Leaders Worth Knowing Podcast

Sports media and marketing expert David Stubley, author of ‘Gamechangers and Rainmakers: How Sport Became Big Business’, joins Leaders Editorial Director James Emmett and Content Director David Cushnan, to discuss what there is to learn from the sports industry brands that no longer exist.It’s a whistle-stop tour through decades of sports industry history, including the American Football League and its eventual merger with the NFL; Billie Jean King’s breakaway Virginia Slims Tour; Kerry Packer’s World Series Cricket; British Sky Broadcasting’s role in the launch of the Premier League; the rise and fall of Horst Dassler’s ISL; and the dotcom bubble burst that did for OnDigital, Quokka and Sportal.There’s also time to reflect on a busy sports industry week: the Super Bowl in review; Uefa’s decision to go exclusive with Relevent and end a decades-long relationship with TEAM; and rumblings of new global basketball leagues.

Leaders' Editorial Director James Emmett and Content Director David Cushnan share what’s worth knowing in the global sports industry this week.They’re joined by Steve Gera, President and COO of Grand Slam Track, the new athletics series fronted by Olympic legend Michael Johnson. Gera shines a light on this week’s US media rights announcements for the first season, starting in April, and the calendar of Slams, beginning in Kingston, Jamaica and then moving to Miami, Philadelphia and Los Angeles.He also discusses the challenges of building a start-up property, the dangers of going too big too soon, Grand Slam Track’s position as a disrupter in global athletics and why and how he’s targeting the youngest fanbase in sport.Elsewhere, where the best Super Bowl parties in New Orleans this weekend might be and the remarkable early results of the auctions to decide the new investors in English cricket, as the sales process for the Hundred concludes.To subscribe to Worth Knowing, the weekly sports industry newsletter from Leaders, visit: leadersinsport.com/newsletters.

Leaders' Editorial Director James Emmett and Content Director David Cushnan share what’s worth knowing in the global sports industry this week.They’re joined by Juan Delgado, CEO of Footballco, the 350-person digital media company that owns and operates online brands such as GOAL, Mundial and Kooora. He explains how audiences consuming football content are growing and morphing into fully-fledged communities, the monetisation models underpinning that growth and the football content trends and markets he’s keeping tabs on.Elsewhere there’s time to reflect on the era of real estate-focused sports team owners and Fanatics’ plan to open its first global flagship collectibles and merchandise store, on London’s Regent Street.To subscribe to Worth Knowing, the weekly sports industry newsletter from Leaders, visit: leadersinsport.com/newsletters

Leaders' Editorial Director James Emmett and Content Director David Cushnan share what’s worth knowing in the global sports industry this week. They’re joined by Rachel Knight, Co-Managing Director of Women’s Sports Group. She details the ins and outs of the media rights process WSG ran for the Women’s Super League, which resulted in October’s landmark deal which will see the BBC and Sky Sports paying a reported £65 million for the next five seasons of live coverage. She reflects on the marketplace dynamics that impacted the lengthy negotiations, the clips carve-out for teams and players, what she would have done differently and the challenge of comparison, with the men’s game and the NWSL, as the deals were being stitched together. There’s also time to chat about Sixth Street’s new women’s football multi-club ownership group; Juventus tapping into The King’s League; and FC Barcelona breaking the 20 million subscriber mark on YouTube. To subscribe to Worth Knowing, the weekly sports industry newsletter from Leaders, visit: leadersinsport.com/newsletters

Leaders' Editorial Director James Emmett and Content Director David Cushnan share what’s worth knowing in the global sports industry this week.In the mix: The Australian Open’s Nintendo Wii tie-up and a new breed of alt-casts to complement - and in some cases circumvent - traditional broadcast rights arrangements; the debut of 3x3 women’s basketball league Unrivaled later this week, which is taking place, like the new TGL golf series, in a brand new broadcast-first venue; the launch of Kroenke Signature Properties, to sell sponsorships across all his sports properties including the LA Rams and Arsenal; and more evidence of London’s status as an events capital, as MLB releases economic impact details of last summer’s International Series at London Stadium.To subscribe to Worth Knowing, the weekly sports industry newsletter from Leaders, visit: leadersinsport.com/newsletters

