Cole Palmer’s omission from England’s World Cup squad shocked football fans and, for Coca-Cola, it was an unwelcome surprise. Just days before the announcement, Palmer had been unveiled as the brand’s Football Brand Ambassador in a multi-year partnership spanning Coca-Cola and Powerade activations across the Premier League and FIFA World Cup 2026. With fellow stars Phil Foden and Trent Alexander-Arnold also left home this summer, their associated brands will see reach and relevance diminish.
Ambassador deals are naturally complex. Contracts take months to negotiate, production must be scheduled, , and creative developed and shot long before Thomas Tuchel names his final 26. Given football’s unpredictability, it’s easy to see how this happens. So, can brands defend against this? And what do you do if you find yourself a player down in your campaign?
The honest answer is that risk is inherently part of any ambassadorial relationship – a player can break their leg at any time or be part of an unforeseen controversy. However, there is a difference between mitigating risk and ignoring it, and that starts with having experts in the room. For direct deals with individual players, Sports specialist agencies can undergo a rigorous process to inform talent recommendations that study social follower growth, content engagement rates, personality traits, as well as on-pitch performance. There’s no way to guarantee a player will make up the squad, but consulting experts who are embedded in the squad can improve your chances.
It’s also worth noting that brands do not always control which players feature in their campaigns. For partners of national teams, brands will be provided with 3-5 players (depending on the nation’s rules) to shoot on commercial days in the months prior to tournaments and given 24 hours’ notice of that selection. Typically, this will include one high-profile name, one mid-tier player, and one emerging talent, to ensure the best talent is distributed evenly across partners. ‘Wishlists’ will of course be shared – and rights holders do their best to keep everyone happy – but there will inevitably be brands left cursing their luck as squad announcements are made across the world.
So, what do you do when a player featured in your campaign misses the squad? First, remember that fans don’t have the critical eye of many brand managers, and players of Palmer’s stature do not become irrelevant overnight. Their appeal, visibility and commercial value mean there is no reason good content won’t still perform – poor sporting fortune usually just calls for creative adjustment, not a standstill.
Adjusting plans is even easier if flexibility is built-in from the start. Brands that shoot content across multiple players or invest in shorter-form social alongside a hero campaign have more room to maneuver when selection goes against them. A bank of individual content simply gives you more options than a single 30-second ad. And more options are emerging to pivot in record time – with AI-assisted production brands can already amend campaigns at greater speed. By the 2030 World Cup, some campaigns are likely to be created digitally after the squad announcement and remove selection risk altogether. The Palmer situation is a reminder that sports marketing should be treated as a specialism, not an add-on to broader strategy. It requires people who understand the sport, can read form, anticipate selection, and advise accordingly. That is how brands win in the sports space and avoid their campaigns wasting away on the bench.
Sport, and in particular football, is no stranger to the butterfly effect. Remember when one goal in the third round of the 1990 FA Cup saved Alex Ferguson from being fired in 1990? One moment started a winning streak for Manchester United and led to one of the most successful managerial careers in football history.
One of the most unexpected, however, was a decision made in a living room in Hollywood, amid a global pandemic, when It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia star Rob McElhenny tuned into Netflix docuseries Sunderland ‘til I Die. Engrossed by the featured fans’ passion and unconditional dedication to their struggling team, McElhenny recommended it to fellow Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds, and the future of the English Football League was changed.
Six years later, Wrexham is no longer the team from a small Welsh mining town languishing in the English non-league. It’s a global cultural and entertainment property, whose accompanying documentary Welcome to Wrexham has drawn fans across the globe, from LA to Tokyo.
Since then, Reynolds and McElhenny have been joined in England’s lower league by a range of celebrity figures. NFL icon Tom Brady has shares in Birmingham City, rapper Snoop Dogg is involved with Swansea City, Michael B. Jordan is a minority Co-Owner of Bournemouth, and most recently, YouTuber KSI has taken over at Dagenham & Redbridge, with a docuseries already in the works.
What’s kick-started this trend? From a creative and brand lens, it’s not the sporting prowess of the teams, but the story of how they got there.
Elite-level football is a brilliant spectacle. But it is not great drama. The outcomes at the top are largely predictable, the players are untouchable, earning more in a week than most fans earn in a decade, and the jeopardy – the genuine ‘what happens next’ tension – has been largely engineered out by financial dominance. The status of the ‘big six’ feels unreachable to anyone else
There is no such dominance in the wider English Football League. Promotion and relegation drama is visceral when the consequences involve real jobs, community identity, and the survival of institutions that have existed for over a century. The players feel more accessible; they live in the same areas as supporters, they ride the same buses, and even, if you drop down low enough, work the same jobs as fans, alongside their football career. The players are people, rather than brands. This is the raw material of great storytelling, and it has been sitting largely untapped in the EFL for decades.
