Takeaways

• Evolution of Media
• Seismic Changes in Sports Media Innovation in revenue generation
• Impact of multimedia rights
• Challenges and opportunities of working with student athletes

Chapters

• 00:00 Journey in Sports Media
• 06:09 Evolution of Local Media
• 19:28 Multimedia Rights in College Sports
• 26:00 Multimedia Rights and Revenue Generation
• 31:33 NIL and Revenue Sharing
• 40:26 Data and Technology Impact

Takeaways

• Sports venues as community anchors
• Challenges in sports architecture
• Evolution of stadiums and arenas

Chapters

• 00:00 Favorite Projects and Data Analytics

Takeaways

• Private Capital
• Legislative Process

Chapters

• 00:00 The Role of Artificial Intelligence in College Sports

Chapters

• 00:00 Introduction and Background of Gensler
• 15:15 Evolution of Sports and Entertainment Districts
• 22:40 Integration of Technology and Immersive Experiences
• 29:27 Future Trends in Sports and Entertainment Districts

In this episode:

• Scott Sonnenberg’s journey from the Chicago Bulls to Chief Commercial Officer of the LA Clippers.
• Key innovations at the Intuit Dome: seamless entry, tailored fan experiences, and high-tech features like Gameface ID.
• How the venue's design enhances gameplay, impacts opponent performance, and creates a significant home-court advantage.
• The strategic approach to global branding, partnerships, and community engagement within the LA market.
• The role of data, analytics, and AI in personalizing fan interactions and optimizing venue operations.
• Insight into premium experiences, premium seating design, and how LA’s competitive market shapes them.
• The future of sports venues: embracing AI, maintaining the essence of live sports, and creating memorable experiences.

Timestamps:

00:00 - Building the greatest NBA arena from scratch
01:21 - Scott Sonnenberg’s NBA career timeline
02:47 - Innovations at Intuit Dome: Restroom design, Halo Board, and fan experience
04:03 - Building a global brand while focusing on local fan base
06:41 - Leveraging international partnerships and global NBA reach
08:11 - Competition with Lakers and industry leadership in venue design
10:17 - Creating ROI-driven, innovative sponsorships and partnerships
12:02 - Sustainability and environmental initiatives at Intuit Dome
15:04 - Seamless entry, personalized fan experience, and fan engagement technology
17:04 - Early partner engagement during venue construction
18:36 - Use of technology partners like Clear and AT&T within the venue
20:29 - Interactive fan experiences driven by Candy Crush partnership
26:53 - Personalization of fan experiences using data and analytics
33:07 - Impact of venue design, the "Wall," and home atmosphere
35:53 - Premium seating options and creating unique experiences
41:16 - The role of AI in transforming sports and fan engagement
44:11 - The future of sports venues: technology enhancement without replacing live elements

It explores the dynamic nature of multimedia rights, the need for sustainable revenue growth, and the role of technology and data in enhancing fan engagement and game day experiences. Additionally, it discusses the complexities of working with student-athletes in the context of NIL and the influence of artificial intelligence on the sports industry.

Takeaways

• Evolution of Media
• Seismic Changes in Sports Media Innovation in sponsorship and media rights
• Challenges and opportunities in college sports
• Impact of NIL on college sports

Chapters

• 00:00 Journey in Sports Media
• 10:05 Impact of Non-Traditional Providers
• 19:28 Multimedia Rights in College Sports
• 26:00 Innovation in College Sports Sponsorship and Media Rights
• 31:33 Challenges and Opportunities in College Sports
• 40:26 Impact of NIL on College Sports

Jamie's path to the Bulls spans nearly two decades of sports marketing experience across media, agency, and brand roles. She began her career at CBS Interactive and CBS Sports, where she managed digital sponsorship sales and some of the network's largest cross-platform programs. From there, she moved into the agency world at Intersport and later 160over90 — part of Endeavor — where she led sponsorship activation and content strategy for global brands including Audi, KPMG, Invesco, and National Car Rental across properties ranging from the PGA Tour to Major League Soccer. A stint on the brand side at Guaranteed Rate, managing the White Sox naming rights partnership, rounded out a career arc that gave her fluency in every seat at the table before she ever joined a team.

Beyond her day-to-day role with the Bulls, Jamie spent five years leading the Chicago chapter of WISE — Women in Sports and Events — first as President and then as Chairwoman. Under her leadership, the chapter hosted sold-out events including a panel at NBA All-Star 2020 and continued to grow as a resource for women building careers in the sports and events industries.

