Zack Sugarman, deep dive into his 17 years with the Wasserman Group to his current role as Chief Strategy Officer at Demand Sports – an AI powered top-of-funnel lead generation tool for the sports industry. If you are in sales you need to listen to this.     Key Highlights From college to first role at Sportnet (Wasserman Media Group), doing business development – finance of action sports films in 2005 (skateboard.com, etc) Deep dive into Wasserman group - from 70 people when he joined to 1,700 by the time he left recently (15 offices around the world) Global Sports Marketing & Entertainment company Helping client spend their marketing dollars wisely, negotiate, execute Maximizing revenue for teams/leagues (properties) Talent manage side – Jerry Maguire style (NFL to action sports) Growth by acquisition – music talent, celebrity influencers, creating IP & content (UK based CSM, etc) Acquisition of Brillstein – coming full circle (family history, Lew Wasserman) Casey Wasserman – a bit about the man himself – Chairman of LA 2028 Olympics – his leadership style His roles over the 17 years (2005-2022) Start of digital and social media era and developing a digital division to help monetize content Early days of live streaming – World Surf League – live webcast Properties – teams, leagues, federations, conferences, Esports teams, Develop products to offer these property owners – pre-sale and post-sale services NBA Jersey Patch, later NHL, MLB – one of the big projects – discussing deal sizes   Demand Sports – his role as Chief Strategy Officer How it works, background, Helping property rights holders – top-of-funnel lead generation, using AI to verify contacts, personalized emails Coordinate follow up and meeting times for the Property owner (all the upfront work to create warm leads) Demand Inc – tech companies, B2B business – Lasso tool tweaked to use for sports Bounce test to check emails are correct – in real time, etc Using AI to personalize emails, search web to create subject lines and hocks for a personalized touch to email Tool operates globally – language specific outreach examples 40 clients around in the US and around the world Fee structure and flexible model for Property owners Contact:  zack@demandsports.co  - www.demandsports.co US market – huge events coming the next few years from FIFA World Cup 2026 to Olympics 2028 and more… opportunities for brands and property owners Final message on Artificial Intelligence (AI) – be curious   About Zack has a proven sports executive with over ~20 years of experience in commercial strategy and revenue creation – focusing on business development, partnership creation, digital strategy, new tech integration, valuation, packaging, and execution of award winning campaigns and initiatives. Sugarman’s skills include business development (identifying, negotiating, securing new clients), strategy and analytics (fan insights, commercial valuation and packaging, opportunity targeting, partnership creation, and measurement), and relationships (understand the value of connections and have enjoyed consistent networking and having multiple long-term and repeat clients). Zack likes to connect the dots between partners and bring new perspectives together in an effort to generate new value, drive innovation and facilitate new connections across the sports and entertainment business. Before joining Demand Sports, Sugarman spent 16 years in agency leadership positions at Wasserman, most notably leading the Global Properties division worldwide to help venues/teams/leagues maximize commercial revenue. At Wasserman, Sugarman helped drive millions of dollars in commercial revenue for clients including NBA, NFL, NHL, MLS, FIFA, USGA, UFC, NASCAR, Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, Seattle Seahawks, San Francisco 49ers, LAFC, New York Islanders, Vegas Golden Knights, CrossFit, Drone Racing League and Salesforce.  Sugarman was also instrumental in helping AEG land the largest Naming Rights deal in history with the announcement of the Crypto.com Arena in November 2021. Zack is a true tech geek who makes it a point to stay on the cutting edge of emerging technologies and digital strategies; he also firmly believes that “Fútbol is life.”   Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com Feel Good by MusicbyAden https://soundcloud.com/musicbyaden Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/_feel-good Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/bvgIqqRStcQ

Jason Masherah, President of The Upper Deck Company, living his childhood dream, from a young boy trading cards at school to running one of the biggest Trading cards, Memorabilia and Collectibles company in the world – enjoy our deep dive into the world of The Upper Deck Company, the industry and where the business is going.   