What McElhenny and Reynolds recognised, two Hollywood professionals who understand narrative for a living, is that Wrexham’s value was not in its league position. It was in its story architecture. A club with a 160-year history, a fiercely loyal community, a recent slide into non-league obscurity, and a potential comeback arc. In screenwriting terms, that’s not a football club. That’s a pilot with a guaranteed second series.
The underdog arc is one of the most universally compelling narrative structures in existence. From Rocky to Ted Lasso, audiences across cultures are hardwired to root for the scrappy challenger. Lower-league football provides this in real time, with real consequences, week after week.
For celebrities, this story offers something money can’t easily buy elsewhere: authentic cultural meaning. Owning a stake in a Premier League club is expensive, passive, and largely anonymous. Owning Wrexham or Dagenham is a creative act. It is a vehicle for self-expression, community engagement, and content that feels genuinely earned rather than manufactured. The story is real, and that reality is the point.
For fans, the docuseries format does something traditional football broadcasting cannot: it creates emotional entry points for people who don’t already follow the game. Welcome to Wrexham was watched by millions of people who had never previously cared about English football. They were not drawn in by tactics or league tables, but by Phil Parkinson’s honest post-match interviews, the supporters’ trust members worrying about the roof, and the sheer human nature of a club fighting to exist. The story converted casual viewers into genuine supporters globally.
And for brands, the storytelling shift changes the entire value proposition of sponsorship. A shirt sponsor at a celebrity-backed club is no longer simply buying matchday visibility. They are buying documentary screen time, social media virality, and association with a cultural moment that is being watched — and discussed — worldwide. The question is no longer ‘how many people attend this ground?’ but ‘how many people are following this story?’
There is, however, a tension at the heart of this trend. The clubs with celebrity backing are now operating as content-first media properties, with commercial interest entirely disproportionate to their league position. Every other club in the EFL remains in the old local sponsorship economy, selling static visibility to regional businesses without the tools or platform to compete for global attention.
This visibility inequality will become a financial and competitive one. If attention drives commercial revenue, and commercial revenue funds squad investment, which drives results, then the clubs without a compelling narrative face a structural disadvantage that compounds over time. The narrative gap becomes a resource gap.
But that gap also creates an opening. The celebrity-backed clubs are already crowded with sponsors eager to access their amplified audiences. Wrexham, Birmingham, and whoever comes next will attract commercial partners at speed, and for brands, that space will get expensive. From that crowding, a counter-narrative becomes available – one that is, arguably, even more compelling.
The brands that move first to partner with the challengers – the community clubs without celebrity backing, competing on grit and spirit against well-resourced rivals – are not just buying sponsorship, they will be co-authoring a story. The plucky regional club versus the celebrity-turbocharged machine is, in narrative terms, a gift. It is the underdog arc inside the underdog arc, and if the story works, the brand is woven into it permanently.
The Clubs That Win Will Be the Ones With the Best Stories
KSI’s decision to launch a docuseries alongside his Dagenham takeover is the clearest signal yet that the new generation of football owners understand exactly what they are buying. It is not a football club; it’s a narrative platform that happens to also play competitive football. The sport provides the raw material: genuine stakes, real characters, unpredictable outcomes, and the story is the product.
Whether ‘football-tainment’ has peaked is the wrong question. The better question is who gets to tell the next story, and who is smart enough to be part of it. For celebrities, it’s an investment in cultural relevance. For fans, it’s sport made meaningful again. For brands willing to look beyond the obvious play, it is the most interesting space in English football right now.
There are few sports properties, competed for every year, that can genuinely claim to be global. Not regional with international appeal. Not popular in key markets with a fringe following elsewhere. Demonstrably global. Formula One can credibly make this claim. From teams and drivers through to venues and fans, everything about it is built for the global stage.
The 2026 season marks a new era in Formula One in many ways. Major technical regulation changes are reshaping the on-track product, with lighter and smaller cars, power units deploying 50% electrical energy, and the introduction of overtake, boost and active aero modes designed to promote closer, more exciting racing for both drivers and fans. Off the grid, the calendar continues to evolve with the addition of a new Madrid street race in September, bringing F1 to Spain twice in a season, igniting local fan engagement around home favourites Carlos Sainz and Fernando Alonso. Further underlining the scale of change, Cadillac’s entry as the 11th team signals a bold American push into the sport.