Leaders' Editorial Director James Emmett and Content Director David Cushnan strap in for 2025, exploring what’s worth knowing in the global sports industry this week.They’re joined by Ed Warner, Chair of UK Athletics between 2007 and 2017 and current Chair of GB Wheelchair Rugby and the 2026 World Team Table Tennis Championships, to discuss who’ll be the next President of the International Olympic Committee and the routes to victory for the seven candidates in the race. Warner sets up the background to March’s election, as outlined in his Sport Inc. newsletter.There’s also time to discuss a proposal to turn Test cricket into a two-tier system; the dynamics of European basketball as IMG renews with the Euroleague; and whether China might be refocusing on football.To subscribe to Worth Knowing, the weekly sports industry newsletter from Leaders, visit: leadersinsport.com/newsletters

Leaders' Editorial Director James Emmett and Content Director David Cushnan are in reflective mood, as they review the stories of the sports industry year - as clicked on by you, the sports industry, in our weekly Worth Knowing newsletter.They recall Netflix’s big commitment to sport (and entertainment); organisational chop and change at Manchester United; a stream of investment chatter; the proposed merger between the ATP and WTA tour; LVMH’s takeover of the Paris Olympics; George Pyne’s investment case for women’s sport; the rise of the Chief of Staff; the Saudi money steering the big decisions; campaigns that struck a nerve; rebrands that struck a chord; why you should fire your CMO; what makes a good CEO, and a whole lot more.To subscribe to Worth Knowing, visit: leadersinsport.com/newsletters

Leaders' Editorial Director James Emmett and Content Director David Cushnan buckle up and settle back to review the stories of the sports industry week.They’re joined by Isabelle Stewart, F1’s Head of Original Content to discuss her two years in the role so far; the logistics, planning and purpose behind Brad Pitt’s F1 movie as filming wraps; what F1’s content slate looks like now and could look like soon, from scripted drama to new short-form formats; and targeting and appealing to fresh new audiences.There’s also time to salute McLaren and their CEO Zak Brown, after the team won its first F1 Constructors’ Championship since 1998. Plus the studio is full of excitement and anticipation in the wake of news that the Grand Sumo Tournament is heading to London next October.

Leaders' Content Director David Cushnan and Senior Content Manager Henry Breckenridge run head-on into the stories of the sports industry week.They’re joined by Matt Porter, Chief Executive of the Professional Darts Corporation, ahead of this month’s World Championships at Alexandra Palace in London. He offers his SWOT analysis on the sport at the end of 2024 and explains the fan-first, party-first approach the PDC has refined over the past few years; expansion around the world to venues like Madison Square Garden; the phenomenon that is teen sensation Luke Littler; what it’s like filming for Netflix; and what to wear for a night at the darts.Elsewhere, David and Henry reflect on the impact Ilona Maher - the world’s most followed rugby player - signing for Bristol Bears could have on Premiership Women’s Rugby, and the wider unsettled outlook for rugby union.

Welcome to the third and final episode of Model making, a series from the Leaders Sport Business Podcast that analyses the flux across the global sports industry and asks whether we need a new commercial vision for sport.Hosted by Leaders Editorial Director James Emmett and Viagogo’s International Lead Matt Drew, the three-part series puts sport’s traditional revenue streams under the microscope.If media rights increases cannot be taken for granted and sponsorship revenue is under threat, where are the new business lines for rights holders to focus on? This episode is focused on the solutions to some of sport's most existential challenges. To help them make sense of the shifting sands around them, the pair are joined by four illustrious guests:John Skipper, formerly of ESPN and DAZN and the architect of some of the biggest rights deals in US TV history; Brett Gosper, Head of Europe & APAC at NFL and the executive in charge of pushing American football's international boundaries, having previously done so at World Rugby;Simon Denyer, serial founder and former leader of DAZN, current leader of PEAK, and board member on a number of global properties including the WTA;Zarah Al-Kudcy, the newly installed CRO at the Women’s Professional League Ltd, and a commercial leader at Chelsea, Formula 1 and the ICC among many before that.