Key Highlights How it all started, selling trading cards in middle school and attending card shows at the age of 13/14, working in trading card shop Starting his first shop at the age of 16 before going back to school From Electric Supply company coming back into sports, getting an MBA to get back into sports Via short stops at the Arena Football League (Chicago Rush) to Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Bengals, finally landing at The Upper Deck company as Brand Manager for MLB & NBA Overview of the Trading Card industry, from the first cards in the 1800 as promotion for cigarettes and chewing gums, sold as Wax packs. In 1987/88 The Upper Deck Company was founded to create a different and much better product – big growth to mid 90s when strikes in sports Leagues created issues Tough period in early 2000 to 2015 before growth came back, with Hockey, Baseball and Football Primary market, big players Upper Deck, Topps and Panini and secondary trading market Different business models by Sports Leagues in the US vs European Football leagues Global growth vs the traditional core US sports, Europe and Asia Business model with Rights holders and bidding processes Sports trading cards, Entertainment trading cards and Trading card games and the differences Three parts of the business for Upper Deck, Trading Cards, Games (Board games and trading card games) and authenticated Memorabilia Premium product focus, big names from Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, Wayne Gretzky Digital products and the evolution of it – in 2011 first tokenization of cards, Upper Deck e-pack – digital to physical hybrid NFTs, blockchain – Upper Deck’s Evolution platform – trading digital with physical products   Issues and challenges for primary market manufacturer playing in the secondary market (especially in NFTs) Most NFT releases were never done with collectors in mind, it mostly was a quick money grab Moving images, videos and animations open up a new opportunity to own a piece of history Upper Deck’s Collect Forever – authentic third party collectibles, from Comics to Toys Upper Deck’s Premise to provide the best and widest services for collectors globally Fanatics purchase of Topps – changing the game Jason’s own career path in Upper Deck over the past 17 years     About Mr. Masherah oversees all day-to-day operations as President of Upper Deck, the premier worldwide sports, gaming and entertainment company. As part of his day to day duties, he is personally responsible for exclusive agreements with Upper Deck’s lineup of corporate partners, licensors and superstar athletes, including Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, LeBron James, Wayne Gretzky, Marvel, Tim Hortons, CIBC, NHL, NHL Players’ Association and more. Mr. Masherah is also responsible for revitalizing Upper Deck’s memorabilia division, as well as Upper Deck’s gaming division and the launch of Legendary, the award-winning deck building game. Prior to his appointment as President in 2013, Mr. Masherah served as Vice President of Marketing and Business Development at Upper Deck. Mr. Masherah has been personally credited for several core programs at Upper Deck, ranging from the Yankee Stadium Legacy program in 2008 to the Evolution video cards in 2011 to, most recently, the Upper Deck e-Pack platform in 2016, which plays a significant role in the launch of Upper Deck’s Grandeur Hockey Collector Coins. Before his involvement with Upper Deck, Mr. Masherah worked for professional sports teams in various roles, including the Cincinnati Bengals and Atlanta Braves. He earned his Master of Business Administration degree from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University and his undergraduate degree in Marketing from the Eli Broad School of Business at Michigan State University. Mr. Masherah currently resides in the greater San Diego area with his wife and children.   Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com Feel Good by MusicbyAden https://soundcloud.com/musicbyaden Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/_feel-good Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/bvgIqqRStcQ

Andrew Ryan, corporate lawyer turned sports executive, currently Managing Director of FIBA Media, from a small town in Australia to the big wide world of sports including Perform, IOC to FIBA.  We are taking a close look into Andrew’s career and the ongoing FIBA World Cup 2023 in Asia.   Key Highlights Growing up in a small town near Brisbane, with lots of access to sports in his youth and Brisbane clubs making their mark. Impact of Sydney Olympics in 2000 on him Corporate law taking him to London and New York in 2006, after Lehmann collapse joined a radio station (Absolute Radio), sports commentary, unlikely and unexpected forays into sports broadcasting with the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup and BBC Sport for the 2005 Ashes series.  First contact with Perform. Group Head of Legal at Perform for four years – buying media rights, WTA deal and the growth of the business from his view Betting rights key to Perform’s competing with traditional agencies in the content distribution business Getting DAZN off the ground and the work behind the scene and spinning off Perform Next stop Head of Media - Legal and Business Affairs, IOC TV and Marketing services – business strategy and more commercial role Media rights, tender processes, Olympic channel, sponsorship deals, etc Olympic Channel, what happened to it? FIBA Media – what it is and how it works – JV with DAZN (compared to FIBA Marketing, JV with Infront) FIBA Asia (ABC) my experience in Basketball in mid 90s FIBA’s direct to consumer approach vs traditional broadcast rights sales globally FIBA Courtside 1891 platform www.courside1891.basketball - Courtside 1891 is a live and highlights platform for FIBA games and a lot of other leagues around the world FIBA’s unique global set up – managing regional events and rights from HQ FIBA Eurobasket 2022, etc FIBA Club competitions FIBA World Cup 2023 – across Philippines, Indonesia and Japan What to expect from production and new innovations for the event FIBA and NBA relationship and players at the World Cup FIBA Women’s World