These new technical regulations, teams and venues have given things a shake-up, not only on the grid but also from a commercial perspective. The increased attention created around the sport, that’s been built over recent years, has now created an environment that not only provides brands with effective partnerships, but also a multitude of ways to be distinctive.
There’s more than one road into F1
Brands are no longer seeing F1 as a singular entry point. Take the number of B2C and lifestyle brands now invested in the sport. The likes of LVMH, PepsiCo, LEGO, Heineken, Elemis and Chivas Regal are going far beyond one dimensional partnerships. They are recognising their own subculture and finding their place within it.
For PepsiCo, F1 has become a mechanism for supercharging product and product launches in specific markets. The activation of Sting energy drink around the Chinese Grand Prix is a case in point. F1 provided a moment to drive awareness, trial products and brand messaging in a new, high-priority market, in a way that felt culturally relevant rather than parachuted in. For Chivas, it’s the alignment to the various sub-cultures and influencers around F1, with the added benefit of glass-in-hand moments at the kinds of culturally-charged events that only an F1 race weekend can generate.
For LEGO, the connection happens on a different emotional register entirely, encouraging play and helping parents share their fandom with their children through products, content and experiences that bridge generations. The Miami drivers parade put LEGO on the F1 map and they have continued to find innovative, creative ways to showcase both the brand and the models they sell. It’s not just a sequence of PR stunts; it’s a carefully crafted partnership.
The breadth of F1’s product allows brands to play to their strengths and differentiate. Something that can be more challenging to do with other sports properties.
A Versatile and Growing Audience
It has been well documented that Netflix’s Drive to Survive was the catalyst for the building of F1’s new audience. By bringing the drama of the track and paddock into people’s living rooms, it grew and diversified its fanbase in ways that would have seemed implausible fifteen years ago. Engaged, broad and retained, it’s exactly the type of audience where sports marketing can thrive.
Younger (a third of fans now under 35), more gender-balanced (exceeding a 40% female fan split in several key markets) and more geographically distributed (sustaining double digit viewership growth in developing F1 markets), F1 is now resonating in corners of society that previously seemed inaccessible. And this has profound implications for the brands that sponsor it.
Where once the commercial proposition would be built around affluent, predominantly male enthusiasts in a predictable set of core markets, the entry points are now far broader. Brands can now make a credible case for F1 investment in any region.
The current landscape means that there are more types of fans to engage with, more ways to do so, and in turn, a greater variety of brands that can authentically show up. This breadth is what makes F1 unusual and exciting.
What Rights Owners Get in Return
What’s particularly special about the current F1 ecosystem is that the B2B and B2C brand partnerships are mutually beneficial. Look at tech as an example. Brands such as Google, Cisco or Salesforce are not on the grid merely for visibility. The products integrate directly into team operations and the technical infrastructure of the sport. The sponsorship becomes a proof of concept. The racetrack becomes a reference point and a pipeline influence.
For B2C brands, the mutuality operates differently. Teams and the sport itself benefit from having their intellectual property taken into key existing or developing markets by partners who bring local reach and relevance. Take PepsiCo, whose products have more consumers in priority markets than F1 does. Aligning F1 with Sting in SE Asia and Gatorade in the Americas helps build recognisable associations with category-leading brands in key geographies, driving positive sentiment and fanbase growth. It’s a reciprocal relationship where brands offer meaningful audience-building work on F1’s behalf while also utilising the sport’s global nature and highly valuable IP. Both sides have skin in the game.
Showing Up Differently
‘Drive to Survive’ is a sentiment that brands must find in order to succeed in a highly cluttered environment. The key to this is to find a distinct space within F1; there’s plenty of room. The challenge is finding a niche and owning it.
F1 is as much a lifestyle and entertainment property as it is a sporting one. That creates genuine white space for brands willing to think creatively. American Express and Grid Gigs programming, LVMH and high-fashion collaborations that blur the line between the paddock and the runway, Gatorade and track-run fan experiences that put participants in the athletes’ shoes, Salesforce and AI-powered fan applications that deepen engagement in the moments between races.
These are all distinct expressions of what each brand stands for, activated in a context that makes those values feel alive and relevant. The brands that win in F1 build programming, experiences and narratives that extend the conversation across markets, platforms and the calendar; and the ones that will be most successful will have an appetite, at a similar level of the sport itself, to data, measurement and evaluation to ensure activity, operations and investments are returning positively for the business.
