In short
MotoGP’s transition into the American era under Liberty Media; how MotoGP is internationalizing its commercial/media strategy (including Tech3’s $50m investment); plus sports-business news and an update on FIFA President Gianni Infantino’s looming re-election fight and the “FIFA election campaign” dynamics.
Guests
No named guests in this episode. Hosts are James Emmett (Leaders Editorial Director) and David Cushnan. Guest backgrounds mentioned: Carlos Espalita (MotoGP chief sporting officer; long-time Dorna/MotoGP family business figure) and Gunter Steiner (former F1 role; brought in for guidance).
Key claims
US know-how is being applied to MotoGP without simply copying F1; MotoGP is trying to grow mainstream overlap with F1 fans; FIFA’s next election is March, with challenger deadline 18 Nov and no declared challengers yet.
Notable examples
Tech3 bought for $50m by investors including David Blitzer; possible MotoGP demo at Circuit of the Americas; Infantino’s “working the room” via travel; confederation leaders’ open letter; empty seats at athletics events (Birmingham, Glasgow).
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Chapters
Tap a time to open that second in VODiscussion on MotoGP and FIFA President
0:30 to 1:40
Hosts discuss the upcoming events in the sports world including MotoGP and FIFA.
“When you said October there, David, I immediately thought, oh God, he's messed up the word October because my daughter has a birthday in October, but pronounces it Toctober.”
Reflections on Personal Experiences
1:40 to 2:50
Hosts share personal experiences and thoughts on recent industry happenings.
“And I listened to your podcast episode with Carlos Espalita and Gunter Steiner at 1.75 speed on my journey back.”
Insight into MotoGP's Recent Changes
2:50 to 7:20
In-depth discussion on MotoGP's evolution under Liberty Media's ownership.
“This was before their race at Silverstone at the weekend, the British Grand Prix.”
The Future of MotoGP and F1 Relationship
7:20 to 11:30
Exploration of the potential collaboration between MotoGP and F1.
“as chief sporting officer, who is the, largely speaking, the front man of the operation.”
Market Opportunities for MotoGP
11:30 to 14:03
Discussion on how MotoGP aims to capture new markets and enhance its appeal.
“And from a Liberty point of view, that will be part of this, you know, as they're under the same corporate roof.”
Investing in MotoGP: Opportunities and Challenges
14:03 to 17:41
Explore the current investment landscape in MotoGP and its implications.
“So it's a real challenge, but a real opportunity as well.”
Breaking News: Lakers Sale and F1 Changes
17:41 to 21:47
Discuss the sale of the Lakers and new developments in the F1 Cadillac team.
“reached me literally while we've been recording you are yes go for it late breaking news the The Los Angeles Lakers are being sold to an ownership group led by Josh Kushner.”
Aston Villa's New Sponsorship: NordVPN
21:47 to 23:25
Examine Aston Villa's sponsorship with NordVPN and its implications.
“But I think there's been a subtle shift that's happened in the nomenclature around these companies.”
FIFA Leadership Dynamics: Infantino's Future
23:25 to 28:00
Analyze the political landscape surrounding FIFA and Gianni Infantino's leadership.
“Were you trying to sign in from Kurdistan or something like that?”
FIFA Leadership and Challenges Ahead
28:00 to 30:28
Explore the current dynamics and potential challengers for FIFA leadership.
“And he will, in all likelihood, win some votes as a result of that or win some votes back.”
Show all 13 chapters
Leaders Week London Preview
30:28 to 33:19
Discussion about the upcoming Leaders Week London and key topics expected.
“7th and 8th of October, as you know, as everybody will know by now.”
Empty Seats and Pricing in Sports
33:19 to 35:35
Examining the issue of empty seats at sports events and pricing strategies.
“Is that people getting their pricing strategy wrong and misjudging the moment?”
Show Closure and Future Plans
35:35 to 36:48
Wrap-up of the episode and a tease for future appearances.
“But I do think in a broader sense, there will probably start to be discussion about price of tickets and whether sports events truly are, at all levels, affordable now.”
