Highlight Reel: The Duels Help LIV Golf Wedge Itself into YouTube Relevancy 🏌️‍♂️

Plus, Applying Peloton's Influencer Model to Women’s Soccer and Friedkin Launches Pursuit Sports...

Good morning!

This week saw Avelino join me on the podcast, easily one of the most surreal to date (and the first time I’ve been able to call listening to the Official FIFA Soundtrack “work”).

As I wrote about on Wednesday, the make up of the founding trio at Nexus Football Group is telling, with the inclusion of Harry Pinero. And today’s top story only reinforces the rising influence of creators, this time in golf.

Quick shoutout also to Ben and Chris for hosting our latest Sports Pundit Coffee Break in Manchester, and to everyone who joined them. We’ll be back with more meetups in September.

Now, on to this week’s stories:

• The Duels Dallas Racks Up Over 2m Views 🏌️‍♂️

• Applying Peloton's Influencer Model to Women’s Soccer ⚽️

• Friedkin Launches Pursuit Sports ⚽️

Let’s get into it:

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A DIFFERENT PAR-TH

The Duels Help LIV Golf Wedge Itself into YouTube Relevancy 🏌️‍♂️

LIV Golf’s third edition of The Duels has dropped and it might be the clearest sign yet that the league is finally cracking the YouTube code.

• The Duels: Dallas features LIV stars like Bryson DeChambeau, Phil Mickelson, and Jon Rahm paired with top golf creators including Fat Perez, Grant Horvat, and the Bryan Bros.

• The nine-hole team scramble, filmed ahead of LIV Golf Dallas, is available exclusively on DeChambeau’s YouTube channel (which now has over 2M+ subs).

• This latest edition leans fully into platform-native style and feels purpose-built for YouTube, not TV, with banter, cart cams, and behind-the-scenes energy.

• The format has gained serious traction: Dallas currently sits just shy of 2 million despite only going live on Tuesday (15th July) and previous Duels episodes from Miami and Virginia have also racked up millions of views.

Why It Matters:

This is LIV’s best attempt yet at bridging the gap between pro golf and YouTube golf and it works because it doesn’t try to make creators fit into LIV’s mould. This is juxtaposed to the PGA TOUR, who saw Grant Horvat recently turn down their invitation due to filming restrictions.

The creator economy is now the front door for younger golf fans. And while LIV might not win over golf’s traditionalists, their strategy gives them a much stronger shot at cultural relevance with Gen Z and Gen Alpha.

It also reframes what athlete media can be. Instead of rolling out on Netflix or Prime, LIV is letting talent (like Bryson) act as the distribution channel, building IP that sits outside the LIV brand but ultimately drives attention back to it.

LIV didn’t get this right out the gate. But The Duels are a clear signal they’re learning, adapting, and having fun with it.

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PEDALLING A PERSONAL NARRATIVE

🗣️ Carolyn Tisch Blodgett: Can Peloton's Influencer Model Work With NWSL Players?

Carolyn Tisch Blodgett used to run marketing at Peloton. She was there when it really took off (so much so it was appearing organically in ads for Ryan Reynolds’ Aviation Gin).

A big part of that growth was that people started getting obsessed with the instructors and talking about them like they were famous, something Peloton leaned into. As a result, a lot of them developed huge audiences and influence in their own right.

Now she’s involved with Gotham FC, the women’s football team in New York, and she’s taking a similar approach. She knows that raising the profile of the players is good for them and for the whole club.

“At Peloton, it was clear from the start that our secret sauce was not the best in class hardware (although it was best in class), not the cutting edge technology (although it was certainly cutting edge), but the world class instructors. Time after time we heard from our members that they built connections with these instructors, and that they were the key to why our members fell in love with the Peloton brand.

Now at Gotham FC, we understand we have this same secret sauce. We have a roster of world class athletes who play for us, and it is our job as ownership and management to showcase their talent and tell their stories.”

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HIGHLIGHTS

Finance

• Snoop Dogg has joined Swansea City as a celebrity investor, bringing global attention to the Championship club just weeks after Luka Modrić also came on board 🦢

• Lando Norris has sold a majority stake in Quadrant, his creator-led content and apparel brand, to Veloce Media Group to help scale its reach and operations 🏎️

• HXCO, the new sports tech VC firm launched by Ryan Smith and Ryan Sweeney, has raised $875 million in just eight weeks, fuelled by their track record and belief that sports and tech are now inseparable 💸

Marketing

• AC Milan has launched a limited-edition golfwear capsule with PUMA Golf, merging the club’s legacy with modern golf aesthetics in a crossover built for lifestyle and sport ⛳️