The 2026 Opportunity
A new technical era. A genuine ESG narrative. A new constructor. An expanding calendar. A fanbase that is younger, broader and more engaged than ever. For brands managing a global portfolio, there are few more exciting propositions than F1.
With its genuine global scale, local flexibility and an infrastructure that allows for sophisticated, creative brand activation, F1 is an ideal home for meaningful and effective partnerships. The only limiting factor is imagination. For the brands that meet this challenge, the possibilities are vast.
AI is doing more and more of the grunt work, but it’s clear human overlay has become more critical. AI can be used for a number of purposes now in PR: spotting trending stories and news angles, tracking and reporting on coverage, drafting pitches for journalists, curating the perfect media list and coming up with creative solutions (dare I say it). But it does create a sea of sameness. So, once the grunt work has been done, there’s a human need to tweak, improve and create, so your work stands out. AI will continue to accelerate the way working practices change in PR, but it comes with a health warning.
For me, International Women’s Day has become far more than a moment of celebration. It’s a pause in the year that asks us to look honestly at where we are, where we’re falling short, and what still needs to change. I see it as an opportunity for accountability – a reminder that progress isn’t inevitable, and that the work only moves forward when we choose to move it.
When I think about gender equality today, I see a picture of meaningful progress layered with enduring realities. More women are leading, shaping businesses and influencing decisions than ever before, but too many still face invisible barriers: uneven access to opportunity, the pressures of unpaid labour, bearing the brunt of the mental load, the expectation to “fit” a narrow definition of leadership. And for women facing intersecting inequalities, those challenges are even steeper. The progress is real – but it isn’t universal.
In my own leadership role, one of the most important lessons I’ve learned is the power of creating space for different styles of leadership. Some of the strongest leaders I’ve worked with bring a blend of empathy, pragmatism and resilience that comes from navigating complex and sometimes unequal systems. I’ve also seen first‑hand how vital sponsorship is – not just mentoring, but advocating for women in rooms they’re not yet in. That’s often where change really happens.
Economic equality remains one of the biggest barriers we haven’t yet broken through in the UK. The gender pay gap is about more than numbers; it reflects uneven access to progression, the undervaluing of care, and the structures that still make it harder for women to thrive at the same pace as men. Closing the gap requires transparency, accountability and a willingness to challenge some long‑embedded norms.
In recent years, grassroots activism has played a huge role in pushing this conversation forward. Community‑led movements – whether local, industry‑specific or global – have shifted taboos, accelerated reforms and given women the confidence to speak up about inequality in all its forms. Their impact shows that change doesn’t only come from the top; it can start with one community saying “enough”.
Being a mother of a teenage daughter, I’m also heartened by the attitudes of Gen Alpha. They are growing up with a fundamentally different expectation of equality – they assume women should lead, decide and influence as standard. They’re less tolerant of outdated behaviours, quicker to call out inequity, and far more vocal about wanting workplaces that are genuinely inclusive rather than performative. Their expectations will raise the bar for all of us.
However, the real test is what happens on all the days that aren’t 8th March. Supporting women year‑round means creating truly fair structures: equitable hiring and progression, flexible working that doesn’t penalise people, psychological safety, clarity around pay, and cultures where women can lead authentically, without having to over‑correct or over‑prove. It also means listening, really listening, to what women say they need. And let’s not forget the men in this equation. Male allyship is vital. Real progress depends on people in positions of influence choosing to use their voice, their access and their authority to open doors for women, not just stand beside them.
International Women’s Day is a powerful moment, but the most meaningful work happens quietly, consistently, every other day of the year. And that’s where we still have the most opportunity to lead.
It may be tempting to think of the emerging AI sector as just another brand category enjoying a short-lived boom before the winners emerge and spending tails off — think blockchain and NFTs in 2020, or the flurry of major deals signed by used car retailers in 2021–22. Recent reports of an “AI bubble” would add fuel to that fire, and no doubt some deals will end prematurely when peripheral operators can’t sustain the fees that were promised.
But as major AI brands start to take top-tier positions, don’t dismiss this as the next hype cycle. The technology already offers more value-in-kind than any category in the history of the industry — spanning real-time performance insights, personalised content, and smarter infrastructure. We can speculate about what comes beyond that, but it will certainly be more than a temporary boom; it will be a structural transformation, one that redefines what sporting experiences can become.
