The sports creator economy – growing audiences through cultural crossovers

Live rights are no longer enough for sports organisations to capture attention. On this episode of StreamTime Sports, host Chris Stone is joined by content creators Maya Stephen and Stella Tran, as well as digital producer Tom Jewell.

The discussion explores how the next phase of audience growth lies with sports partnering with content creators who bring cultural relevance and built-in communities. Whether it’s badminton, Formula 1 or women’s soccer today’s fans aren’t just watching they’re connecting through creators.  

Key Points

• Sports media’s blind spot: The industry’s overreliance on live rights and highlights
• Content creators bridging the gap: the new media connecting Gen Z and digital first audiences to sports
• Viral ≠ strategy: Don’t chase trends, build communities
• Authenticity rules: Fans connect with relatable, low-friction content over polished highlight reels
• Culture as currency: How creators are using music, fashion and travel to unlock fandom in unexpected places

Episode Transcript

(00:09):
Hello everyone, and welcome backto the next episode of Stream
Time Sports. My name is Chris Stone, I'm the
community lead, and today I'm not joined by our CEO, Nick
Meacham, but I do have several guests who are actually making
me just a little bit nervous. Normally our guests who come in,
they're not usually spending a lot of time in the front of the
camera or creating content, But today I have two content today.

(00:30):
So they're going to keep me on my toes and hopefully, you know,
they'll give me a thumbs up afterwards, just say I did a
good job. But one of the things Nick and I
have spoken about on previous podcast is a lot of the focus in
our industry is around live sports, mostly because that's
where the big money highlights come in.
But one of the big gaps in the sports industry has to come from
the athlete economy as well as content creators.

(00:52):
You know, I've used the example before the NF LS on Sunday, but
from Monday through Saturday I'mmostly consuming my content on
YouTube and social media. And to this point, it does feel
like in the sports world that islargely underutilised.
So today we're going to have some experts in the space to
tell you why you should be focusing more on your content
creator strategy. So I don't want to undersell,

(01:14):
but I am joined by Sellatran, Maya, Steven and Tom Jewell.
So they had incredibly diverse backgrounds with the talent and
all the different things they do.
So I'm going to let them introduce themselves for you
guys. So Stella, we'll start with you.
You just give everybody a littlebit of background on all the
things that you do. Yeah, So hi, my name is Stella.
I formerly played semi pro in badminton since I was 10.

(01:37):
I did that for five years and then COVID hit and I started
playing recreationally and so that's when my content creating
journey started. So from now I've been doing that
ever since. Hassan Mimaya.
Yeah, thanks, Chris. I'm a former college soccer
player turned content creator, model, podcast host, youth

(02:00):
advocate, a whole bunch of different things, but found love
with soccer at a very early age and had to use that game to kind
of become a professional in all these different industries.
But currently working on a women's sports podcast, doing
freelance content creation on the side as well as running
soccer youth programmes as well in New York City.

(02:21):
Awesome, brilliant and Tom, lastone but not least.
Perfect. Yeah, Thanks, Chris.
So I am Tom Jewell. I'm a digital producer working
with Scroller, which is HB, SS Digital Arm.
And I'm all about collaborating with creators to help sports
properties reach audiences beyond traditional broadcasts.

(02:42):
Not a creator myself that might become apparent during the
podcast compared to these other two, but very happy to be here
and joining you. And the fun fact, I do not have
the British accent, but I'm based in London.
Tom does have the British accent, but he's based over in
the States. But we made sure we got all the
bases covered with all the accents.
And to start off, just because we don't want to be too serious
business wise all the time, but just maybe something a little

(03:04):
bit more fun. You know, we're talking about
sports content outside of live sports and how that can drive
new audiences. And I guess, you know, I'll
start with you, Stella and Maya.And Stella, you can go first,
you know, put you on the spot. Can you think of a time when you
were growing up where something outside of live sports really
drew you into becoming a bigger fan?
If it helps you, you know, gather your thoughts a little

(03:24):
bit. You know, for me, when I was
nine years old, I got a Nintendo64.
One of the first video games I got was MLB baseball.
Kangafi Junior. I'm from Cincinnati.
Kangafi Junior played in Seattle.
For anyone that knows American geography, those two places are
nowhere near each other. But he was the best player on
the game, instant home runs. And then I think within a year,
the game coming out, he got traded to the Cincinnati Reds,

(03:46):
my hometown. And that was just like this
massive moment for me. This guy only knew through video
games to come to my city. And that sort of sparked a big
fan of where he became one of myfavourite players.
And I think, you know, that that's sort of my example of
something that isn't necessarilylive sports that that drove me
into being a fan. So I don't know if, Stella, if I
gave you enough time to maybe think of a moment growing up
that resonates with you. No, yeah, I, I like actually

(04:10):
never grew up watching any sports.
And so just one day I remember going through my garage and
like, I see this bag and it's like I open it up and there's
just rackets in it. I was like, hey, dad, like what
is this Like, can I like play? Can we play?
You know? So he's like, yeah, this is
badminton. Like let's go out in the front
yard. The typical stereotype, let's go

(04:31):
to the front yard or backyard and play.
And so after hitting around withmy dad for a bit, I was like,
this is really fun. And like, how does the bird fly
outdoors? But he's like, oh, it's an
indoor sport. You know, like, let's go to the
courts and play. And I remember after my first
lesson, I just fell in love withit.
And I was like, I I need to do something more with it.

(04:53):
And so that was my story. Yeah, great story to tell.
Just day after Father's Days, we're recording this.
I'm sure Dad remembers that as well as you do, I'd imagine.
Yes, he does. I remember.
He's like, oh, yeah. Like, Stella, let's let's go out
and play. We can get some lessons in.
Perhaps one day you'll beat me. And I was like, OK, maybe.
And then all of a sudden, you know, one year later, I'm like,

(05:16):
whooping his ass. Excuse my language.
Yeah. No, it's all good.
And you know, I appreciate you doing that because, you know,
you should never take it easy onyour kids, make them learn.
So I'm glad to hear that you, you, you conquered him very
quickly. Yes.
And then how, how about you, Ma,is there anything you can
remember that, you know, broughtyou into sports that you know

(05:36):
was outside of just live sports watching on TV?
Yeah, for sure. I come from a very culturally
diverse household. My stepfather was Honduran, my
mother's German, my biological father's Haitian.
So take all of those cultures. At the centre of it is soccer.
So we know, you know, sports unites our entire world, no
matter kind of what sport you'resupporting.

