January/February 2020 www.sportbusiness.com Tales of two cities HOW TWO EUROPEAN SUPER CLUBS ARE BUILDING BRAND STRATEGIES Issue no. 258 www.sportbusiness.com INSIDE THIS ISSUE Mud, sweat and tears: Teams in prime US travel Automated production and Building bridges and Where did it all go wrong destinations mine tourists user-generated content will breaking ground – 2020 for Tough Mudder? for ticket sales boosts help FIH monetise OTT at World Athletics THE MEETING PLACE FOR THE BUSINESS OF SPORT JUNE 17-18, 2020 | TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR STADIUM 7 SPORT BUSINESS CONFERENCES 100+ SPEAKERS 1500 DELEGATES FIND OUT MORE AT INTERNATIONALSPORTSCONVENTION.COM EVENT PARTNERS CONTENTS January/February | Issue no. 258 Worldview 5 Sport needs to deal with its sustainability problem 6 Stern was ‘pure caring concealed in vinegar’ 8 Hard work for China to meet lofty 2020s sporting goals Business Development 9 Where did it all go wrong for Tough Mudder? 32 Inside the Wizards’ strategy to develop Japanese fandom 35 MLB’s new NYC headquarters reflects Manfred’s ‘One Baseball’ vision 38 XFL confident its second act will prove a success 9 43 ‘Our ambition is to have the two best teams in the world’ – why OL Groupe has taken over Reign FC 46 Teams in prime US destinations mine tourists for tickets Sponsorship & Marketing 16 Young, gifted and Parisian: why PSG means more than football to global brands 22 European success reinforces Ajax’s status as brands’ platform of choice in the Netherlands 26 ‘Team China’ brand sets high partnership price, targets $400m in quadrennial revenue 28 Chinese athletes to benefit as government heads off potential for endorsement disputes 16 Media 52 Automated production and user-generated content will help FIH monetise new OTT service 56 Uefa and Team get off to winning start 60 Unsuccessful initial tender raises questions over K League’s domestic media strategy Governance 62 Building bridges and breaking ground – what 2020 holds 22 for World Athletics 66 Malaysian FA pushes for club privatisation but teams still rely on state support Events 68 Reliability the watchword as Los Angeles takes long run at the Olympics 73 2020 Youth Olympics give Lausanne chance to take lead in driving ‘new Games’ era Esports 80 Football and Rocket League’s young relationship is 52 62 already on the rocks @SportBusiness | www.sportbusiness.com 3 Editor CALENDAR Ben Cronin [email protected] + 44 (0)20 7265 4232 Deputy Editor Adam Nelson [email protected] + 44 (0)20 7265 4234 US Editor Eric Fisher [email protected] Asia Editor Kelvin Tan [email protected] Head of Content Richard Welbirg [email protected] 03-06 MAR | MIAMI 13-16 MAR | AUSTIN + 44 (0)20 7265 4233 SPORTEL MIAMI SXSW – SPORTS Editorial Director Kevin Roberts [email protected] “SPORTEL will be back in Miami for the 2020 “Discuss the trajectory of longtime favorites as spring event delivering new added value content well as new sensations in the face of new tech Senior Designer and networking experiences. 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Explore sessions coming Alex Smith [email protected] makers from across the Americas and around to the Sports Track in 2020 such as Swiss Army the globe will come together for targeted Marketing: A Chat with NBA CMOs, Ancient Production and Distribution Manager business meetings, insightful knowledge Rites Transforming Sports Performance, The Craig Young [email protected] sharing and decisive deal making.” Power of Sport and Activism for Impact, and more.” Commercial Director sportelamerica.com/ [email protected] sxsw.com/conference/sports/ + 44 (0) 2072 654183 Subscription/Information Sales Max Frew/Scott Longhurst/ Laurence Burton [email protected] 17-18 MAR | DURBAN 24 MAR | LONDON Head of Media Sales WORLD FOOTBALL SUMMIT THE UK SPONSORSHIP [email protected] AFRICA AWARDS 2020 + 44 (0) 2072 654182 “WFS Africa is the international event for the “No other Awards reward effectiveness www.sportbusiness.com African football industry, gathering the most and excellence across all sectors of the Published by: influential professionals in order to discuss the sponsorship, partnership and brand activation SportBusiness, a division of SBG most relevant topics and generate business industries and across all budget bands – Companies Ltd, New Penderel