Cup – importance and looking back at last year’s event in Australia   About As Managing Director of FIBA Media, Andrew leads the 17-year joint venture between FIBA and DAZN which encompasses all production and rights commercialisation (broadcast, OTT D2C and data) for FIBA’s premium events. This includes FIBA’s World Cups and Continental championships (and their qualifiers), global junior events and the Olympic Qualifying Tournaments. FIBA Media has around 25 dedicated staff but collaborates extensively with sales and production teams within DAZN and scales up for events, managing 800+ personnel at the FIBA World Cup 2019. In addition to its core production and commercial activity, FIBA Media houses its own third party marketing division and established the Courtside 1891 digital brand and joint venture with Two Circles. Andrew was previously the Head of Media Legal and Business Affairs for the International Olympic Committee TMS and was part of the Leaders Under 40 Class of 2020.   Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com Feel Good by MusicbyAden https://soundcloud.com/musicbyaden Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/_feel-good Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/bvgIqqRStcQ

Guy-Laurent Epstein a Football Association veteran and senior UEFA Executive for the past 20 years, shaping European football, the commercial side and beyond.  Deep dive into  UEFA’s world from Club Football, new National Team competitions, to the growth of the Women’s game and much more.  Highly educational and lots of great details you don’t want to miss.      Key Highlights How it started, from a passion for mathematics, to Arthur Andersen auditing to Sony Music Commercialising the licensing rights for the FIFA World Cup in 1998 for Sony Music ISL Marketing days – joining ISL in Luzern during an interesting time for the agency Spending time in Asia, around the 2002 FIFA  World Cup Korea/Japan ISL collapse in 2001 just before the FIFA Confederations Cup in 2001, FIFA creating FIFA Marketing to take over agency role Joining UEFA shortly after the 2002 FIFA World Cup  – comparing notes on the event The start of a two decade adventure with UEFA in Nyon No Marketing department within UEFA yet when he first joined,  developing new projects and showing value to the administrators of European Football The “old” way of doing things in European National and Club competitions at the time, early 2000 Change of guards, EBU, mostly state controlled broadcasters vs more commercially driven free to air channels Non-linear channels emerge -  Pay TV – now digitization, Amazon relationship, DAZN, Apple testing US Market importance for both European Club and National team football UEFA.TV -  create new content from archive, exploring new ways to invest in brand – home of Youth and Women’s football Relationship between UEFA and their agencies (Team Marketing – Club competitions & CAA Eleven – National Team competitions) Big changes and success stories from the CAA Eleven deal UEFA Nations League – the creation and where it is now and some of the challenges New UEFA Champions League format from next season explained Next steps in the governance of club competitions and relationship with the European Club Association (ECA) Covid impact on UEFA competitions – looking back, moving EURO 2020, etc Success of Women’s EURO 2022 in England and the growth and unbundling of UEFA Women’s Football – www.weplaystrong.com EURO 2024 in Germany – high hopes for another big Football Summer Festival   About Guy-Laurent Epstein graduated from Paris IX Dauphine University with a Master in Applied Mathematics & Social Sciences in 1990, and completed his studies with a MBA at ESSEC Business School in Paris, which he obtained 2 years later. After four years working as a financial consultant for Arthur Andersen, he decided to shift his career towards sports marketing and worked for the 1998 World Cup in France. After that, he joined ISL Marketing where he was in charge of the licensing and merchandising programme for the 2002 World Cup. In 2001, Guy-Laurent joined FIFA Marketing, where he continued to oversee the good development and implementation of the Licensing programme. He started in October 2002 at UEFA as TV& Sponsorship Manager and became Head of Marketing Activities in December 2004. In June 2005, he created the Media Rights unit which is responsible of the overall sales of the UEFA competitions TV and other media rights, which he managed till March 2010, when UEFA decided to set up a new company – UEFA Events SA - to handle all UEFA’s commercial and event operations. Consequently, Guy-Laurent was appointed Marketing Director of UEFA Events SA and as such, he is responsible for the ongoing development of the marketing and commercial activities, including media and sponsorship, across all competitions of UEFA.   Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com Feel Good by MusicbyAden https://soundcloud.com/musicbyaden Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/_feel-good Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/bvgIqqRStcQ