(05:57):
But uniquely for me, it was kindof outside of my household,
right? Sports was definitely embedded
in our household culture. Soccer was always on.
It didn't matter what country we're supporting.
But then me understanding how impactful the sports world was,
specifically soccer happened, you know, when I went to school
and I sat next to a student who happened to be Mexican American

(06:18):
and he was like, oh, I also lovesoccer, you know, and a
neighbour down the street who might have been African or
Caribbean and also have that tieto soccer.
It was really like, it's not just me and my household that is
passionate about this sort of sport.
It's, you know, pretty much everyone.
You can be from wherever, anywhere and have a love and a
connection to the sport. And that just builds community.

(06:40):
It builds connection. It's a way to Share your story
about your family and your passions and what happens inside
your household. So it was kind of multiple
little events that kind of made me realise, OK, this is much
bigger than me watching it in myhouse on my couch.
Well, there's going to be some things coming up.
You know, there's definitely a big sporting event that's just

(07:02):
kicked off this last week and we're going to talk about how
all these different countries can come together.
We won't mention the the poor New Zealanders who just lost 10
nothing yesterday, but we'll getin a little bit.
But it is interesting to your point why and we will deep dive
in talking about how sports can transcend different cultures and
bring everybody together under one roof.
So really excited to deep dive into that a little bit later on.

(07:24):
But Tom, for you, you know, you mentioned it's scroller, it's
about reaching audiences outsideof traditional broadcast.
So when you're listening to Mayaand Stella sort of sharing their
stories about what brought them in, you know, how would you and
your organisation Scroller define, you know, valuable
sports content that sits beyond live?
Yeah. So it's about creating those

(07:45):
regular and additional touch points with fans that you might
not otherwise reach. And as Stella and Meyer have
kind of described, they can comefrom, you know, surprising
places. But really what's important is
that they are authentic connections.
And, you know, the touch points that you're generating are real.
You know, we find on social media that fans have an

(08:07):
increasing kind of disdain for promotional and advertising
content. So, you know, they want to hear
real people sharing their passion for, you know, the sport
and the game. And the the other thing is that,
you know, because of the way that social platforms have
developed, fans on social media can afford to be kind of fickle.

(08:27):
You know, they're not short of content that they can consume.
They've got an endlessly scrollable vertical feed.
They don't have to seek anythingout.
So you know, if you're not connecting with them regularly
then they can look elsewhere very easily.
One of the things we speak aboutin the sports world is it's so
competitive these days. I think about when I was growing

(08:48):
up, you know, we used the the term appointment viewing.
You know, used to be sports was an appointment that you sat
down, you knew you were going towatch.
Whereas now, you know, whether it's being able to, like you
say, go on TikTok or YouTube shorts and you can just end this
endlessly scroll. Now you've got, you know, your
Netflix is your Amazon primes. Sports has never been more
competitive. And like I said, I I just find

(09:09):
it really interesting. I think sports is massively
missing out on the fact that they're not monetizing content.
I know monetizing is such a dirty word, but like, at the
same time, like there is a reality with these sports
organisations. So I guess it's still in mind
kind of a follow up question from their little transition.
Just as we're as we're kind of putting the last bits on setting
the scene. What would you say just, you

(09:30):
know, as this, you know, sort ofathlete creator economy is
starting to grow? Are there any common
misconceptions that you get from, you know, sports
properties that are maybe eitherunsure about content creators or
the role they play? Like, is there a common theme
that comes up as as you're speaking to people that you know
want to work with you? Yeah, I just, I would say like
creators are so diverse, right? Like I'm someone who's always

(09:53):
spot labels my entire life. I'm multi faceted.
So I don't like sticking to one label because that comes with
stereotypes. And I see it in the women's
soccer space. I know creators that have never
touched a soccer soccer ball, but create amazing content for
me. I played similar to you, Chris,
AI college soccer, so similar toNCAA Division two, Division

(10:14):
Three, where I never knew or I always knew I wasn't the top
soccer player, the top athlete, but I still had a voice.
I saw out a perspective that I always found it was worth
sharing. So, you know, I always like to
come to any type of meeting, anytype of project as my true
authentic self. So I can help kind of break that
stereotype, break that narrativethat maybe content creators are

(10:38):
all the same. You know, there's people that
lean on their comedy and that's where their audience has been
built upon. Ishow speed is one of them,
right? Like that kid is killing the
soccer space right now, but he is being authentic to himself.
And I, I would, I would hate forany agency or media partner to
assume that all content creatorsare going to have that sort of

(10:59):
attitude or personality. So again, I just like to show
and be as authentic as possible.So it's like this is who you're
hiring. If you trust that this is gonna
make your project ascend or, youknow, hit the right audience and
I'm happy to be here, but it's, you know, I think on a constant
basis we're trying to fight the content creator label because

(11:20):
it's all very different and we should all kind of be respected
in the same way. Yeah, I find that really
interesting. I think.
Great example with speed there. I think there's kind of a
misconception that all content creators are influencers, and
it's kind of a murky line between those two terms.
People might have different expectations of a creator or an
influencer, but I think often, you know, an influencer might

(11:43):
come with the kind of baggage of, you know, a big ego or big
budget expectations, perhaps a difficult agent or, you know,
their own production team. Whereas, you know, that's not
all creators as you described, alot of creators are out there
doing it on their own and you know, it can be a much more way

(12:04):
of effective way of collaborating with them and
reaching new audiences. And then just I'm going to dig a
little bit on that one, Tom, andput you under the the spotlight
a little bit. You mentioned the difference
between an influencer and a content creator.
And I think that's probably important to talk about in this
conversation for, you know, justour audience, the people that
are tuning in, you know, they are sports organisations,
they're media businesses. You know, maybe their

(12:26):
misconception is that they don'tunderstand the difference
between what an influencer is versus a content creator.
From your perspective, how do you define those two different
types of personas? Yeah.
So as, as I kind of alluded to for me, I think an influencer,
you know, might have establisheda very large following already.
And, you know, they've, they've built that, as again, Myers kind

