Sports Content Strategy with MrRichardClarke: Exploring sports content, journalism, digital and social media

In any modern sports organisation, the digital/content/social media teams need to understand the communications team, and vice versa. But often they fail to work cohesively and end up in different silos. 

That is why I spoke to David Alexander, the founder of Calacus, an independent sports PR consultancy. They help organisations and individuals to tell their stories across the world. They specialize in crisis communications in sports.

We discussed:

1:50 David Alexander introduces himself and his work with Calacus

2:39 Handling the Sharapova case

8:12 Why Sharapova’s communications strategy was a relative success

9:43 The importance of ‘getting in front’ of the story

12:20 How do you choose what to respond to?

14:00 The concept of a dark site

15:26 The issues surrounding Bradley Wiggins/Team Sky case

21:33 What they could have done differently?

23:00 Russia and the IOC, another doping issue

26:09 How do clean athletes manage their communications in this case?

29:16 How to drill athletes in their messaging

30:48 Is there a need for differing approaches for differing sports?

34:17 Does media training make athletes boring?

36:22 Why the Rooney saga proves “we live in a world where nothing can hushed up”

40:35 When the public tries to catch out an athlete

43:56 The importance of maintaining a dialogue with the public at all times

46:36 Communications issues surrounding the Premier League rights deal in 2018

50:09 Coping with the money problem when it is has helped the Premier League become the richest football League in the world

52:46 The reputational issues surrounding the World Cup in Russia

57:43 The future of sports communications - right-holders, clubs and athletes taking control of their story and content

* David Alexander has worked in the media since the early 1990s for local and national newspapers, broadcasters including the BBC, magazines and a spell in Italy for Reuters news agency.

He has worked for a wide range of sports clients around the world and is a CIPR Chartered Practitioner, the highest individual qualification in UK
public relations.

Tony Jeffries never took boxing that seriously until he won an English schoolboys title. Soon he was captaining his country at amateur level and winning a bronze medal at the 2008 Olympic games. Unfortunately, hand injuries curtailed his pro career but he moved the US and set up a new business in boxing gyms.

Now he is expanding his empire, training boxing coaches and developing his own Box'N'Burn podcast in which discusses all aspect of self-improvement.

So many diverse names crop up in this podcast - Mickey Rourke, Gary Vaynerchuk, Roy Jones Jr, Ronda Rousey, Chris Hemsworth. But the key message running through it is the power of positivity.

Links

Box'N'Burn gyms

Box'N'Life podcast

Andy Scott's Life as a Pro

Tony Jeffries personal website

Tony's pro record on BoxRec

Marcelo Balboa in his playing days for the USMNT

This is the first episode in our series charting the path of professionals athletes from their childhood to their debut. We call it “Back Streets to Pro”.

Marcelo Balboa is a pioneer of US soccer. The goal-scoring centre-back represented his country in two World Cups and was the first player to earn 100 caps for the Stars and Stripes

His father was a professional player in Argentina and made the game a major part of Marcelo’s childhood.

He worked his way through the tough semi-pro leagues in the early 1980s, played in Mexico and would join Colorado Rapids when the MLS started in 1996.

But how did those formative years shape his later career?

Links and notes

Marcelo Balboa's career highlights at Colorado Rapids, including a bicycle kick that was MLS Goal of the Year in 2000

Marcelo Balboa on Twitter

How Marcelo Balboa became the first offensive defender in USMNT history

Chatri Sityodtong, right, has built one of the fastest growing sports franchises in the world.

Chatri Sityodtong is CEO, chairman and founder of ONE Championship, the martial arts competition based in Asia. 

The event has enjoyed incredible growth since it started in 2011 but, as Chatri points out, its success will be based on Asian values. His aim is to make ONE Championship the first multi-billion dollar sports franchise from that Continent.

This is not MMA, not UFC and a character like Conor McGregor would not be welcome. Take a listen to find out why.

Links

OneChampionship

Chatri Sityodtong's backstory

Chatri Sityodtong talking at TEDxSingapore

Aung La N Sang, the Burmese python