Over the next 12 months, expect AI brands to continue moving from powering data feeds and editing suites to becoming more fan-centric, largely because they can help rights holders personalise inventory and make sense of vast datasets. This shift directly affects one of the biggest arms races of modern times: AI user bases.
Some examples are well established — think AWS powering match predictors in Bundesliga broadcasts, or IBM evolving its Wimbledon association from cloud computing to generative AI with personalized “Catch Me Up” highlights. Elsewhere, major new deals reflect this trend. Two of the most notable include Microsoft Copilot partnering with the Premier League to revitalise its companion app and enable user personalization, and Google teaming up with LA28 and Team USA to embed its AI Search mode directly into NBCUniversal’s coverage.
This has huge value for rights holders seeking digital transformation, while for brands the benefit lies in becoming an authentic part of the user experience. For this reason, AI brands like Copilot or Gemini — whose technology powers fan interaction — may have little need for front-of-shirt positions. Their North Star is becoming an ever-present companion, where utility replaces visibility. And that brings us to the medium term.
Over the medium term, impact will move from disruptive to transformational. The most advanced AI brands will extend beyond team benches, pit walls, and fan apps to permeate every level of the sporting environment. The catalyst? Agentic AI — systems that can autonomously plan and reason without human intervention.
We’re already seeing the earliest signs of this in tech‑forward sports. Oracle’s partnership with Red Bull Racing enables the team to run thousands of simulations in real time, helping engineers and strategists evaluate tyre choices, fuel windows, weather shifts, and competitor behaviour during the race. In the NFL, Microsoft Copilot integrates directly with the Sideline Viewing System (SVS), giving coaches AI‑enabled tools on their tablets to filter plays, analyze formations, and surface relevant insights instantly during a game. This marks a shift from AI as a back‑office assistant to AI as an active participant in live strategy.
But brands must be thoughtful in how they position themselves. To earn credibility with both teams and fans, AI needs to be framed as a tool that empowers coaches rather than replaces them. The moment an algorithm is seen as responsible for a poor substitution or tactical mistake, trust erodes. Introducing agentic AI into the pressure cooker of elite sport will require smart, empathetic brand communication that builds confidence and counters early‑stage scepticism.
For fans, the developments are just as exciting. Imagine arriving through the Wimbledon gates in record time, thanks to automated crowd control. A digital concierge suggesting the best game to watch and how to avoid congestion around Centre Court. On your AR glasses, you select service speed overlays as you watch the action. At 4-5 in the first set, a player takes their designated AI timeout (brought to you by …) to review tactics and check whether biometric data suggests a problematic hamstring is about to tear. A close line call, flagged by Hawk-Eye (no change here) is instantly available on your glasses — showing the perfect angle that proves just how close it came to brushing the line. It’s worth noting, however, that these AI advances must be balanced with maintaining the up-close and personal feel of a live sports event. Brands must position themselves as facilitators, rather than invaders, of fans’ experiences to avoid fans feeling overloaded by tech.
At this point, designations like “Digital Transformation Partner” or “Technology Partner” become obsolete. Certain brands will not just sponsor the likes of Wimbledon — they’ll run alongside it, optimizing the spectacle from every angle. A new term will no doubt emerge, but the potential of an AI brand becoming a primary experience facilitator feels a strong bet. It would make sport smarter, more interactive, and more personal for all stakeholders, and one that will give new meaning to the term partnership.
Predicting the long-term impact of AI partnerships is difficult — technology rarely evolves in straight lines. However, we’d expect the tactical advance to continue improving the on-field spectacle. Imagine a world where sport becomes a living system where fans, teams, and broadcasters interact with an intelligent infrastructure that learns and evolves year after year, with brands positioned as co-creators of that evolution.
Away from the pitch, we could see the current sponsorship model being completely reshaped. Sponsorship fees could become fluid, calculated in real time based on performative metrics — such as engagement uplift, operational efficiency gains, or fan adoption of AI-driven features. This would mark a radical shift from fixed-fee deals to outcome-based agreements.
If the first era of partnerships was about branding the spectacle and the second has been dominated by creating content from it, the next may well be about fundamentally reshaping it. The major AI brands are uniquely positioned to do this, and those that embrace the sector as a platform for continuous innovation won’t just ride out structural transformation — they’ll help define the future of the sports we love. The challenge for brands and rights holders is to ensure the jeopardy, drama and sheer exhilaration of big-ticket sport isn’t diluted or diminished under a layer of additional tech-driven information.