Transcript
Automatic transcript. May contain errors.0:04James Emmett:Hello and welcome to the Leaders Worth Knowing podcast, the sports industry show from Leaders where we talk about what's worth knowing in the business of sport this week. I'm Leaders Editorial Director James Emmett.
0:15David Cushnan:And I'm David Cushnan. On the show this week, MotoGP enters its American era.
0:20James Emmett:The latest as Jenny Ampantino grinds it out as FIFA President.
0:24David Cushnan:And what will we all be talking about in October at Leaders Week London. This is Leaders Worth Knowing.
0:31James Emmett:Yes, it is. When you said October there, David, I immediately thought, oh God, he's messed up the word October because my daughter has a birthday in October, but pronounces it Toctober.
0:46David Cushnan:Toctober.
0:47James Emmett:Toctober. Sounds better. It does sound better, doesn't it? And I'm now so used to that that I feel like any deviation from that is wrong. Well.
0:54David Cushnan:What will we be talking about in Toctober? I apologise. Yes. How are you doing? Very well, thank you. Busy, busy times here in the sports industry, isn't it? Tell me about it. Lots going on. It's just like there's been no summer at all. The actual World Cup feels so long ago.
1:12James Emmett:Doesn't it? It was a long World Cup. It was a long World Cup. And yet. What a long time ago.
1:15David Cushnan:And I believe the Premier League starts next week.
1:17James Emmett:It's just around the corner. Yeah. I've just been to the Hurlingham Club, David. Have you been there? I have been there once before. Lovely bit of town. Lovely bit of real estate. Yes. Fantastic. I'd love to own that and then sell it. Apparently Giles Morgan is a member there. Is he? And I believe I saw a couple of other sports industry luminaries once I was there as well. You were in the lunchroom? I shouldn't. I shouldn't say who they were. Just outside. All right. On the terrace, actually. Very nice. Very nice, yeah. Very good. Very nice. And I listened to your podcast episode with Carlos Espalita and Gunter Steiner at 1.75 speed on my journey back.
1:55James Emmett:I tell you what, I don't usually do that. I'm not a... Never a wasted second. I'm not one of these guys who likes to hack information upload into my brain. I like to listen to things at normal speed. I like to read things myself. I don't make use of any technology to summarize things for me. But, you know, I had to do it. We booked in. And Gunter Steiner at 1.75 speed. Wow. Is an experience. Do you know what?
2:27David Cushnan:I think Carlos Espalito would probably have liked to do the podcast recording at 1.75 speed because he was on an absolute time limit to get to the Liberty Media Q2 earnings call that he dialed into just as I was being ushered out of the room. But yes, it was fun. spent some time in the orbit of MotoGP last week whilst they were in London. They did a ride. This was before their race at Silverstone at the weekend, the British Grand Prix. They did a rider press conference at Altonet, which is on Tottenham Court Road, basically on Oxford Street in London, sort of immersive space that's cropped up over the last few years, doing all sorts of fun promo bits.
3:12David Cushnan:And yeah, put on a spot of lunch for some MotoGP executives and a few of us. For some bike heads. Yeah, very useful and fascinating to hear how things are working out under the ownership of Liberty Media.
3:28James Emmett:Yeah. It's not a sport that I have watched much of in the past. I don't really have a kind of a fan view of MotoGP. And I tell you what else was interesting to hear at 1.75 speed was you pronounce several versions of the Tech 3, Tech 3, Tech 3 team. Yes. And then follow it up with the description as something of a romantic team. And I thought, oh, what's this about?
3:58David Cushnan:Well, they have always been. So I have always known them as Tech 3 because they were under French ownership. Yeah. the previous team owner um a frenchman and they have always been an independent team that has punched a little bit above its weight versus some of the major manufacturers in moto gp they exist more or less to go racing don't they yes you might say that um but now uh have been acquired for 50 million dollars which is um a development for moto gp and um comes just at the moment when the entire sport is has come under the ownership of Liberty Media and therefore under the same uh the same roof as F1 maybe a little bit of background here is useful so this is uh you know world championship motorcycling has been uh has been going for decades um and has spawned some big big stars over the years so Giacomo Agostini was the big star back in the early days there was Mike Halewood, John Surtees, the only man to win the Motorcycle World Championship and the Formula One World Championship.