• The legendary Cosmos are relaunching without the “New York” name, relocating to Paterson, New Jersey, and announcing new men's and women's teams set to join the USL in 2026 and 2027 👩‍🚀

• Italian club Como 1907 has partnered with fintech brand Revolut as its global currency and financial services partner, integrating Revolut Business across club operations and offering perks to Revolut users 💳

Media

• Google has launched a film and TV production initiative to scout and co-produce projects, positioning itself as a new backer for creators amid industry-wide cost pressures 🎥

• The Katie Taylor vs. Amanda Serrano trilogy streamed live on Netflix, drawing nearly 6 million global viewers and marking a major moment for both women’s boxing and the streaming platform 🥊

• FX is producing a new docuseries about Club Necaxa, highlighting the ownership journey of Eva Longoria alongside co-owners Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds 🎬

Innovation

• Apple has released an officially licensed PGA TOUR game on Apple Arcade, offering immersive gameplay on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, and Vision Pro ⛳️

• U.S. Soccer has partnered with The Soccer Tournament (TST), a 7-a-side, $1M-prize competition, to manage its commercial rights and scale its reach over the next four years ⚽️

• MLB Europe is taking over Hackney Bridge in London with immersive baseball activations themed around iconic U.S. teams, blending culture, sport, and fan engagement in one space ⚾️

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FEN-WAY TO GO

Friedkin Launches Pursuit Sports to Leverage Operational Expertise Across Sports Portfolio ⚽️

Everton and AS Roma owner Dan Friedkin has launched Pursuit Sports, a new umbrella group to unify his sports assets and explore expansion into North American leagues.

• Pursuit Sports brings AS Roma, Everton, AS Cannes, and newly acquired London-based sports tech firm Insight Sport under one roof.

• Former Fenway Sports Group exec Dave Beeston has been appointed CEO to lead strategy, operations, and M&A.

• Friedkin is reportedly eyeing a franchise in one of the big four U.S. leagues (NFL, NBA, NHL, or MLB), according to Sportico.

• Beeston stressed there are no plans for a top-down multi-club model; local executives will retain control of day-to-day decisions.

Why It Matters:

Multi-club ownership within football has increasingly come under fire across many parts of the world, and not without reason. Fans worry about feeder club dynamics, conflicts of interest, and the dilution of local identity. Just ask Crystal Palace fans after their team recently missed out on Europa League football (at least, for now).

However, the multi-sport model leveraged by the likes of Fenway Sports Group (FSG) which focuses more on operational efficiencies, has come under a lot less heat.

While its to-be-seen if that can truly be applied to Pursuit Sports, with a portfolio already containing multiple historic European football clubs, the ambition to leverage shared services such as sponsorship or tech in order to drive revenue (without eroding local identity) is a lot more palatable for fans and should draw less criticism.

It’s important to note that with the formation of Pursuit, they’ve also brought in an operator who’s done it before.

During Beeston’s tenure at FSG, he oversaw Fenway Sports Management, which sold sponsorships across the Red Sox, NESN, Liverpool, Penguins, PGA Tour, and Boston Common Golf to drive incremental revenues.

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GROUP CHAT

That’s a wrap for this week - huge thanks to everyone who’s part of our growing community.

A special shoutout to Parth Ahuja for his contributions this week, not only does he continue to keep the group running smoothly, onboarding new members, he also shared an insightful around FC Bayern Munich and their approach to MCOs. This earns him our title of Contributor of the Week 👑🙏

He also this week kicks off an internship with the International Hockey Federation (FIH) as part of the Commercial team in Lausanne so wishing him the best of luck.

Welcome to all of our new members, too:

• Maxi Ducam Davies (Saranac Partners)

• Aaditya Ranade (Sportz Interactive)

• Shirin Nazemzadeh (Amazon)

• Jim O’Toole (Sporting Legacies)

Not part of the group yet? What are you waiting for? Apply to join us by filling out a simple form on the website. Feel free to share this link with (your favourite) colleagues.

P.S. You can see a full list of all the current members, here.

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SP PODCAST

#60 Avelino: Reshaping the Future of Football Representation

I’m joined by Avelino, a rapper known for his sharp lyricism, deep wordplay, and cultural influence far beyond music.

Alongside presenter Harry Pinero and football entrepreneur John Loaiza, Avelino has co-founded Nexus Football Group, a next-generation agency built to reshape the future of football representation.

Beyond managing talent, Nexus aims to unlock overlooked brilliance, bridge culture and sport, and create a new blueprint for how players are seen, supported, and celebrated.

In this conversation, we talk about the lessons that Avelino brings from music into football, why the system needs disrupting, and how Nexus plans to elevate both the game and the people in it.

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