SportsPro Podcast

It's the list that everyone - or some people, at least - has been talking about: SportsPro's annual rankings of the world's 50 most marketable athletes. SportsPro editor at large Eoin Connolly is joined by editor Michael Long and senior writer Sam Carp to discuss the list, the episode also features Roger Breum, from SportsPro's data partner Hookit, who explains the spontech side of this year's 50MM

A special mini-pod with Sportlogiq's Craig Buntin discussing the origins of the business and how he made the switch from athlete to chief executive.

In a snack-sized edition, SportsPro editor-at-large Eoin Connolly revisits a conversation at SportAccord in Bangkok with magazine editor Michael Long and Patrick Nally, the founder and president of the International Federation of Match Poker. Nally, widely regarded as a sports marketing pioneer for his work with the likes of Fifa, the Rugby World Cup and world athletics' IAAF, reflects on his decision to begin again and build a new pastime from the ground up. He discusses the challenges of bringing a young organisation into the world of sports politics, his excitement at the potential of match poker, and how new sports will fare in a changing federation environment.

With the second SportsPro OTT Summit confirmed for Madrid on 28th and 29th November, SportsPro editor-at-large Eoin Connolly dips into the archives to find conversations with representatives of two broadcasters at very different stages of their commercial journeys. First up is Marc Watson, group chief executive of Eleven Sports, active around the world and newly launched in the UK. It has taken a nimble, flexible approach to each market, and Watson discusses how to decide what method of digital delivery works for each market.  Then Sky Sports director of strategy Jonathan Licht talks about the effects of the UK pay-TV giant's switch to vertical, single-sport channels, its evolving relationships with rights holders, and its take on creating bundled value for viewers on its multi-genre platform in an age of stripping down to single sources.

Esports has entranced many within the traditional sports industry and is a fast-moving, fast-growing category in its own right. Now, Texas-based Infinite Esports & Entertainment is among a handful of groups looking to establish a presence across the competitive video games sector, with teams playing in a broad range of leagues and titles, new initiatives launched as far away as India and a permanent sports venue in the works back in Arlington. Chris Chaney, the group's founder, president and owner, and strategic partnerships director Joe Hills join SportsPro editor-at-large Eoin Connolly to discuss all of that, as well as a first season for the Houston Outlaws in the franchise-based Overwatch League, which has attracted considerable investment from within the sporting mainstream. They also discuss finding the right gaming content for the right partners, the role of players and their existing audiences, making sense of the Fortnite phenomenon, working with publishers and understanding what titles will be a hit.

As the Fifa World Cup ticks past its halfway mark, the SportsPro Podcast returns for the summer. On the ground in Moscow for the duration of the world's biggest single-sport event, Press Association chief sports reporter Matt Slater gives SportsPro editor-at-large Eoin Connolly his take on a warm and open welcome from ordinary Russians after a build-up dominated by concerns about the host nation's leadership.  Still, there are plenty of questions to be answered elsewhere. What should we make of Russia's stunning start? Have the sponsors turned up? Is football coming home and, if so, where is it going?  Also, after a vote by the Fifa Congress before kick-off gave the 2026 World Cup to the United bid from Canada, Mexico and the US, will Russia 2018 be the last tournament of its kind? And how was the United campaign able to see off the challenge of Morocco with such surprising ease?