‘Like nothing we have ever seen’: 2021 predictions from sports business figures

Adam Grossman, CEO, Founder Block Six Analytics

Many different stakeholders have been very large bets on the sports industry - and not just on sports gambling specifically. Multinational companies, global media organizations, private equity firms, and public investment vehicles (i.e. Special Purpose Acquisition Companies) are among the notable entities and individuals that have made billions of dollars of financial commitments into leagues, teams, events, athletes, content, media, mobile and digital (among many other) platforms. Combining economic downturn from 2020 with an uncertain worldwide economic outlook at least for the next year, the sports industry will be held accountable for delivering a significant return on investment (ROI) starting in 2021. The organizations that have the technology, analytics, data, and insights to understand and communicate current or future ROI will be well suited to be successful in this environment.