As has been the case with previous years, the sports business industry was constantly changing, with new deals, partnerships, events, and innovations constantly being announced throughout the year.
Over that time, Sportcal was in constant dialogue with figures around the industry in order to truly discern what these movements mean, be it the rise to prominence of Saudi Arabia or the internationalization aims of traditional US sports globally.
Having covered a wide range of sports from around the world throughout the year, here are our 12 most insightful features of 2023:
1. January 20 - IOC’s new TMS managing director Voumard on the enduring appeal of the Olympics
Anne-Sophie Voumard, managing director of television and marketing services at the IOC, discussed with Sportcal about the role, as well as her opinions on the future of the Olympic Games.
2. February 10 - Women’s cricket rights values and coverage levels entering new age
Sportcal spoke to International Cricket Council vice president of media rights Sunil Manoharan about the surge in coverage and rights values for women’s cricket.
3. March 17 - Deltatre looking to surf soccer’s data technology wave with recent expansion
As audiovisual tech firm Deltatre has continued to grow rapidly in elite-level soccer, Sportcal visited the Cologne facility where Deltatre’s VAR infrastructure is housed to gain insight into the success of its technology.
4. April 4 - Purpose and product: driving the development of Extreme E
Ali Russel, chief marketing officer at Extreme E, discusses the purpose-driven racing series’ launch, logistics, and the future of the all-electric off-road competition.
5. May 19 - Is Karate Combat showing us the future of web3 engagement in sport?
With major sports leagues globally looking to capitalize on the demand for sports gamification, Karate Combat co-founder Rob Bryan outlines to Sportcal how his little-known karate promotion may be paving the way for web3 integration in sport.
6. June 21 - Going global: MLB banks on London to revive its international ambitions
Major League Baseball Europe managing director Ben Ladkin outlines how the wildly popular American sport plans to break into international markets over the coming years.
7. July 31 - LaLiga and EA Sports forge stronger ties for new beginnings
David Jackson, vice president of brand at video game giant Electronic Arts discusses the new beginnings for the company following the end of its long-standing deal with soccer governing body FIFA and its new title sponsorship of Spanish soccer’s LaLiga.
8. August 25 - Big3 ramps up internationalization plans with London and Toronto expansion
3x3 basketball league Big3’s co-founder and president Jeff Kwatinetz spoke to Sportcal about the league’s internationalization and new growth plans.
9. September 25 - Minute Media positions itself as pillar for soccer growth in US
With soccer in the US experiencing a major boom in popularity, Minute Media head of global strategy Fabio Sa explained to Sportcal how the firm is uniquely positioned to capitalize off the growing number of eyes on the sport.
10. October 12 - On Location is revolutionizing hospitality ahead of Paris 2024
The Paris 2024 Olympic Games is the first edition of the games in history to have a centralized hospitality provider, On Location Olympics and Paralympics VP Will Whiston explains how the company is changing the way the games does hospitality
11. November 9 - British Basketball League eyes evolution with ‘Unbeatable’ rebrand
With a new media rights deal secured and a league-wide rebrand undertaken between seasons, British Basketball League chief executive Aaron Radin talks to Sportcal about how the burgeoning league has levelled up its content and commercial strategies.
12. December 8 - IMG digital guru Wiltshire on a rapidly-changing industry sector
Lewis Wiltshire, vice president and managing director for digital at IMG, discusses how the role of digital content in sport is changing.