5:07David Cushnan:Barry Sheen, of course, was the big British star in the 1970s. Then you went through various others, Mick Doohan in the 1990s. And of course, Valentino Rossi, probably the biggest superstar in global motorcycle history. There was a good one the other day. Yes, he was and still laps quickly in a sports car. But from a business point of view, the first real moment of development for World Championship Motorcycling was when Dorner took over the Espalita family. So Carmelo Espalita, who is still the CEO of what used to be called Dorner, but is now called MotoGP Sports and Entertainment.
5:47James Emmett:Often referred to as the Spanish Bernie Eccleston.
5:51David Cushnan:Correct. And he took over in the early 90s. He was involved in Spanish motorsport, was involved in the construction of the Circuit to Catalunya in Barcelona, home of the Spanish Grand Prix on two wheels and four wheels. And Dorna acquired the commercial rights to the series. And like F1 and the FIA, you have Dorna or had Dorna and the FIM as the sanctioning body, Dorna as the promoter. Very Spanish organization and no surprise that Spanish riders have dominated the sport. There are four Spanish rounds out of 22 in the World Championship. So very much Spanish owned, operated until the point that Liberty Media came along pretty much last year to take over the sport.
6:43David Cushnan:And so we have a series now, previously known as 500cc, but in 2002 rebranded to MotoGP, that is now getting all the benefits, all the know-how, all the hoopla of US ownership. And it's a really interesting transition. It's very striking that Carlos Espalita, son of Carmelo, is the man being put forward. He's come through the ranks, through what was effectively the family business. They've taken on investment at various times through the years. But it's now very much Carlos Espalita as chief sporting officer, who is the, largely speaking, the front man of the operation. And he really, as I think, came across in the conversation, embracing the US expertise that he now has to hand.
7:36James Emmett:Yeah, and it seems to me that this, you know, you positioned it there as US ownership meets Spanish sporting institution, really. But this has been a sort of gradual internationalization story, I think. It was an internationalization story that predates liberty taking full control. And it's an internationalization story that has woven itself into the executive of the organization. it's really a move away from an all-Spanish organization. There have been some notable folks hired. And we know the recruiters who've done it, don't we, David? Well, one of us does. So Dan Rosamondo was a notable hire three or four years ago now, moving away from a top sponsorship role at the NBA and coming in as chief commercial officer at MotoGP.
8:38James Emmett:He was in position for pretty much two years, a lot of air miles there, putting in the commercial groundwork, the structural groundwork for this global storytelling effort, an effort to beef up MotoGP as a media sponsorship commercial proposition, a storytelling proposition. There have also been some other hires since Dan came and went, really. So whilst he was there, he oversaw a process to install Kelly Britton as CMO, I think. Michael Gibson was hired from Manchester United, an intriguing hire there. And Vince Russell, who used to be the CFO at Channel 4, also there. So, yeah, that's potentially why they're inviting you along for lunch in London, David.
9:35David Cushnan:Yes, indeed. What did you eat, by the way? I had a pie.
9:40James Emmett:Of course you did. Yeah.
9:42David Cushnan:Well, we were at a very restaurant renowned for pie. A pie joint, yeah. The missing piece in terms of the C-suite ranks at MotoGP, kind of, I suppose, as Dan Rosamundo has moved on, is the chief commercial officer role. So I think that is the next one that we will see filled in some shape or form.
10:03James Emmett:Some suggestions that, and because it's under the Liberty umbrella, that Emily Fraser, who fulfills that role at Formula One, is sort of being positioned. Can she do a group role across the two?
10:16David Cushnan:Well, one of the things we know about F1 is there's not a lot of sponsorship inventory left to sell at the moment.