(12:49):
of said, by behaving a certain way.
And, you know, given the kind ofsize of their audience, they
have a lot of kind of control over what they do.
And it can be difficult to, you know, bring them into a more
structured environment and to have them collaborate
effectively with, you know, a sports organisation or a brand

(13:10):
that has editorial guidelines and a specific tone of voice
that, that they're trying to achieve.
You know, a, a creator is, is someone perhaps with a smaller
profile, but who is, you know, passionate for, for the sport.
And I think the role of the, thesports organisation or the brand

(13:32):
in in that scenario is to the kind of help them and, and
nurture them and help them speakto the audience.
Whereas, you know, as I said, the influencer kind of already
has the audience. And how does that sound to you
still, you know, with what Meyerwas saying, what Tom was saying,
does that some of that seem to come through and some of the
misconceptions you maybe had from people that maybe want to
work with you or a misunderstanding of the content

(13:53):
you might be creating? Yeah, like to bounce off of
them. Like I've seen a lot of people
always say like niche down, niche down.
But how do you niche down when you're like, so broad?
You do so many things, you know,especially in sports.
Like you want to be authentic, but at the same time, you want
to be still part of what's happening in the present moment,

(14:16):
you know, So when I'm creating my community, I want to be
again, like Maya said, authenticand show who I am.
So that's where I bring like thecomedy side, but I also bring
like the facts side where it's like, oh, this is what's
happening in real time badminton, you know, and then
just blending those two in. So I, I watched this other

(14:37):
creator and she was saying like niche down within yourself.
So what you love and like, that's how you find your
branding. One of my favourite expressions
I learned from some of the worksin sports.
He used to be at the Cowboy Channel.
So we're talking about like rodeos.
And the expression was niches get riches depending on whether
you pronounce it niche or niche depending on where you're from.

(14:58):
But there is that interesting thing about do you double down
into a particular area? But to your point, you know,
there are other things that sit outside of sports.
They can drive fandom. I think that's really Stella
Maya, where you guys bring a level of expertise into this.
And Stella, you know, you mentioned your background
playing badminton and, you know,there's a degree with which
that, you know, drives your content.

(15:19):
But would you say as an athlete,you know, is that the content
that your fans are most engagingwith?
Is there other content that sitsoutside of your sports world
that you find is really effective for people that are,
you know, in your audience across different platforms?
Yeah, so I didn't mention this at the beginning, but kind of
like my I come from a very diverse background.
I do badminton, but not just badminton, I also play

(15:40):
pickleball as well. So a lot of my audience is from
pickleball as well. And in addition to that, I also
model and I go to school. So balancing all that within my
content has been a little bit difficult.
But at the same time, I noticed that my because I have created a
branding for myself, my audiencehas loved me for who I am

(16:04):
instead of just like the sport that I'm in or whatever kind of
content that I'm doing. Yeah, that's, that's a great
point. I've very similar experiences to
Stella, like I know, and I'm sure you feel the same way about
badminton to my soccer. Like soccer's my sport.
I could talk for hours about it,but my love of sport definitely
exceeds soccer. I recently gone to Formula One

(16:27):
and through my company I foundedcalled Good Company Sports,
we're trying to lean into Formula One.
And by no means am I an expert. I still ask questions.
I'm like, what's the safety car out here for?
What's the history of McLaren and their championships?
So I'm still being authentic andthat like, I don't know
everything, but also authentic. And like, this is something I've

(16:49):
quickly become interested in. But I also take it from the lens
of like, I'm a woman of colour and I think it's important for
sports to have diverse voices. So there's no reason for Stella
U to be siloed into badminton when again, we are women of
colour. We can take space in these other
sports, especially ones that don't necessarily see people

(17:10):
like us. I'm a huge advocate for
representation and that's why I'm like, why not go into
Formula One? There isn't necessarily a large
community of women that look like us talking about it.
So let's create that space and let's all be off and say we're
not the experts. But it's fun and it's cool.
And Lewis Hamilton, that's my boy.

(17:30):
And, and off the back of that, you know, there are going to be
people that are the Super fans. But as you say, you won't be the
only person going through that journey.
Like, I'll be honest you, I'm trying to learn how to play golf
right now. So I've discovered Bryson
Dechambeau's YouTube channel, which, you know, let's put this
with the social media algorithmsare working overtime because I
look to buy 1G Club and now the only thing I get served on

(17:52):
social media and YouTube is golfcontent.
But it is nice. It's a what I found interesting
is Bryson's one of the best golfers in the world and he
still cusses at himself on the golf course the way I do after a
bad shot. And it's almost this sort of
humanising or relatable content.So I get what you're saying,
Maya, that you won't be the onlyperson that's new to explore in
Formula One. I think there is something about

(18:14):
going through that journey together at the same time, Like,
yes, it's good to have expert voices, but having someone that
isn't the same part of the journey as you are similar to
yourself. Stella talking about I'm an
athlete, but I'm also a student.I'm also a model.
I'm doing all this. Like, that's the kind of stuff I
think connects with people on a bit of a deeper level where
athletes can sometimes feel unapproachable because they're
just on another a level that youcan't connect with.

(18:35):
Bringing it down to an everyday person's level, I imagine has to
be part of the secret sauce. You're speaking about how fans
consume their content. And I think the same way that,
you know, creators like Stella and Meyer can have diverse
interests and topics and areas that they cover.
Every sports fan is not just a sports fan.
Every badminton fan is not just a badminton fan.

(18:55):
They're going to be consuming a whole range of of other content
around, you know, fashion, music, whatever it might be.
And those are avenues that that sports properties can explore to
kind of bring them into the foldand bring them into, you know,
their viewership. Do you want to pick up on that
Maya? Yeah, no, I mean, I absolutely
agree. And even like when it comes to

(19:18):
how can I have diverse opportunities, right?
Like I don't want to be in this narrow lane of just women's
soccer on top of that. And this is kind of a new
revelation where we're tying sports to pop culture and to
fashion and to how they influence, you know, modern
society. So the game is forever evolving.

