I’ll be honest, I started day two at Leaders Week with a sore head from last night’s “after dark” event. No bacon butty this morning either, I couldn’t stomach a thing. Instead, I headed straight to the headline stage for a chat with Premier League CEO Richard Masters about the future of the league.
He touched on everything from broadcast rights to player welfare. The inevitable “Prem-Flix” question came up and, while he didn’t rule it out, he made it clear there’s no big switch coming any time soon. What is happening though is Premier League Studios opening next summer, bringing all production in-house. He described the future as a phased, mixed approach, not the flip of a switch.
There were some strong lines on protecting players too, especially around fixture congestion caused by FIFA’s decisions. He shut down any talk of going back to 22 clubs with a flat “no” and confirmed changes to PSR rules are coming, with a squad cost ratio at 85% rather than UEFA’s 70%. Sponsorship was raised too. He said betting and gaming “isn’t appropriate at the moment,” but left the door ajar for the future. A politician’s answer if ever there was one.
From there I went over to the creative stage for a talk on redefining hospitality. It started with Natasha Theibaut from Freeman’s Event Partners asking the audience what the top selling food was at Twickenham. Everyone guessed burgers or chips. Turns out it’s chicken gyros. Mark Walter from Silverstone backed it up saying Greek food tops their sales too. It felt like validation for my kebab-first lifestyle.
The conversation turned to drinking trends. Guinness is thriving, but spirits are struggling. Guinness Zero is absolutely flying, with double digit growth. In fact, more beer was sold at the Women’s Rugby World Cup final at Twickenham than at the men’s final in Paris. A huge statement for the women’s game.
The panel also talked about “zebra striping”, alternating between alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, and even fans mixing half Guinness with half Guinness Zero. Sacrilege, but it shows how quickly habits are changing. The consensus was clear: value for money has been replaced by value for experience. People can drink cheaper at home, so stadiums and pubs have to focus on making the day itself unforgettable.
After a quick pit stop, I made my way to the tech and innovation stage to see Andriy Shevchenko with Serie A’s Michele Ciccarese. The league has shifted its commercial model from three partners to 13 and built its own broadcast centre. They’re doubling down on Italy’s cultural strengths — food, fashion, beauty — to sell the league worldwide. One innovation that stood out was fans being able to buy match balls in real time. When Scott McTominay scored the title-winning goal, that ball went for €32k.
Shevchenko also touched on the challenges of getting younger fans back into stadiums when gaming and digital entertainment are so dominant. It was a reminder that sport isn’t just competing with other sports anymore, it’s competing with screens. He closed with a moving note about Ukrainian football, hoping for peace so fans can once again fill stadiums back home. A poignant moment.
In the afternoon, CBS executive creative director Pete Radovich delivered a masterclass in creativity. He’s won 45 Emmys and made the point that too many people are obsessed with content when the focus should be on concepts. Content without a standout concept is just noise. He also made a brilliant observation about how TV’s biggest competitor isn’t other broadcasters anymore, it’s the mobile phone screen. The challenge is to create ideas strong enough to make people look up. His advice is to trust your creatives. Playing it safe never wins. AMEN!
The penultimate talk was one I’d been waiting for: Tottenham’s James Maddison alongside TikTok’s Rollo Goldstaub and Spurs’ head of social, Shaneil Patel. Spurs are now the most-followed Premier League club on TikTok with 43 million followers. Their approach is simple: have fun, be silly, show real personalities. Maddison joked that the players do actually train despite what the feed suggests, but his bigger point was important. TikTok isn’t just good for the club, it’s good for the players’ own brands too. He’s seen teammates embrace it more and more because it creates commercial opportunities beyond football and shows fans they’re real people, not robots.
I ducked out slightly early to catch Villa’s Europa League tie with Feyenoord (a solid 2-0 win, three in a row now, so much for a “crisis”). Ironically, that meant I missed the session with Villa’s COO on Villa Park’s redevelopment plans. I’ll catch it on demand over the weekend.
All in all, day two had a very different feel to day one, but if there was a theme, it was this: the fan experience keeps evolving, whether it’s broadcast, food, culture or digital. The winners will be those who stay ahead of those shifts and aren’t afraid to take risks.
