Abraham Madkour brings more than 20 years of experience covering the business of sports and serves as Executive Editor of SportsBusiness Journal, SportsBusiness Daily/Global. He is responsible for shaping the editorial direction of the publications while managing the entire editorial staff. He also oversees the editorial content for the various conferences produced by the Sports Business Group, including the prestigious World Congress of Sports, Sports Business Awards and Forty Under 40 awards. Madkour writes weekly editorials and profile features of the management and leadership strategies of leading industry executives. He is a frequent industry speaker and serves as the lead moderator and editorial spokesman at all of the company’s events.
FEATURED INTERVIEW: JPMorgan Chase
Elevating the Live Experience for Fans. As professional sports stadiums and arenas create more sophisticated ways to entertain those in the stands, the sponsors who support those venues are making their own efforts to upgrade the fan experience. And offering high quality and unique customer benefits – not just on gameday, but the OTHER 200 nights a year - is a priority for JPMorgan Chase. In this session, JPMorgan Chase’s GM / Senior Vice President Sports & Entertainment Marketing Frank Nakano will discuss the company’s partnerships with MSG, the U.S. Open and the Golden State Warriors. He will share the ways Chase is enabling fans to experience their favorite teams in an elevated way. Golden State Warriors’ President and COO Rick Welts will join the discussion when Nakano discusses the company’s activation plans around the opening of the Chase Center.
FEATURED INTERVIEW: IBM
Revolutionizing the Live Event Experience. In this interview you will hear from IBM’s Program Director of Sports and Entertainment Partnerships Elizabeth O’Brien: • About how artificial intelligence is creating smarter, more responsive and personalized live event experiences. • About the business impact of innovative technologies — like IBM Watson — and how strategic adoption drives measurable business value.
Compelling Video Content that Drives Social Engagement and Amplifies Sports Partnerships
Video marketing is one of the best ways to create engagement with sports fans on social media platforms. Video has a unique ability to connect with viewers — whether it’s prerecorded videos that are socially shareable or live social videos that are about real-time engagement. In this session, you will hear how sponsors and their partners are using social media to create and promote authentic and emotional content that drives fan engagement. You’ll hear from:
The Content Imperative: Strategy, Rights and the Impact on Sponsorship Deals
With the proliferation and popularity of digital, and social channels, every sponsor is now a content producer. Panelists will discuss how sponsors and their agencies, along with their media and property partners, are collaborating on content that resonates with consumers. In addition, this session will also address the necessary changes to the sports sponsorship and marketing industry from a business based on TV rights to one based on new forms of media consumption. You’ll hear from: