Unofficial Partner Podcast

Our guest is Richard Scudamore, who was CEO and then Executive Chairman of The Premier League from 1999 to his retirement in 2018, a transformational period in the history of English football and the sports business more broadly.Scudamore's reign in charge saw the media rights for the league rise from £1.2billion for the 2001-04 cycle to over £5billion for 2014-16. He was formerly chief executive of the Football League, now EFL, and is a founding board member of the Football Foundation. A qualified level 5 referee, Scudamore is a lifelong Bristol City fan and was appointed Commander of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2019 New Year Honours.Joining the conversation is Omar Chaudhuri, Chief Intelligence Officer of Twenty First Group.This is an episode of The Product, a series created in collaboration with Twenty First Group the tech-led sports intelligence company which works across multiple sports, using data to help organisations drive sporting success and unlock commercial value.This podcast is sponsored by Leaders Week London.Who could you be joining at Twickenham Stadium on October 18th and 19th?Across the Summit, over 1,800 of the most senior figures in the sport business will be there, from Amazon to the Premier League, adidas to Spotify.This is your opportunity to meet and rub-shoulders with executives from across the sport business ecosystem, to reconnect with old friends and reminisce about your past experiences from Leaders Weeks gone by. And as a listener to Unofficial Partner, you can get take advantage of a 15% discount on your Summit passes - just use UP15 at the point of purchase. Visit  leadersinsport.com/UP for more information.Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 500 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series and live events, you can reach us via the website.

Kevin McNair, Marketing Director of KP Snacks, discusses the sponsorship of The Hundred cricket tournament, the influence of Professor Byron Sharp in marketing decisions, and the success of the women's side in attracting a new audience. They also explore responsible sponsorship practices and the impact of the Hundred tournament on participation and sponsorship benefits.

Exploring the challenges faced by Premier League clubs outside the top six, the podcast discusses the commoditization of sponsorship, surplus stadium inventory, and the economic impact of relegation. It delves into topics such as adapting to the post-COVID era, unlocking the commercial potential of data, diversifying revenue streams, and transitioning to the new world of sports business.

The Price of Football is the hit podcast that talks about the finances of the beautiful game, and today we're joined by its creators: comedian Kevin Day, football finance academic Kieran Maguire and former BBC producer Guy Kilty. Now they've written a book. It's called Unfit and Improper Persons, An Idiot’s Guide to Owning a Football Club.It's good, and can be pre-ordered on the Bloomsbury website.This episode of Unofficial Partner is sponsored by Leaders Week London, taking place on 16th to 19th October, with the two day Leaders Summit held at Twickenham Stadium on Wednesday 18th and Thursday 19th.The team at Leaders have worked hard to ensure you can make the most out of your time across The Summit. There's forums, masterclasses and networking opportunities including: The Diversity Forum, Women in Sport Breakfasts, Masterclasses and Tech Showcases and Invitation only forums covering Brand and Marketing, C-Suite, and Commercial.Use UP15 for a 15% discount on your Summit passes - visit leadersinsport.com/UP for more information. Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 500 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series and live events, you can reach us via the website.

Manchester United's famous red shirt is a prime piece of sporting real estate.So why is TeamViewer ending its deal early?What do you buy when you buy the United shirt?And what does it say about the relationship between football and the commercial sector?Welcome to Sports News Upload, with Richard Gillis and Matt Cutler.Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 500 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series and live events, you can reach us via the website.

How to get ahead in the sports business is our series on talent, leadership and professional development. Today we get the perspective of two young people at the start of their careers in sport, and discuss the challenges they faced to get a toe in the door, what mistakes they made that could be of use to others in a similar position, and what surprised them about the industry they now call home.Katharine Curran is Senior Metaverse Manager at City Football Group and Nikhil Waugh is Tournament Director of IMG's UK Tennis properties.Both are alumni of the Institute of Sports Humanities (ISH). ISH’s Leadership in Sport Masters is currently open for applications – if you want to be part of the next cohort or to find out more, visit sportshumanities.orgThis podcast is sponsored by Leaders Week London on 16th to 19th October, with the two day Leaders Summit held at Twickenham Stadium on Wednesday 18th and Thursday 19th.There's going to be three stages to visit: the Headline Stage, the brand new Creative Stage and the Tech and Innovation Stage.You'll have the chance to hear from the likes of Disney, FIFA, Coca-Cola, Universal Music Group, Manchester United and so many more.Use UP15 for a 15% discount on your Summit passes - visit leadersinsport.com/UP for more information.Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 500 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series and live events, you can reach us via the website.

