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FC Barcelona incite 'tribal war' 😳, the $50M Africa sports fund💰, and NFL's Africa Superbowl reveal 🏉...
Plus: Beckham turns up in Thailand, MLB goes to Korea
James Torvaney
February 06, 2024
Yet Another Sports Newsletter is aimed at sports industry professionals and focuses on emerging markets – Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
Each week, I cover the key news items you need to know about, tying them into wider industry trends and actionable takeaways.
🌍 WHAT HAPPENED THIS WEEK…
🏆 By almost all accounts, the ongoing AFCON and AFC Asian Cup tournaments have been a huge success.
🗞️ We’ll cover both next week in our post-tournament debriefs.
In the meantime…
🇺🇸 BORN TO PLAY: American sports, tech, and media brands are increasingly creating African-themed marketing content.
📺 PAYTV AIN’T DEAD YET: Sub-Saharan Africa’s third biggest pay-TV operator tries (and fails) to buy its largest.
💵 FROM REAL ESTATE TO SPORTS: The $50 million African sports fund making its second investment into Côte d’Ivoire.
⚾️ TURNING KOREAN: Tickets for MLB’s first-ever game South Korean sell out in 8 minutes.
🇹🇭 APEX PREDATOR: David Beckham turns up at a shopping mall in Thailand.
Read on to find out why any of this matters…
🇳🇬 “IT’S A PART OF WHO I AM”
American sports brands are increasingly tapping into Africa for marketing campaigns.
It makes sense – not only do they have a sizeable diaspora market (over 400,000 Nigerians live in the US, for example), but African-American and Gen-Z audiences in Western nations are showing a growing interest in African culture.
Last month Whatsapp released a 30-minute documentary tracing Giannis ‘Ugo’ Antetokounmpo’s Nigerian routes…
Meanwhile, the NFL released a teaser for their upcoming Super Bowl ad. The ad was filmed in Ghana and involved several top NFL players.
The full ad will air on Sunday during the Super Bowl and could involve a big announcement…
IT CAN GO VERY WRONG…
On the other hand, European sports brands are generally a bit further behind in tapping into Afro-vibes.
This week FC Barcelona dropped the ball when they posted a farewell to outgoing Nigerian striker Asisat Oshoala in Igbo [the predominant tribe and language in Eastern Nigeria].
Unfortunately, Asisat is not Igbo but Yoruba – and the goodbye message did not go down well on Twitter.
📺 CANAL+ TRIES TO BUY MULTICHOICE… OR DOES IT?
Canal+, the French broadcaster that owns a minority stake in Multichoice, made a bid to buy their South African competitor outright.
❌ Despite being a 40% premium to the current share price, Multichoice (who have reported heavy losses in recent years) rejected the bid.
The combined company would have held well over 50% of Africa’s pay-TV subscribers.
Estimated market sizes for African pay-TV broadcasters in 2028 (DStv and Gotv are both owned by Multichoice).
Source: www.digitaltvresearch.com
🔥 MY HOT TAKE:
A deal makes sense for Canal+. The new group would have far more leverage in buying and sports media rights, and more clout when working with pan-African advertisers, as well as some significant cost synergies.
It would also add around 25 million subscribers to their customer base, at a time when customers in their other markets are moving away from pay-TV.
That said, it’s not clear whether Canal+ seriously expected this offer to be accepted, or if it was more symbolic. There are also regulatory hurdles that would limit their control over Multichoice’s business.
In general, I think consolidation in the market is a good thing: having a dominant player would likely enable more quality investment into production and live coverage, which is good for viewers.
Expect this saga to rumble on for a while.
Canal+ saw an initial bid for Multichoice rejected, but they will likely be back for more.
💰AFRICAN INVESTORS TURN TO SPORTS
Omega Sports Holding LLC, led by real estate investor Cheick Sanankoua, has bought a minority stake in Racing Club d'Abidjan.
Omega is a private investment firm that launched in 2022, looking to invest around $50 million to ‘disrupt the sports industry in Africa’. The firm has also invested in Abidjan Basketball Club.
🔥 MY HOT TAKE:
As the continent’s tech sector wobbles, I expect to see more investment into the African sports sector in the coming years.
What’s less clear is how these businesses will make money. Selling talent to European clubs is one option, but it’s not an easy business to get right.
A future cog in the City Football Group machine?
🇰🇷 MLB EXPANDS INTO SOUTH KOREA
The MLB recently announced that the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres would play two regular season games in Seoul.
Tickets sold out within minutes.
🔥 HOT TAKE:
As US and European markets mature and leagues look for audience growth to justify their increasing valuations, expect to see more international games such as these
The NFL has already fixed games in London, Munich, and Sao Paulo. An African city might be next…
The MLB has previously hosted games in Japan, Mexico, the UK, and Australia.
🌍 PROMOTE IT LIKE BECKHAM…
David Beckham joined Thai actor Bright Vachirawit in Bangkok last week for Adidas’s ‘Legend of Predator’ event.
Young, populous countries like Thailand are key grow areas for sportswear brands. In 2022 Adidas overcame Nike as the most recognisable brand in the country, according to YouGov.
Beckham is immensely popular across Asia and Africa.
David Beckham and Thai actor Bright Vachirawit.
FOLLOW ME FOR MORE 👉🏼
Hit me up if you have any interesting scoops, or want to chat sports business.
For more emerging markets sports business trends and insights, you can follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn.
👉🏼 If you want help penetrating Africa and its diaspora, reach out to [email protected]. With over 3 million unique months users, over 2.5 million followers, and a client list that includes Nike, NBA Africa, and NFL Africa, Pulse Sports is your brand’s go-to when it comes to reaching African sports fans.
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