The NBA London 2026 game is not another overseas exhibition. It is the clearest signal yet that US sports leagues are no longer treating Europe as a touring destination, but as a long-term growth market with serious commercial intent. And that shift matters. The window to engage early with the next generation of global sports fans is open now, and brands need to act swiftly to take advantage.
For leagues such as the NBA, NFL and MLB, Europe now represents more than incremental ticket sales. It is a critical frontier for future growth at a time when domestic markets are mature, and competition for attention is intensifying. Rather than simply exporting games, these organisations are exporting the surrounding culture, creating a new avenue for growth amongst internationally based ‘big eventers’.
What these US leagues have done particularly well is reframe live events as cultural moments rather than purely sporting fixtures. An NBA or NFL game in London today blends sport with fashion, music, food and creator culture. From tunnel fits and halftime performances to branded pop-ups and influencer-led content, the live game is a platform for lifestyle expression. It’s an approach that resonates strongly with younger, urban European audiences who may not have grown up with these leagues but connect through cultural identity rather than tradition.
US Sport revolution
It’s a vital distinction. European sports fandom has historically been rooted in geography and heritage, where fans have been partisan to their team. However, modern sports fans are more interested in top players, aligning perfectly with the world of superstar-led teams in the US. The US leagues are successfully building fandom through aspiration and lifestyle. You don’t need to support a local team to feel part of the NBA ecosystem; you can engage through streetwear, music, gaming, social media or creator content. That flexibility lowers the barrier to entry and accelerates adoption among new, younger audiences.
From a commercial perspective, this matters because youth audiences are where future value sits. They are culturally driven, digitally native and sceptical of overt advertising. US sports provide brands with permission to show up in spaces where sport, entertainment and lifestyle intersect – environments that feel less like marketing and more like participation. For brands in fashion, technology, food and beverage, music, gaming and youth culture, the alignment is particularly powerful.
However, modern partnerships in this space look very different from traditional sponsorship. The most effective brands co-create experiences, support community initiatives, collaborate with creators and invest in content that lives beyond the event itself. It is about contribution, not visibility. Brands need to think in terms of platforms and programmes rather than one-off activations.
Challenges
That said, this space is not without challenges. Authenticity is the biggest barrier to entry. European audiences are quick to reject brands that appear opportunistic or culturally out of step. There is also a constant trade-off between scale and relevance: global consistency may deliver efficiency, but local nuance is what drives impact. Similarly, event-based activations can generate short-term attention, but without longer-term commitment, they rarely translate into lasting value.
This is why not every brand will succeed here, and why those that do will stand out. The brands winning in this space are patient, culturally fluent and willing to invest for the long term. They understand that relevance cannot be bought, but is earned.
The message for brands is clear. US sports’ expansion into Europe is accelerating, and the cultural gravity around it is only increasing. The opportunity is there, but only for brands prepared to change how they partner, how they show up and how they measure success. Those that hesitate risk arriving late to a market where loyalty, credibility and attention have already been claimed.
“I’m lucky to work in an agency full of incredible women, and together with the wider network I’ve built over the years, they are one of the greatest assets I have.
“It’s easy to operate in isolation, forgetting that who you surround yourself with matters. Your network can be one of the biggest drivers for your success, from the support they give and advice, to the lessons you’ve learnt through them and their experiences.
“So while I’ve never had one “official” female mentor, I’ve got something I think is even more powerful, a group of exceptional women who’ve pushed me, challenged me, and shaped my career in ways I could never have done alone.
“Women like Zarah Al‑Kudcy, who I’ve known since university. Watching her climb, grow, and own her space has been a constant reminder that we can do this – that we belong here – and that we’re absolutely capable of more than we give ourselves credit for.
“And then there are the incredible women I had the privilege of hiring early on, Kim Broadbent and Charlie Hugill, who quickly showed me what excellence truly looks like.
“Their support has made more of a difference than they probably realise. Even now, as we all work in different organisations, I still turn to them for perspective when I need it most.
“This International Women’s Day, I’m reminded that as women, we can be each other’s greatest advocates and, sometimes, just by seeing another woman succeed, we can be inspired to follow in their footsteps.
“Peer support is everything, and I’m constantly inspired by the incredible women I’m lucky to be surrounded by.”
Following the recent Memphis Grizzlies and Orlando Magic games in Berlin and London, Tom Wild, Head of Strategy at Fuse, writes for Insider Sport on why these NBA games can become the blueprint for the league’s potential launch in 2027.
In January, the Memphis Grizzlies beat the Orlando Magic at the O2 Arena in London in what was a night full of glitz and glamour.