Paul McVeigh, from playing professional football in the Premier League to becoming a trained psychologist, and now advising C-suites and top corporate executives. Tons of great stories and lessons from his career as a professional player and how a Tony Robbins book put him on the path to studying psychology and becoming a keynote speaker.   Key Highlights Growing up in Belfast, Northern Ireland, in a rough neighborhood in the 80s – what it was like playing football with tanks driving around the streets A journey from Belfast to London, getting offered a contract with Tottenham Hotspur in mid 90s and meeting football legend Jurgen Klinsmann His beliefs at the time about himself and what then happened in order to make his Premier League debut His football journey from Tottenham Hotspur to Norwich City, Burnley,  Luton Town and why the key was to constantly adapt his style to fit various roles for each team  How to deal with winning/losing, the psychology and mindset behind it for a professional player, being relegated and achieving promotion again Who is truly responsible when a team wins or loses?  Coach versus players? “Awaken The Giant Within” by Tony Robbins – our stories and the impact this book had on us and how this led to a degree in Sports Science and Psychology and a career in public speaking Next stops, working as pundit at Sky Sports, BBC, and giving key note speeches and running corporate leadership programs His book “The Stupid Footballer Is Dead: Insights Into The Mind Of A Professional Footballer” and an understanding of the mind of an elite sportsperson Concept of accountability – a pre-season story and his learning being exposed to world-class players Making conscious choices His current project: bringing in first-class athletes, world champions and securing them as keynote speakers to corporations, including top military, doctors, etc His contacts. Website: https://paulmcveigh.com  LinkedIn:  (5) Paul McVeigh, M.Sc. | LinkedIn  Email: paul@paulmcveigh.com   About Paul McVeigh is a Premier League football player and Performance Psychologist. Paul's credibility comes from the unique combination of reaching the pinnacle of elite sport as well as being the first Premier League footballer to qualify with a Master's Degree in Psychology. Paul specialises in implementing the psychology required to elevate the performance of leaders and teams from the financial services' industry. He has recently worked with PWC, Grant Thornton, Aviva, Barclays, Deutsche Bank, Nat West, Cisco, Microsoft and many more. These lessons are even more applicable today in our remote and virtual workplaces in order to empower individuals to understand that our thinking unlocks the required behaviours that are necessary for elite performance. Paul shares his psychological framework from growing up in war torn Belfast, Ireland alongside the strategies he implemented performing under the intense scrutiny of 75,000 fans across the world. He is also an established broadcaster on TV and radio with BBC, Sky Sports, BT Sport and is also a published author of the ironically entitled book ‘The Stupid Footballer is Dead’. The insights Paul shared as a Sport Psychologist for 2 Premier League clubs have helped many players compete in, what is considered, the most prestigious and ruthless sports league in the world.   Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com Feel Good by MusicbyAden https://soundcloud.com/musicbyaden Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/_feel-good Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/bvgIqqRStcQ

Jerome Valcke, a true legend and also tragic figure in our industry. We are going back to his early days at Canal+/Sport+ to his amazing time as Secretary General of FIFA.  30+ years in the industry, his ups and downs and the challenges at the end of his FIFA reign and his comeback plans.       Key Highlights Early days of Canal+, first Pay TV operator in France - as news presenter and magazine producer (from wars to news) 1991 -  getting involved in acquisition of sports rights for Canal +, dealing with Don King to David Stern Forming Sport+ (internal agency of Canal+) to buy sports media rights for Canal + and sell across the world, working with other agencies around the world Don King story and doing business with him (negotiation is same as war) French Football League (Ligue One) and the new Pay TV money coming in to change the game forever – new production values Canal+, turning channel into a 24 hrs Olympic channel for the entire two weeks of the Barcelona Olympics 92’ and Atlanta 96’ Merger between three agencies, JC Darmon, UFA Sport and Sport+ -  Bertelsmann (UFA), Jean-Claude Darmon and Canal+ (Sport+) merged in 2001 creating SportFive – and the rest is history with decades of changes for the agency Joining FIFA in 2003 as Director of Marketing – FIFA Marketing AG – in-house agency created after the collapse of ISL Marketing (initially focused on sponsorship only -  Media rights still with Robert Louis Dreyfus (owner of Adidas, Olympique Marseille).  Jerome lobbying to bring media rights in-house too. Agency offering large guarantee to FIFA – (Swiss) 1.8 billion per World Cup -  Joseph Blatter (President at the time) putting his trust in Jerome and he delivered in 2010 – close to 4 billion  Changing what FIFA was delivering to broadcasters, going beyond previous offerings Infront & Dentsu controlled certain territory rights in Asia, and other agencies around the world – top countries controlled by FIFA directly, FIFA signing all contracts Secretary General of FIFA -  the link between the political side of the Federation with the commercial and operating side Dealing with Governments and Head of States to deliver the FIFA World Cup – need to deal with politics Blatter stories – his rise within FIFA, from a low level marketing role to President -  “I am FIFA, FIFA is me”  Bidding process for World Cups – 2018 & 2022 – huge significance for the winners World Cup Legacy – South Africa 2010 stories – falling in love with the country and more… Brazil World Cup 2014 – it was complicated …….. being banned for a period of time from entering the country….. Could World Cup ever be moved if the event is at risk? Legal position vs actuality/reality 2018 & 2022 host country choices and his view on it The different parts of FIFA, from Committees and other parts of the organization Women’s Football at FIFA level – Women’s World Cup wasn’t yet able to make enough money on its own – role of FIFA to support and develop Football for everyone Mastercard vs VISA and what happened on Sept 2015……. his side of the story Moral vs criminal accusations –  rules of engagement – code of conduct in business To reach Jerome Valcke - Jerome.valcke@gmx.es  (+34607937298)   About Jérôme Valcke, born 6/10/1960 in Paris French and South African citizenships Living in Carrer Catalunya 17, 08960 Sant Just Desvern, Spain E-mail: jerome.valcke@gmx.es Mobile number: +34 607 937 298 1983 RMC Journalist 1984 to 1988 CANAL+ News Presenter 1988 to 1991 CANAL+ Deputy Editor in Chief Newsroom 1992 to 1997 CANAL+ Deputy Director Sports Division. Responsible for all international sport rights acquisitions 1997 to 2001 CEO Sport+, Media Group CANAL+. Sport+ was a subsidiary of the Group CANAL+ for Media and Marketing rights. Sport+ acquired the international of all major football European leagues. 2002 COO Sportfive. Sportfive was created by Group CANAL+, UFA- Bertelsmann and Group Jean-Claude Darmont. Sportfive was one of the leading sports agencies in the world. 2003 to 2006 FIFA Marketing & TV Director 2007 to 2015 FIFA Secretary General. CEO of the institution. My main task was the preparation, organization and delivery of the World Cups (2010 & 2014) and the preparation for WC 2028 & WC 2022. Management of a team of 500 people. Today, owner of a winery located in Spain in the DOQ Priorat, Mas Igneus.   Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com Feel Good by MusicbyAden https://soundcloud.com/musicbyaden Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/_feel-good Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/bvgIqqRStcQ

Alex Inglot, the Commissioner of the ESL Pro League (Esports). We discuss his legal background, his various sports roles before he entered the Esports world. Alex has been involved across multiple spectrums of the sports industry and is sharing his experiences with us before diving deep into his current role as Commissioner of the ESL Pro League (CS:GO).  Lots of great stories and learning across sports and gaming.    Key Highlights How it all started, studying law at Oxford, playing Volleyball at Uni to his first internship at IMG – Rugby World Cup contract work A few years of commercial law at various law firms in London – looking at a way back into the industry Took FIFA International Master program to bring him back into the industry First job after the program, heading to Mexico working at Atlante FC (club had just moved to Cancun), establishing a new fan base and building relationship with the region Couple of years at JTA – working on Manchester United Corporate Communication, working with owner Jon Tibbs, difference between legal and marketing communication principles Sportradar – promoting Sportradar’s integrity services to Federations and other rights holders (as Director of Communication), later involved in the non-betting services and then the opportunities in US sports betting ATP Tour – Board Director – European Player Representative -working with ATP Player Council to drive progress for the members, redistribution of prize money, etc Setting up systems, processes, transparency (eliminating distrust between players and tournaments) -driven by Andrea Gaudenzi’s vision, the new Chairman of ATP Tour How ATP Tour survived Covid and continued the vision of Gaudenzi – creating a JV mentality between players and events During COVID, ticketing revenue, which had always been very important for tennis events now became a vulnerability ATP Media – broadcast arm, bundling rights across different levels of events – aggregating media rights was key to create one stop shop for broadcasters and/or fans Commissioner of ESL Pro League (CS:GO – Counter Strike – Global Offensive) – major title by Valve Intro to CS:GO – history the past 10 years – one of the major FPS (First person Shooter) games, played globally ESL Pro Tour – owned by ESL FACEIT Group (new entity, created through merger, owned by Savvy Gaming Group from Saudi Arabia) CS:GO landscape with total Price money US$ 18 mil across all events  - players earning US$ 20-50k per month Comparison with other games and economics for teams – power of Publisher Louvre Agreement – distribution of money ESL makes to teams to build ecosystem – helping to sustain teams investments CS 2.0 is coming later this year and how the transition will happen Structure of League – 12 founding member teams – revenue share of traditional revenues such as sponsorship – guaranteed slot in Pro-League (currently 15 out of 32 team format) Opportunities for sponsor by aggregation of rights, bundling is key opportunity League staged in Malta – teams fly in for periods of time – Malta Gaming establishing itself as Esports/Gaming hub Esports/Gaming after Covid – from red hot to current slow down, is there a “winter” or just a natural correction? The fundamentals of Esports are solid and very attractive, especially anyone targeting