We recently connected with Eric Brownlee and have shared our conversation below.

Eric, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to start by getting your thoughts on what you are seeing as some the biggest trends emerging in your industry.

The biggest trends I am seeing in the sport business industry include the shift to entertainment focused events, the shift from traditional cable broadcasts to streaming services, and increasing interest in previously niche sports such as Pickeball. Traditionally sports events focused on the game itself and event promoters and sport business professionals believed just having the event with elite athletes would be enough to draw fans and have a successful event. We are currently witnessing a major shift from focusing on the event itself to the entertainment aspects around the event such as live music, sports gambling, player celebrations, and even temporary team rebrands. For instance, I was lucky enough to be able to attend the recent Erie SeaWolve’s baseball game where the team was temporarily rebranded as the Moon Mammoths by HBO’s Last Week Tonight host John Oliver and this experience was truly unique and well received by the crowd. During this temporary rebrand the Erie SeaWolve’s were able to sell multiple years worth of merchandise and break their all time attendance record with the increased national interest and exposure. We are also seeing this focus on entertainment with new teams like the Savannah Bananas who are similar to the baseball equivalent of the Harlem Globetrotters. Fans often expect more entertainment than just the game itself and I believe this trend is here to stay and we will see more entertainment aspects added to most sports events at all levels. The major concern here is still satisfying the sport “purists” who care much more about the sports event itself and the players than all of these entertainment focused promotions, but still being innovative and meeting needs of more casual fans who expect to be entertained. This issue is similar to the current shift in broadcast rights from network and cable TV to a variety of streaming services.

For example, the National Football League (NFL) currently broadcasts games on a variety of streaming platforms including Amazon Prime, Netflix, Peacock, YouTube TV, Paramount+, etc. and while highly involved fans might be willing to seek out these various options to watch their favorite teams, the more social or casual fans might miss out on some of the games due to the added challenge of figuring out where to watch the game. There is also the increased cost and watching all NFL games now requires several streaming subscriptions which may be out of reach for fans of a lower income background. The NFL and many other sports leagues need to continue to demonstrate value and live sports are still in demand due to their unpredictable nature and the captive audience who will watch advertising during the broadcasts. I am also concerned that the NFL’s recent shift to streaming broadcasts may alienate and reduce elderly fans who don’t have as much experience with streaming platforms. It will be interesting to see how sports streaming continues to evolve and I think additional discounts for students and casual fans might be a good way to get young people interested in consuming these products. For instance, the YouTube TV Sunday Ticket streaming product could offer a reduced price for fans who just want to watch their favorite NFL team’s games rather than all the games each week or even an a la carte service where fans could buy access to one game like pay per view. In addition to the streaming and entertainment focus changes we are currently seeing increasing interest in new sports such as Pickleball, Off Course Golf, Skateboarding, Surfing, etc.

Pickleball is currently the fasting growing sport in the U.S. and even just a few years ago most Americans were probably unfamiliar with the sport. Sport marketers and managers need to be aware of these emerging sports and try to predict the next growth area. It has been interesting watching retail sports companies and parks adapt to these new sports and it seems that Pickeball courts are sprouting up all over the U.S. As a sport business professor it is also important for me and other educators to learn more about these sports and educate our students about these industry trends. I expect changes to continue in this area and separating fads from long term trends will be important for sport companies and organizations.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Dr. Eric Brownlee and I am a professor of Sport Business and department chair in the Dahlkemper School of Business at Gannon University in Erie, Pennsylvania. I have over 15 years experience teaching college students and I previously worked in collegiate sport marketing prior to becoming a professor. I am a very practical and hands-on teacher and I try to utilize experiential learning as much as possible to help aspiring sport business students achieve their career goals. I have stayed active in the sports business industry and I work at many sports events with students such as the NFL Super Bowl, the MLB All Star Game, the NFL Draft, NFL International games. etc. I am a firm believer practical education and research and I have done consulting for sports teams and organizations who need help with market research, event and facility management, and customer service research. I look at myself as a servant leader and I am very proud of the accomplishments of my current and former students. Teaching and learning are lifelong processes and I learn more from my students and working at major sports events than I could ever learn from a textbook.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

I believe my work ethic and persistence have helped me develop a strong reputation within the sport business industry. Working in sports is extremely competitive and it is very important to be able to handle rejection and persistently trudge along after being rejected. I have been very persistent in my career as an educator and I work hard to provide my students with the best possible experiences and skills to improve their marketability and hopefully achieve their career goals.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

As a previous sport business professional who worked multiple unpaid internships I had to unlearn the idea that unpaid internships and work are the norm in the sport and entertainment industries. There have been significant labor market changes and most sport and entertainment internships pay now, but this also means that they are even more competitive with less opportunities available. I always recommend students to gain job shadowing experience and/or experience by working sports events like the NFL Super Bowl before applying to paid internships. I am glad to see this change, but most seasoned sports industry professionals are still adapting here and I believe paid internships are here to stay.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://ww4.gannon.edu/facultyprofiles.aspx?profile=brownlee001
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_powerlifting_professor?igsh=MXdlMnNvODJ6dHljMg%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-brownlee-605023b