The Dawn of “Shared Reality” Viewing Hubs
The high-resolution Third Venue, which we detailed in 2015’s Future of Sports 1.0 report, has become reality. Imagine an IMAX-meets-planetarium venue that will combine the feeling of sitting courtside with the hospitality and comfort of your favorite sports bar. That’s what companies like COSM are aiming to create: a fully-immersive viewing experience, without needing to attend a game in person. With ticket prices to attend games skyrocketing, viewing hubs like what COSM is creating offer fans a viewing experience far better than watching on their couch, but at a fraction of the cost to see a game in person. We expect COSM to rapidly expand its number of locations–and to inspire copycats.
A Widening Gap in College Sports
College sports have quickly entered the NIL Era. College athletes are more empowered than ever, and the combination of NIL and the transfer portal has turned college sports upside down. But while football and basketball players make headlines for lucrative NIL deals, non-revenue sports and athletes are facing a more dire future. Eventually, non-revenue sports could find themselves at odds with revenue sports like football and basketball which don’t want to share NIL money being funneled in from donors.
It’s not just the widening gap between different sports in college, but between conferences as well. College football superconferences like the SEC and BIG10 have left competitors in the dust financially, threatening the longevity of the NCAA. In the next decade, we could see a college sports world where the NCAA ceases to exist.
Stadiums of the Future
The design of sports stadiums will be maximized for profit in the face of ongoing climate change and increasingly extreme weather.. Retractable roofs will allow for continuous use of stadiums in all types of weather with fewer event cancellations and will make temperature control more efficient. The fan experience will also extend outside of the stadium—real estate adjacent to stadiums will also be much more thoughtfully planned, similar to the blueprint SoFi Stadium laid out in Los Angeles, to help further cultivate an immersive, engaging experience.
Women in Sports: The Next Frontier
The value of women’s sports properties has increased 300% since 2021 and the growth trend is showing no signs of stopping. The next frontier to be conquered? A female head coach in men’s sports. While many men’s teams have added women to their front offices as executives or on the sideline as assistant coaches, we have yet to see a woman at the helm of a major league men’s team. In the next 25 years, we expect that to change.