(19:38):
And I think we're if we continueto push that narrative of like,
yes, I do this, so I do this also, or I'm interested in this
and I want to learn more and build that community up.
It's kind of staying on the samepattern that athletes have kind
of seen throughout the last years, right?
Like, LeBron James is LeBron James, but there's a bunch of

(19:59):
athletes out here that are making a name for themselves
outside of the sport, whether it's, you know, social impact
and standing up for policy and political issues or influencing
culture and fashion. Yeah, we can do anything.
We can do it all. You both mentioned fashion.
I think one of the things that'sinteresting, I just think about

(20:20):
trends that have kind of occurred over the last couple
years. I think about the pregame walk
in now where I think it kind of started with the NBA.
They started doing a little bit the NFL.
They're definitely doing it now with the WNBA where they all
come in, you know, dressed, you know, and, and they're their
finest outfits. You know, I remember some of the
stuff Russell Westbrook used to wear to his games being a little
eccentric. Do you find there is a
correlation between those two audiences in this in terms of

(20:42):
either A, some of them are just fashion fans that are really
interested to see what they're wearing versus their actual
sports fan? Or is there kind of a
combination to be curious to know, you know, maybe even from
your own personal experiences, because I know you guys talk
about the intersect of sports and fashion.
Do you find them to be separate audiences, the same audiences?
Have they crossed over because they were fans?
You just curious to know your experiences have been sort of

(21:03):
mixing those cultural elements that sit on the peripheral
sports? Yeah, I think they're definitely
mixed. I think, you know, there are
people that probably have an opinion of it should be
separate, you should come to play, you know, the other.
Everything else is outside noise.
Some athletes even see it that way.
If I go back to Formula One, I think Max Verstappen is very

(21:25):
much a driver who's like, I comehere to race.
I don't want to have a long media.
I don't wanna be doing this activation, that activation.
On the other side of that, you have Lewis Hamilton, who is
dressed head to toe in the nines, ready to just show off
his latest closet. And I'm picking up on all of it.
So I think, you know, the same way we're talking about we can

(21:45):
make space for creators with diverse interest.
We can make space for a fan to say, I want to consume this.
And that's their choice. Hopefully their algorithm isn't
giving them the Russell Westbrook outfits and the SDA
outfits. But yeah, I mean, I think it's
the overlap is very heavy for sure.

(22:06):
I, I love that. I, I totally agree.
I think like just every athlete,especially because we come from
different backgrounds, like it'sdefinitely like a, a cultural
statement or some sort of statement piece that if they're
walking out, you know, this is like, this is my representation
and I want to show that. And so when people are consuming

(22:26):
content, they feel like kind of like related to it, like, oh,
like, you know, that person comes from the same background
as me. Like if they can do it, I can do
it as well. You know, kind of like it's a
little bit of motivation, you know?
Yeah. And Tom, just to drive it back a
bit more to the business side and where you're working, you
know, we can pick badminton, forexample, and the WBF, when

(22:47):
you're working with an organisation like that and you
know, that they have someone like Stella who has the
following that she has and she'scapable of producing content
that isn't just for the hardcore, that isn't, you know,
training highlights. How are you advising them to
lean into a strategy that says it's OK to be a sports
organisation and not have your content be so geared towards

(23:08):
being to the hardcore sports fan?
Yeah, absolutely. I mean, I, I don't want to give
away kind of too much of the thesecret sauce, but there's a lot
of advice we can share with sports organisations for, for
collaborating with creators likeStella and Meyer.
I mean, to actually just bring it back a little bit because we
were talking earlier about misconceptions.
I think it's important not to treat creators like professional

(23:33):
camera operators and professional video editors and
to expect them to deliver a kindof perfectly polished like
cinematic masterpiece. And you also shouldn't want that
anyway because it wouldn't be appropriate for, you know, the
digital space, social media platforms.

(23:53):
So when it comes to inviting creators in and collaborating
with them, you're helping each other out.
So you need to be making it easier for the creator to
basically follow a sustainable content plan.
So you've got to be, you know, efficient with your kind of
requests and demands that you'reputting on the creators is one

(24:17):
of the main learnings that that we have taken away from our
work. I don't want to speak for
Stella, but I'm sure you've had,you know, an experience very
similar to what Tom mentioned. But I last year was working with
an NHL team, so the National Hockey League here and it was
based in DC and I was hired to get content and then I had to

(24:39):
become a video editor. I then was adding all their
brand into this video and it waslike quick turn around is what I
was told to do. And I'm like with everything
you're now asking me to do as well as interviewing players,
grabbing, you know, it was just,it was crazy.
It was madness. So I think Tom's point is there,
if anyone is listening that works at an agency or brand and

(25:01):
looking to work with content creators, I would challenge them
to say, why do I want this creator?
Is it for their personality? Is it for their audience?
Is it for their expertise? And really hone in on that and
allow them to do that. Because I felt like that
experience I just mentioned was so stressful that it didn't
allow my personality to shine, which I think is why a lot of

(25:22):
people do like working with me. And same I can like resonate
with players and such. But yeah, when Tom said that, I
was like, oh, I have. I have experiences I can pull
from and I'm sure Stella's aboutto share the same.
No, yeah, I was going to say that.
I, I've been like very grateful to be working with Tom and BWF
and how kind of flexible they'vebeen, especially as a student

(25:46):
and like badminton being not as accessible because we have like
my courts are like an hour away from me.
And so it's very hard for me to create content even though I
love doing it. So I'm very grateful that Tom
has been so flexible and like allowing just like collaborating
with each other and being like communication high, you know,

(26:06):
it's all that stuff. Yeah, exactly.
And also, you know, if you're a sports property looking to work
with a certain creator, you've probably selected them because
you've seen something that you like in the content they're
already creating. So, you know, why would you want
to go and change that too much? Obviously that, you know, if
it's for brand channels, organisation channels, there's
going to be some differences, but you know, you have to

(26:29):
remember you've chosen that creator for a reason, so.
Basically I think one of the things we've we've kind of
skated around here and it's beenmentioned, you know, Maya, you
definitely said the word a couple times is around
authenticity. So at the end of the day, I can
recognise why certain sports properties are protective over
their IP, but at the same time content creators, you are
bringing them in for a reason. So are there a list of must

(26:50):
haves or things that need to be understood between a sports
property and a content creator in terms of making sure that you
can create content that's authentic?
You know, you don't. I suppose you don't want to be
given such a rigid set of guidelines that you no longer
feel you're being authentic. But at the same time, you know,
you may not want to offend whoever's paying you sort of
thing. You know, what are kind of the

(27:12):
must haves as you're going through that, as you consider,
you know, how is this the right opportunity for me to work with
this organisation? I would say for me, I just do my
research on, you know, we're in a very saturated market, right?
There's a lot of people doing what we do.
So I'm always wondering, I'm always curious, like why someone
picked me. It like must have been something
that made me stick out, something unique.

