Why 2025 in sport marketing was the year that changed everything December 30, 2025 For much of the last decade, sports marketing followed a familiar script: globalisation, digital scale and steadily inflating rights fees. In 2025, that script broke. This year forced brands, rights-holders and investors to confront harder truths about attention, technology and value, and in doing so, it reset how sport is bought, sold and measured. From [...]
Exclusive: CVC Capital Partners nearing external investment for $14bn Global Sport Group December 30, 2025 Six Nations investors CVC Capital Partners is close to securing external investment in its $14bn Global Sport Group, which is expected to trigger a wave of new sporting acquisitions at the start of next year. GSG, which is chaired by former EE chief executive Marc Allera, was formed earlier this year to run CVC’s existing [...]
Exclusive: O2 Arena open to hosting NBA Europe after record-breaking year December 30, 2025 The owners of London’s O2 Arena have insisted they have enough days in their calendar to host a NBA Europe franchise in the capital should the league launch in 2027. The US basketball league is exploring the possibility of setting up a European equivalent, tapping into major football club brands this side of the pond. [...]
Tottenham Hotspur co-owner Daniel Levy gets gong in New Year Honours list December 29, 2025 Tottenham Hotspur co-owner Daniel Levy has received a gong from the King in the 2026 New Year Honours list. Levy, whose near 25-year tenure as chairman of the north London club came to an end in September, has been given a CBE by Charles III. The club said Levy, who still has a stake in [...]
Fifa boss Infantino defends 2026 World Cup ticket prices, citing demand December 29, 2025 Fifa boss Gianni Infantino has defended the price of tickets for next year’s World Cup. Football’s governing body has come under intense pressure surrounding the cost of tickets, with the cheapest seat at next summer’s final costing over £3,000. Infantino’s Fifa was forced to introduce capped tickets for some fans of the teams competing at [...]
Why Apple’s Formula 1 deal is setting the trends into 2026 December 29, 2025 In late 2025 streaming player Apple announced it would be ditching its Stateside MLS deal early. The platform confirmed, however, that it would pick up the rights to Formula 1 in the United States. The deal could be worth $140m a year, but what does it mean for sport? On first appraisal, the new agreement [...]
NBA return to pump £100m into economy as London gears up for 2026 December 29, 2025 NBA’s two-year return to the UK is expected to boost the economy by £100m as top flight basketball ends its six-year hiatus. Memphis Grizzlies will host Orlando Magic at the 20,000-capacity O2 Arena in January 2026 before Manchester’s Co-op Live hosts its first regular season NBA match in 2027. Between the two matches the UK [...]
Why Snap thinks 2026 will be Sport’s most connected and branded year yet December 28, 2025 Snap’s Kahlen Macaulay looks at why 2026 will be the year where sport is most watched, connected and branded. Pulitzer-winning US playwright Neil Simon was once asked why humans find sport so captivating. His reply? “It’s the only entertainment where, no matter how many times you go back, you never know the ending.” Simply, sport is [...]
Battle of the Sexes tennis: Billie Jean King says it’s just entertainment December 27, 2025 Billie Jean King has distanced herself from this year’s Battle of the Sexes tennis showdown, insisting hers was about “social change”, while the 2025 edition is “entertainment”. World number one Aryna Sabalenka will take on Australian Nick Kyrgios in a Battle of the Sexes match in Dubai on 30 December. King famously beat self-proclaimed chauvinist [...]
Why mascots are the next branding opportunity for sports teams December 26, 2025 Mascots aren’t just tacky costumes anymore, they’re the next frontier in the world of sport branding, writes Mike Perry. Surveying today’s sports brand landscape, one striking fact stands out. Teams aren’t just competing on the pitch anymore, they’re competing for hearts, thumb-scrolls and wardrobe space. For younger fans the experience of fandom is increasingly about [...]