But this game was far more than an exhibition; it was a dress rehearsal for players, fans and brands for a new era of top-level basketball in Europe.
US leagues bring with them music, streetwear, food and influencer content. A blend of culture and sport that not only keeps the novice European audience entertained, but also creates a blend of culture and sport that leads to authentic long-term fandom.
US leagues, and the NBA in particular, are not visiting Europe on holiday, but house-hunting for a second home. As made clear with the recently discussed plans for NBA Europe, a 16-team competition, built around 10–12 permanent franchises with four spots awarded via sporting qualification, is targeted for as early as 2027.
From an investor and brand perspective, it’s a no-brainer. The current market is a sweet spot of being both large and under-monitised. Basketball has an estimated 270 million fans across Europe, yet it only captures a sliver of the continent’s sports economy. This is exactly why the NBA, clubs and rights holders are looking to push forward with plans in this hungry yet relatively untapped space.
Cultural programming
With this context, the Grizzlies’ victory in London becomes about far more than sporting excellence and ticket sales. It, like with the success of the NFL and MLB games in London, proves a basic proposition: young, culturally engaged European audiences will get on board with American products, provided they are presented with local authenticity and nuance.
What all the American leagues have done so well on their European visits is deftly turning matches into cultural programming. Half-time and tunnel moments now trend on social platforms where younger fans live, growing appreciation and awareness of the sport beyond the 48 minutes of gametime.
The success of this experiential-led approach provides a blueprint for the NBA’s investors and associated brands to achieve their plans for European expansion. Having said that, launching a new league is a step beyond hosting the odd game; Europe already has a strong sporting culture.
Tapping into Euro sporting culture
Basketball fans in Europe already have an established, albeit overcrowded, ecosystem full of domestic leagues, European competitions and national cups – backed by partisan local support.
Backers of NBA Europe have discussed working with these existing structures, but questions still remain about access, scheduling and whether top clubs will defect to a new model.
The talk of football clubs fielding teams in the league, with the NBA in talks with the likes of Real Madrid and Manchester City, may also require some selling. The multi-sport model is not a foreign concept to much of the continent, but in the UK, it may be greeted with some scepticism.
Fans may see this as being baited into following the league purely due to a team having the same badge and colours as their football club, representing another move away from the sport’s roots, and foreign investors slapping the badge on something to help it sell.
It also jeopardises the opportunity for existing UK basketball clubs. What good is an influx of money and attention to Manchester Basketball if they will just be suffocated by Manchester City’s shiny new team?
Luckily for the NBA, they don’t need to reinvent the wheel to ease these concerns.
Crafting a NBA Europe identity
Introducing merit-based access and collaboration with existing bodies will frame the new league as something that enhances the existing pyramid and traditions, rather than a coup from corporate powers to exploit what is already there. Once this is established, it’s just a matter of doubling down on the experiential approach that has got them this far.
This involves rights holders and brands avoiding cookie-cutter activities and instead investing in local creators, grassroots programmes, and season-long storytelling. Creating a distinct European feel to the league, rather than a copy and paste of the US version.
The level of investment in NBA Europe is reported to be in the hundreds of millions, enough to build state-of-the-art arenas and next-level fan experiences. Local, authentic, culturally relevant activations will be the best way for investors and brands to not only see measurable return and engagement, but also build long-standing trust from the fans.
Last month’s game in London showed for brands and investors that it’s a huge opportunity for major US sports leagues in Europe. It’s just a matter of realising that what works is leading with experience, authenticity and culture to build the sport in its local environment – rather than just slapping a logo on a court.
Tours are no longer one-night events. They’re year-round cultural ecosystems built on content, community and identity that extend beyond the arena.
Harry Styles’ 12-night Wembley residency was predicted to generate £1bn – with fans expected to spend an average of £981 each across travel, accommodation, hospitality and retail, overtaking the likes of Oasis and Taylor Swift fans (Source). By positioning the tour as a residency rather than a series of standalone shows, Harry created a destination-style event that tapped into fans’ deep emotional connection with him and intense fandom. Their willingness to invest went far beyond ticket purchases, instead buying into the sense of belonging and experience.
A growing number of fans don’t simply just show up in today’s touring landscape. Beyond the financial commitment, fans invest time, energy, and creativity into every aspect of the experience: they curate a perfect outfit; plan a travel itinerary; create social content; purchase merchandise; and often attend multiple shows on the same tour! Fans were anticipated to spend an average £102 on Harry Styles’ official tour merchandise, 9 in 10 were predicted to participate in a “fan trend” on the day and 63% planned to wear a Harry Styles-themed look. Through these rituals fans bought in to the full experience and signalled their identity as part of a wider fan community.
