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Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions strikes wide-ranging content deal with Caesars

The production company, founded by former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning, has inked a multiyear deal with Caesars that will see Omaha producing video and audio content for Caesars platforms, and launching a podcast business through a new division, the Omaha Audio Network.

What's the deal?

Omaha Productions is going from Manningcasts to podcasts, all as part of a wide-ranging content deal with Caesars Entertainment, the parent company of the casino and resort brands, as well as the Caesars Sportsbook digital betting firm. 

Manning and the Omaha team will also help develop digital and social content for Caesars, kicking off with a new series called Mayne on the Street to be hosted by former ESPN host Kenny Mayne, who joined Caesars last year. The deal also includes live events at Caesars locations across the U.S., following the success of a Super Bowl party hosted by the Manning family earlier this year at Caesars Las Vegas.

The bottom line:

According to both parties, the content partnership is meant to be collaborative, with the Omaha and Caesars teams working together on content ideation, and leveraging Caesars’ lineup of talent.

Read: Hollywood Reporter

Apple scores ten-year Major League Soccer deal

Apple is kicking off a major push into soccer. The streamer has landed a ten-year deal that will see fans of the top American soccer division able to watch every single game in the season as well as League Cup games. The deal will begin with the 2023 season. It marks one of the biggest sports streaming deals and comes as Apple ramps up its sporting interest with rights to certain MLB baseball games. It will launch a new MLS streaming service via its Apple TV app. There will be no local blackouts or restrictions.

There will also be a “broad selection” of games, including what the streamer says is some of the biggest matchups, available at no additional cost to Apple TV+ subscribers as well as a number of matches available for free. It comes as the league’s current TV deal with ESPN, Univision, and Fox is set to end this season. “Apple is the perfect partner to further accelerate the growth of MLS and deepen the connection between our clubs and their fans,” said Don Garber, MLS’s commissioner. “Given Apple’s ability to create a best-in-class user experience and to reach fans everywhere, it’ll be incredibly easy to enjoy MLS matches anywhere, whether you’re a super fan or casual viewer.”

Read: Deadline

How Panda Global helps every player and fan be better content creators

Panda is the largest grassroots esports organization in the world and a pillar of the gaming community. With top rosters in games such as Smash Brothers and Street Fighter, as well as heavy-hitting influencers on Twitch and YouTube, Panda is one-of-a-kind in the esports industry. Josh Marcotte, also known as Jaaahsh, is the lead tournament organizer for the Nintendo-partnered Panda Cup series of Smash Bros. events, as well as the talent manager at Panda Global. In the organization, he supports the team in every way possible, including helping develop its content strategy.

As Panda has grown and their desire to engage with communities has developed, they've begun bringing on more community artists to help develop unique merch lines. Greenfly has been incredibly important to helping Panda empower their talent to celebrate these artists, by allowing them to distribute different shirt designs for Panda's talent to talk about on social media, meaning fans that follow multiple of our talent end up seeing a variety of designs instead of seeing all the same ones through a single retweet.

Read: Engage by Hashtag Sports

Thinking of making a career move? Bet on this.

Sports betting is big money, and it has become even bigger in recent years since the Supreme Court struck down a federal ban on the practice in 2018. Americans bet twice as much on sports in 2021 compared to 2020, with the number of Americans regularly betting on sporting events increasing by 80%. With Americans wagering $52.7 billion in 2021, building a career in this realm of the sports industry looks like a safe bet.

Offered PointsBet USA CEO Johnny Aitken: “My advice is to keep jumping at opportunities. The thing we look for at PointsBet is tenacity. The sheer desire to win and commit to being part of something excellent that’s growing.”

Click below to read executive advice on which skills and focus areas offer the greatest career opportunities right now in the sports betting space.

Warner Bros. Discovery picks sports chief to navigate streaming era

Warner Bros. Discovery, the media giant created by the fusion of the owners of HBO and “90 Day Fiancé,” said that it had picked an executive to manage its billions of dollars of sports rights, one of the cornerstones of the company. The company now has the rights to games from the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League. The executive, Luis Silberwasser, will be responsible for ushering the company’s sports programming — which includes “Inside the NBA,” the N.C.A.A. March Madness men’s basketball tournament and playoff baseball—further into the streaming era.

The executive, Luis Silberwasser, will be responsible for crucial talks with the N.B.A. at a time when the value of live sports rights are soaring. Mr. Silberwasser has a longstanding relationship with David Zaslav, the chief executive of Warner Bros. Discovery, who oversaw Discovery before it merged with WarnerMedia this year. Mr. Silberwasser was an executive vice president at Discovery, responsible for content at Discovery Networks International, during a tenure at the company that ran more than a decade. His title will be chairman and chief executive of Warner Bros. Discovery Sports.

Read: The New York Times

NHL brings Stanley Cup to fans via AR experience, filters on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok

The NHL has created the Stanley Cup Experience, using cutting-edge technology to create a near-perfect digital replica of the Cup. With a computer, tablet or phone, you can zoom in and explore each engraving, scratch and dent. You can link to Records.NHL.com and dive deeply into history. In AR on your tablet or phone, you can set the Cup wherever you want for a photo or video. You can walk around it 360 degrees in 3D as if the actual trophy were right there. You can even peek inside the bowl. With an AR social media filter on your phone, you can hoist the Cup over your head in front of any backdrop and post a photo or video on Instagram, Facebook or TikTok.

"We have the most exciting and unpredictable postseason of all sports, so this is really our opportunity to enhance the excitement and add to the conversation with something fun and interactive," NHL Chief Marketing Officer Heidi Browning said. AR is an emerging technology and new territory for professional sports. Browning said the NHL has looked at many opportunities to incorporate AR and social media filters but was not satisfied with the experience until now. The NHL met with Dynamic Vision, a Calgary-based company that develops advanced and interactive 3D visualizations and simulation technologies, to identify a solution that delivers a best-in-class AR experience.

Read: Adweek

PepsiCo, the NHL and the NHLPA Announce Multiyear North American Partnership Extension

The Details

PepsiCo will maintain exclusive NHL and NHLPA North American rights in the carbonated soft drinks, water, energy drinks and savory snack food categories. PepsiCo’s wide portfolio of brands includes Pepsi, MTN DEW, Aquafina, Rockstar, Lay’s, Tostitos, Ruffles, Doritos, Cheetos, Rold Gold and Miss Vickie’s. Through the partnership, PepsiCo will continue innovative activation and increased exclusivity around promotional opportunities. Heightened strategic customer marketing and partnerships are part of the agreement as well.

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