the younger demographics (Metaverse, digital items, etc)   About A unique strategist drawing on years of international corporate and commercial law in the City of London; nearly a decade working at the sharp end of global sports communications and public affairs; and now Commissioner of the ESL Pro League. Focused on reading the landscape, developing a direction, securing buy-in and delivering impact. Driving the new structure that sits behind the CSGO ecosystem-leading EPL to ensure optimal governance and operations, record-breaking revenues and fair distribution, and the realisation of existing and upcoming aggregation opportunities. In parallel, using the platform to break down barriers across the wider CSGO stakeholder map and to drive collaboration for ecosystem optimisation. Took a driving role in the full review and overhaul of the ATP's leadership in order to bring in new structures and dynamic individuals, to ensure the Tour can continue to grow in a fast-changing entertainment landscape. Juggled stress-testing a seismic strategic vision, defining a clear governance upgrade and adapting to the challenges of a global circuit in COVID times, all while undertaking upgraded player outreach to ensure structure and policies were effective, well understood and beneficial. Previously led the whole range of communications and public affairs activities of one of the fastest growing enterprises in the global sports technology and innovation space, promoting their full range of expertise across data, content, betting, esports, streaming and integrity. This followed a number of years as a senior PR and international relations consultant to big names in football, Olympic sports and the integrity space. Over the years, I have been a regular spokesperson across conference panels, workshops and seminars, while also guest lecturing at academic institutions across Europe and sitting on industry event and award advisory boards. Former member of the English National Mens Volleyball Team Former coach of the Swiss Cottage Ladies Volleyball Team   Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com Feel Good by MusicbyAden https://soundcloud.com/musicbyaden Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/_feel-good Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/bvgIqqRStcQ  

Misha Sher, a sports marketing veteran, author, lecturer with a unique background and great stories from working with Pele to many other big sports properties and brands. We are going deep why brands engage with sports, esports/gaming, women’s sport and how to activate it, athlete marketing and unpacking his current role as Global Head of Sport, Entertainment and Culture at MediaCom (now called EssenceMediacom and part of WPP’s GroupM).    Key Highlights Born in Ukraine, immigrating to the US at the age of 13, culture shock, didn’t speak the language.  Football/Soccer was his language and helped him to integrate Dream to be a pro Footballer cut short, first job in Banking in Boston – start making a living Next stop Masters Degree in Football in Liverpool – back to his passion – thesis on Premier League Clubs in North America Soccerex – Director of Business Development – helping expand to Singapore and new commercial ideas, ie cities paying host fees Short sting as Ranger Football Club as Global Partnership Director – some lessons from it Entering MediaCom – short intro on the company being part of WPP’s GroupM – managing billions of dollars of advertising money Media agency investing in traditional media channels, agency starting to offer new services to take “customers” (Brands) into sport and other entertainment spaces Sports marketing agencies and Media Agencies, from partners to rivals Pele – amazing opportunity to represent him for several years to help build his brand and create commercial opportunities (Pele was 72 at the time). Brazil about to host the FIFA World 2014 and Olympics 2016 – most iconic Brazilian sports star – building his brand by association with other iconic brands (Coca Cola, Emirates, Hublot, Procter & Gamble, etc) Amazing networking by being around him and meeting Heads of States to CEO’s  - signing multi years, multi million dollar deals for him – managing and maximizing his time Some personal stories about Pele, the Legend and the man he was Deploying Clients Money – over USD 1 billion in his career across B2C and B2B opportunities -  value creation is the key Transactional nature of industry vs “why” would/should the fan/customer care and what is the best vehicle to achieve the client’s objectives “As a brand, don’t disrupt what people love, be the thing what people love” -  Eintracht Frankfurt sponsor example (Indeed), perfect alignment with club Discussion about lack of understanding and budgets beyond the initial budget to buy into a property by many brands – ratio spending on activation Balancing risk factors for brands between engagement in athletes, clubs/teams and leagues, different risk vs rewards Athletes and influencers becoming “media platforms”, huge social media reach and the opportunity for brands Gaming/Esport/Web3, where are the opportunities for brands – examples and discussion about future growth Growth of Women’s sport, the importance and opportunities for brands Working on new book  – (working title) “From Athlete to Enterprise” – how to build a personal brand and build sustainable future incomes        About Senior commercial & marketing executive with more than 15 years international experience developing some of the most