(27:33):
I like to think I'm unique. Just everything, my experiences,
my background, you know, how I choose to live my life just is
somewhat unique. So I like to just make sure that
I was chosen for a right reason and not OK, We just need someone
to put out content and I think like mission aligned as well.
If their mission is to grow their audience and how can we do

(27:55):
that in tandem? If their mission is to show
diversity and representation in sport, then I know that that's
tracked. We're doing that.
So yeah, I think it's just making sure we're on the right
page in terms of am I allowed tobe authentic?
By no means do I demand creativefreedom for every project.
The more creative freedom, the more time I require for that

(28:17):
project, which sometimes means the more money someone has to
pay me. So not everything aligns
perfectly. But yeah, I'm always just making
sure that they're not trying to silence who I truly am because
then that doesn't match with my brand.
If I can't post whatever I'm creating for you on my own
personal page, that's sometimes a red flag for me.

(28:37):
To bounce off of that, I think Iremember when Tom reached out to
me and I was like, this is like,this is a great opportunity.
Like I love badminton. And like the thing with BWF,
their content on TikTok seemed to be a lot of more like
professional stuff. So I was kind of curious, kind
of like why BWF wanted to work with me.

(28:59):
And so I'm hearing that that they loved my content and what I
do. Bringing kind of like an outside
audience of badminton players that who can't relate to the pro
level made me feel like this is a mission statement that we
align with. And so I felt like I really

(29:20):
wanted to work with you guys. Yeah.
Yeah, and and to pick up almost sort of from from the other
side, but a lot of the keys to success in collaboration are are
the same, you know, whether you are the the creator or the
organisation. I mentioned before that, you
know, creators aren't professional camera operators,
they're not professional video editors.
What they're also not is professional, you know,

(29:43):
broadcast presenters. And you know, once again,
organisations shouldn't want them to be because, you know, to
use that word again, you need this content to be authentic and
to kind of come from the creator.
And you know, for that reason, when I'm working with Stella,
it's very much a collaborative kind of two way process of

(30:03):
finding the ideas. I'm not scripting videos for
Stella to just kind of read out and kind of hit the messaging
that that, you know, I want her to to hit.
It's very much a collaboration. So I want to come back around to
something. We, we kind of taught touched a
little bit, particularly my at the beginning, talking about the

(30:24):
way sports is able to transcend cultures, locations, all those
sorts of things. At the moment.
There is the, you know, that theFIFA Club World Cup is taking
place at the moment, looking to be one of those opportunities
where it does transcend that. You know, the, the World Cup is,
you know, the year after that, you know, you know, and I, I
personally, whether it's the World Cup, the Olympics, I find

(30:44):
those those moments to be reallyspecial in terms of the way that
they're able to take those things to the next level.
So for you, Maya, you know, whenyou think about major events
like that, how are those sporting events able to tap in
to being bigger moments? Particularly if I'm thinking,
you know, if a brand wants to work with you and they want to

(31:04):
be able to connect with that moment because they know there's
going to be such scale and that its reach is going to be more
than just the hardcore fan. Yeah, for sure.
I mean, this is a time to be alive for not just creators, but
lovers of soccer, in particular football, if you will.
But yeah, I think I've. I got you.
I got you. I've seen a lot of projects come

(31:27):
about that really are focusing on local cities.
As we know, the club Club World Cup is in New Jersey, New York,
it's being held in Miami and LA.It's all over the United States
at the moment and. It's also in Cincinnati, OH.
I've got, I got a shout out my hometown, you know?
Shout it out, shout it out. That's like 2 times you've heard
Cincinnati today. Yeah.

(31:49):
I just think it's like, how can we create stories that aren't
being mass produced, right? People in New York are going to
talk about what's happening in New York.
That sheds light on that local sports bar that is probably open
every single Bayern game. But now they're really open for
this Bayern game because these fans are coming out and that's
A-100 win the other day. I'm a huge Bayern fan, so I had

(32:11):
to make sure I shouted them out.You know, I just think it's more
of that representation, more of that identity and that
authenticity. Like I said, you know, these
cities are able to highlight thecultures that are embedded where
they are and tap in the creatorsthat are supporting their city
with this type of content and having that influence saying,
yes, I can create content for you.

(32:33):
But also like, let me work with this local pub that I actually
go to that's a staple in this community, in this
neighbourhood. Yeah, it's it's it's a great
time to be a content creator. I'm waiting for more people
knock on my door because this is, this is a huge time with
the, with the World Cup coming up, the amount of people that
are going to be travelling to North America to watch the

(32:53):
tournament too, That's another way to tell stories.
That's another way for a city like New York to say we're a
melting pot, right? Every, maybe all of these
nationalities live in this city and are here now to celebrate
the tournament. So yeah, it's the energy is
insane. I love it.
That makes a tonne of sense to me, Tom.

(33:14):
So why is this still something that's not being widely adopted?
You tell me it it really should because, you know, we're talking
about major sports tournaments here.
And I think one of the specific ways where creators can really
help drive impact is for, you know, sports properties or
brands who need to be talking about an event that is

(33:35):
happening, but maybe don't have,you know, access to rights
material, for example. And this is something we've had
to work around many times. You know, how do you connect
with fans that are engaging withthe tournament if you can't show
any of the competition footage? And creators are such a good
answer for that because they, you know, opening up that

(33:56):
dialogue with fans to help you talk about the event that
everyone's talking about and basically make you a part of the
conversation. You know, if people are having
debates about whether the BayernAuckland match, you know, was,
you know, over the top, then youknow you can make sure that that
debate is happening in your comments section by

(34:18):
collaborating with creators likeMaya, for example.
Yeah, and that's really an interesting point.
They're talking about having those conversations on your
platforms. And you know, Tom, you and I
were talking before about, you know, you've seen it rolled out
more that, you know, there's these collaborative features
when you post. So that way it's a post that is
coming both from Stella and frombadminton.

