As co-founder of Perform and DAZN, Simon Denyer has spent the last twenty years at the intersection of sport, media, and technology. Last week he brokered an innovative new relationship between La Liga and Disney+ via his new company PEAK Sports Media.

This is a conversation about the big picture of sport's relationship with the major digital platforms, from YouTube and Netflix to Amazon and Apple.

Unmissable.

Sponsored by Leaders in Sport

Leaders in Sport connects the most influential people and the most powerful ideas in global sport to catalyse discussion, and drive the industry forward. Through a series of global summits in North America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East, invitation-only memberships and long form content, Leaders in Sport provides professional executives, both on and off the field, with access to a community of peers to share best practice and trends that are shaping the future of sport.

Their flagship event, Leaders Week London, returns from 29 September to 2 October, with The Summit taking place at the Allianz Stadium in Twickenham.

They'll be hosting the most senior executives in sport from 54 countries, including over 100 brands. We'll be there, and you should join us.

Visit leadersinsport.com/UP for more information and use UP15 for a 15% discount on your Summit passes.

Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry.
To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartner

We publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday.

These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport.

Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here.

Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app.

If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.

 This is an episode of Inside Edge, our series on the cricket business with regular co-host Mike Jakeman. Today's guest is Peter Hutton, and nobody knows more about the relationship between television and cricket than Peter Hutton.

Strap yourselves in, this is a masterclass.

This episode of the Unofficial Partner podcast is brought to you by Sid Lee Sport.

Sid Lee Sport believes that sponsorship activation has lost its edge. Same formats. Same ideas. Same old playbook.

They call it Sponsorship Tumbleweed. Because too much work in the category just exists… its drifts by. Expensively! Not offending anyone, but not making anyone feel… anything.

They’re here to shake that up.

They’re a new kind of agency built for sport. That means combining world-class creativity with deep sponsorship know-how, flawless delivery, and real marketing effectiveness - not just good vibes and a lot of chat about fan culture.

This is the agency that makes brands matter in sport. Culturally, commercially, and creatively.

If you're tired of the tumbleweed, visit sidleesport.com

Sid Lee Sport. Where brands become champions.

Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry.
To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartner

We publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday.

These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport.

Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here.

Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app.

If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.

Every shirt tells a story.

Joey D'Urso, an award-winning journalist from The Times and formerly of The Athletic, joins UP to discuss his new book: More Than A Shirt: How Football Shirts Explain Global Politics, Money and Power.

• How the Gazprom sponsorship on FC Schalke 04's shirts reflects Russia's geopolitical strategies leading up to the invasion of Ukraine.

• The criminal ties and money laundering schemes highlighted by clubs like Colombia's Envigado FC.

• The dark side of the global gambling industry and the rise and fall of cryptocurrency sponsorships, like Football Index, that adorned shirts of clubs such as Nottingham Forest.

• The use of football as a tool for authoritarian power, exemplified by Newcastle United's Saudi ownership.

• And the symbolism of the England women's goalkeeper shirt, connecting to the broader story of women's rights and the growing popularity of the women's game.

Get ready to see the world, and your favorite jerseys, in a whole new light.

This episode of the Unofficial Partner podcast is brought to you by Sid Lee Sport.

Sid Lee Sport is a new breed of agency that combines world class creativity with deep sponsorship expertise, flawless operational delivery, and a culture of marketing effectiveness. They have a creative philosophy of producing famous campaigns and activations that build buzz and conversation in a category that too often looks and sounds the same. And they're pioneering a new standard of effectiveness in sports marketing, using econometrics and attribution models to go beyond traditional media ROI.

So if you're looking for an agency to take your brand to the top, get in touch with the team at Sid Lee Sport, where brands become champions.

Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry.
To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartner

We publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday.

These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport.

Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here.

Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app.

If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.

Welcome to The Bundle, our regular series on the sports media and streaming marketplace with co-hosts Yannick Ramcke, General Manager of OTT at the streaming service OneFootball and Murray Barnett, founder of 26West Consulting and formerly of F1, World Rugby and ESPN International.

This episode of the Unofficial Partner podcast is brought to you by Sid Lee Sport.

Sid Lee Sport is a new breed of agency that combines world class creativity with deep sponsorship expertise, flawless operational delivery, and a culture of marketing effectiveness. They have a creative philosophy of producing famous campaigns and activations that build buzz and conversation in a category that too often looks and sounds the same. And they're pioneering a new standard of effectiveness in sports marketing, using econometrics and attribution models to go beyond traditional media ROI.

So if you're looking for an agency to take your brand to the top, get in touch with the team at Sid Lee Sport, where brands become champions.

Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry.
To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartner

We publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday.

These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport.

Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here.

Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app.

If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.

This is episode three of a four-part series created in collaboration with Redtorch called What's Sport Selling?

It's a conversation with John Ridgeon, the chief executive of World Athletics.

Previous episodes in the series:

UP443 Big Sugar, Big Pharma...Where's the Big Sport Lobby?

