Our business doesn’t go an hour it seems without some “big news” off the field. The ESPN launch, NIL and college issues, FIFA World Cup planning, streaming wars, gambling suspensions, NBA Europe, Caitlin Clark and on and on. If Billy Joel wanted to write a sports version of “We Didn’t Start The Fire,” it wouldn’t be that hard.
However as you look left and right there are some things that pop up to note and watch that are not always the buzzworthy factor, but are impactful to file away and see where they go and what they mean. Sometimes they don’t mean much, some times you can look back and say wow. Few examples.
US Open Sunday start. Aside from more Honey Duces, another day of grounds passes, and more revenue needed for every level of American tennis, the US Open moving to a Sunday start is a huge boost for the casual sports fan, and the viewer, who may not have realized the spectacle of the event until the end in previous years. Why? For the first time ever, the US Open gets two unencumbered weekends without the NFL. Sure there is college football, MLB, the WNBA and the like, but for ESPN, giving the best in tennis a full two weekends of content before the NFL gets going is a huge, well thought out competitive advantage for all involved before we lose our minds with the grid iron. Great first mover opportunity, has never occurred since the event moved to late summer and had to battle for broadcast and social relevancy.
Football’s Global Gains. Speaking of the NFL, the shield continues to increase its scope and breath. As European football gets into full gear these few weeks, the NFL readies for its continued growth not just in the American landscape but around the world. What some thought as a foolhardy attempt to expand a game not played…the tackle version…at the highest level abroad, continues to take root, as the digital world and other initiatives like Flag Football continue to take hold. Anecdotal evidence of global growth. In the NFL’s media directory this year there are TEN pages of outlets outside the US listed as covering the NFL, and that doesn’t include social input, podcasts and the like. A few years ago? Maybe two pages. That interest and dedication speaks volumes, because if there wasn’t that type of mainstream…or what we think of as mainstream interest, brands wouldn’t follow nor would fans. Bravo NFL, forging territory many thought may have been a waste of time not too long ago. New markets abound.
And Speaking of New Markets, Throw The Flag. Flag Football continues to garner support, and is the lead entry point to many young people around the world for the overall sport of football especially as we head towards LA28. One area which is getting some attention but will be snowballing is on the women’s side at the college level, now that almost 20 states have sanctioned flags for high school girls. One key area to watch in addition to when the larger schools decide to add larger club and eventually varsity programs? Small schools, especially those with enrollment challenges. Case in point, this week the D2 CACC announced a varsity flag football league for 2027 to be played in the spring. Small schools seeing low cost, no scholarship opportunities. It won’t be long before many others join as it heads to NCAA Sanctioning.
Lastly, the first college sport on network television this fall was not football. It was volleyball…women’s volleyball, with Pitt visiting Nebraska on FOX in primetime Thursday night. Volleyball’s growth will continue, and eventually the pro leagues for women will figure out a combined structure (my bet is League One Volleyball) to further complete a pipeline that is getting bigger, but at the top level still needs to find its bigger financial path. Still, an impressive thing to see.
One more note, as MLB continues its path to expansion and WNBA labor issues are on the horizon. One thing we have learned through and from The Pandemic is that people will find other things to do with their time if something goes away. Relevance today is very fleeting, and interruptions, especially when they involve high level businesses like sports, may cause a bigger struggle to return to growth than earlier. We don’t see it, we don’t talk about it, we don’t have it live on our phones, we go do something else. All parties involved are running a huge risk with labor stoppages, here’s hoping BOTH sides stop yelling at each other and find common ground. Out of sight, out of mind has never been a bigger issue, and outside of the NFL and maybe the NBA, no one is too big to fail.
Libraries, The Curious Learner, and Self-Establishing Value…