(34:40):
So where you're almost amplifying that message, you
know, what is the importance of having those conversations take
place on your platforms as opposed to, you know, like a
third party? So I guess that questions a
little bit more towards you, Tom, but like why is it
important to drive conversation to your own platforms as opposed
to somewhere else? Well, I mean, interesting point.

(35:00):
We love collab posts. As you said, not only does it
kind of amplify the reach and the potential viewership for
both parties, but it also means that the the content itself is
Co owned, which is obviously appealing for creators.
And you know, perhaps makes you as a sports property more
appealing to collaborate with ifthe creators know that

(35:23):
everything that they make has a home on their channel as well as
it does yours. Would you, would you agree with
that Stella, from your, from your experiences, particularly
some of those crossovers with your different audience
segments? Yeah, no, I definitely agree,
especially like I don't really that a lot of BW FS following is
more of like they like to see like the pro level highlights.
And so seeing that audience reach over to my and they're

(35:46):
like, oh, who's this person? And you know, and hopefully I'm
able to bring the same kind of audience to BWF as well.
And kind of seeing like the comments section, especially
from my audience, it's more of like the people who play
badminton during PE, they're like, you know, this is what we
look like during PE, Like they tag their friends.
And so kind of that authenticityand identity how their values

(36:12):
align. So I want to get a little bit
into the the nitty gritty. I know you mentioned, you know,
you guys aren't producers, you're not editors, but you do
work across a range of platforms.
So I would be a little curious to know from your guys's
perspective, you know, Stella and my, the content you're
producing and then Tom, sort of what you're seeing working with
different sports properties. As you look at different

(36:35):
platforms, are there ones that you guys are focused more on?
Are there certain platforms thatperform in better different
ways? I, I get that's a bit of a broad
question, but maybe Stella, am Imaybe like, do you have a
preferred platform for yourselves to work on when it
comes to producing content? You know, I'll start with you,
Maya. Yeah, as in where the content
lives, like where it's showcased.

(36:55):
Correct. Yeah.
Yeah, I'm an Instagram girly. I really am.
I, I work with youth a lot and I'm always talking about your
personal brand and Instagram hasevolved in this way.
Yes, it's a social platform, butlike, it's almost like a resume,
right? It's almost like a portfolio.
I really much use my Instagram to like if I'm ever scrolling

(37:17):
through, I'm like, does this feel like me?
Like is my personal brand being consumed in the way that I think
it is? So I love Instagram, even, you
know, outside of sports, let's even say like dating, like
Instagram is a way for people tounderstand who someone is.
I'm not saying by any means that's factual, like evidence of
yes, this is Maya, as she appears to be.

(37:39):
We are much more than our squares on this app.
But I, I definitely take pride in thinking that who I show up
as on Instagram is absolutely authentic me.
Even if I'm having a mental breakdown and need event, my
story might, you know, have a few taps in there where you can
consume that as well. So yeah, I'm an Instagram girly.

(37:59):
I love the collaborative post. I think that was kind of game
changer when it comes to workingwith partners on certain
projects. And it kind of goes back to my
larger point of if I don't want this to live on my own page, is
it something worth taking? And that always, you know, it's
a question I'm asking myself, Isthis aligning with my personal
brand? Because I, I feel like I've

(38:20):
built up a lot of who I am and it's being showcased on my
Instagram. So I would never want a project
to undo some of that work I've done.
And then I also think like identity, our passions, we're
always evolving. Everything is an evolution.
So I think Instagram is like an archive source is amazing,
right? I can go back a year from now

(38:41):
and be like, wow, we've come so far.
Maybe I was talking to a smalleraudience and now I can be like,
wow, look, look at where I am a year from now.
So I'm definitely an Instagram girl.
I love that I, I love Instagram as well.
Kind of like you said, I feel like Instagram is more of a like
a resume based and like when people see it, they see a
curated version of myself. So a little bit on the opposite

(39:06):
hand, I do like TikTok and YouTube a little bit more just
'cause I feel like I can press record, I can yap what I like,
you say whatever I want to say and hit the post button without
feeling like I need to edit or anything.
And then to build on that, like YouTube, for example, I can talk

(39:27):
for however long I want to. And if people you know, who are
subscribed to me and they reallylike my identity and who I am,
they'll stay for those 10 minutes that I'm like curating,
you know? So that's that's my take.
Well, I, I would say also. So I think that that's
interesting because we talked about sort of different form

(39:47):
links and you know, short form content to long form content.
And it sounds like you are taking a different approach to
all those channels. So just be curious, you know,
like is that just something that's natural because that's
how you enjoy using the platformor is that because of how you're
seeing your your fans engage to that content?
What is it just about the platform and how you enjoy using

(40:07):
it? Or is it also a bit of a
conscious decision on how you'reseeing people interact?
I definitely think it's a conscious decision.
Before it wasn't, but recently Istarted like consciously seeing
that on Instagram, people like the more curated content they
want more like a little bit moreprofessional.

(40:28):
Whereas in TikTok in long form on YouTube, people kind of like
to see the authentic self. They're constantly scrolling on
a for you page, whereas on Instagram they're scrolling on
the actual like feed tab. So definitely that's the reason
it used to be where I used to post everything on TikTok was

(40:49):
posted on Instagram, but it wasn't performing as well.
So that's why I decided to curate it a little bit more.
That that's, yeah, really interesting.
This question comes up for us all the time and it's a hard one
to answer. You know, to what extent do you
tailor the content you're makingto the specific platform that
you want to post on? And to what extent can content

(41:10):
be cross posted, you know, between different platforms?
And obviously we are all the mercy of the platform
algorithms. And as you've said, Stella, if
you're posting something that feels more Instagram on TikTok,
the algorithm's going to punish you.
However, I do think that when collaborating with creators,
it's worth keeping in mind, you know, ways that you can be

(41:34):
efficient and sustainable in what you're, you know, basically
filming and shooting. Because specifically with
TikTok, trends can perform really well if you jump on them
at the right time and they're relevant to your brand and to
to, you know, the other content that you post on your page.