House, opportunities. During 2 days, Durban becomes campaigns are held under the spotlight, 283-288 High Holborn, London the capital of this thriving industry.” objectives are examined and tested, creativity WC1V 7HP and innovation both within ideas and execution T: +44 (0) 20 7265 4100 africa.worldfootballsummit.com/ F: +44 (0) 20 7265 4220 are judged and results are scrutinised. And all by experts in their specialist fields.” Registered address: Park House, 116 Park Street, London, W1K 6AF sponsorship-awards.co.uk/ Printed in the UK by Pensord Press www.pensord.co.uk 26-27 MAR | NEW YORK 19-24 APR | BEIJING The paper used within this publication has been sourced from a Chain-of-Custody-certified SPORTTECHIE STATE OF THE SPORTACCORD CONVENTION manufacturer, operating within international INDUSTRY 2020 environmental standards such as ISO14001 and EMAS. 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ISSN 1757-5346. 4 www.sportbusiness.com | @SportBusiness WORLDVIEW | LONDON | WORLDVIEW Worldview | London Ben Cronin, Europe Editor [email protected] Sport needs to address its sustainability problem or most of his career, Roger from its effects. The convergence year after year. But the tripling of Federer has sailed serenely of the Credit Suisse story with the visitors from India, the US, China and clear of controversy. A lengthy ongoing wildfires in Australia – and the Japan that has resulted from this policy list of personal endorsement disruption they caused to qualifiers for has presumably had a corresponding Fdeals and an estimated net worth of the Australian Open – only served to impact on the natural world. $900m attest to his easy charm and a highlight the industry’s complicated So what can sport do to minimise its seeming inability to cause offense. So it relationship with global warming. The environmental footprint and placate its must have come as a jolt when climate grand slam has already had to review young critics? Even the more extreme activists recently asked if he supported its extreme heat policy in recent activist would probably acknowledge it the destruction of the planet. years after mounting temperatures is unrealistic to recommend cancelling In a cleverly orchestrated stunt, have caused players, ball boys and events. Russell Seymour, chief student protestors played tennis at attendants to suffer from heat-related executive of the British Association the headquarters of Credit Suisse to illnesses. for Sustainable Sport, prefers a more criticise Federer’s partnership with measured response in which sports the bank and the estimated $57bn it is organisations accurately appraise alleged to have invested in fossil fuel “There is an inherent paradox themselves of their carbon impact and enterprises. Headline writers depicted in the fact that major sports take reasonable measures to mitigate it. the story as a clash of icons – Roger events both contribute to “You’ve got to identify ways to versus Greta Thunberg – even though manage waste, you’ve got to look at the Swedish activist’s only involvement climate change and suffer renewable energy sources, you’ve was to like a social media post about from its effects.” got to encourage people to come by the demonstration. public transport where possible,” he Thunberg may not have conceived says. And in those cases where air of the protest, but her acolytes in the travel is inevitable, he points to the climate youth movement have struck In Northern Europe events have way itinerant events like Formula E upon a powerful new way to influence to contend with extreme weather of have reorganised their schedules to public opinion. When the World a different kind. A 2018 report by the minimise the distance between races. Wildlife Fund subsequently wrote a Climate Coalition said six of the seven A welcome by-product of most letter to the IOC questioning Tokyo wettest winters in recorded UK history carbon reduction measures is they 2020’s sustainability credentials, sports have occurred since 2000. happen to save money. The success of climate shaming became a trend. The It won’t be lost on protestors that Formula E in attracting sponsors also ingenuity of both campaigns was to increasingly globalised sports events proves the value in promoting a green use the global profile of Federer and are intrinsically carbon-intensive agenda.