Unofficial Partner Podcast

How was it for you? That's the question we're asking in this final episode of 2022, in our review of the year in the sports business.Our guests are Sanjay Bhandari, who you just heard, Preeti Shetty, Joel Seymour Hyde and Matt Cutler. Sanjay is a lawyer, investor and Chair of Kick It Out, the football anti racism charity.Preeti is non executive board member of Brentford Football Club and founder of tech firm Upshot System.Joel Seymour Hyde is UK Managing Director of the sports marketing agency Octagon. And former SportBusiness editor Matt Cutler was until this week, the head of comms at Two Circles from where he's branching out in to new things in 2023.The recording took place at Two Circles offices in London.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.

This year's Commonwealth Games in Birmingham was the biggest and costliest sports event held in the UK since the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Birmingham 2022 was the largest Commonwealth Games ever held, with 72 participating nations and over 1.3 million tickets sold. It was also the first to have more events for women than men and the first integrated event, with the para competition held at the same time. Alongside the Games, a cultural festival ran across the West Midlands, as well as a number of trade events and a Games specific esports event. It marked the last time that the Games were held under Queen Elizabeth II prior to her death on 8 September this year, which was exactly one month after the conclusion of the Games. According to UK government figures, the cost of the 11 day event was £778 million,  split between the central and local government in the form of Birmingham City Council, with the former paying three quarters (UK£594 million) of the total funding.So, what is the Commonwealth Games for? What does its sporting programme say about how international federations view the job of attracting new audiences? How vibrant is the sponsorship and media rights market around the event and beyond the ticket buying audience, who is watching?To help answer these questions is the person in charge, Kate Sadleir, Commonwealth Games Federation CEO, who took over the organisation in November 2021, the first woman to hold that post. A former Olympic and Commonwealth Games athlete, Sadleir held several senior sports roles within her native New Zealand before spending five years at World Rugby, where she was head of the women's game. This is episode 18 of ReThinking Sport, our series created in collaboration with Portas, the global strategy consultancy dedicated to sport and physical activity.  The other voice you'll hear on the podcast is Peter Whight of Portas, who worked on secondment in the run up and through the Games. 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 Bundle is our regular series on the sports media and streaming market with co-hosts Yannick Ramcke and Murray Barnett, both fresh from appearing at SportsPro's OTT Summit in Madrid. Yannick is head of OTT at One Football and Murray is director of the DTC Consultancy, founder of 28West Sport and formerly of F1, World Rugby and ESPN. Today, we talk about the return of Bob Iger to Disney, what that might mean for ESPN and why they've just bought the remaining bit of BAMTech they don't yet own. Then it's onto what 2023 holds for Warner Brothers Discovery, what that brand means, why FuboTV is getting out of betting, Amazon are getting into NFL talk shows and what the price of Apple's first MLS Season Ticket might mean for the market for sport.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.

Martin O'Neill, OBE won two European Cups as a player for Nottingham Forest under the legendary management duo of Brian Clough and Peter Taylor and earning 64 international caps for Northern Ireland including captaining the side at the 1982 World Cup. As a manager O'Neill became one of the most in-demand leaders of his generation, building a reputation as a deep thinker on the game from his start at Wycombe Wanderers, moving through stints in charge at Norwich City, Leicester City, Celtic, Aston Villa and Sunderland. In 2013, O'Neill was appointed Republic of Ireland manager, with Roy Keane as his assistant, and led them to qualification for the 2016 UEFA European Championship, for only the third time in the nation's history, beating the reigning world champions, Germany in the process. O'Neill remains one of the most interesting and erudite people in football, so it's fitting he's written a book detailing the story of his life and career. On Days Like These is published by Pan Macmillan. So we took the opportunity to ask Martin O'Neill what he's learnt about how football works, from the dugout to the boardroom. 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.

There's a race on to define the next era of the sports business. The winners will reap enormous financial returns. The losers will likely disappear from view. Sports media and gambling have always been bedfellows. But what comes next is a complete convergence of the two, a seamless offer that puts betting at the very centre of the business model.  The appeal is obvious: Gambling companies gain access to valuable new customers; sports teams and leagues gain new licensing opportunities and fan engagement channels; and media companies retain and increase viewer interest, driving increased advertising revenue. But there are barriers too: cost of technology, the threat of legislation and the basic marketing problem of differentiation between the mass of platforms now available to fans.We discuss each of these with today's guest Sam Sadi, CEO of gaming and media business, LiveScore Group, one of the runners in the convergence race which delivers real-time sports scores and free-to-air live streams along with gambling opportunities via LiveScore Bet and Virgin Bet. The company recently received a £50m strategic investment from Swiss media company Ringier, which values the LiveScore Group business at £500m.As you'll hear, this is a frank and often revealing conversation about one of the most important macro trends in the sports business today. 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.

Everything you need to know about ambush marketing, the dark art of associating with a major event without paying to be an official sponsor. We've gathered a posse of the smartest experts in fields such as brand marketing, sponsorship, sports law, creative and sales promotions agencies. Together we pick apart the idea of official partnership, that underpins the commercial model of FIFA and other sports governing bodies. Official partners buy category exclusivity and have contracted rights to the imagery and marques, protecting their investment from rival brands trying to leverage the massive global interest in the World Cup. But...does it work? Is category exclusivity a promise that can be delivered? Do fans and customers know or care about the official - unofficial divide? Are ambushers seen as exciting mavericks or boring chancers, and can the sports economy evolve beyond the official partner concept to a model that better suits today's marketing environment?  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.