The Commonwealth Games is in crisis, without a host city for 2026 and possibly beyond. The last Olympic Games bidding process received just two hosting bids, with Paris and Los Angeles awarded 2024 and 2028 respectively. Beyond that 2032 has one current bidder. Five potential host cities for the 2022 Winter Olympics withdrew after voter referendums and public polling indicated a lack of local support. So where are we in sport's relationship with its hosts?Have sports events become just too big? Too expensive, too inflexible, out of synch with the climate crisis, lacking a clear return on investment for the cities and countries that host them, and leaving a questionable legacy in their wake. These questions don't apply to authoritarian regimes such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar and China, which gets to a difficult question for major sports rights holders: what are they for? We've lined up three major event experts to discuss these issues:Esther Britten is UK Sport's Deputy Director and is the Head of Major Events at the , responsible for the UK's major sporting event hosting strategy, strategically programming and investing on behalf of the UK government to ensure the UK continues to host the the most significant and impactful major international sporting events. Ed Warner was formerly chair of UK Athletics and holds the same role for the GB Wheelchair Rugby.Angus Buchanan is co-founder of The Sports Consultancy and TSC Legal.This episode is brought to you by our good friends at Leaders.  Leaders Week London returns this October - so mark your diaries.This year it will be from 16 to 19 October, just 6 weeks away.For those who don't know, Leaders Week London is so much more than just your average conference - it's a 4-day festival of industry insight, connection building and relationship nurturing. And its fun!  The Summit part of Leaders Week, will be held at Twickenham Stadium on 18th and 19th October.And the good news is UP listeners get a special discount.  Use UP15 for a 15% discount on your Summit passes - visit leadersinsport.com/UP for more information.We will see you there!  Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 500 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series and live events, you can reach us via the website.

Major General Bill Wright CBE, is the senior British Army officer in charge of Career and Talent Management across the entire British Army, responsible for running and transforming the Army’s Career Management organisation covering c.110k personnel from the rank of private soldier up to 3* General.Previously, Bill was Chief Executive/Commander of The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.He joins Richard and Ed Smith to talk about talent, leadership and decision making, with a focus on what links the job of creating and nurturing high performance teams in both sport and the military.Ed Smith is a regular guest on the podcast and founder of the Institute of Sports Humanities (ISH) and is an author, journalist and former National Selector for England cricket. As a professional cricketer, he played for Kent, Middlesex & England.  ISH’s Leadership in Sport Masters is currently open for applications – if you want to be part of the next cohort or to find out more, visit sportshumanities.orgUnofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 500 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series and live events, you can reach us via the website.

Occasionally a story breaks that reveals the direction of travel for the rest of sports business.One such story is Disney-owned ESPN's move in to the US gambling market, courtesy of a $2billion, ten year deal with betting operator Penn Entertainment, which sold back its ownership stake in Barstool, with which it was previously building a sports and gambling offer.“We are confident that the combination of our unparalleled audience along with Penn’s operational expertise and state-of-the-art technology provides us with a tremendous opportunity to serve the ever-growing number of consumers interested in betting,” said Jimmy Pitaro, the Disney executive who oversees ESPN.But as today's conversation reveals, it ain't as simple as that.There are many questions facing Disney's new sports betting convergence play. How promiscuous are sports punters? Why will they move to ESPN's sports book and away from existing and well entrenched platforms such as Fan Duel and DraftKings, when they have patently not done so for Barstool?What is the role of fantasy games in the sports ecosystem, and how important is player data in the way today's sports fan engages with media outlets of all types?It's this type of detail we're able to access, in the company of one of the most interesting thinkers working in this space, Sam Sadi, CEO of LiveScore Group. This is a conversation about the economic model of professional sport. The traditional broadcast funded sports media bundle is under strain. Estimates of future media rights revenues are static or declining in many markets and across many sports.So different business models are being trialled. Retailers such as Fanatics and Amazon are now looking like broadcasters.Sports teams and leagues are acting like media platforms. And what of the gambling industry?What role will they play in the new converged sports economy?Our conversation today is a fascinating insight in to the opportunities and limitations of sports media to generate a return for its commercial partners, both now and over the next decade.Luckily, these themes will play a central role in our next public event.On September 28th we're hosting the Unofficial Partner Convergence Brainstorm, in partnership with LiveScore Group. The event takes place at the very top of the ArcellorMittal Orbit Tower at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London. It's an iconic venue for an important conversation that will impact every stakeholder across the sports world. As a listener to Unofficial Partner, you can get one of the few remaining tickeUnofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 500 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series and live events, you can reach us via the website.

Gianni Infantino, FIFA President, discusses the reality of being a woman in football. The podcast sheds light on the challenges faced by women in the professional game, including discrimination and sexism. It explores the significance of women's football in raising issues and creating change, the lack of representation in the industry, and the potential of quotas for increasing gender diversity. The podcast also discusses the influence of ESG investment and emphasizes the importance of taking action and joining the conversation on women in football.