UP458 Fitness, Toxicity and the Importance of the ASICS Message

Jon Ridgeon bio
Athletic Career (1980s-1990s)

• Born: February 14, 1967, Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk
• Key Achievement: Silver medal at the 1987 World Championships in Rome in 110m hurdles
• Olympic Participation: Represented Great Britain at 1988 Seoul Olympics and 1996 Atlanta Olympics
• Personal Best: 13.29 seconds in 110m hurdles (British record holder)
• Education: Magdalene College, Cambridge

Business Career (1998-2019)

• Fast Track Sports Marketing (1998-2012): Founding and managing partner of Fast Track.
• Broadcasting: TV commentator for BBC and BSkyB
• Achieve Events: Director where he helped build the mass participation events business until its acquisition in 2015
• European Sports Championships: Director of the 2018 multi-sport championship event

World Athletics Leadership (2019-Present)

• Appointment: Appointed CEO in December 2018
• Mandate: Working alongside President Sebastian Coe to modernize and grow athletics globally

This podcast is sponsored by Redtorch, a global research & creative agency passionately dedicated to making sport more relevant.
We help sports rights holders and brands punch above their weight.
Born in the Olympic movement, we thrive under pressure – small teams, high stakes, global eyes.
We’re trusted and retained by many of the world’s biggest sports because we offer everything you’d want from a specialist agency: unmatched flexibility, the best people and a constant stream of innovative ideas.
Visit redtorch.sport to learn how we consistently grow audiences, deliver high-impact creative and turn cultural signals into a winning advanta

Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry.
To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartner

We publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday.

These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport.

Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here.

Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app.

If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.

This is a live episode of Wedge Issues, our golf business series recorded at Callaway Clubhouse at The Open Championship this week at the Royal Portrush Golf Club.

Niall Horan: One Direction star and co-founder of Modest Management Company is globally famous and deeply involved in the business of golf.

Inci Mehmet: Former Ladies European Tour pro golfer, now a presenter of Sky Sports award winning golf coverage.

Dan Rapaport: Golf journalist, broadcaster and content creator. Formerly Barstool Sports but now at Pro Shop with the Dan on Golf podcast.

Ben Sharpe: President and Managing Director for Europe at Callaway Golf, leading figure in the business of golf.

Huge thanks to the teams at Callaway and MSQ Sport and Entertainment for all their hard work putting this live show together.

Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry.
To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartner

We publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday.

These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport.

Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here.

Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app.

If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.

Arvind Iyengar is chair of Sportz Interactive and CEO of the Sportz Solutions, the global parent company. As such he now oversees a company with 700+ employees working across 40 sports worldwide, with marquee clients including UEFA, The Olympics, NBA, F1, Google, BCCI, Dream11 and multiple IPL franchises. The company is in an aggressive expansion phase, particularly in Europe.

So Arvind is the perfect guest to talk AI, betting, fan engagement and how McKinsey teaches its alumni how to think, and what that means for sport business.

A quick thank you to our friends at Spectacle Partners for the loan of their very nice new Soho office for the recording, and a particular shout out to Ellie Gray who came in specially to let us in and make us feel very welcome. That was very kind, thanks.

Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry.
To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartner

We publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday.

These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport.

Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here.

Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app.

If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.

Inside Edge is Unofficial Partner's regular series on the business of cricket, co-hosted by Richard Gillis and Mike Jakeman.

Freddie Wilde represents the new generation of cricket analytics professionals who have emerged to play a central role in team strategy. His journey from journalist to CricViz to England's white-ball analyst, combined with his recent role in RCB's maiden IPL title triumph, positions him as one of cricket's most influential data minds.

Career Trajectory

• 2015-2017: One of CricViz's first employees, joined part-time then full-time
• 2017-2023: Head of Performance Analysis at CricViz (7 years)
• 2021-present: Lead analyst for Oval Invincibles (The Hundred)
• 2022-present: Team analyst for Royal Challengers Bangalore (IPL)
• 2023-present: England white-ball analyst, replacing Nathan Leamon

Major Achievements

• Co-authored "Cricket 2.0: Inside the T20 Revolution" with Tim Wigmore (2019)
  • Winner: Wisden Book of the Year 2020 and Telegraph Sports Book Awards
• Data analyst in Royal Challengers Bangalore's maiden IPL title (2025)
• Worked with multiple T20 franchises globally including England and Oval Invincibles.

This episode of Unofficial Partner is brought to you by Sid Lee Sport.

Sid Lee Sport is a new breed of agency that combines world class creativity with deep sponsorship expertise, flawless operational delivery and a culture of marketing effectiveness.

They've got a creative philosophy of producing famous campaigns and activations that build buzz and conversation in a category that too often looks and sounds the same. And they're pioneering a new standard of effectiveness in sports marketing using econometrics and attribution models to go beyond traditional media ROI.

So if you're looking for an agency to take your brand to the top, get in touch with the team at Sid Lee Sport, where brands become champions.

Unofficial Partner is the leading podcast for the business of sport. A mix of entertaining and thought provoking conversations with a who's who of the global industry.
To join our community of listeners, sign up to the weekly UP Newsletter and follow us on Twitter and TikTok at @UnofficialPartner

We publish two podcasts each week, on Tuesday and Friday.

These are deep conversations with smart people from inside and outside sport.

Our entire back catalogue of 400 sports business conversations are available free of charge here.

Each pod is available by searching for ‘Unofficial Partner’ on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and every podcast app.

If you’re interested in collaborating with Unofficial Partner to create one-off podcasts or series, you can reach us via the website.