10:22James Emmett:But this is an interesting point, this whole, they now have the same owner. It's a touchy subject and always has been for MotoGP. The idea of, you know, are you F1 on two wheels? Are you positioning yourself as F1 on two wheels? In some respects, yes, of course. In other respects, people within MotoGP get very defensive at that kind of suggestion. As do fans. Of course. And it strikes me again as a complete layman not watching, you know, any MotoGP. formula one seems to have a broad spectrum of fans um different types there's different types of fandom of formula one but moto gp seems to have mainly hardcore motorbike fans is that a fair
11:08David Cushnan:yeah i think broadly speaking that's fair i know moto gp are doing a lot of research and this is something that kelly britain i think is is leading on in her marketing role to really pin down who a MotoGP fan is, you know, how many, but actually really dig into who they are, what they're into and actually where the overlap is. And from a Liberty point of view, that will be part of this, you know, as they're under the same corporate roof. How many F1 fans are also MotoGP fans and vice versa? And I think one of the elements that I asked Carlos about that he wouldn't really be drawn on was the extent to which MotoGP and F1 will work together.
11:53David Cushnan:And of course, there will be ways and means. I think there's plans for some sort of MotoGP demonstration at the Circuit of the Americas when the US F1 Grand Prix takes place later in the year. There's definitely scope. I think a lot of people have made a bit of a reach to, well, they could just host a joint race weekend together. Logistically, I think that's incredibly difficult to do, such as the size of the championships, the different stakeholders involved, broadcasters, brands, etc. Not quite sure how you do that, although maybe. There is also a real desire to point out from all the MotoGP executives that I was chatting to that simply taking what Liberty Media has done with F1 and applying it to MotoGP will not work in quite the same way.
12:43David Cushnan:You can look at what F1 has done, real revamp investment in its social and digital content. There's definitely elements of that, that MotoGP and its teams can take on. The Drive to Survive documentary, well, MotoGP has tried that, didn't quite land. I think it was an Amazon series a few years ago. There's a movie. Is there a way of doing that in some shape or form? There's calendar expansion. there's how you tweak race formats and weekends and there's a couple of ideas I think floating around in terms of start times for MotoGP races but fundamentally at a strategic level the mission is broadly similar it's basically go and attack the US as a market as a strategically important market and there is a MotoGP race each year in the US currently no US riders but there are other key markets that MotoGP hasn't cracked that they absolutely could do.
13:43David Cushnan:The UK is one of them and the British Grand Prix had a little upward swing in terms of attendance this weekend, but the attendance is almost, I think it's five or six times less than the three, four-day weekend total for the F1 race. There's no British rider. MotoGP has been behind a paywall on BT Sport and TNT sports in the UK for, I think, just about a decade or more now. So it's a real challenge, but a real opportunity as well. And I think that's how they're looking at it, to try and crack what has been a market that the sport has underserved for some time.
14:19James Emmett:Yeah. And clearly it's not just Liberty at the sort of league, the organisation level. It is a proposition that is attracting institutional US investment at the moment. In fact, I was just having a conversation earlier today, David, with someone who's in the investment game, who pointed to a couple of MotoGP opportunities that have been flung his way. And there is a sense that there is a rising tide there. And now is the time to get on. Absolutely.
14:53David Cushnan:And the rising tide extends to MotoGP working, I think, in lockstep more with its teams, 11 teams at the moment, including some major manufacturers, including some more satellite independent teams like Tech3. And it is a real statement and a real boost for the series that serious investors, including David Blitzer, through his Bolt Ventures vehicle, have clubbed together to pay$50 million for the Tech 3 team, one of the smaller outfits in MotoGP. Now, again, if you do a sort of apples to oranges comparison with F1, the valuations are way down on what an F1 team, any of the F1 teams is currently valued at.
15:38David Cushnan:But you can see what Liberty Media is trying to do. They've done the complex governance work to get the teams agreed and working with the promoter and the governing body. Everybody's on the same page. Everybody can move theoretically together. Yes, there will be squabbles over various things. But I think that's why Gunter Stein is involved and has come over from F1 and is definitely providing, in his own way, some experience, some guidance to, probably to Liberty in terms of what it does and what it does differently. But certainly to Carlos Espalita and the sort of the central management at MotoGP.