Jamie holds a degree from the University of Michigan and a Master's in Sports Administration from Northwestern University. She lives in the Chicago area with her family.

During his initial tenure at the Big Ten in the sports administration department, Edds served as a sport liaison, oversees the Olympic sport officiating program and was also a liaison to the Big Ten Sports Management Committee. Prior to joining the Big Ten, Edds worked as a regional manager at Rocksolid, LLC, in Chicago.

A former Big Ten student-athlete, Edds was a three-year starter at linebacker for the Iowa Hawkeyes and earned Academic All-Big Ten honors on three occasions. As a senior in 2009, Edds was named second-team All-Big Ten and served as a team captain on a Hawkeyes team that finished the year No. 7 overall in the Associated Press poll and earned a trip to the Orange Bowl. Following his collegiate playing career, Edds was selected by the Miami Dolphins in the fourth round of the 2010 NFL Draft. He went on to play in the NFL from 2010-15, spending time with the Dolphins, Indianapolis Colts, New England Patriots, New York Jets and Jacksonville Jaguars.

Edds graduated from the University of Iowa in 2010 with a degree in management and organizations. In 2019, he earned a master’s degree in sports administration from Northwestern University. Edds is the son of Anne and David.

They start by breaking down what prediction markets actually are and how they differ from traditional sports betting. Instead of wagering against a sportsbook like FanDuel or DraftKings, prediction markets operate through event contracts that trade on binary outcomes — essentially “yes or no” questions. The price of a contract reflects the market’s implied probability of an outcome occurring, which makes the experience feel closer to a financial market than a typical betting product. From there, they discuss why that structural difference matters, especially as these platforms evolve and expand into sports-focused contracts that look and feel a lot like wagering.

The conversation then shifts to regulation and why prediction markets have become controversial. Because they’re structured as event contracts, platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket fall under the oversight of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) rather than the state-by-state regulatory systems that govern sports betting. Brice and Adam talk through the growing debate about whether that’s appropriate, what it means for the future of the category, and why the answer could shape how leagues, teams, and athletes choose to engage with these markets.

They also take a step back to the origins of prediction markets, including their history in academic and political forecasting, and the “wisdom of crowds” idea: when lots of people make independent decisions with real stakes, markets can aggregate information in a way that produces surprisingly accurate predictions. But they’re clear that sports isn’t just about “better forecasts,” and the episode explores the tradeoffs that come with financial incentives in sports contexts. They dig into concerns around manipulation risk, low-liquidity markets, insider information, and where leagues should draw the line on participation by athletes, coaches, and team personnel in any market connected to on-field outcomes.

From there, they zoom back in on the Giannis-Kalshi relationship and what Adam’s research suggests so far. Adam explains the framework behind his article, using data to evaluate brand sentiment, audience behavior, and partnership fit. While Giannis’ fanbase does over-index on interest in sports betting compared to the general public, it appears less aligned than broader NBA fandom, and early online sentiment around the partnership is mixed. That leads to a broader conversation about what “success” looks like for these partnerships: short-term sentiment versus long-term awareness, whether “all press is good press,” and how athlete investments in emerging categories can create value even if the immediate reaction is complicated.

They close by widening the lens again to the bigger trajectory of sports wagering and prediction markets. They discuss how leagues are experimenting with relationships in this space, why new categories often trigger a fresh wave of sponsorship and marketing dollars, and how prediction markets might ultimately evolve beyond entertainment into legitimate hedging tools for sports organizations. The episode ends with an open question that sits at the heart of the conversation: are we moving toward a world where you can trade a market on anything in life, and if so, should we?

Overall, Brice and Adam frame prediction markets as a fast-moving, still-early industry that’s blurring the line between finance and sports gambling. And as regulation, league strategy, and consumer adoption continue to develop, they make the case that understanding how these markets work — and what risks and opportunities they create — is quickly becoming essential for anyone in the sports business ecosystem.

They explore how these elements are reshaping cities and communities globally, emphasizing the importance of public-private partnerships and the role of AI and data analytics in sports business outcomes. Caroline brings her expertise in public affairs and community development to the table, highlighting the potential for sports to drive economic and social benefits.

The episode also delves into the global perspective on sports development, the rise of sports tourism, and the creation of vibrant communities that extend beyond game days. The hosts express excitement about future episodes featuring diverse voices and perspectives, aiming to engage listeners with insightful conversations about the intersection of sports, real estate, technology, and community building.

