It’s funny how the different themes of the summer can intersect when you least expect it.
As a native New Yorker, one of just a few MSBA students living at home for the summer, I was fortunate enough to spend Father’s Day lounging around with my dad. For him – and for many other dads – that means falling asleep with the U.S. Open final round on the TV. For me, it means begrudgingly keeping him company despite my usual lack of interest in golf.
“My perspective has shifted dramatically as I’ve learned to compartmentalize my sports fandom with my new and growing passion for the business of sports (it is Manhattan Sports Business Academy, after all).“
This Sunday was different though, thanks to MSBA.
My perspective has shifted dramatically as I’ve learned to compartmentalize my sports fandom with my new and growing passion for the business of sports (it is Manhattan Sports Business Academy, after all). Tammy Ross, the Vice President of Strategic Initiatives and Integrated Marketing at HBO Sports, recently told us that despite not being much of a boxing fan, she can still appreciate its importance to the American viewer (not to mention to dollars that poured into fights like Mayweather-Pacquaio). Mark Zablow, founder and CEO of Cogent Entertainment Marketing, candidly explained last week how he has mostly dropped his past fandoms in favor of rooting for what brings the most economic value to the industry (American Pharaoh winning the Triple Crown, for example).
Additionally, my internship at Hashtag Sports, a sports tech and digital media company, has forced me to keep up with new and developing technologies like Periscope or drones, and how they impact the world of sports both on and off the field.
All this advice and activity made me more aware of – and more intrigued by – the importance of today’s final round. For example, I now think about the fact that Jordan Spieth’s dramatic victory following his Masters win presents his main sponsor, Under Armour, with the chance to capitalize on a relatively cheap investment that has made history. Additionally, I have more appreciation for Fox’s ball-tracking technology to show a colored trail on drives hit high in the sky.
Who knew that you could glean so much from between naps on the couch on a lazy Sunday?