E181: The business of jeopardy

Today we’re talking about one of the most fundamental parts of the sports business: the product. And specifically the process of creating and adapting competition formats to increase jeopardy, fan connection and commercial value.  This is a conversation about the way in which leagues, tournaments and competitions are structured, and its relationship to the commercial value of sport, both as a way of driving demand but also on the supply side, creating opportunities for investment. This is true whether we’re talking about Twenty20 cricket and the rise of the IPL or the current questions around the ECB’s new brainchild, The Hundred; the Premier League play-offs; The Super League; or FIBA’s 3x3 basketball format and Rugby Sevens, both of which feature at the Olympics. Could a better format have saved The Super League? How can big tournaments be made more fun to watch but avoid contrived gimmicks? How can competitive balance be achieved without punishing excellence? And what does the data say about how women’s football, cricket and rugby could benefit by balancing components such as jeopardy, quality and connection with fans?  Our guests are Omar Chauduri and Ben Marlow, from Twenty First Group, who have thought about this question a great deal, and created a model that approaches the format question through a data led decision making framework. I find the results of their work fascinating, for what it says about sport and the questions it poses for everyone, from fans, teams and event rights holders through to television and media owners and financial investors. So wherever you are in the sports biz jungle, this is a topic that talks directly to your day job.   If you like the podcasts you’ll love the Unofficial Partner newsletter, that goes direct to the inbox of thousands of senior executives across the global sports business every Thursday. Subscribe via unofficialpartner.com or via Substack Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry. To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartnerWe publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday. These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport. Our entire back catalogue of 500 sports business conversations are available free of charge here. Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify and every podcast app. If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series and live events, you can reach us via the website.