How star signing drive fandom, and is short-form content king?

This week on the podcast, Yanni is joined by a trio of industry experts, including Kristen Rodgers, the sports and media partnerships lead at Tagboard, Matt Gentry, 77 Sports Management’s managing director and Andy Selby, Sports Loft’s very own head of strategy. Our first discussion kicks off with a deep dive into how leagues that sit outside of Europe’s top tier are using star signings to grow their fanbases. Our guests examine the Messi transfer to Inter Miami and the arrivals of Ronaldo, Benzema, and Henderson in the Saudi Pro League, exploring their impact on the league's popularity. Moving on, we dig into the changing consumption habits in sports media, fueled by the rise of short-form content. With YouTube execs expressing concern that Shorts is cannibalising its core product, Matt, Kristen and Andy discuss what’s driving the shift to bitesize formats and what it means for sports. Plus, they examine the evolving strategies of young athletes, as they navigate the world of content and find themselves becoming influencers and content creators. Timestamps: 07:00 – Messi to Inter Miami 09:00 – Athletes as creators  12:45 – Building athlete brands 18:00 – Saudi Pro League vs MLS 22:00 – Athletes as investors 30:00 – Short-form vs long-form content 36:00 – How social media is impacting other formats 41:00 – Young athletes navigating social media 44:00 – The success of the docuseries format