16:16James Emmett:Now, earlier this year, did they not have a sort of Concord agreement issue? Is that now all worked through? That's all resolved. The contract between the teams and the promoter.
16:27David Cushnan:Correct. That's all sorted until at least 2031, which is the longest period it's ever been.
16:33James Emmett:This is essentially the CBA between the teams. Correct.
16:36David Cushnan:Yeah. So as I say, that provides the basis. Everybody's worked out the financial bit. Everybody's worked out the governance bit, the rule changing bit. And also it sounds as though that MotoGP itself has made some concessions to teams in terms of access and what they're able to do because they need the teams to be like the F1 teams producing more of their own content to be able to provide more of a platform to brand partners to make bigger stars of the riders I mean really in terms of mainstream knowledge it's at the moment and they're all fabulous riders but it's mark marquez seven-time world champion and the rest are not that well known certainly in the uk certainly in the us and that's the bit they need to change yes indeed
17:31James Emmett:um a nice proposition for someone to sink the teeth into i would suggest indeed indeed should
Read the full transcript
17:37David Cushnan:we have a look at what else is going on yeah can i give you a couple of bits of news that have reached me literally while we've been recording you are yes go for it late breaking news the The Los Angeles Lakers are being sold to an ownership group led by Josh Kushner. Who? Josh Kushner and Bob Iger for$12 billion, according to NBC News and a person familiar with the matter. Lakers. So this is the Lakers that were previously sold to Mark Walter. Just literally a few days ago. October 2025. October. For around$10 billion. So this is big and indeed breaking news. which we might reflect on a little bit more when we have a bit more information yeah well if there's
18:20James Emmett:substance to that that is um a remarkable turnaround time scale wise from one record acquisition to another the lakers currently the high watermark for any um from any team sailed in the world um or whatever sport the latest nfl franchise um sale i think was in Seattle which went for nine point something billion uh so to push that mark yet again uh in LA to 12 billion is um is extraordinary Josh Kushner's a busy boy isn't he Bob Iger's a busy
18:55David Cushnan:boy as well yeah yeah um so you said you had a couple of pieces do you have another piece of news uh well there's a change in Formula One actually there's a new team principal at the Cadillac F1 team, actually also Mark Walter involved in that team. Marcin Bukowski, who has been in and around F1 in various roles, has been appointed as the new team principal of the Cadillac team. He will, looks as though he will replace Graham Loudon, who has run the team as it has been built up and as it's gone through its debut season in F1. There's a definite shift happening with the Cadillac F1 team. They've come in, they've done a great job to start up.
19:31David Cushnan:they're running at the back in Formula 1 in this first season as everybody expected given the short lead time but there's a definite suggestion that a team which has been sort of based duly in the US and at Silverstone in the UK is looking more to the US for a permanent base which I think is is the subject of some uncertainty at the moment amongst the ranks.
19:57James Emmett:Can I tell you what's been going on at Bob Iger's old place of work? Please. Well, Disney, of course. They have just signed a wide-ranging global streaming partnership with Formula E. The deal spans 144 territories, including the US, where the races will stream on Disney Plus and ESPN Plus. Aston Villa, a footy team over here in the UK, have confirmed NordVPN as the club's new official digital security partner. And price comparison website Compare the Market has been named as a new partner of the English Football League with its first activation being at League Two club Crew Alexandra, where they'll temporarily rename themselves Crew Alexandra after the brand's famous meerkat.
20:47David Cushnan:Fun. Will Dang has joined the PGA Tour as SVP of Media Strategy and he's the latest NFL executive to join CEO Brian Rolap, himself, of course, a former NFLer. Former Everton CEO Richard Kenyon is the new CEO at Lancashire Cricket, replacing the retiring Daniel Giddley. He is switching from the same role at Nottinghamshire County Cricket. And Greg Hamilton has been promoted to Managing Director EMEA sponsorship at Two Circles.
21:18James Emmett:There's been a range of promotions at Two Circles, actually. There is very often.
21:21David Cushnan:And I really enjoy Gareth Bolch's LinkedIn videos of sort of him in action announcing them at internal company meetings. Yeah.
