ISC Podcast Daily Show 6

ISC Podcast Daily Show 6

Today we will focus on Esports

Sport fans engaged with Sports because of all the positive vibes conveyed by the energy created by a racing start's "lights out", a basketball slam dunk or a football last minute screamer. With the arriving of Covid-19 al those feelings have been taken away leaving the spectator with a void.

Can eSports fill that void? Is it now the time for eSports to grab all the consideration from the major sports institution?

Virtual gaming is surely a passionate pastime among the youngest generation, and during this time, is also re-attracting all those people who grew up with a Joypad in the hands. As we discover eSports as a new "reality" full of competition, we see that, in the last years, many clubs from different sports have already placed a bet on this new kind of sector. Football teams joined eGaming in order to increase their followers around Asia where, it is believed, there is the most educated audience in terms of technology among the youngest generations.

Anyway, during this first weeks of quarantine, several leagues, clubs and TV channels broadcasted Online gaming all around the world. An Italian TV Channel organized a FIFA 20 online tournament between legends of football; MotoGP saw a virtual race, with professional commentators, between its major bikers including current world champion Marc Marquez; The American TV broadcaster NBC is displaying previously-scheduled games of the Washington City sides of hockey and basketball, respectively the Washington Capitals on NHL 20 and the Washington Wizards on NBA 2K20; NFL featured in the Fox Esports Maddel NFL Invitational, where 8 American Football stars competed in an elimination tournament. NBA aired a tournament where each team will have its own players representing them.

The highlight sport is now occupied by eSports with no other competition in the sports industry. But, with this huge necessity to keep the fans engaged, it is still unclear how virtual sports should be taken. Most of the digital content proposed is, indeed, pure exhibition. NBA itself has its own separated eSports competition, with professional eGamers, called the NBA 2K League and many are already questioning on how the tournament between real players, previously mentioned, can create help in increasing awareness toward the official virtual championship. Formula 1, also, is delivering a week special show concentrating all the hype on the figure of the current McLaren's driver Lando Norris. A couple of weeks ago the "Challenge Lando" invitational saw actual fans racing against Norris.

Virtual Championships are already established in the top European football leagues, but promoting them during Covid-19 period is the key to gain success in the future. In Germany the Bundesliga launched the Virtual Bundesliga on last 28th and 29h of March where 26 professional clubs were represented on the game FIFA 20 by a team formed of one professional eGamer and one real footballer (Only FC Bayern Munich was missing from this initiative since the club is partner with competitors of Konami). This way, the German football league kept the fans engaged with their idols and promoted, at the same time, the competition between the professional eSporters giving them such a high spot.

As more eyeballs will continue in getting attracted by the gaming competitions, more sponsors will follow, maybe not now but in the future and post COVID-19. COVID-19 presents a window of opportunity for e-sports.

Episoder(176)

The Business of Sport - Hugo Inglis

The Business of Sport - Hugo Inglis

Hugo Inglis is a four-time Olympian with New Zealand. For over a decade, he scored goals at the very top of international elite Field Hockey. Nowadays, Hugo is a co-founder of High Impact Athletes (HIA), a global movement empowering athletes to fund the world's most effective climate and social solutions. Under his leadership, HIA has grown to over 220 athletes across 48 sports and 34 countries, collectively driving almost $2 million in donations, improving almost half a million lives, protecting nearly 7 million animals and mitigating more than 600,000+ tonnes of CO₂e. Grounded in science, technology, and storytelling, Hugo is committed to turning sport's cultural power into real-world impact.

24 Okt 36min

Her Business of Sport - Lindsey Eckhouse

Her Business of Sport - Lindsey Eckhouse

Lindsey Eckhouse is the Chief Revenue Officer at Mercury 13, a multi-club ownership group focussed on acquiring controlling stakes in professional women's teams in Europe and Latin America. Lindsey has previous experience in sport with the NFL and Maclaren Racing.

