Welcome to the first Athletic Interest Weekly. We know firsthand how difficult it can be to keep up with the fast-paced world of sports business, either the website is behind a paywall or they spend the whole time talking about NFT’s.
Our intention with this newsletter is to take the most important deals, transfers, and social media events and present them to you in an easy-to-digest format. So, if you want to keep up with the sports business, this is the newsletter for you.
🗞 Story of the Week
Nike Enter the Metaverse
When the world’s geekiest Bond Villain Mark Zuckerburg made his speech announcing Facebook’s plans to take over the Metaverse, it seemed like Marvel had just revealed the plot for the next Avengers movies.
But the ‘Metaverse’ is a big deal! It can be best described as an immersive virtual reality meeting space, where people can create avatars and interact with people and objects, and most experts agree it is the future of the internet.
Not wishing to be left behind, Nike has also started making moves. On October 27th Nike filed a number of trademarks at the US patent office to protect their famous swoosh logo and ‘Just Do It’ slogan.
According to the filings, these trademarks are “intended to cover the categories of downloadable virtual goods, namely, computer programs featuring footwear, clothing, headwear, eyewear, bags, sports bags, backpacks, sports equipment, art, toys, and accessories for use online and in online virtual worlds.”
To make their plans even more obvious, the Oregon-based company released job openings for two ‘virtual material designers.’ The job descriptions mention the ‘Metaverse’ and successful applicants will help the digital product creation team design Nike products for virtual meeting spaces.
With Nike looking to become the footwear of choice for online avatars, it looks like even the Metaverse will be full of sneakerheads.
✍️ Deal of the Week
Coca Cola Deal Sees $400 million go to Kobe Bryant Estate.
Did you know that there is a quiet corner of the drinks market where Pepsi is absolutely dominating Coca-Cola? While Coke may have almost 45% of the carbonated drinks market, Pepsi-owned Gatorade has a whopping 70% of the sports drink market.
Perhaps fearing that people would stop perceiving Pepsi as the brand you buy when you can’t find Coke, executives at Coca-Cola decided to challenge their rival’s dominance over sports drinks.
In a deal worth around $5.5 billion, Coca-Cola has acquired full control over Bodyarmor, a New York-based sports drink that recently surpassed Powerade as the second most popular sports drink on the market.
Branded as a healthier option than Gatorade, Bodyarmor is expected to make over $1.4 billion in retail sales in 2021, a 50% growth in one year.
Late NBA star Kobe Bryant was an early investor in Bodyarmor and his estate is expected to receive about $400 million from the sale.
🎬 Video of the Week
How One Industry Controls Football
Ever wondered how football has so much money? Well, Greta Thunberg might not like the answer!
📱 Social Media Madness of the Week
Tottenham, Milan or Madrid - as long as it’s Italy!
What do Pep Guardiola, Rafa Benitez, and Antonio Conte all have in common? Well, if the admin of Tottenham Hotspurs social media is to be believed, all three of those managers are Spanish.
Yes, Tottenham has gone and messed it all up again. If trying to join the Super League and firing one of the world’s best cup final managers days before a cup final wasn’t enough, the north London club has now decided to announce the signing of Italian manager Antonio Conte with a post in Spanish.
The club was quick to notice the embarrassing error and deleted the tweet minutes later, but not before the internet took notice. Twitter was quick to make fun of Spurs, with one user calling the announcement a ‘sublime mess’ and another questioning whether the club was in fact a social experiment.
Perhaps fearing that Conte might change nationality again, the club re-released the announcement minutes later in English (just to be safe.)
While we are sure that the club will hold an inquisition into these unfortunate events, let’s hope this is not a sign of things to come for Conte’s reign in North London.
🤪 Weird Deal of the Week
49ers Snuggle Up With Mattress Firm
What sort of things do you consider when buying a new mattress? The thickness of the foam and bounce of the springs are probably quite high on the list, but what about the mattress company’s relationship with your favourite NFL team?
Well, the San Francisco 49ers seem to think that last part is very important. The NFL team has just announced a deal with the rather imaginatively named Mattress Firm, making them the team's official sleep partner.
While most sports teams try to partner with drinks companies and watch manufacturers, the 49ers seem adamant to help their fans get a good night's sleep.
"We are thrilled to have Mattress Firm come on board as the official sleep partner” explained 49ers VP of Partnerships. “We look forward to developing exciting activations together to help the Faithful avoid junk sleep."
The two brands have already announced plans to collaborate on an event known as the ‘49ers Season Finale Sleepover.’ This ‘legendary’ give-away will see one lucky fan win two tickets, flights, and a hotel stay (hopefully sleeping on Mattress Firm) for the final regular-season game against the LA Rams in January 2022.