21:29James Emmett:Did you see the most recent one, which was like a sort of fantasy draft style? Yes. Really good. Good fun. Really good. Can I reflect very quickly on Aston Villa's new sponsorship with NordVPN? Please do. Which is another great deal for aid Philby, the chief commercial officer at Villa. But I think there's been a subtle shift that's happened in the nomenclature around these companies. I think it's how these companies position themselves rather than how the sponsorship category is being sold. But these VPN companies, which have chosen football properties predominantly to push themselves, whether that's rights holder organizations or football media podcast, we have all heard the multiple podcast ads across everywhere.
22:16James Emmett:I think this category of deal caused some consternation in football when it started appearing five, six years ago, maybe more. Since VPN services are the principal way in which people are able to pirate media content. No. Apparently so, David, I'm led to believe. and yes I think it was a bit of a challenge centrally certainly for the Premier League to reconcile itself to the fact that the clubs want to do this type of deal now that security is being used as the the term that these companies like to categorize themselves as I think it is much safer ground for this type of deal.
23:09David Cushnan:Just a thought. I've never used a VPN that's worked. Come at me. Come at me, VPN companies. Have you not used NordVPN?
23:17James Emmett:I bet you've just always used free VPN services, right?
23:21David Cushnan:No, no, no. I've attempted to...
23:23James Emmett:Name and shame, David. Which ones?
23:26David Cushnan:NordVPN.
23:27James Emmett:You've used NordVPN, hasn't it? I have attempted to use NordVPN. Were you trying to sign in from Kurdistan or something like that? I was trying to watch a Grand Prix in Saudi Arabia. Um,
23:38David Cushnan:anyway, anyway, um, James, the FIFA story. Okay. Well, is it the FIFA story? Is it the Gianni Infantino story? Uh, rumbles on. I mean, rumbles on at quite, quite a, it's all relative, but quite a pace as far as sports politics stories rumble on. Um, I feel we've passed the, the immediate sort of shock moment and we are now by the looks of it in a bit of a turf war and a good old-fashioned election campaign absolutely the
24:08James Emmett:story around i mean and this is covered um absolutely everywhere and on mainstream services as well um the jenny infantino's plan to um spin off um a commercial enterprise and have independent investment into it an enterprise which would include fifa competitions including the world cup obviously it's come to a sticky end uh but the controversy and discussion around that has moved as you say more or less into uh it's become a a referendum on infantino's leadership really um and the confederations and the confederation leaders really are sensing an opportunity like never before in Fantino's reign, at least, where leadership change is in the air and people are making their moves and posturing and positioning.
25:08David Cushnan:Yeah.
25:08James Emmett:And those three Confederation chiefs in particular who have co-signed this open letter
25:13David Cushnan:to, well, to the world, but sort of pointing out... I think you just post it on LinkedIn. Yeah, pointing out all the ills of FIFA as it is and the leadership at FIFA. Of course, Alexander Sheffrin at UEFA, Victor Montaliani, the president of CONCACAF, and Sheikh Salman, the president of the Asian Football Confederation, which is an enormous confederation.
25:40James Emmett:Yes, but that's a surprise though, the AFC one. Yeah.
25:43David Cushnan:But this is where I think the difference between confederations and individual federations is going to be so important because all the signs are, despite outwardly losing so much support around the world, all the signs suggest that Infantino is bedding in here and going to run, not going to fall on his sword.
26:05James Emmett:So the process is, the next FIFA council meeting, well, there will be an election next year. In March. In March. it will be decided at that point whether Infantino will be voted in for another term or a challenger will replace him. There are currently no open declared challengers. The deadline for challengers to submit themselves to this campaign and their candidacy is the 18th of November. In football politics, a challenger could realistically come from anywhere, but they're more than likely to come from leading positions at the confederations. So, UEFA, AFC, CONCACAF have within them potential challengers to Infantino's presidency.
