SportsPro Podcast SportsPro

The advent of artificial intelligence is the biggest tech innovation since the dawn of the Internet. The sports industry, much like the rest of society, is still figuring out how to use it effectively, but companies like Relative Insight are leading the way. Tom Bassam speaks to Rauri Hadlington, business development director at Relative Insight, to understand more about the sports industry could - and should - be using AI.

Ice Cube is many things: a rapper, a film star, producer and more recently - with the Big3 - a sports mogul. The 'fireball' 3x3 basketball league that Cube co-founded with Jeff Kwatinetz has defied pessimistic projections to survive seven years and nine seasons, selling out arenas while airing on major US network TV. Speaking to Tom Bassam, Cube and Kwatinetz discuss selling Big3 franchises, the league's future and how the rapper's career has influenced his approach to being the CEO of a sports organisation.

Talking points:

- Franchising the Big3 (1:26)

- Getting the right type of owners (8:27)

- Taking risks (21:08)

- What Cube's learned about owning a sports property (25:36)

A trailblazer in the tennis world, Katrina Adams has consistently championed gender equality, diversity, and inclusion throughout her career. Firstly as a player, then as a leader at the UTSA, US Open and the Fed Cup.

Speaking to SportsPro’s Elena Kouyoufa as part of Women’s Sport Week, Adams discusses the initiatives she has spearheaded, her efforts to create equal opportunities in sports, and the journey that led her to receive the prestigious IOC’s 2023 Global Gender Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion award.

A packed out TD Place full of young Ottawa fans have come to watch their team try to make the playoffs and SportsPro's Tom Bassam was lucky to have one of the best seats in the house. This is the PWHL, North America's incredibly popular, new elite women's ice hockey competition that is smashing attendance and viewership records in its first season. PWHL Ottawa's GM, Michael Hirshfeld, and Ottawa Tourism's Lesley Pincombe explain the impact of the new franchise in the Canadian capital, as well as what more the city has to offer as a sports destination.

Few sports properties in the world are embracing sustainability like the World Rally Championship. Co-hosting the Beyond Rally Forum, the most recent event in the FIA's Sustainable Innovation Series, was the latest initiative undertaken by the WRC to demonstrate its green credentials. We sent Cian Brittle to Porto get the inside track on the sustainability conversation in motorsport and speak to some of the key players in the space.

Talking points:

- Interview with Sara Mariani, the FIA's director of sustainability and diversity and inclusion (1:12)

- Martin Popilka, CEO of P1 Fuels, on the potential impact of green fuel in WRC and for the automotive industry (26:09)

- Santiago Peña Gomez, WRC Promoter's sustainability manager, explains how the series is putting its new Sustainability Roadbook into action (34:02)

- Cian's final thoughts (1:00:06)

The year started with an Africa Cup of Nations that broke all manner of records and cut through globally unlike any tournament before. Now, with major players such as Fifa, the NFL and NBA all finally realising the continent's potential, 2024 could be a breakout year for African sport.

Kicking off a new content series delving into the African sports landscape, SportsPro editorial director Michael Long and Pulse Sports MD James Torvaney speak to Sherif Hassan, head of digital and marketing products at the Confederation of African Football, about the sports business opportunity in Africa.