Events like the Sloan MIT Analytics Conference come at you from all angles. Lots of noise, predictions, conversations, side conversations, analysis and more listening as you try and find the nuggets in the forest That’s always been the challenge and the fun. Weeding through the same old or the self important to find the takeaways that have long term value. Some takeaways.
First. Volleyball.
While there wasn’t much talk of volleyball on the stages of Sloan this year…next year, when not one but at least three professional options are up and running it will probably have more business value talking about the market and what’s been learned…but as you walked in and again saw THOUSANDS of competitors fill the halls of the Convention Center, you see the potential in what the sport is realizing fr the future. As mentioned before, volleyball for girls and women is not an overnight success story…it has been tied to Title IX since the start as a companion sport in the fall to football…but now it seems like the business model is starting to take shape, and the opportunity was literally laid out at the feet of those attending Sloan if they looked.
Second. ChessBoxing.
One of the more fun pieces of Sloan is looking and listening away from the main stage to hear what people are talking about and discussing. Chessboxing certainly had the buzz. For those who are not aware, it is exactly what the name says…you play chess, you box, you play chess, you box. While MMA was called “Chess with blood,” this can be seen as “Blood with chess.”
World Champion Matt Thomas did a great job of framing the why and the how, and a standing-room only live audience and over 10,000 livestream viewers were treated to two matchups of chess masters: James Canty III vs. Jennifer Yu and Levy Rozman vs. Danny Rensch. Now is it a real “thing”? As one colleague pointed out, make Manny Pacquiao a chess boxer and he knocks out his opponent in ten seconds, so where’s the thrill. It’s a niche, and it’s hard to say that niches that involve fighting don’t work…people love fights. There will be a demo at The Paris Olympics for the IOC, but as a viable business? We will see. I loved talking to the athletes about it, and can’t dispute the idea that if you are going to make it into a “thing,” Sloan was the right spot.
Third. Spring cleaning of sports stuff…there’s an app for that
Again, the wandering the halls of Sloan always brings forth the idea people…most of whom are looking for money and scale to make their ideas a “thing.” While most have amazing names and logos…wouldn’t it be fun to have a company or to called “MEH,” or “The just OK sports app”…I often wonder about how many of those ideas in the past 18 years of exhibiting actually become businesses…or where those in the niche end up when the friends and family runs out, or when the large deeply funded league or team sees a small idea and says thanks…we can do that on our own, and off the little guy goes. One of those we liked this year had little to do with analytics, it had to do with something we all have…stuff. Fanwagn is a marketplace where anyone can get rid of their old, logoed stuff, from knees to head, for a price in an environment that would be targeted to others looking for stuff. For the over 35 crowd it’s a chance to get rid of the logoed slightly worn jerseys and hats that came from the giveaways…for the under 35 looking for a bargain to get an Atlanta Flames jersey, this is your place. The skeptical would say, well isn’t that eBay? Well…yes…but if you are looking for a common audience and a place to build community, maybe FANWAGN has the right niche for those who want to clean out closets and storage bins of sports stuff, so they can go get more stuff. LOL.
One blue ocean space where this fits well could be women’s sports items. We have written before that collectors shows, like The National, have almost zero areas where women’s sports items are in the marketplace. Is it too early? We didn’t think so. Also, what about teams or leagues on any scale looking to clear a warehouse? Garage sales are great, maybe this platform, in bulk, does better because they have the community.
FANWAGN has an idea that is more than Meh, let’s see if it works out.
Fourth. The NFL And Relevance…
One side conversation, actually several, were about how the NFL rode the Taylor Swift bandwagon in popular culture, something which the largest and most prosperous, and sometimes most conservative, league in the land might not have done in the past. Case in point, the not so long ago relationship between Tony Romo and Jessica Simpson when Romo was a rising Cowboys star, was seen as a distraction, and faded from the football consciousness pretty quickly. Taylor and Kelce today? Bring it on, let’s see and listen to our fans with the technology we now have, and where can it go.
To gold.
Great summary statement from our always insightful colleague Blake Stuchin on Saturday morning.
“Twelve years in the NFL, NINE weeks in the Taylor Swift business. I never thought I would be standing in the halls of 345 Park Ave talking to Roger Goodell about friendship bracelets.”
Never say never and keep evolving on and off the gridiron.
Five…some other key thoughts collected.
On the gathering storm of the NCAA
“College athletics is now a collaboration. We have to work together to set up the model for all our athletes to be both compensated & fairly represented across the board. It’s a new day.” –Martin Jarmond, UCLA Athletic Director
“The business we will be in in a few years may be decided by the courts vs. our leadership. We will have to see and react to what we are told that we will have little control over.” -BIG EAST Commissioner Val Ackerman
On build chemistry on a team of any size
“You have your milk drinkers, but you also need knife fighters – people who are a little crazy and unpredictable – on your team to sustain success.” -Jeff Van Gundy
On finding your spot in the business narrative
“Being adjacent to cultural happenings is more important than ever to quantify ROI.”
Kirsten Corio at the USTA on the importance of the US Open in a bigger fabric than just tennis.
That’s just a small flavor of the sensory and panel overload from 48 hours roaming around a Boston Convention Center. There is always a lot to digest, and you can watch hours of video at full speed and beyond here.
Always an interesting early spring trip to Boston.
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