27:03James Emmett:Underneath those confederations, obviously all the national associations, those are the ones ultimately who will be voting. And those are the ones who the confederations speak for, the confederation presidents speak for, but who are less likely to have sort of skin in the game in terms of a presidential, they're not going to necessarily put people forward for FIFA presidency. And who knows, they may straightforwardly just continue to back in Fantino.
27:31David Cushnan:Well, exactly. And if I were Infantino, and he is smart and he knows how to do this stuff and he does it incredibly well, I would be doing what I do best. What's that? Which is sort of working the room via private jet. Being around the world, he's been in Colombia this week. He's been in Morocco for several days. He's been out and about. And I would be working these individual member associations individually and picking them off piece by piece, piecemeal, because that's and he's good at that and he can do that. And he will, in all likelihood, win some votes as a result of that or win some votes back.
28:15David Cushnan:And he might break down some of these blocks that the confederations, the UEFA, AFC, CONCACAF level, have managed to assemble. And it's absolutely key in this as they figure out, OK, who is the challenger? Is it Victor Montaliani? Is it somebody else? as that work is being done it's absolutely critical that these blocks hold and uefa has certainly reinforced its threat of boycott we're going to see how that plays out in the coming weeks with the i think it's the women's under 20 world cup um which has many european teams in it that's the first test of this then you're into women's world cup qualifiers etc the women women's world cup next year it's very much women's football unfortunately that is on the on the sort of front line of this um which is a shame but also but also convenient for it's convenient for everybody
29:08James Emmett:involved for you know as a sort of purely you know political business commercial level
29:14David Cushnan:um because the the next men's world cup is about as far away as it as it can be but infantino it doesn't strike me and could be proved horribly wrong here doesn't strike me that he's he's going anywhere soon i think he's i think he's digging in for the fight here and he will as i say he will be working member association by member association to promise whatever he can to try and make good whatever has gone wrong and all the while there is a bit you know until the moment that the challenger is identified there is a bit of a sort of you know there's open space here for infantino to go to work um at a moment where there isn't the individual challenger
30:11James Emmett:named yeah well i mean a lot can change in um in the space of just a few months remember it was only in february day that we were celebrating janny infantine 10 do you remember that yes um a great celebration of 10 years uh at the top um yeah a lot can change in football hey
30:28David Cushnan:some key moves uh this week um because uh you wait for big wigs assembling for the super cup which took takes place took place uh wednesday evening um in saltsburg tonight as we're recording tonight as we're recording yes james can i just um mark your carders to a big event where actually maybe we will have some of those football politicians in the room coming up in October. It's Leaders Week London. It's back, is it? Yes, it's back. Bigger, better than ever. 7th and 8th of October, as you know, as everybody will know by now. We've just launched the agenda, which everybody can have a look at at leadersinsport.com slash leadersweek.
31:08David Cushnan:We're really pleased with it. I think it's coming together really nicely. We've got a few more surprises to come over the next few weeks. But it struck me that it might be quite an interesting moment to just think through what we believe will be the big talking points when the great and the good of the global sports industry gather at Stamford Bridge. And it seems to me that, of course, and we'll see where we are with the FIFA Infantino story by then, but that will certainly be one. NBA Europe and whatever the next moves there will be should be another. What else do you think is going to be not only on stage, but in the margins?
31:48James Emmett:I always think that large scale business gatherings like leaders are a really good place to observe how the tectonic plates of the sports ecosystem are shifting. Like where are the new pots of revenue driving the next iteration, the next era of sport coming from? That could be geographical. There's been a lot of focus on the Middle East. Saudi has refined its sports strategy recently. We're going to be hearing from the PIF, who are driving a lot of that implementation work on strategy. We're going to be hearing from them with their renewed vision and effort and impetus into sport. We'll also be hearing a lot about what's next in media, what's next for the rights market, how do sports properties build and monetize packages fit for purpose for 2026 and beyond.
33:05James Emmett:We've got Netflix, the top sports executive at Netflix coming along to talk about their really quite recent entry into top level sport and the shifting dynamics there.