iconic brands, rights holders and talent. Having operated at the cross section of sport, media, tech, talent and advertising, have an intrinsic understanding of how to unlock growth to drive commercial and strategic objectives. Have advised on strategic direction, negotiation and execution of more than £1B in partnerships across sport & entertainment in more than 40 markets. Strong business leader, with track record of building and managing diverse teams while operating in a multifaceted global organization. Possess a considerable global network of C-suite executives across sport, music, brands, governments, media owners and agencies. Passionate about embracing disruption and driving industry innovation, with opinions regularly featured in major media outlets (CNN, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Sport Business Intl). Co-Author of a best-selling book, ‘Art of Branded Entertainment’, exploring the future of uninterrupted marketing. Specialties: Leadership, Strategic planning, Marketing & Brand strategy, Business growth, Commercial partnerships, Revenue generation, Sport & Entertainment strategy and activation, Public speaking, Pitching, Sales & Business Development, Talent Management, Negotiation, Brand building. Clients include: Toyota, Coca-Cola, American Airlines, Dell, Shell, indeed, Skoda, Subway, Hotels.com, BAT, Allianz, GSK, Fonterra, Sony PlayStation, Beats by Dre, Richemont, Pelé, Brian Lara, Eniola Aluko, Liverpool FC, Watford FC.   Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com Feel Good by MusicbyAden https://soundcloud.com/musicbyaden Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/_feel-good Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/bvgIqqRStcQ

Ben Nichols, a veteran sports communication and public relations expert with decades of experiences across the industry from WADA, Commonwealth Games Federation, Sportsradar to many other consulting jobs around the world. Listen to Ben’s unique journey around the world and his new company – Padel 22 – a dedicated communication consultancy for the world of Padel sport.   Key Highlights How his career started -  combining his love for writing with sports, travelling and working around the world Working in Dubai on ATP/WTA Tour stop and Emirates Dubai Rugby, next stop Lotus Renault travelling the globe and F1 circuit How to differentiate one F1 team from another and how to communicate it WADA  – unpacking his 4 years at the World Anti-Doping Agency – heading to Montreal, Canada – media relations and communication During his period, various scandals hit the press from Lance Armstrong to Russian Doping scandals, IAAF  – his experiences WADA, an “independent” body although funded by the IOC – working across all departments to assure a clear message goes out Pound and McLaren reports – big global media focus Athletics Integrity Unit  set up by IAAF President, Sebastian Coe – the sport working on cleaning up its act Commonwealth Games Federation – Gold Coast Games in Australia – setting new standards and targets for sports from gender equality to disabled vs abled body athletes competitions From briefings at Buckingham Palace to writing opening speeches for the President     Sportradar unique service– providing Anti-Doping Services to major event organizers  (intelligence investigation services, athlete performance monitoring, etc) – business development role PADEL 22 – his new agency – https://www.padel-22.com What is Padel – background and difference to other similar sports (ie. tennis, pickleball, squash, etc) Dynamic, urban, cool new sports Vision and mission of Padel 22 – why he set up a single focused agency – one sport, global focus Padel vs Pickleball (European vs American style sports promotions) and ambitions of both sports Final thoughts – opportunities around the world - “sports nomad” Link: https://www.padel-22.com/   About A leading Sports Communications, International Relations and Padel Industry professional who ran Media Relations for the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) during 'the biggest sporting crisis of the 21st century' - the Russian Doping Scandal. Ben also led Communications and Public Affairs for a revitalised Commonwealth Sport movement at Gold Coast 2018, transforming the perception of the modern Commonwealth Games. Ben brings with him with 17+ years’ experience and a proven track record of success running communications for the world’s leading sports series, leagues, events, teams, leaders, athletes, brands and media. Ben is an entrepreneurial figure with expertise in Strategic and Corporate Communications, Media Relations, Public Affairs, Issues & Crisis Management, Event Operations, Speech Writing, Executive Communications Counsel, Marketing and as a Spokesperson. By 26, Ben was overseeing Communications for the award-winning ATP and WTA Dubai Tennis Championships and leading the Middle East region's Communications for the 2010 Asian Games 'Road of Asia' campaign. At F1 team Lotus Renault GP, Ben led Media activity including for drivers Nick Heidfeld, Bruno Senna and Romain Grosjean and team sponsors. He oversaw Media Relations for WADA during a turbulent period for international sport. He was Communications Counsel for leadership; Editor of Play True Magazine; Speechwriter; and creator of widely-acclaimed interview series, WADA Talks. He executed Media Relations and Social Media for the high-profile WADA Investigation into Doping in Athletics, achieving a total US$4.60 Billion AVE in the process and resulting in #WADA becoming the World's No.1 trending topic on Twitter. As the Commonwealth Games Federation's first Director of Communications and Public Affairs, he developed and implemented the Marketing & Communications Strategy, positively shifting the public perception of what the Commonwealth Games meant worldwide. Ben ran his own Sports Communications Consultancy working with the likes of the International Padel Federation (FIP), Lawn Tennis Association (LTA), USA Weightlifting, USADA and the Athletics Integrity Unit, and also worked for global sports media and technology innovators, Sportradar, heading the Anti-Doping Services team for Europe. Today, he is working as a Strategic Communications and PR Consultant in the burgeoning sport of Padel – widely described as "the world's fastest growing sport".   Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com Feel Good by MusicbyAden https://soundcloud.com/musicbyaden Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/_feel-good Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/bvgIqqRStcQ

Great discussion with Professor Simon Chadwick, a highly respected academic in the world of sports, with several books and papers to his name and various successful consulting roles across the world combining academics with the real world.  We take a birds eye look at the world of sports, the hottest topics and issues out there, across Simon’s 20+ year career.   Key Highlights  How it all started, growing up living across his local team, Middlesborough – passion passed down by generations Premier League paper in mid 90s got the ball rolling, leading to a PhD with his thesis focused on Football Shirt deals in English Football How to connect a brand to the heart of the fan through shirt sponsorship discussion Working with overseas Master & PhD students to study overseas fan behavior, how do fans in China pick a “favorite club” Stories – Ferran Soriano early vision at Barcelona & Manchester United Tour lessons from 2005 Lessons learned from trips and work IN PLACES INCLUDING THE GULF, China, Russia, - understanding the differences and impact on sports. Teaching around the world from Brazil to Japan TO THE UNITED STATES Qatar Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy – work with them prior to the World Cup Our discussion on “migrant worker” issues and “Sports Washing” history lessons, politics, nation branding, etc China – what is happening since Covid – recent Winter Olympics, dropping the AFC Asia Cup (Football) as host (Geo political issues) Public sector entrepreneur – writing books looking at Mega trends (Managing Football, Handbook of Sports Marketing, etc.  New book “The Geopolitical economy of sports” – coming out this year (Publisher: Routledge) Women’s sports discussion, opportunities and challenges Esports & Gaming – how countries take advantage of investments in Esports to build new industries, ie. Korea, Saudi Arabia, China Sports coming out of Covid – survival of the fittest, concentration of power (industrial concentration) Recession talk vs Mega Media deals globally (how to explain it) – polarization   About Professor Simon Chadwick is a researcher, writer, academic, consultant, policy advisor, and speaker with more than twenty-five years experience in the global sport industry. His work focuses on the geopolitical economy of sport. Chadwick is Professor of Sport and Geopolitical Economy at Skema Business School in Paris, where he is also a member of its think tank - Publika - as well as Programme Director of Skema's Global Executive MBA in Sport. Simon previously co-founded and directed Emlyon Business School's Centre for the Eurasian Sport Industry, the University of London's Birkbeck Sports Business Centre, Coventry University's Centre for the International Business of Sport, and Salford University's Centre for Sport Business. In addition, he has worked at several of the world's most prestigious business schools, such as IESE in Spain, Otto Beisheim in Germany, Tsinghua in China, COPPEAD in Brazil and Waseda in Japan. He has written numerous articles, books and research reports for the likes of Forbes, Sloan Management Review, the Wall Street Journal, The Economist, Forbes, Thunderbird International Business Review, Mastercard, Newsweek, Reuters, Time, Routledge and Financial Times Prentice Hall. Chadwick has consulted for some of the biggest names in sport, such as FC Barcelona, UEFA, Adidas, the Association of Tennis Professionals, Nielsen, the European Clubs Association, Ping, Formula E, Coca Cola, and the Asian Football Confederation. Simon tweets via @Prof_Chadwick Some examples of his writing can be found via channels including: https://www.iris-france.org/geosport/ https://www.policyforum.net/authors/simon-chadwick/ https://theconversation.com/profiles/simon-chadwick-94601/articles https://www.ejinsight.com/eji/author/id/10880   Follow us on our social sites for the latest updates Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sportsentrepreneurs/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcusluerpodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sports-entrepreneurs Website: https://marcusluer.com Podcast: https://marcusluer.com/podcast To get in touch, please email us at podcast@marcusluer.com Feel Good by MusicbyAden https://soundcloud.com/musicbyaden Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported — CC BY-SA 3.0 Free Download / Stream: https://bit.ly/_feel-good Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/bvgIqqRStcQ