FTX, the second biggest cryptocurrency exchange filed for bankruptcy in the US, and the company's founder Sam Bankman-Fried, previously referred to as the King of Crypto, stepped down as chief executive. In the filing, FTX estimated that it had between $10bn and $50bn in assets and liabilities and more than 100,000 creditors, including some of the biggest names in sport, from the Miami Heat to Tom Brady, Mercedes Formula One team and the MLB.The FTX brand has become a familiar presence over the past two years, signing a series of high value sport sponsorships. So what happens now? Both to the money promised and not yet delivered but also to the sports economy more widely, as its relationship with crypto and associated categories comes under intense scrutiny.What are the conversations taking place today throughout the commercial offices of Premier League football clubs, Formula One teams and other major sports rights holders. To pick this apart we have three people with extensive experience of the commercial reality of the sponsorship marketplace. Nathan Homer is chief commercial officer at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and formerly held senior global roles at the European Tour golf, Barclays and Proctor and Gamble.Gary Linke is one of the busiest and most experienced brokers of sponsorship deals working today, having held senior commercial roles at Football League and Rugby Football League, the RFL. Ben Wells is chief commercial office of PTI Digital, and formerly head of marketing at Chelsea Football Club and commercial director at Reading FC and Bath Rugby Union Club.For more analysis and comment on the business of sport, subscribe to the Unofficial Partner newsletter, delivered to thousands of people across sport every Thursday.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.

Today’s guests are Mo Bobat, Performance Director of the England and Wales Cricket Board, and Omar Chauduri, Chief Intelligence Officer of Twenty First Group.The topic is high performance and its fundamental link to the commercial success of sport. Mo and Omar’s teams worked extensively together on the ECB’s new High Performance Review, chaired by former England captain Sir Andrew Strauss. This aims to improve the quality of both the domestic structure and the men's national side, aided by an advisory board including Sir Dave Brailsford and Dan Ashworth, former FA Performance Director. The review made 17 proposals, each seeking to focus attention on the difficult question of What It Takes To Win (WITTW). You can read the review HERE. But the performance conversation is often put into a silo, and treated separately from the commercial side of sport. As we’ll hear in this episode, that’s a mistake. This conversation, more than anything, is about the product of sport, what’s the difference between a successful sport’s tournament, event or team, and the rest. How does performance data help create entertaining teams and events? What’s the commercial value of jeopardy?These are questions which drive everything; from fan engagement through to media rights income, sponsorship revenue and other forms of investment. The conversation took place at the Clerkenwell offices of Twenty First Group in London against the backdrop of England’s progress at the ICC T20 World Cup taking place in Australia. You’ll hear us reference a previous podcast with Ed Smith, recorded at Leaders London in October. That’s available along with 276 other episodes in the Unofficial Partner back catalogue, accessible via the website, Apple, Spotify, Google or your usual podcast app.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.

When they retire, some professional footballers train to become coaches, and a few rise to become the team manager or director of football.But very, very few players do what Maheta Molango has done, and cross the divide between the playing side and the C-suite, to become the CEO of a top club. It’s a massive Church and State divide, a journey that reveals much about the person who is now in charge of the PFA, The Professional Footballers' Association,  the union for all current and former footballers in the Premier League, the FA Women’s Super League and the English Football Leagues.Molango passed his law degree during a playing career in Spanish and English football, going on to specialise in employment and sports law. In 2015 he was seconded to Atlético Madrid where he served as legal counsel, focused on contract and transfer negotiations and the following year was appointed the Chief Executive of RCD Mallorca after the takeover by former NBA star Steve Nash and Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver. His four years at RCD Mallorca saw the club achieve back-to-back promotions in to La Liga.Molango became Director of FIFA’s Diploma in Club management programme, where he helps train executives, with speakers ranging from Arsène Wenger to Fabio Cannavaro.So this podcast is about the role of the players in the football business conversation. We discuss Molango’s change agenda for the PFA, the launch of a new Business School and the broader questions on the relationship between those who run the game and the men and women who play it. This is an episode of ReThinking Sport, our series created in collaboration with Portas, the global strategy consultancy dedicated to sport and physical activity.  My co-host for the podcast is Adam Paker, partner at Portas who was formerly Director of FIFA Marketing, delivering on the commercial rights of two FIFA World Cups, and Chief Executive of two British national sport federations, Commonwealth Games England and Swim England.For our weekly analysisUnofficial 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 Bundle is our regular series looking deep in to the sports broadcast, streaming and media rights market in the company of Yannick Ramcke, Murray Barnett and Charlie Boss.Today's headline topics are: DAZN acquires Eleven Sport; NBA's latest D2C play; World Rugby acquires Rugby Pass; Potential Saudi (PIF) investment into BeIN sport. For previous episodes of the series, search 'The Bundle' on Unofficial Partner/podcastTo get the best analysis of the sports business in your inbox every week, sign up to the Unofficial Partner Newsletter, via substack. 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.