTS the launch of the groundbreaking 'Madden NFL Cast', airing on Peacock on December 21. By blending video game elements with the live action, this first-of-its-kind immersive broadcast will help to attract and engage a new generation of NFL fans. This is another incredible example of GeniusIQ's AI-driven capabilities, combining live tracking metrics with fully branded animations to create a completely new viewing experience. Find out more here: https://bit.ly/3Vdb2UY

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Wow. This is great from the Las Vegas Raiders Digital is now 100% the way of the world, but every now and then, something tangible and memorable will stand out. What I love about this is that they still use individual game tickets - it's that collectible element and having a new crisp ticket for each game. This could actually circle back round into the digital world - Season tickets could be a digital to improve on safety, efficiency and sustainability but you could still create that real game day experience with a digital booklet of tickets as a opposed to a single, season long card. Why not extend its purpose to collectible ticket stubs and other digital items or rewards, building engagement, connecting fans and importantly capturing and bringing data into the mix. There's a lot to delve and possibilities are pretty much endless, but the foundation still lies in the tried, tested and loved original way of delivering season tickets. We're entering digital fandom territory here - if you want to know more, its worth checking out Cortex who really know what they are talking about 👉 https://lnkd.in/gbHVQsVq #Fandom #DigitalFandom #SeasonTickets #DigitalTickets

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The NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB all clearly recognize the importance of, and upside in, playing official games abroad. To develop the kind of passionate fandom that leads to meaningful international media rights, sports betting, gaming, and sponsorship revenue, a rights owner must bring marquee live events to key markets overseas. Yet, despite the obvious upside, none of European football’s most prominent clubs have participated in an official fixture in the world’s most lucrative sports market. And that reality isn’t changing imminently, as it looked like it might be just a few weeks ago. LALIGA’s steadfast effort to bring regular season matches to the States is, once again, on hold. Sources suggested that the U.S. Soccer Federation (USSF) is not yet on board with the idea of reverse globalization, largely due to objections from Major League Soccer (MLS). Eventually, the governing body may not have a say in the matter. Relevent Sports Group (RSG) is pursuing an anti-trust lawsuit against the USSF. That case could eventually make its way to the Supreme Court. Should Stephen Ross and the global football property owner/operator win, it would set the stage for official European league matches on U.S. soil. That decision would benefit teams and leagues abroad, and create incremental upside for the Americans investing in them. But it doesn’t have to spell doom for MLS. The domestic league can get ahead of the trend and find ways to participate in the value that will be created. Marshall Glickman's latest 'Transatlantic Investment Roadmap' column for JohnWallStreet. cc: Ryan Dastrup, PhD Randall Friedman Jacie Brandes #Europe #soccer #football #globalization #reverseglobalization #investment #growth #sportsbiz https://lnkd.in/eAT5CP8t

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And consider that each of those 2.2 million shots have over 90 data points combining player talent & historical ability, the exact type of shot (location, distance, off catch/dribble) and the precise location of the defense!

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With the 2024 MLB Draft in the books, let's take a look at how I would approach the process of evaluating and acquiring amateur talent for an organization. It isn't always enough to draft the best talent; you have to draft them with the understanding of how they fit in the organization, the cadence in which they arrive on the 40-man roster, and the logistics of your operations. Watch the video for more! #mlbdraft #mlb #baseball #logistics #operations #driveline #strategy

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Codie A. Sanchez A. Sanchez reveals the hidden business strategies and deal-making expertise that drive the success of celebrities like #TheRock. This highlights how strategic partnerships, like his Teremana Tequila brand valued at $3.5 billion, play a crucial role behind their public images. They brought the company to this valuation very quickly by: - #Pricing: They didn’t go premium. - #Distribution: Mega partnerships. - #Billboards: Leveraged top influencers on social media. •°•°•°•°•° Dive into the full conversation to hear Codie Sanchez's valuable perspectives. #marketing #influencermarketing #businessdeals #riskmanagement #entrepreneurship https://lnkd.in/d56k-ANg

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