For decades, the sports industry has relied on broadcasters to fund growth, distribute content and monetise audiences. But what happens when that model starts to change?

In this episode, SportsPro CEO Nick Meacham sits down with Mark Locke, CEO of Genius Sports, to explore how leagues, teams and technology companies are adapting to a new era of fan monetisation.

Locke discusses Genius Sports' evolution from its betting roots into a global technology business, the company's acquisition of Legend, the growing role of AI and data ownership, and why he believes the next generation of sports growth will come from direct relationships with fans.

The conversation also examines the changing economics of media rights, the company’s NFL partnership, gaming as a future distribution channel and what sports organisations need to do to thrive in a more personalised digital world.

This is the first episode in SportsPro's New Economics of Fandom series, exploring how sport's commercial future is being rewritten.

Key topics:

• Is the era of broadcast-driven sports growth coming to an end?
• What does the future of fan monetisation actually look like?
• Who will benefit most from AI in the sports industry?
• Why did Genius Sports spend up to US$1.2bn acquiring Legend?
• What might be the next billion-dollar revenue opportunity in sport?

Sport’s best content doesn’t happen by accident.

Behind every viral clip, every campaign that cuts through, every piece of creative work that moves the needle commercially, there's a person, a team, and a strategy. But rarely does that person, team or strategy get the recognition or coverage they deserve.

SportsPro and Greenfly’s recently launched Short-Form Showcase is designed to fill that void by amplifying the talent and teams behind the best short-form content being produced across the global sports industry.

Unveiled in July, the Showcase recognises the human craft, creativity and collective effort that goes into creating content that stops the scroll and delivers commercial impact by celebrating the people who make it happen. This is not a ranking or an award – it’s a curated exhibition of best-in-class operators and a collection of their most memorable work.

On this episode, SportsPro’s Michael Long is joined by Greenfly’s Gabby Vidal Castillo and Melissa Lawton, SailGP’s chief content officer and one of the 39 specialists named in the Showcase, to discuss the value and important of exceptional content operators, how strategy and insight guide the creative process, and where social-first sports content is heading next.

To view the full Short-Form Showcase, visit Home - SportsPro x Greenfly - Short-Form Showcase

F1 has gone from 13 commercial partners a decade ago to around 33 today, from a paddock that barred drivers from posting on social media to an always-on content operation, and from a linear US broadcast deal with ESPN to a streaming partnership with Apple.

Liam Parker, chief communications and corporate relations officer at F1, has a simple framing for all of it: none of it works unless the racing does.

In this episode of the SportsPro Podcast, produced in collaboration with Mics Out from BlackBook Motorsport, Parker joins motorsport editor Cian Brittle to discuss what "redefining reach" means in the Apple era, how F1 decides when its global partner roster is full, and why he would swap the word Americanisation for modernisation.

Recorded ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix, the conversation also covers the collaborative fix to this season's new power unit regulations, fan activation work with Heineken and Lego, the markets F1 believes are underserved — India chief among them — and how the sport is contingency-planning the end of its season amid geopolitical uncertainty.

SportsPro speaks to Paceteq chief executive Alexander Bodo to learn how decades of data analytics and AI experience in motorsport can be harnessed by soccer to drive performance, aid recruitment, and drive further efficiencies on and off the pitch.

Bodo explains why culture and technology has held back soccer in recent years, with a lack of unified data platforms and in-house skills among the barriers to adoption.

However, there are signs that things are changing, with a generation of data-savvy coaches and players and game changing AI technologies ready to deliver a revolution in soccer analysis. 

Former England cricketer and national team selector Ed Smith talks to SportsPro about the changing nature of leadership.

He explains how leaders must balance data driven decision making with human judgement and the need for human centric AI strategies.

He also discusses the importance of building strong teams and the value of formal education in leadership.

Ed Smith is the co-founder and director of the Institute of Sports Humanities.

The Commonwealth Games have faced one of the most turbulent periods in their history. After Victoria pulled out as host in 2023, uncertainty loomed over the event’s future, its relevance, and whether the traditional model could survive.

Now, with Glasgow hosting the 2026 Commonwealth Games on a significantly reduced budget and a condensed planning timeline, Commonwealth Sport is positioning the event as the beginning of a new era, built around a leaner, more sustainable model designed to attract more host cities in the years ahead.

In this episode of the SportsPro Podcast, SportsPro reporter Josh Sim is joined by Commonwealth Sport chief executive Katie Sadleir.

She discusses the lessons learned from Victoria's withdrawal, Glasgow's rapid turnaround, the Games' evolving commercial and broadcast strategy, and why she feels the reset will secure the Commonwealth Games' future well beyond 2026.

Former New Zealand captain Bex Smith spent much of her football career playing in Europe and came away convinced that the structures underpinning the women's game were holding it back.

Now, as the founder and chief executive of the Crux Football multi-club group, the former Fifa executive is implementing an ownership model built on carving women's teams out of the men's structure to run them as standalone businesses.

In this episode of the SportsPro Podcast, Smith joins Head of Editorial Sam Carp to discuss the launch of Crux, the criteria shaping acquisitions of clubs like Montpellier and FC Rosengård,

and where she sees the biggest opportunities for revenue growth.

Recorded at SportsPro London in April, the conversation also explores the growing role of MCOs in women’s football, how Fifa and Uefa could incentivise more investment in the game and Crux’s ambition to scale to five teams. 

Prem Rugby CEO Simon Massie-Taylor talks SportsPro through plans to make league more financially sustainable, grow the audience and take advantage of sport’s rise as an asset class.

Brad Ross worked on four Fifa World Cups during more than a decade with Coca-Cola, but he likens the expanded 2026 edition to having 104 Super Bowls in five to six weeks. Now, as managing director of global marketing partnerships at Bank of America, he is overseeing the financial services giant’s first-ever sponsorship of soccer’s flagship international tournament.

In this episode of the SportsPro Podcast, Ross sits down with Head of Editorial Sam Carp to discuss the strategy underpinning Bank of America’s World Cup debut and what opportunities and challenges the expansion of the tournament creates for sponsors.

Recorded at SportsPro London, the conversation also explores how the bank will activate the partnership across its 100 US markets, what it takes to cut through in a noisy tournament environment, and how it is tracking ROI.

There’s also time for Ross to reveal what it’s really like to work on a World Cup and share his key piece of advice for sponsors.

Beth Barrett-Wild has fond memories of the 2017 ICC Women’s World Cup final, which England won on home soil. Nine years later, as the tournament director of the upcoming ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, she is leading the ECB’s efforts to ensure the event accelerates the long-term growth of women’s cricket in England and Wales.

In this episode of the SportsPro Podcast, Barrett-Wild sits down with Reporter Josh Sim to discuss the tournament’s revenue goals, the preparation work that's gone into the event and how the T20 Women’s World Cup can leave a lasting legacy.

Recorded at SportsPro London, the conversation also coversthe tournament’s broadcast and digital content strategies, and the audience insights emerging from the competition’s ticket sales.