Talking digital

The digitization of the sports industry is a whole new ballgame. It’s possible that sports in the digital era will be as much about technology as they are about players.

For Christoph Stadler, Head of Marketing & Strategy at DreiBusiness, digitization is not only a great opportunity for sport, but also for the economy. “This requires two things: the technical infrastructure and the know-how of those who implement the digital transformation,” he said.

At Drei’s latest ‘DigiTalk’, set against the beautiful backdrop of the Vienna Ferris Wheel, renowned experts from the sports industry tackled the topic, ‘More movement through digitization’. The panel included experts from professional sports, e-sports, sports media, sports marketing, sports science and telecommunications.

Without question, Covid-19 and global lockdowns have boosted digitization with e-sports, live streams and virtual races now commonplace. But what does this mean for the major sporting events of the future? How do amateur athletes build their careers? What does the digital future of sports clubs, professional athletes and their fans look like?  

Younger generation sports fans are already consuming sports on their mobile devices at an unforeseen rate. They want to watch sporting events on-demand, just as they consume other forms of entertainment from Netflix to YouTube. Clearly, live game attendance is under threat. Perhaps digitization is the opportunity for sports to go truly global – only time will tell.

The big question remains, will the digitization of the sports industry generate more movement, or will screens increasingly replace it? To watch the latest and other ‘DigiTalks’, click here.