For brands, the opportunity is not simply to reach fans, but to enable fandom. The most effective partnerships move beyond visibility and into participation, creating experiences that feel native to existing fan behaviours. Tour sponsor Amex’s ‘We Belong Together Together’ campaign flew fans from around the world who couldn’t secure tickets to specific tour locations, allowing them to share the experience with someone special to them. It wasn’t just about access – it was about amplifying connection and rewarding fans’ loyalty.
Beauty brand Sol de Janeiro also tapped into the excitement surrounding the tour through their experiential pop-up and social-first content. They leveraged creator-led content and popular formats such as GRWM and Day in the Life’s, to authentically connect with audiences around the concert experience. Their activity captured the anticipation, energy and sense of occasion associated with attending a live show, encapsulating the self-expression and fan-behaviours associated with his tour.
Fans don’t just attend tours anymore – they create a world around them which lasts year-round, not just during tour dates. From driving economic impact at every touchpoint in their planning and live music experience, to creating culture online and offline, fandom has become an active force rather than a passive audience. For brands, success lies not in speaking to fans, but in fully joining the conversation and giving them something they can participate in. The more a brand helps fans create, connect and belong, the more meaningful its role becomes in the story they’re already telling.
Sources:
https://www.itv.com/news/granada/2026-05-19/fan-spending-on-harry-styles-wembley-gigs-set-to-top-1bn
https://www.hstyles.co.uk/wbtt/
https://www.instagram.com/p/DXpb4aXEcuq/utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==
https://home.barclays/insights/2026/05/Harry-Styles-One-Billion-Spend/
The 2026 edition of the FIFA World Cup concluded last weekend, where Spain defeated Argentina 1-0 to claim their second men’s World Cup Title. Off the pitch, however, one man has made the tournament his own. Darren Jason Watkins Jr., better known as @IShowSpeed.
Speed is no stranger to the world of football. The Ronaldo obsessed 21-year-old American has played with the Sidemen at Wembley, attended the Ballon d’Or and has led chants for Al Nassr in the Saudi Pro League. He is everywhere. Phone attached to his wrist, reading comments and interacting with fans around the world, Speed delivers IRL streams, speaking to a camera that captures his reaction rather than the action itself.
In addition to streaming across YouTube and Twitch globally, Speed also partnered with FOX Sports to stream live matches for those who paid for Fox One on YouTube. While the Bundesliga in the UK and the NFL and NBA in the US have previously engaged streamers to supplement broadcasts for professional sport, this is the first time it has been done for a global event of this scale. And by all accounts, it seems to have been a success.
Fox Sports hasn’t released official numbers of how many people paid to watch the match on stream in the US, Speed’s strong numbers throughout the tournament highlight that that people want to engage in the content he is producing. 57 million people watched Speed stream the final, his most viewed stream ever (youtube.com). Also, the fact that FIFA invited him to perform at the closing ceremony wasn’t merely a nod to his streaming success, it’s an official endorsement that creators now occupy the same cultural space as traditional sports personalities.
Ultimately, this isn’t your granddad’s broadcast. His over the top reactions, immense highs and conversations directly to camera aren’t for everyone. But in a world of global sports broadcasting where presenters are increasingly out of touch with audiences, Speed offers something fresh. Dare I even say the ‘A’ word? He offers authenticity.
This unfiltered, (live)stream of consciousness is exactly what young people want, and with growing audiences, there will undoubtedly be more brands looking to cash in. While this offers more chances to buy media around the match, it also opens official sponsors up to a whole new audience through built-in awareness in the form of LEDs and new exciting ways to activate rights and engage potential new consumers outside of the FIFA ecosystem.
While this case study may rebut macro trends of changing viewing habits and young people no longer watching full matches, the root of this success can’t be understated. The most important lesson to be learned from FIFA’s experiment is audiences are tuning in for Speed first and football second. Many may not even be football fans. They are there for the energy, humour and sense of community that comes along with his personality and his type of content. Football is only the facilitating platform, rather than the destination.
Much like the Portuguese football team 20 years ago, bringing a 21-year-old with flair and personality has been a massive success, suggesting creator-led sports coverage has moved away from novelty to necessity. The next few years across both domestic and global events I’m sure we will see more of this type of experimentation in an attempt to bring in new audiences. However, like his idol Cristiano Ronaldo, there will almost certainly be people who come in and try to emulate this success only to fall short.