(41:54):
But you can get lost chasing TikTok trends and fans can
absolutely kind of smell when you're forcing it and it's not
working. So I think there's kind of a, a
common misunderstanding about what is a trend and what is an
up to date format. So for example, something like,

(42:15):
you know, a get ready with me ora yap session, you know, people
might misunderstand those as trends, TikTok trends, they
appear a lot on TikTok and they kind of use Gen Z language.
But what they really are are kind of repeatable and
replicable formats that you can get value out of elsewhere as

(42:35):
well. Well, one of the things, because
we came up on this, you mentioned it, Tom, about trends.
I almost think about, I used to work in a media agency and they
used to the client used to always talk about make something
that goes viral. And it's just something that
kind of makes me cringe a littlebit.
This idea of like just produce something that goes viral.
And I'm just, I'm curious my andStella, has anyone ever told

(42:56):
you, oh, make me something to goviral?
Because I just, I don't think there's ever been anything that
is less definable than how to make a piece of content go
viral. I, I would like to say something
about this. I remember working with a client
and they're like, my favourite platform is Duolingo.
And I was just thinking to myself, I was like, you want me

(43:18):
a one man job to create your whole Instagram and TikTok?
To look like. Duolingo, while whereas Duolingo
has a whole marketing team, you know, they're putting effort
and, you know, collaborating with each other, whereas you're
expecting one creator to just blow up on Instagram and TikTok.
So I definitely think when it comes to trends, it's good to

(43:42):
hop on it, but you won't create a community that way and it's a
little bit harder. Yeah, I, I do content strategy,
freelance on the side. So I've worked with a few
brands, nonprofits, creators, and just like, how can we be a
little bit more uniform and whatwe're putting out, how can our

(44:03):
message come across? And I worked with someone who
just doesn't really know what they're asking for in terms of
how much work on the back end ittakes.
And I was like, more than anything, people need to know
what you guys do, know what you guys do on a daily basis,
whether it's programming, what the staff roles are.
And their response was like, no,it needs to just be cool.

(44:27):
It needs to give this vibe. And I was like, then you're not
educating, you're not going to grow your audience 'cause people
might still be confused, right? You're not going to get that
follow. You're not going to get that
commitment from someone to say, this is something I back and I
support and I want more of if we're not also informing them on
the other end. So I think sometimes agencies or
organisations have to figure outtheir balance between the

(44:49):
aesthetic of things and how something might go viral because
it's funny. But did we inform someone?
Did we get someone to commit to come back?
Because maybe that's not even part of their brand, right?
Like a viral video, sometimes it's, it's, it's there and then
it's gone. And then from there, it's like,
how do we keep this person coming back?
It's a. It's a hard formula for sure.

(45:11):
Yeah. I mean, hopefully you 2 can
relate to this as well with the content that you create.
But often the more you overthinksomething, over engineer it and
over plan it, the more it kind of flops when it actually comes
to posting it. And often the stuff that does
really well or you know, by chance happens to actually go
viral is the kind of relatively low effort, not too time

(45:32):
consuming idea that, you know, you just kind of put out there.
You mentioned, I think a really powerful word by that we
actually actually, we maybe talked about it or alluded to,
but no one's actually said the word community yet until you
did. And I think it it's a really
powerful thing in the sense of often it's maybe a sports
organisation speaking to an individual fan.
Where is this idea of like a broader community?

(45:54):
And I think one of the things you brought up as well as a good
point is congratulations, you'vecreated a viral moment.
What next? Because it is really difficult
to create viral content. You know, it's not something
you're going to be able to do day in, day out.
More often than not, it's it's accidental.
So I think that that comment about community is really
interesting in terms of getting that, you know, we, we call it
sort of stickiness. Once they're in that they stay

(46:14):
there. So just from a content creator
perspective, what are you guys able to do in order to build
communities that perhaps a faceless sports organisation?
I know that sounds really cruel,but you know, how are you guys
able to connect and create communities in a way that
they're just never going to be able to?
Yeah, I think it kind of goes back to personal brand, for me

(46:35):
at least. I'm a Black woman.
I'm queer. Those are things I stand on.
I hope anytime I enter a room, that speaks volumes.
I never want those parts of my identity to be diminished.
And I can absolutely say the community I build on Instagram
is around, for the most part, those two elements, right?
Being a Black woman or a Black person in America who enjoys

(46:57):
watching soccer and figuring outwhere can I also consume this
sport that I love in a safe space where I feel seen, whether
it's online or in person at a local pub, again, that I know is
meant for me. And the same goes for queer
women, right? I think a game like women's
soccer has been built upon queerwomen fighting for space,

(47:20):
fighting for representation. And I feel like I'm an extension
of that because I've seen the Megan Erpino's of the world, the
Abby wombats of the world fight just to exist in their own skin.
And now I'm a now I've been granted the privilege to use my
platform to further that mission.
So my communities are very, verymuch faced in like my personal

(47:42):
identity and my cultural background, which I love because
it feels like truly authentic, like I can post anything and
people can relate to it. I think that's something I try
my hardest is like if I'm thinking it, if I feel it, or if
I've had this experience, someone else probably has it as
well. So me being able to be honest,

(48:02):
transparent and authentic allowsthem to be like, wait, that's
also something I've dealt with and I don't have to feel so
isolated in this moment, in thisexperience.
I love that. Like definitely brand identity
and personal identity helped me a lot with my building my
audience and my community as well.
Like I noticed especially I liketo tell people that my content

(48:26):
is niche sports because not a lot of people play in it.
So when I see my comment section, everyone's like, you
know, I never knew badminton wasthis intense.
And like I, that's what kind of I, I drive and I try to make
people feel that way that someone from like that's not pro
level. Like you can still have fun and

(48:48):
like be surrounded with your friends too, not just in
badminton, but also pick a wall,but and also other realms.
I noticed this a lot in collegiate wise because
badminton isn't NCAA sport, so Ijust play club and collegiate
and that's how I bring that community together.
People are like, oh, like I can go to this school and I can

