Unofficial Partner Podcast

In this week’s podcast, Richard and Sean take Harry The Talented Intern to visit the brand new London HQ of The Athletic, the sports publishing launch that has caught the attention of everyone in the sports media world. They sit down with editor in chief Alex Kay Jelski, one of the main architects of the new service and who was instrumental in the company’s rapid recruitment of some of the best writing talent in British football journalism. Alex was formerly sports editor of The Times and The Daily Mail.Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.

This week’s guest is Dame Heather Rabbatts Heather began her career as a Barrister at Law, before becoming a government advisor and chief executive of Lambeth Council, making her the youngest local authority CEO in the UK.She was a Governor of the BBC followed by an appointment as a senior executive at Channel 4She has held many senior roles in football including Executive Chair of Millwall Football Club and in 2012 was The FA’s first female non-executive Director and Board member where she chaired The FA Inclusion Advisory Board.She was previously a member of FIFA’s Anti-Discrimination Taskforce and has worked with UEFA on their women’s leadership initiatives. Rabbatts was appointed a (CBE) in the 2000 New Year Honours and Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2016 New Year Honours for services to football and equality.In November 2016, she was listed as one of BBC's 100 Women.Today she is chair of Vero the marketing agency founded in 2006 by her husband Mike Lee OBE who led the business until his untimely death in September 2018.The interview was carried out at City & Islington College. Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.

Elliot Richardson is co-founder and chair of Dugout, the football media company co-owned by some of the world’s biggest football clubs, including Real Madrid, Barcelona, Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Manchester City. We talk about the changing media ecosystem around football, the economics of branded content and what the insurance industry knows about data.Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.

Faris Yakob is an award winning advertising strategist, creative director, writer and public speaker.He was chief innovation officer at Naked Communications in the noughties and his book Paid Attention is a great primer on the way media and marketing are evolving.He’s also very good on Twitter. We talked to Faris at City and Islington College in London.Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.

Ed Smith is the former test cricketer turned writer and TMS commentator who is now the chair of England cricket selectors and co-founder of the Institute for Sports Humanities.We spoke to Ed at the Mortimer Club in London before the recent Cricket World Cup, which England won in such dramatic fashion at Lord’s. We talk about leadership, the commercial history of sport and the role of luck in cricket and team selection.Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.

The M&C Saatchi Sport and Entertainment Global CEO is one of the industry’s highest profile figures, leading the agency from its inception to an unprecedented six Sport Industry Agency of the Year Awards.Now he’s moving to Sydney.His reasons for the change are an insight in to how the agency market is evolving in the UK and globally. Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.

Jackie Fast was robbed! The sponsorship entrepreneur was the stand out star of Lord Sugar’s reality business show only to get the short stubby finger of fate in the boardroom. We talk about what it was like in the loser’s cafe, ask what happens in the Apprentice house and how the show helped build her brand. Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.

To understand Facebook’s relationship with live sport, it’s a good idea to talk to one of its key architects. Peter Hutton's move to the social media giant in 2018, set expectations of a new sports rights bonanza to fill the gap created by declining pay TV fees. But a year on, there’s little sign that Facebook want to play the rights game in the same way. ’I understand the desire for simple answers’ says Hutton in this exclusive interview at Facebook’s London HQ. The reality is more interesting.  Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.

Over a thirty year career in sports news, Charlie Sale was the most read and feared diarist in the business, and his Sports Agenda column in the Daily Mail was scoured by everyone from the England football manager to the lowliest PR intern.When he retired at the end of last year, some of the biggest names in sport lined up to pay tribute to one of the hardest working journalists on Fleet Street.We went to see Charlie at his home in west London, to check on his health and see if his opinions of the people who run sport have mellowed since his retirement. (Spoilers: he's ok, and no).Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.

This week Richard and Sean delve deep in to esports following Google’s big launch at E3, the gaming expo in LA.We talk cloud based streaming platforms, find out how in-game programmatic media works, who will win the race to build a PPV esports channel and whether teams have a Galacticos problem.This week’s guests are Leo Matlock (RFRSH Entertainment), Rob Dagwell (BidStack) and Jack Stewart (the first esports reporter for a national newspaper).The podcast was recorded at the posh new studio at City and Islington College in north London.Unofficial Partner is a specialist sports business publishing company.  To find out more visit our website.Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.