33:19David Cushnan:I think we also might be talking about, certainly from a UK and maybe European perspective, empty seats at sports events. And actually, what are we seeing there? Is that people getting their pricing strategy wrong and misjudging the moment? Is it about elite sport taking the lion's share, the very, very top events taking more and sort of outmuscling and taking the oxygen out of the room as far as everybody else is concerned? Is it actually about maybe a lack of disposable income that's starting to hit in certain markets? I think it's very striking this week to see all the empty seats. So far, we're only a couple of days in at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham and seems to be a suggestion that actually the pricing is the thing that has gone wrong there.
34:06David Cushnan:But we saw a good number of empty seats in Glasgow at the Commonwealth Games. We obviously had Belinda Moore on last week talking about the 100, but there have been certainly games within the 100 competition this year that have had fewer people in them, perhaps, they had hoped.
34:23James Emmett:Just on athletics, I mean, the proposition still isn't right, is it, in general? I mean, it is a sport that is still ripe for something else.
34:31David Cushnan:Well, it is.
34:31James Emmett:And, you know, we had recently, it didn't make it into our little news roundup, but there have been reports and counter-reports around final payments being made or not made in Grand Slam Track, the failed disruptor startup athletic series. We've got pretty much this time next month, we've got the World Athletics Ultimate Championship debut, which is an in-house attempt by the international world athletics to do something different with the sport. But as you say, it's not a great look for the European championships currently playing out in Birmingham.
35:11David Cushnan:No, you've also got Athlos, the all-female championship. That's right.
35:14James Emmett:We just got a broadcast deal, didn't we?
35:15David Cushnan:Yeah, coming to London, I think, in September as well. Yeah, it is a problem with athletics and format, but the Diamond League meeting in London a month or so ago, sell out. So there's something that's not quite gone right. We'll see how it plays out for the rest of the week. But I do think in a broader sense, there will probably start to be discussion about price of tickets and whether sports events truly are, at all levels, affordable now.
35:48James Emmett:How much should a sports ticket cost, David? For me, 20.
35:54David Cushnan:Yeah, I'll go with that. Why not? 20 is plenty. Why not? Good round number, eh? Good round number. Right, is that it?
36:00James Emmett:Gary Lineker is going to be on stage as well, isn't it?
36:03David Cushnan:Yeah, we've got Gary Lineker. We're talking about a close. We've got Alexis Ahanian. We've got a really great lineup. So do urge you to have a look. leadersinsport.com slash leadersweek and we'll doubtless mention it a few times on the podcast before too long although you're off for the next couple of weeks is that right do you know what i'm away the next two weeks um oh but we might still hear your voice on the occasional thing
36:24James Emmett:yeah i think i've recorded bits and pieces um yeah i'm away for the next two weeks and then i'm probably going to be um on location somewhere uh in the third week cool yeah on assignment we'll
36:37David Cushnan:We'll look forward to you dialing in for that.
36:40James Emmett:I'm looking forward to hearing who you get to replace me on this show next week.
36:43David Cushnan:Yeah, well, watch this space, folks. Watch this space.
36:45James Emmett:OK, goodbye for a long time, David.
36:47David Cushnan:Cheerio.
From the publisher
As the Leaders Week London agenda goes live, James Emmett and David Cushnan are in the studio to predict what might be the big talking points when global sport does business this October at Stamford Bridge. The prospect of a contested Fifa Presidential election makes the list, as Gianni Infantino battles on and three confederations - Uefa, CONCACAF and the AFC - seek a challenger.
There’s time too to consider VPN sponsorships in football and the number of empty seats at some sports venues this summer - is it misjudged pricing and is the UK market starting to see the impact of less disposable income for households?
And there’s chance to look back at how the business of MotoGP has evolved, building on this week’s interview with Carlos Ezpeleta, the motorcycling series’ Chief Sporting Officer and new team CEO and Co-owner Guenther Steiner, as US know-how meets Spanish roots under Liberty Media’s new ownership.
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Gary Lineker, Alexis Ohanian and Lego CMO Julia Goldin lead the line-up for Leaders Week London, at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday 7th and Thursday 8th October. To see the agenda and book you pass, visit https://bit.ly/3QJra1u