21 Sep 41min

Her Business of Sport - Sally Sheppard

Her Business of Sport - Sally Sheppard

With the Women's Rugby World Cup 2025 in full swing, the RFU's Head of Consumer Engagement, Sally Sheppard, joined our Her Business of Sport podcast to assess the success of the tournament so far and to reveal an insight into England Rugby's plans to harness new supporters in the future.

15 Sep 37min

Her Business of Sport - Emily Heath

Her Business of Sport - Emily Heath

After more than 15 years with Unilever and over a decade as Global Lead of their Rexona/Sure brand of deodorant, Emily has led numerous high impact global campaigns and strategic partnerships. The Sure brand, known as Rexona globally, is over a hundred years old, but Emily's focus is very much on the future, developing on-going partnerships with Manchester City FC, the reigning World Club Champions, Chelsea Football Club and the UEFA Women's Euro Tournament, recently won by England. This is part of a broader strategy to drive brand growth, global visibility and deeper consumer engagement. Her work has been instrumental in unlocking new audiences, delivering measurable commercial returns and helping to establish Rexona as the world's number one deodorant brand.

8 Sep 31min

Her Business of Sport -  Thayer Lavielle

Her Business of Sport - Thayer Lavielle

Thayer Lavielle says she is never afraid of a blank page, something she has proven over the last 6 years, by leading the development of The Collective, a women-focussed division of Wasserman, designed to bridge gaps in gender equity in sport and music through community, insights, events, tools and services. Since 2019, that "blank page" has grown to include The Collective Think Tank, The Goal Post and the Collective Marketplace. Thayer has negotiated over $250m worth of deals across talent, brand, property and venues and has extensive experience with leading female-focussed brands including L'Oreal and Lancome. The Collective are partners for the ISC Women's Sport Business Summit, at the National Gallery in London on September 25th 2025.

29 Aug 29min

The Business of Sport - Justin Papadakis

The Business of Sport - Justin Papadakis

A year out from the next FIFA World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico, one man is leading the charge to create a sustainable platform for soccer in the USA. For over 50 years, American soccer has relied on importing players from around the world, mostly at the end of their careers, to play in stadiums designed for more popular American sports. Now though, a former college goalkeeper turned entrepreneur is trying to change all that. Justin Papadakis is the Chief Real Estate Officer and Deputy CEO of the USA's fastest growing pre-professional and professional soccer organisation, which is developing new talent and new stadia side by side. As young and home-grown players are secured to play in teams across the country, developers are being recruited to build stadia integral to new Real Estate Entertainment Districts, to sustain the growth of truly American soccer when the World Cup has moved on.

26 Aug 30min

The Business of Sport Steven Ball

The Business of Sport Steven Ball

Imagine being a student at one of the best sporting universities in your country. An opportunity to learn from the best and to play in the greatest facilities available. Well, for Steven Ball, that dream not only became a reality, but almost 30 years later, he is still there, as CEO of The High Performance Centre (hpc) at the University of Pretoria in South Africa. HPC is a partner organisation of the ISC, offering some of the best facilities for national teams, professional clubs, universities and colleges to enjoy over 72 hectares of training and recreational facilities.

21 Aug 27min

The Business of Sport - Paul Stewart and Ian Bishop

The Business of Sport - Paul Stewart and Ian Bishop

A new organisation has been formed to offer guidance, education and legal support to those working to protect children, young adults and the vulnerable in sport. The Union of Safeguarding Officers, with a Mission Statement of "Every Child Safe, Every Voice Heard", was formed by former Manchester City and Tottenham star Paul Stewart, who has spent almost a decade raising awareness of sexual abuse in sport, following his own harrowing experiences as a young footballer. Many ISC delegates at our event at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in 2024 witnessed Paul's story as he spoke about his mission to prevent what happened to him, ever happening again. Paul has enlisted the help of another ex-footballer Ian Bishop, who has over 20 year's experience of the youth system in the USA after a top-level career in England with Everton, Manchester City and West Ham United. Ian is General Secretary of USO, Paul is Chair of the Board. They hope the union will provide support to both professionals and volunteers, tasked with safeguarding at their clubs and associations.

25 Jul 28min

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