Conference Presentation, Panel
The Business of Sports
Milken InstituteLiz Habib, Dan Beckerman, Ed Glazer, Stephanie McMahon, David Nathanson, Andrew Wilson
- The industry must constantly reinvest in technology, bandwidth, and mobile applications to enhance live stadium experiences and manage the challenge of engaging fans with 24-7 mobile device access.
- Companies are expected to leverage data from mobile devices, consoles, PCs, smart TVs, and car dashboards to build stronger connections with leagues, teams, and players.
- Revenue strategies will focus on monetizing users across multiple devices and sports, with gamers playing on multiple platforms to increase monetization rates and eSports engagement rates being three times higher than the general FIFA community.
- Rights fees for high-quality content will remain competitive with active bidders including traditional portfolio companies and platforms like YouTube and Facebook.
- Sports content distribution will expand across OTT, PlayStation, YouTube TV, and other mediums to ensure broad package availability, with the NFL expected to expand rights deals to Twitter and Amazon.
- The top three companies controlling 75% of the market—Disney, Fox, and Comcast—are expected to continue viewing sports content as a core portfolio component.
- Live sports are predicted to remain the greatest content globally due to unscripted outcomes, though WWE will continue creating storylines that crossover with real sports.
- WWE plans to grow its tiered content ecosystem through linear television licensing, digital/social media, and subscription streaming services, while testing OTT services to double or more than double pay-per-view revenue.
- WWE will program distinctly for each platform including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat without cannibalizing content, and will focus on localized content with local language stars in China and the Middle East.
- The NFL will continue to look to expand globally into Mexico City and Asia, where soccer is dominant.
- The average age of a gamer is currently about 37 or 38, with the industry aiming to retain this demographic well into their 50s.
- New sports fans are being onboarded at ages six, seven, and eight, with seven-year-olds expected to possess deeper knowledge of soccer, football, and UFC than lifelong followers.
- Technology will facilitate productivity allowing fans to follow more sports for more time across four or five different channels.
- Teams in high-expectation markets like Los Angeles will need to be competitive every year, facing pressure to make difficult decisions regarding coaching and general management if championships are not won.
- Winning remains the single most important factor for team owners, as high performance is linked to greater broadcast rights value and fan retention.
- Athletes will face higher standards and scrutiny due to 24-7 video recording, requiring them to be better representatives of their teams.
- Video games will serve as a motivator for children to play sports in the real world, with progressive teams already integrating games like FIFA into youth programs.
- The industry faces the challenge of investing in self-development for emerging leagues to compete in the premium category and using data to identify leading fans in every city.
- Opportunities exist to identify where leading fans are located and their play habits to help leagues grow into markets where they do not presently exist.
- Compelling stories created by 350 to 400 million people every day must be monitored and amplified to the top of the content feed.
- The outcome of rights negotiations remains unpredictable, viewed as exciting by the industry despite the competitive landscape.
- Future viewing habits will accommodate corded, cord-saver, and cord-cutter models, ensuring a portfolio of sports is always available across more platforms.