Category Archives: General Interest

Nominees Announced for The 2019 ESPYS as Fan Voting Begins

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Serena Williams, Tiger Woods, Zion Williamson, Kevin Durant, Simone Biles, Alexander Ovechkin, Chloe Kim, Drew Brees, Mookie Betts, and more among nominees at The 2019 ESPYS hosted by entertainer extraordinaire, Tracy Morgan, airing July 10 on ABC

WHAT: Nominees for The 2019 ESPYS presented by Capital One were revealed today and fan voting has begun.

WHERE: Fans can cast their vote at ESPYS.com, and a list of The 2019 ESPYS nominees is available to members of the media here. You may also access the complete 2019 ESPYS Media Kit.

WHEN: Voting is now underway and all categories will close at the start of the live show Wednesday, July 10, at 8PM EDT.

HOW: Fans can vote for the nominees at ESPYS.com up to the start of The 2019 ESPYS (Voting for “Best Team” will open the first week of July).

The 2019 ESPYS Facts and Figures:

  • For the first time since 1994 – the 2nd ESPYS ever – all the nominees for “Best Male Athlete” are newcomers to the category. Patrick Mahomes, Mookie Betts, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Brooks Koepka all vie for their first “Best Male Athlete” honor.
  • In “Best Female Athlete,” newcomer Alex Morgan joins a field of returning nominees, including Breanna Stewart, Simone Biles, and Mikaela Shiffrin. At least one of those three women has been represented in the category since 2014.
  • For a third-straight year, James Harden graces the “Best NBA Player” category, alongside first timer Paul George and returning nominees Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kevin Durant.
  • In “Best Record-Breaking Performance,” returning nominees Drew Brees and Klay Thompson are joined by two young newcomers – Oregon basketball’s Sabrina Ionescu and high school runner Matthew Boling.
  • Rising tennis star Naomi Osaka is nominated in three categories this year – “Best Breakthrough Athlete,” “Best Upset,” and “Best Female Tennis Player.”

The 2019 ESPYS return to ABC for the fifth consecutive year with a star-studded event in celebration of this year’s greatest achievements in sports. The 2019 ESPYS will relive the highlight moments of the year, honor leading athletes and performances, and bring together the sports industry’s fan favorites and biggest stars.

Top celebrities from sports and entertainment will gather to recognize nominees and honor winners in categories such as “Best Male Athlete,” “Best Female Athlete,” “Best Game,” “Best Record Breaking Performance,” and introducing for the first time, “Best Boxer,” “Best MMA Fighter,” “Best Esports Moment,” “Best WWE Moment,” and “Best Viral Moment.”

Per tradition, The 2019 ESPYS will also showcase the achievements of inspiring and courageous athletes who embody the spirit of The ESPYS through three pillar awards – the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage, the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance, and The Pat Tillman Award for Service. As previously announced, the awards will honor Celtics legend Bill Russell, Former Marine Corps Sergeant Kirstie Ennis, and High School Football Coach Rob Mendez, respectively. The show supports ESPN’s ongoing commitment to The V Foundation for Cancer Research, launched in 1993 by ESPN in partnership with the late Jim Valvano.

The 2019 ESPYS will be hosted by Tracy Morgan and will be broadcast live on ABC from Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles on Wednesday, July 10 from 8PM – 11PM EDT.

Sports Innovation Lab: The Fluid Fan Will Be a Changing Tide for the Unprepared Sports Industry

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A new report explains how the rapid evolution of technology will create fans that are continually evolving and open to change

Boston, MA – May 1, 2019 (PRNewswire) The future of the sports industry is uncertain as it faces a fan defined by technology, open to options and no longer bound by the loyalties of the past, according to the Sports Innovation Lab, the leading market intelligence platform and research provider for the sports industry. In the research A New Age in Sports, Sports Innovation Lab analyzes the changing dynamics in sports and the impact on the “fluid fan,” which it defines as open to change, empowered to choose and continuously evolving.

“This research is a wake-up call for the leaders in the sports industry,” Angela Ruggiero, chief executive officer and co-founder, Sports Innovation Lab, said. “When sports thrive, they unify, break down barriers and heal us. I was in the Korean locker room in Pyeongchang, South Korea, when the North and South Korean women’s hockey teams united for the 2018 Winter Olympics. These women knew what they were doing was bigger than sport. And that’s the power of sport — when it’s done right.

“The challenge facing us, however, is that our fans are undergoing a metamorphosis, driven by technology,” added the four-time Olympian and member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. “This research is critical for the understanding of tomorrow’s fan and how the industry can adapt now to serve them.”

There are several characteristics of the fluid fan already emerging:

  • The Fluid Fan will follow digital communities. Teams will no longer own the dialogue with fans, as communities like the NBA-themed subreddit, which has 1.8 million subscribers, has already demonstrated. It’s just one more channel teams will need to follow and influence to reach their fans.
  • The Fluid Fan will be loyal to players, not teams. When Lebron James left the Cleveland Cavaliers for the Los Angeles Lakers, his Lakers jersey quickly become the NBA’s biggest seller. Wayne Rooney, the talented D.C. United forward, has 17 million Twitter followers – the team itself has 150,000 followers. Increasingly, the athlete has the loyal fans, not the franchise.
  • The Fluid Fan will cheer for her values. Nearly three-quarters of consumers under the age of 20 say they are willing to pay more to brands that are committed to positive social and environmental impact.
  • The Fluid Fan will have multiple selves. The next generation of fans will have grown up in digital communities, whether it be Twitter, Twitch or Fortnite. Their identities will be less fixed and more dynamic and contextual.
  • The Fluid Fan will be a creator, not just a consumer. As new platforms emerge to support user-generated content, professional sports will become a platform for the generation of a broader, more dispersed ecosystem, as has already been witnessed in video games and with the popularity of esports.

The report, which also provides recommendations for the industry on how it can adapt to the fluid fan, can be downloaded here.

ABOUT THE SPORTS INNOVATION LAB

Sitting at the intersection of technology and sports, Sports Innovation Lab is a cloud-based market intelligence platform that specializes in market research and analysis for the sports industry. Through its platform and proprietary market data, advisory services and leadership boards, the Sports Innovation Lab aims to empower the sports industry to win the fluid fan today and to adapt to serve the fan of the future.

For More Information, Contact:

Phil LeClare
phil@sportsiblab.com
(617) 209-9406