(49:09):
still play this certain level and that's how people connect.
I think that summarises it so perfectly.
I mean, you know, one of the ways to win over an audience is
to convince them that your sportis the kind of exciting, intense
spectacle that the real fans know that it is.
And if you, I love your use of the word faceless, Chris, if you

(49:31):
are a faceless sports organisation, you're talking at
an audience and trying to tell them that your sport is cool and
fun and and interesting. They don't want to hear it and
they're not going to listen. Whereas a real life creator, a
human that they can, you know, relate to and speak to, sharing
their passion and explaining whythe sport is so great and

(49:51):
exciting. That's going to cut through and,
you know, that's going to, you know, help to to win them over
and, you know, get them part of of the regular viewership.
So just looking forward as we're, we're running short on
time here. One of the things I'd be curious
to get your opinions on Maya andStella.
There's a story over here in Europe that made quite a bit of

(50:11):
news. There's a YouTube's name is Tim
Cocker. He runs a rugby podcast and you
know, we were talking about sports rights and why they get
all the talk at the beginning ofthe show because they're big
amounts of money. He's actually gone and acquired
the broadcasting streaming rights for the French Division 2
rugby league. So this is really interesting
now that a YouTube is going to be the home for broadcasting

(50:33):
that sports competition. Amaya I don't know, maybe if you
know Kaza TV down in Brazil, basically big football content
creator, influencer now in Brazil is live streaming games
for I think he's even done WorldCup games or they know he did
the Olympics before. But this idea that they're now
letting content creators be the actual content distributors, not

(50:53):
just people producing content onthe sides, you know, you know,
where do you think in three to five years, You know, it feels
like this momentum is starting to shift.
We're seeing more and more content creators be allowed into
the process. Where do you think it could be
in three to five years? Or maybe, where do you hope it
could be in three to five years?Yeah, I mean, that's insane.
Content creators now being content distributors.

(51:17):
I think it's more of just like people being willing to blur the
lines of like what we used to know of the standard, you know,
now there's multiple ways we consume content.
I don't just have to go to ESPNIdon't have to just go to Fox
Sports. I, I definitely can't like

(51:37):
predict where it's going to be in five years, But I think
we're, we're really starting to see the power of like, again,
community of audiences. If that's where the numbers and
the engagement is, these brands,these of course media agencies,
they're going to have no other option but to say we need to
bring them in. And I guess now it's being a

(51:58):
distributor, it's getting the rights.
And I don't think I think it's going to be more harmful than
helpful for these larger organisations to maybe challenge
the creators because if they somehow build their army up and
it's a bunch of creators really delivering content and now
they're in direct competition with an agency or media brand,

(52:21):
you know, people are going to start picking sides.
But I definitely think the linesare blurred.
If you can do things in an unorthodox way, I think all
avenues should be open and people should be open to kind of
these these new options. That's very well said.
I feel like especially within three to five years, everyone's

(52:42):
strategy and content creating game is gonna be like very, it's
going to be great. Like their storytelling that
content creators have is not something that like actual
sports organisation may have because they have a different
perspective. They can see where quote unquote
like normal people like not pro athletes have.

(53:04):
And so they bring another perspective into the
storytelling of how sports work.And so that's it's crazy that
the rugby team acquired that. And for you, Tom, you know,
again, finishing up on the business and you know, you get
to work with content creators like Maya and Stella, you're
also working with sports organisations.

(53:25):
What would be your piece of advice to all the people that
are still not getting on board this, if they could go, what if
they wanted to start this process?
Apart from reaching out to you and the team at Scroller, what
should they do in terms of like getting this process underway to
start reconsidering the way theygo about some of their content
distribution, reaching people beyond live?

(53:46):
Well, you stole my line, of course.
But yeah, I think, yeah, now is the time to to make the
investment in the creator economy because as you've just
covered, I mean, that's the way the the industry is heading.
And I think when it comes to inviting creators into the kind
of establishment, it's importantwhen it comes to kind of

(54:08):
measuring the impact and successof that, that it's treated in a
different way from, you know, what they were doing before.
Basically. Because it is still likely that
the truly spectacular moments of, you know, from the athletes
and during the competition or from the archive, whatever it
might be, they're still probablygoing to get the most attention

(54:29):
from from fans and going to get the most eyeballs.
But what creators are doing is something slightly different.
And as we referenced earlier, it's community building and it's
engaging directly with fans in away that is measurable by very
different metrics, let's say then probably the way that a lot
of sports organisations are currently viewing their content.

(54:49):
Awesome. Well guys, I really appreciate
you taking the time to chat withme today.
Like I said, this is something Nick and I have been talking
about. There needs to be more of this.
So it was great to hear first hand from those of you with your
experiences, the platforms you're working on, challenges
you're having. Maya, I know you're producing a
tonne of content right now with the the Club World Cup and
they'll be more for us to check out.
Maybe just to end things off, you know, Stella, Maya, maybe

(55:11):
you guys want to give a shout out to your different pages.
If anybody wants to go see this content in the flesh and learn
more about everything they've been listening to, you just want
to shout out your, your, your, your different handles, your
Instagram handles, Maya, you know, things like that.
Yeah, for sure. You can follow me on Instagram
at the Maya Ann. I also founded Good Company

(55:32):
Sports and you can follow us on Good on Instagram at Good
Company Sports as well. For me, my handle is Stella BV
Tran and I'm on Instagram, Tiktok and YouTube.
Awesome, brilliant. So now that you've heard all the
things that they've gone and done, you should definitely go
and check out their content. But once again, Stella, Maya,

(55:53):
Tom, I appreciate taking the time to talk to us today about
the creator economy that's goingon in sports right now, and
hopefully more people will startto jump on the bandwagon.
But thank you once again, guys. Thank you.
Thanks, Chris. Now before you go, if you liked
what you heard today, be sure torate and review and just let me
know what you think on social. You can find me on most social
platforms at Sports Pro Nick. And please do spread the word of

(56:14):
the podcast. There's no better way of
marketing than word of mouth, whether that be in person or on
social media. And if you don't like what
you've heard, what you think? We should be doing.
More or less of something. Then reach out and let me know
as I'd love to hear from you. Thanks.
Stream timers until next time.