Features

Kevin Roberts: More than ever, success relies on authenticity

Gordon Kane, founder of Victory Sports Marketing and the USOC (United States Olympic Committee)’s former director of marketing, was in Boston when the city was put forward as the United States's bidding city for the 2024 Olympic Games.

With its two-year anniversary approaching, Doyen Global – the sports agency founded by Simon Oliveira and Matthew Kay – has achieved key successes through clear brand-building strategies for its commercial partners. Matt Cutler explains why.

Andrea Radrizzani, co-founder of MP & Silva, has witnessed his company grow to become the number-one agency in sports media-rights distribution in the space of a decade. But now he has taken a more hands-off role within the company, and is looking further afield at strategic projects in sports media. 

Former England captain Nigel Melville was advised rugby union would never be popular in the United States. However, the USA Rugby Chief Executive told Rob Ridley that the growth curve is now starting to defy all expectations.

Fantasy sports operators such as football platform Mondogoal are looking to create a culture of daily fantasy sport in Europe. Matt Cutler reports.

The SportBusiness International Sports Innovator of the Year recognises the sports executives who have made the most original business decisions throughout the past 12 months.

When does a rights-holder go too far in embracing technological innovation?

Frank Dunne, editor of TV Sports Markets, looks at why Major League Soccer (MLS) has joined with IMG Media to claim its stake in the global football media market.

A little over 12 months ago, a new short-form video platform was launched in China in an attempt to change how the country’s sports fans use social media. Owen Evans looks at what happened next.

Beyoncé’s latest move in fashion has got sport’s biggest brands shaking. SportBusiness International looks at why and how the women’s sportswear market is a new battleground for clothing manufacturers.

With 13.5 million Facebook likes and 966,000 Twitter followers, Puma is one of the leading sportswear brands on social media. Social media was central to its recent Forever Faster campaign, headed by ambassador Usain Bolt, and the German brand’s new kit supplier deal with English Premier League club Arsenal has been a key source of content for its digital output.

The NBA (National Basketball Association) has the most comprehensive social media following out of any American sports league, its official platform boasting over 26 million Facebook likes and 11.6 million Twitter followers. The NFL (National Football League), by comparison, has four million fewer Twitter followers and over 14 million fewer Facebook likes.

Sports agency IMG has one of the largest athlete management portfolios in the industry. In golf in particular, after signing Arnold Palmer as its first client in 1960, IMG’s portfolio quickly grew and it now manages almost 100 professional golfers alongside owning, managing or operating over 30 events. The agency’s golf clientele include Victor Dubuisson, Ernie Els and Michele Wie.

The Dallas Cowboys is the NFL (National Football League) franchise with the highest number of Facebook likes, currently 7.7 million, one million more than any other team. The Cowboys have the best overall social media presence in the NFL, according to social media analyst Starcount, which also ranks the Cowboys as the sixth best sports team in the world on social media.

Men’s tennis’ season-ending ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) World Tour Finals, held this month at the O2 in London, features the best eight singles players and best eight doubles teams. Social media plays a significant role in promoting the event through the ATP’s ‘Road to London’ campaign.