#14: Matt Beyer - CEO, Co-Founder East Asia Super League (EASL) | Building a sports league from scratch | Future of basketball | Importance of media + fan engagement | Asian sports ecosystem

After several years of building a sports agency in China, Matt Beyer decided to start the East Asia Super League (EASL). It is the top basketball league in Asia, similar to the Champions League in European soccer.

The EASL combines the best Asian clubs and leagues with the goal of becoming one of the world’s top three professional basketball leagues by 2025.

Prior to building the EASL, Beyer spent time working for the NBA, as an agent, and in Chinese public relations. He speaks fluent Mandarin Chinese.

Chapters:

(01:30) Backstory of the EASL

(05:20) Differences in Asia vs American sports culture

(09:45) Raising $40M and surviving over the pandemic

(13:10) What does it take to build a successful sports league?

(16:40) EASL players/countries and the rise of Asian basketball

(24:05) Matt’s view on media as a sports league + Steve Nash partnership

(27:40) Westerner building the top Asian sports league

(30:50) Misconceptions the world has about China

(33:50) Fan engagement integrations with Huupe

(36:10) How to engage fans as a sports league

(37:40) Future of sports + EASL

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Matt Beyer links:

Website: https://www.easl.basketball/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-beyer-93623517/?originalSubdomain=hk

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Andrew Petcash links:

🏠 Website: https://profluence.com

✉️ Newsletter: https://www.petcashpost.com

🎙 Podcast: https://anchor.fm/andrewpetcash

🐣 Twitter: https://twitter.com/andrewpetcash

🕺 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@andrewpetcash

📸 Instagram: https://instagram.com/andrewpetcash

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewpetcash/

🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3q5jhAuCVT2FZCkLW5xBiQ/

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Thanks for listening!