The beautiful game, football (soccer), has been undergoing a quiet revolution in the land of its birth – England. English clubs have always sent football talent scouts the length and breadth of the country and further afield too. Decisions on footballing matters and transfers were once based on nothing more than a hunch, a gut…
Archive | Sports Business
Athletes Deserve Tax-Free Income Too
This is a guest post by Tom Caffrey The rich seem to always get richer while some current and retired athletes, entertainers and executives keep asking the proverbial question: “Why is that? “How do they do it?” It is no secret that as many as 75 % of professional athletes face hard financial times after…
A Day in the Life of a Fencer
The sport of fencing doesn’t receive much attention. Perhaps it’s because it doesn’t involve a ball and high dollar ads attached to it. Or, maybe it’s because it’s a game of wit and doesn’t captivate our need for brut strength on a field with lines and numbers. But, make no mistake; fencing is a serious…
Sports Insider Interview Series #3: Schuyler Hoversten, Director of Revenue Development with LA Dodgers
Schuyler has a wealth of innovative knowledge in the sport industry, in addition to being an amazing, strategic, out of the box thinker. His ability to think ‘big picture’ helps him land the big deals with major companies around the globe as well as driving huge success for his clients. KRISTEN SONSMA: What…
Help for Stressful Times in the Sports World
Lockouts rule the roost in 2011. First, the NFL muscles flex to show us the veins of how money ultimately rules the football kingdom. We know full well it’s not a game we simply watch on t.v. – it’s a multi-billion dollar business that needs a “dollar-driven enhancement drug” to keep it going. The NBA…
5 Business Lessons from FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona’s success both on and off the field speaks for itself. There are at least 5 important lessons that modern businesses can learn from the Catalan football (soccer) club. On the pitch, the Catalan club recently won the Spanish First Division La Liga for the 21st time, its 3rd consecutive title. On May 28th,…
Sports Industry Insider Interview Series #2: Kelly Perdew, CEO FastpointGames.com and Apprentice Winner
On a quest to continue to bring awareness to many facets of the sport business, interviewing Kelly Perdew was on the top of the list. As The Apprentice season 2 winner and sports aficionado, Kelly brings light to his success, how he became a winner, business of fantasy sports, and ‘What is the Apprentice winner…
The ABC’s of Client Communication
Being a sports executive on any level involves a lot of hard work to get projects done the way your clients expect. A key aspect of retaining quality clients is learning how to effectively communicate with each one on their level. Each of my clients is unique and special and I communicate with them according…
The Success of World Team Tennis
Sportsnetworker often features stories and posts from the multi-million dollar global sporting industry. The last few entries have looked at massive sporting brands such as the NFL, NBA and Manchester United. There are, however, many successful sporting properties that have carved a niche for themselves– even without big budgets. These properties function not necessarily off…
Crushed Ice: PAC-12 Deal Impressive
When the Pac-12 announced its new multimedia broadcast deal with ESPN and Fox recently, the sports world reacted with shock and awe toward its gold fingered Commissioner Larry Scott, who convinced the networks to collectively cough up $3 billion over the next 12 years. Many observers accurately pointed out that the new deal was more…
Sports Industry Insider Interview Series #1: Chris Quinn, Director of Sales with Santa Anita Park
During a recent trip to California, I had the pleasure to meet Chris Quinn, Director of Sales at Santa Anita Park, and took a tour of their spectacular facility. I have to admit I did have a goal or maybe a wish that Zenyatta would be waiting in a stall to greet me, but unfortunately…
The Elephants: How Football Corrects for Political Risk in Volatile Markets
This is a guest post by Thomas Stone Political risk effects markets. Whether we like it or not, functioning economies live in symbiosis with functioning governments. In West Africa, however, there is a third factor: football. You’ve got international trade and businesses on the one hand, political players on the other hand…and then on the…