After returning to the U.S., Brandon transitioned into college coaching, spending more than a decade on Division I basketball staffs in a variety of roles, including operations and assistant coaching. His time in college athletics gave him a front-row seat to the business of sports—recruiting, budgets, television deals, and, more recently, the evolution of NIL. He later served as Executive Director of All Good Dawgs, Butler’s nonprofit NIL collective, where he helped connect student-athletes with community service initiatives across Indianapolis while navigating the rapidly changing NIL landscape.

Today, Brandon serves as the Athletic Director of the Carmel Dads’ Club, one of the largest and most respected youth sports organizations in the country. Under his leadership, the organization supports more than 15,000 participants annually across 13 sports, powered by thousands of volunteers and a strong community-first mission. In this role, Brandon oversees everything from facilities and scheduling to program development and parent engagement, applying lessons learned from high-level basketball to grassroots sports.

A former player, coach, administrator, and now parent-coach, Brandon brings a unique perspective on how sports shape people at every stage—from youth leagues to professional arenas. His work today focuses on creating accessible, well-run, and values-driven sports experiences that emphasize development, discipline, and community over shortcuts and hype.

Hannah's path into professional sports is anything but conventional. After earning her undergraduate degree in General Studies and Spanish from the University of Northern Iowa, she spent several years in residential real estate in Iowa — consistently exceeding sales goals and developing the client relationship and business management skills that would later prove central to her work in sports operations. When COVID prompted a career pivot in 2020, Hannah enrolled in Northwestern University's Master of Sports Administration program, graduating in June 2022, while simultaneously returning to the game she grew up playing through a coaching role at a local youth soccer club.

That coaching role opened the door to Chicago FC United, one of the largest youth soccer clubs on Chicago's North Shore, where Hannah joined as Assistant Girls Director. In under two years, she advanced to Director of Club Operations — overseeing all programs across the club's boys, girls, and academy levels — by developing operational, marketing, and organizational capabilities that distinguished her in a field dominated by coaching backgrounds. Her deep knowledge of the youth soccer ecosystem in Chicagoland became the foundation for her transition to the professional side of the sport.

A passionate advocate for growing women's presence in soccer — both on and off the field — Hannah has made it a priority to increase the visibility of women coaches, directors, and players at every level of the game. She holds a Master of Arts in Sports Administration from Northwestern University and a Bachelor's degree from the University of Northern Iowa.

Jaeger rejoined the Wildcats after previously serving on Northwestern’s sports performance staff from 2021 to 2023. Prior to his initial time in Evanston, he spent three years at Texas A&M University as an Assistant Sports Performance Coach, where he led annual training plans for swimming and diving and men’s tennis, while also providing temporary oversight for women’s soccer, women’s tennis, and men’s golf.

Before his tenure at Texas A&M, Jaeger spent four years at Boise State University as Associate Director of Olympic Sports Performance, playing a key role in the development and execution of comprehensive training programs for a wide range of Olympic sports. His career also includes stops at Southern Illinois University, Oral Roberts University, and Oregon State University, with experience supporting football, basketball, baseball, softball, tennis, golf, swimming and diving, gymnastics, volleyball, soccer, and track and field.

Jaeger holds a Master of Science in Education with a concentration in Kinesiology from Southern Illinois University and a Bachelor of Science in Health and Wellness from the University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point. He is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) through the National Strength and Conditioning Association and is also certified by USA Weightlifting.

Max walks through how his research journey began with a simple observation during a Clemson–Florida State game—and evolved into a multi-year project involving tens of thousands of recruits, thousands of transfers, and hundreds of hours of data cleaning, matching, and modeling. Along the way, he explains how structural barriers before college shape player outcomes, why transfer behavior changed so dramatically after 2018 and 2021, and how NIL fundamentally altered the incentives facing college athletes.

The conversation dives deep into what motivates players to transfer, why “upward” and “downward” transfers optimize for different outcomes, and how athletes balance short-term playing time with long-term professional upside. Perhaps most notably, Max shares a striking finding: NIL valuations are now a stronger predictor of NFL participation than high school star ratings—suggesting that dynamic, market-based signals may outperform static recruiting metrics when it comes to forecasting success.

The episode also explores what this means for programs, conferences, and the future of college football. From NIL spend correlating with wins, to roster mobility increasing as financial incentives grow, the discussion reframes NIL not as chaos—but as a market finding its structure in real time.

Whether you’re a student of sports analytics, a college athletics administrator, or just trying to understand how NIL is reshaping the game, this episode offers a rare, data-backed look at what’s really happening beneath the headlines.