On Sunday afternoon, I was lucky enough to be stood next to the coach of one of the Men’s 1500m finalists at the IAAF World Indoor Championship. What I witnessed was a grown man’s emotions switch from extreme hope to extreme despair back to hope to raw anger to exultation, in the space of 3.44 mins as his protégé Robby Andrews came from last place with 300m remaining to steam into 4th in a dramatic finish to the line.
Sport has the ability to excite, inspire, bring people together & change lives.
With that said the statistics show that in many cases grass roots participation fluctuates between steady growth to stagnation and in some cases slow decline. It can depend on general interest in sport but also on wider economic factors such as public policy, government spending etc. For this reason Leagues, Federations & International Sports Brands have no choice but to look at growing interest in their ‘brand’ and therefore demand in their game or sport globally to increase their revenues.
Look at the NBA & NFL, who in recent years have hosted regular season matches in London, both of which sold out. Conversely, some of Europe’s top Football (Soccer) teams will jet off this summer with their Clubs to the U.S, Australia & China in the International Champions Cup. Not to have a holiday, but to help build the brand of their employer in under-penetrated markets.
As the world becomes more homogenized, and international business in theory becomes easier, how will this shape up in future years? Will we see a ‘European Champions League’ night hosted in Africa, India or South America? How will global Sports Brands change their business models to adjust to the changing tides? One of the reasons the UFC has been so successful is that it governs itself & is able to move quick and nimbly in to new markets, collaborating with TV networks and other local businesses on their terms. They created their product, they inspired not only their own athletes but also the fans, & they were able to promote their core product to an international audience with ease.
No doubt, growing internationally is hugely complex, and not everything is controllable. What is undeniable though is that the opportunity for 'The Business of Sport' around the world feels infinite due to its ability to excite, inspire, & bring people, companies & even countries together.