Know What Is Next
Want to learn more about the most talked about topics and trends in the sports business industry from the sports business executives who run it?
Join Next League’s CEO David Nugent, a sports technology industry veteran and thought leader with over 20 years experience in the ever-changing technology services business. Tune in every week for insightful and engaging discussions on everything from artificial intelligence and fan engagement to the changing media landscape and the growth of women’s sports with the sports industry’s leading executives.
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Episodes
65 episodes
500 Live Events a Month: What Jon Slusser Has Learned About AI, Mixed Reality, & Sports Tech
When The Famous Group was getting started, arenas were buying million-dollar video boards with nothing meaningful to put on them. That gap became a business — and 25 years later, that business now powers more than 500 live sports events a mo...
What It Takes to Turn a Women's Soccer Club Around with Ryan Dillon of Gotham FC
When Ryan Dillon joined Gotham FC as Chief Business Officer 2.5 years ago, he walked into what he describes as a distressed asset. A fully remote workforce, a league starved of investment...
How CAA Sports Navigates Talent Value, Creators, and Streaming Platforms with Matt Kramer
Sports media is becoming defined by the people who keep fans engaged between games: the insiders breaking news, athletes building their own platforms, and creators turning digital audiences into real media businesses.Matt Kramer, Co-...
How the USGA Delivers Championships and Fan Experiences with Amanda Weiner
The USGA operates one of the most complex models in sports, delivering global championships, media, and fan experiences without a fixed venue.Amanda Weiner, Managing Director of Global Media and Ticketing at the USGA, oversees a broa...
Best Of: The Business of Sports Technology
This compilation episode brings together perspectives from senior leaders across leagues, teams, media, and technology, including the NBA, NASCAR, MLB, the USOPC, and emerging platforms like Cosm. Plus, Dave’s book is out ...
The Next Chapter of the New York City Marathon with Juliette Morris
The New York City Marathon is the largest marathon in the world, drawing more than 50,000 runners and millions of spectators annually. As the race approaches its 50th anniversary, it’s evolving into a year-round platform spanning dig...
Inside US Soccer's 300% Growth Ahead of the 2026 World Cup with David Wright
US Soccer is heading into a defining stretch, and David Wright is helping shape what comes next. As Chief Commercial Officer, he sits at the center of it all, from partnerships and media to events, marketing, and business ventures. ...
How the Sports Industry Is Rethinking Its Talent Pipeline with Scott Rosner
Scott Rosner collected hundreds of rejection letters he got trying to break into sports. And it shaped exactly how he thinks about the candidates knocking on Columbia's door today.Private capital has rewritten ownership, NIL and conf...
Why San Diego FC Treats Its Academy Like a Capital Investment
San Diego FC is only a few years old, but COO Bill Miles and his team are already taking an ambitious approach to building a modern soccer club. In this episode, Bill shares why San Diego FC is betting on a long-term, academy-fi...
The New Operating Model for Live Sports with Jeb Terry
Live sports is evolving beyond the traditional broadcast model. New venue formats, new production workflows, and new distribution strategies are reshaping how fans experience games outside the home.The question is no longer how to en...
The Gap Between AI Hype and What Actually Works in Sports with Scott Gutterman
If you’re going to talk about generative AI in sports, don’t start with the tools. Start with the operating model. Are you structured to deploy it at scale?Scott Gutterman is back, drawing on two decades of experience inside one of t...
Inside Barclays Center’s Push to Scale AI and Facial Authentication with Keia Cole
Digital transformation in sports only works when the fan journey is treated as a SYSTEM. And what does it actually look like inside a multi-team, multi-venue sports organization?In this episode, Keia Cole shares how Brooklyn Sports +...
What It Takes to Modernize Youth Sports at Scale with Sameer Ahuja
Youth sports operates at a scale few people realize, with millions of games, volunteer-run teams, and technology that has to work for everyone from coaches to grandparents.GameChanger CEO Sameer Ahuja is here to walk through how the ...
Best Of: USOPC and Team USA on the Road to LA 2028
What does it take to build Team USA in a rapidly changing global, political, and digital landscape? In this Best Of episode, USOPC leaders Sarah Hirshland and Katie Bynum Aznavorian are breaking down how Olympic success is engineered, the ro...
How to Design Better Digital Products in Sports
How do sports teams achieve faster alignment, fewer reworks, and digital products that move from idea to launch more reliably?Bora Nikolic’s views of technology in the sports industry have helped shape many of the fan experiences you...
Why the 360° Fan View Is Broken and How Jordy Leiser Is Rethinking Sports Ticketing
If your organization is still talking about a “360° fan view,” chances are your technology stack is already working against you. Jordy Leiser, Co-Founder and CEO at Jump, argues most clubs are stuck with disjointed legacy systems that are bl...
What esports and Creators Reveal About the Future of Sports with Pete Vlastelica
Power in sports is becoming more distributed, and Pete Vlastelica has seen that shift from nearly every angle: early digital media, league operations, esports, and now venture investing. In this conversation, Pete reflects...
How AI Is Changing the Way Sports Organizations Actually Work
AI is hitting consumers faster in sports than almost anywhere else, and PGA of America GM Rob Smith argues that’s exactly why the industry has become a real-world testing ground for emerging technology. In this episode, Rob digs into how AI ...
Best Of: What’s Next for Leagues, Teams, & Sports Tech
In this Best Of compilation, leaders from AWS, MLB, the PGA TOUR, TGL, the Portland Trail Blazers, and Cosm share what’s actually driving meaningful change across teams, leagues, and live experiences. From applying generative AI...
Best Of: Streaming Wars, Rights Battles, & Sports Media
The rules of media rights are shifting fast. In this Best Of episode, you’ll learn how leagues are navigating fragmented distribution, how Amazon and other digital players have altered valuation models, how private equity evaluates upside be...
NIL, Emerging Leagues, and the Business of Sports with Brian Michael Cooper
Brian Michael Cooper has operated across nearly every corner of the sports industry: big law, player representation, G League president, XFL team president, senior college athletics administrator, head of an emerging league, and now sports M...
The Human Side of Modern Sports Leadership with Andrew Siegel
In an industry being reshaped by NIL, the transfer portal, and private capital, one question is becoming unavoidable: how do leaders make principled decisions when everything feels up for grabs?Investor Andrew Siegel breaks down what...
What Makes a Sports Tech Business “Exitable” with Igor Ulis
What REALLY makes a business worth buying, and what should founders actually optimize for? In this candid conversation, Dave sits down with longtime friend and former business partner Igor Ulis, partner at Hudson Technology Syst...
The Future of Horse Racing: AI, Wearables & the Breeders’ Cup with Justin McDonald
Billion-dollar track upgrades and next-generation wagering are re-shaping the horse racing industry. But what does it look like when a legacy sport leans hard into tech, data, and global expansion all at once? Justin McDonald, EVP and CMO at...
What’s Changing in Global Sport: Media Fragmentation, New Owners & Leadership Trends
The sports industry is entering one of its most volatile eras. Media models are breaking, new global buyers are emerging, and traditional league structures are under pressure. Few people have a clearer read on these shifts than <...