Brands are prepared to invest heavily to have influential sports stars wearing their products, and never has this been more apparent than in the battle between Nike and Adidas for Odell Beckham Jr. The wide receiver for the New York Giants is one of the most marketable athletes in the NFL. It has been reported that Nike have managed to fend off Adidas and have re-endorsed Beckham Jr on a 5-year deal which is worth around 5 million pounds a year, nearly double their current deal with the sports star.
Nike holds off Adidas to sign Odell Beckham Jr in NFL’s biggest ever footwear deal https://t.co/z0Q7vbFMcc pic.twitter.com/SuKeoxaLyH
— The Drum (@TheDrum) May 24, 2017
Social Media platforms have increasingly been competing to win the rights to broadcast sports content: in recent weeks, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube have all signed contracts to live-stream and broadcast sports content. In this week’s blog post, Snack Media questions whether the ability to view more content from growing sports leagues and fitness programs is helping more individuals discover and get involved in developing sports. With that in mind, we look into the potential new revenue streams this opportunity provides.
Social Media Live-stream options are allowing leagues to thrive and build on fan engagement. https://t.co/VG9qPMBj7a
— Snack Media (@snackmedia) May 23, 2017
German side Schalke is to put a contactless payment chip in their kit for next season. The club has partnered with online supermarket AllyouneedFresh to allow fans to pay for items using the pre-installed chips in their replica kits. Schalke have for many years been one of the most innovative football teams in the world: they were also the first team to introduce a retractable roof in 2001 when the Veltins Arena stadium was built. Next season will be a test of how effective this world-first is, and, interestingly, whether any other major league teams will be following suit.
Schalke fans can pay with their kits next season! It's yet another innovation from @s04_en https://t.co/BV86wZMZpJ
— Digital Sport (@DigitalSportUK) May 19, 2017
Facebook is set to live-stream 20 Major League Baseball games during the upcoming season. The games will be available to a US Audience through the MLB’S Facebook Page. Major League Baseball is unique in that it provides fans with an engaging community experience where the action off the diamond is as important as the battle on the field. New games will be available each week, and the MLB hopes that through live-streaming on Facebook it will reimagine this social experience on a national scale, attracting more fans to go and watch a game and engage in the electric atmosphere.
Facebook Will Be Live-Streaming 20 Major League Baseball Games https://t.co/PLRuOqTZLQ
— We are Social Media (@WeRSM) May 24, 2017
Over the past year, Facebook has released several innovative updates and new features on the platform’s app. One of the main advances is live technology. Yesterday, Facebook released its latest feature: adding your friends into live broadcasts. This means you can now invite contacts from all around the world to broadcast live with you at the touch of a button. As another new feature which works alongside this, you can now access ‘live chat with friends’ which allows you to hold private chat sessions whilst you broadcast publicly or whilst you watch a live video to help build awareness.
Why not invite a friend to your Facebook Live broadcast? https://t.co/PhQ9Kbu3g6
— We are Social Media (@WeRSM) May 26, 2017
