The SportBusiness Podcast

This week on The SportBusiness Podcast, we tackle a bruising sport’s place in the industry, two big European football leagues going to market with domestic media rights and a review of the rage-filled book making headlines.

THE NEWSROOM: As Bare Knuckle Boxing mulls an equity sale to a rights-holding broadcaster, we analyse the emergence of the controversial combat sport, its safety and commercial appeal. Plus, different tactics for Ligue 1 and Serie A in impending domestic tenders and ice skating gets its centralised rights agency.
INSIDE THE SPIEL: Executive Editor Imran Yusuf joins to cherry pick the sports industry tales in Ari Emanuel’s recently published memoir laden with expletives and almost as many deal numbers.
AOB: Sponsorship signage confuses horses at Newbury, a ban on rhythmic jumping in Bochum and Premier Sports outs dodgy stick users.

You can subscribe to The SportBusiness Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and YouTube.

Enter SBPODCAST30 at checkout for monthly and annual SportBusiness.com subscriptions for a 30-per-cent discount here.

Co-hosts: Jonathan Rest, Martin Ross
Contributor: Imran Yusuf
Editor: Gwen Gourvellec
Sources:

BKB open to stake sale in next media rights deal
Ligue 1 auction ‘to include’ rights from next season
French 20% pay-TV tax ‘to weigh on sports rights’
Serie A presents regulators with gloomy domestic picture
Serie A guidelines OK’d but warning on exclusivity
Centralised ISU agency contract for Two Circles
Tennent’s Sixes tackle on Premier Sports
Roll the Calls: A Memoir by Ari Emanuel
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In the wake of that Manchester City ruling, Jonathan Rest and Martin Ross are back on The SportBusiness Podcast to discuss the industry’s headline issues and go deep on media rights in a major market.

THE NEWSROOM: SportBusiness Sponsorship Editor Ben Cronin joins to talk about the Emirati elephant in the room. Plus, Infront nets ITTF business at a testing time for table tennis and the scale of the LIV threat on DP World Tour media rights returns is revealed.
INSIDE THE DEAL: Frank Dunne is back to decipher the pay-TV sector in sub-Saharan Africa after Canal+’s Uefa club rights deal. Now the owner of MultiChoice, is it set for a market monopoly or can a mystery streamer stir new competition?
AOB: Bookmakers betting on a political Brazilian legislation U-turn, Wigan gets a deadly new sponsor and juggling AI tech to generate sold-out crowds at empty venues.

You can subscribe to The SportBusiness Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and YouTube.

Enter SBPODCAST30 at checkout for monthly and annual SportBusiness.com subscriptions for a 30-per-cent discount here.

Co-hosts: Jonathan Rest, Martin Ross
Contributors: Ben Cronin, Frank Dunne
Editor: Gwen Gourvellec

Sources:
City inflated sponsorship with ‘sham’ contracts
Etihad considers legal action against EPL
BeIN’s Sen succeeds Nivelle at Infront Pan-Asia
Infront nets global WTT sponsorship remit
TV rights drop swells PGA Tour’s European Tour sum
(PODCAST) In Da Red Zone: Unpacking losses at LIV, European Tour and DAZN
Canal+ power shows in sub-Saharan Uefa deal
SuperSport lands Afcon, more pay-TV deals coming
Brazilian football sets up talks on shock betting ban
One final bump on the long road to centralisation?
Q4 production tender to kick off Liga Portugal sales
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This week, Ben Cronin and the SportBusiness Sponsorship editorial team host a live recording of the podcast at L’Escargot restaurant in London to mark the launch of the European Sponsorship Report.

They discuss:

THE SIZE OF THE MARKET: How much was the European sponsorship market worth in 2025 and which two sports accounted for 67% of the overall value?
SPONSORSHIP SURVEY: The team reads the mood of the sponsorship industry and unpacks the findings from this year’s reader survey. Which sponsorship categories are expected to grow over the next 12 months and how is AI changing the way people work?
TOP PROPERTIES: Which teams and leagues came out on top in our ranking of the biggest sponsorship properties in Europe?

You can purchase your copy of the European Sponsorship Report 2026 here.

You can subscribe to The SportBusiness Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and YouTube.

Enter SBPODCAST30 at checkout for monthly and annual SportBusiness.com subscriptions for a 30-per-cent discount here.

Host: Ben Cronin
Contributors: Matthew Williams, Faaez Samadi, Matthew Glendinning
Editor: Gwen Gourvellec
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on The SportBusiness Podcast, with Martin Ross taking a well-earned break, Joseph Perry is back at the microphone to talk through his recent whistle-stop trip to Australia, which coincided with the NFL being in town.

THE NEWSROOM: All the top lines from the SportNXT Conference in Melbourne. Plus, we discuss a senior executive reshuffle at DAZN and its latest push for profitability, a landmark decision at World Athletics and record US Open audiences for ESPN.
INSIDE THE DEAL: Ahead of the 2026-27 season NBA season, Matthew Glendinning talks through changes to the teams' jersey patch landscape. AI and fintech brands are in vogue, of course, and which agencies are getting the deals done?
AOB: Naming ceremony for a Rwandan gorilla, some unfortunate publicity for Hyrox and just how much would you pay to get up close and personal to a David Moyes team talk?

You can subscribe to The SportBusiness Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and YouTube.

Enter SBPODCAST30 at checkout for monthly and annual SportBusiness.com subscriptions for a 30-per-cent discount here.

Co-hosts: Jonathan Rest, Joseph Perry
Contributor: Matthew Glendinning
Editor: Gwen Gourvellec

Sources:

Melbourne trades futures as the NFL comes to town | SportBusiness
Delany, Gersh head DAZN hires as Mascia exits Dach | SportBusiness
Four investors, one question: why sport? | SportBusiness On the Money
Athletics history made as Kenya lands Worlds | SportBusiness
Shelton reels in record US Open audience for ESPN | SportBusiness
AI and fintech deals push NBA jersey patch values
Excel brokers Lakers, Albert patch deal | SportBusiness
Euroleague’s SuperCup to launch in Abu Dhabi | SportBusiness
How sport holds squeezed Australia market together

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This week on The SportBusiness Podcast and following a frenetic few days of high-profile sales, would-be sales and Chapter 11 proceedings, Jonathan Rest and Martin Ross break down what it all means for the industry.

THE NEWSROOM: Infront’s sale of Hyrox – why now, what motivated the deal on both sides and what next? Plus, what anyone acquiring Castore would be buying and IMG tops LIV Golf’s list of unsecured service provider creditors.
INSIDE THE DEAL: Ben Cronin is back from IFA Berlin where Chinese consumer electronics powerhouses Haier and Hisense both announced Uefa sponsorship deals. Insight on why the deals were done and how UCL sponsorship sales are tracking for the new cycle.
AOB: FIS creates more inventory to sell, American success at US Open boosts ESPN and everything you ever wanted to know about the World Stone Skimming Championships.

Listen now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music and YouTube

Enter SBPODCAST30 at the checkout for monthly and annual SportBusiness.com subscriptions for a 30-per-cent discount here.

Co-hosts: Jonathan Rest, Martin Ross
Contributor: Ben Cronin
Editor: Matt Storey
Sources:

Infront cashes in with Hyrox sale to consortium
Castore founders weigh up sale options
IMG heads LIV’s unsecured vendor creditor list
UCL pact won’t affect club deals, says Haier brand chief
Haier bags standalone Champions League deal
Hisense reduces inventory with Euro 2028 only deal
Hyundai ends Champions League car sponsor search
FIS clean sweep for Infront with four-year Worlds deal

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.