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This edition presented by SEAT 2026 in Charlotte, June 28-30 2026.

Key Reads

NRL Broadcast Rights Up in the Air as Amazon, Southern Cross Launch Bids to Challenge Foxtel and NineAustralian Financial Review *

Amazon's NRL push reshapes Australia's sports media landscape.

AU, NRL, Media Rights, Streaming, Technology

Foxtel Targets $4 Billion Exclusive NRL Deal to Block Nine NetworkMinistry of Sport *

Foxtel's $4B NRL bid escalates rights arms race.

AU, NRL, Media Rights, Broadcasting, Sponsorship

Commanders launching season ticket member value menu with 15 items $10 or lessSports Business Journal *

Washington rethinks food pricing to drive membership growth.

US, NFL, FanExperience, Ticketing, Sponsorship

The Knicks Are Printing Cash This PostseasonHuddle Up *

Inside MSG's monster playoff windfall from Knicks mania.

US, NBA, Revenue, Sponsorship, Media-rights

Sports Fan Marketing: Why Brands That Only Chase Reach Will LoseCulture of Sport

Argues depth of fandom beats raw reach for sponsors.

Global, Sponsorship, Marketing, Fan Engagement, Strategy

Professional Sports

IFAB confirms sweeping rule changes for 2026 World CupInsider Sport *

Major World Cup rule tweaks will alter product and coverage.

FIFA, World Cup, Rules, VAR, Media Rights

Zee acquires FIFA World Cup 2026 broadcast and streaming rightsSportsMint Media

Zee's World Cup deal reshapes India's football media market.

FIFA World Cup, Media Rights, Broadcasting, India, Strategy

Illinois' Last-Minute Push for $5B Bears Stadium Runs Out of TimeFront Office Sports

Bears stadium saga shows politics of billion‑dollar venues.

US, NFL, Stadiums, Real Estate, Infrastructure Planning

Penguins' New Owners, the Hoffmanns, Would Like to Involve Mario LemieuxThe Athletic

New owners lean on a franchise legend to steady brand.

US, NHL, Ownership, Brand, Governance

Digital & Social

Apple's new Sports app shows us exactly what good data visualisation looks likeCreative Boom *

Apple sets a new UX bar for live sports data.

Global, FanEngagement, DataVisualisation, Product, AI

Why Vine's 6-Second Doses Of Cringe Are Back From the DeadEntrepreneurship Handbook

Short‑short video returns, with big implications for sport.

Global, Digital, Social Media, Content Strategy, Fan Engagement

Hackers access IG accounts by… asking Meta AI?404 Media *

Meta AI exploit exposes new risks for team social accounts.

Global, AI, Security, Social Media, Brand Protection

Media & Entertainment

Samsung TV Plus adds BBC, NBCU, Sony & Amazon MGM to FAST in AustraliaB&T

FAST channels in Australia point to ad‑funded futures.

AU, FAST, Streaming, Media Rights, Advertising

ESPN signs a two-year deal with the Women's National Football ConferenceVariety

ESPN backs women's tackle football with new rights deal.

US, MediaRights, WomenSport, Sponsorship, Broadcast

Podcasting Is CookedYouTube

Conference talk questions podcasting's future in a video world.

Global, MediaRights, Digital, ContentStrategy, AI

Geek Out

How We Built a Lab to Evaluate Data AgentsHex

Practical framework for testing AI agents on messy data.

Global, AI, Analytics, Sponsorship, Sports Business

The Postgres Developer's Guide to Vector Index TradeoffsTiger Data

Deep dive on vector search choices for content archives.

Global, AI, Data Infrastructure, Content Discovery, Sports Tech

AI

How Optimizing for AI Answers Is Taking Over MarketingMarketing Brew

Explains how to influence what AI surfaces about you.

Global, AI, Fan Engagement, Content Strategy, Search

Every Brand's Website Is Now Competing With an AI Summary of ItselfThe State of Brand *

AI summaries threaten traffic to club and league sites.

Global, AI, Search, Sponsorship, Ticketing

Make You Think

Gen Z's GatoradeMedium

Breaks down PRIME's playbook disrupting legacy sports drinks.

Global, Sports Marketing, Creator Economy, Sponsorship, Gen Z

How to prove marketing impact when attribution goes darkMarTech

Measurement playbook for a privacy‑first, AI‑search world.

Global, AI, Analytics, Sponsorship, MarketingMeasurement

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Join us at SEAT 2026 in Charlotte

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