Game On! Winning at the Business of Sports

Winning at the Business of Sports
NOVEMBER 18, 2015
Game On!

GAME ON: Winning at the Business of Sports2
Winning teams don’t
appear by happy accident.
TRANSFORMING THE SPORTS ENTERPRISE
Under the influence of the right coach
and strategy, the team coalesces into one
harmonious organization, putting aside
individual goals to march in step and win. After
all, winning is what sports is all about. By default,
the sports enterprise and the team must be
equally committed to the same outcome if they
are to survive and evolve in today’s fierce and
ever-changing business environment.
Today’s sports enterprise is a hybrid of people,
real estate, and operations—“A Business of
Many Businesses” (refer to Figure 1). If it is to
survive and grow it must follow the athletic
model of cohesive integration and consolidation
towards strategic success. It must develop a
technologically connected and fully integrated
digital and physical infrastructure that extracts
insight from data and nurtures every aspect of
the organization towards success.
The challenge is to extract a single view from
an unintentionally fractured system. By its
very nature, the enterprise is the sum of its
multiple parts, a collection of many businesses
within one, all producing rich and meaningful
data independent of each other. It’s a
chaotic assembly of cost, infrastructure, and
management, working at odds and squandering
invaluable resources. Bringing it all together
through a single IT platform creates harmony
that drives efficiency, measurable results, and
long-term growth.
The challenge is to
extract a single view
from an unintentionally
fractured system.

Venue Tickets Concessions/
Hopitality
Merchandise Sponsorship Integrated
Media
Live, Work,
Play Real-Estate
Complex
Talent
Management
Anchor
Tenant(s)
Multi-Day/
Week Run Events
Single Run
Events
Off-Site
Events
General and Premium
Session Membership
Game Day
General
Game Day
Premium
Game Day
Hospitality Event
Game Day
3rd Party
Non-Game Day
Hospitality Event
Owned & Operated
Venue
Owned & Operated
Commerce
3rd Party Retail
Venue
3rd Party Retail
eCommerce
Licensed
Venue
Licensed
eCommerce
Licensed
Brick & Mortar
Exclusive &
Non-Exclusive - League
Print
Local, National,
International
Owned & Operated
On-Premise
Players – Amateur,
Developmental,
Professional
Coaches – Amateur,
Developmental,
Professional
Front Ofﬁce
Team Operations
Training/
Medical
Scouting
Development/Advance
Owned & Operated
Off-Premise
Licensed
On-Premise
Licensed
Off-Premise
3rd Party Management
On-Premise
3rd Party Management
Off-Premise
Radio
Local, National,
International
Television
Local, National,
International
Digital
Local, National,
International
Social
Local, National,
International
Mobile
Local, National,
International
Outdoor
Local, National,
International
Exclusive &
Non-Exclusive - Team
Exclusive &
Non-Exclusive - Venue
Activation
Game Day, Non-Game
Day, Off-Season
Activation
At Venue
Activation
In-IP Market
Trading Area
Activation
thru Integrated Media
Primary and Secondary
Markets
Mini-Plans
Group
Single Game
A BUSINESS OF MANY BUSINESSES
Figure 1

7
Millions of Fans, Relatively Few Customers
RENT OWNEARN
?
Inspire Acquire Engage
Passive Fan
Uninterested
Consumer
Unconnected or  
Unidentified
Consumer
Connected  
Consumer
Nurture & Convert
Active Fan Buyer
Loyal 
Customer
Extremely 
Loyal Customer
Connected  
Customer
Connected  
Customer
Connected  
Customer
Cross-Sell / Up-Sell
1-3 years 3+ years
Connected  
Consumer
Retain
High Value
Rented: Fans are passive, disengaged
spectators, following the team on TV or online.
Earned: Fans are
somewhat engaged.
They’ve joined a team
loyalty club or signed up for
the team’s ‘waiting list.’
Owned: Fans have become customers and loyal
brand ambassadors. They invest time, money
and emotional energy in the team through the
purchase of single game tickets and merchandise;
multi-game and season ticket packages, and
multi-year commitments for season tickets. Now
your goal switches, from acquisition to retention.
MILLIONS OF FANS, VERY FEW CUSTOMERS
Fan numbers alone don’t drive ROI. Consider
that most fans of leagues or teams have never
actually attended a live game. Most are following
the action on TV or online so a sports enterprise
may only be doing business with a tiny fraction
of its potential customer base.
Converting interested but passive fans into
engaged and loyal customers powers a
successful ecosystem, and vice versa. It’s a
symbiotic relationship that requires a three-step
cycle of fan transformation:
Figure 2

CREATING MULTIPLE POINTS OF ENGAGEMENT
There is no off-season in the business of sports. Fans have 24/7 access to content through multiple
channels and devices with little distinction between game day, non-game day, off-season, in-venue,
out-of-venue, and individual customer profiles. Delivering an exceptional fan experience is reliant
on getting the right content to fans at the right time. Teams must create multiple, consistent points
of engagement with a single IT platform that give their fans a relevant, consistent and personalized
experience with the sports enterprise, wherever and whenever and however they want it.

The sport, the game, the league, the owners,
the coaches, the players, and the fans, are the
content at the center of the enterprise. Where,
when and how that content is consumed – live
in person, or live or time shifted thru media
channels (traditional, social, digital, mobile) -
creates a series of communities of passive or
active fans.
Sports enterprises that have a great sense as
to the manner in which various communities
are engaged with their content ecosystem, have
the opportunity to generate commerce thru a
variety of revenue channels.
With an integrated IT ecosystem, sports
enterprises can individualize the fan experience
based on the most relevant way that a fan
consumes their content.
CROWD-SOURCED CONTENT
THAT DRIVES COMMERCE
CONTENT
COMMUN
ITY
C
OMMERCE
LOYALCUSTOMER
S
CUSTOMERS
IDENTI
FIEDFAN
ENGAGEDFAN
FAN
LIVE, WORK,
PLAYREAL-ESTATECOMPLEX
INTEGRATED
M
EDIA
SPONSORSHIPMERCHANDISE
CONCESSIONSTICKETSVENUE
Figure 3

3
Taking Care of Business
TeamFans Venue
Pillars
The Business
Sports
Content Producers League Teams Venue Media Companies
The Sports Enterprise
Desired Result
High Level
Desired Result
Drive Revenue & Profitablity
Business Needs
To achieve desired result
Game Day, Non-Game Day.
Off Season
Off the Playing
Surface
On the Playing
Surface
Infrastructure Operations
Engagement Performance Optimization
Engage Sports Consumers to convert
them from fans to Extremely Loyal customers
Single View
of the Fan
Single View of
KPI’s
Player/Team
Selection
Master
Plan
Single View of
KPI’s
Turns Fans
into Customers
Optimized
Pricing & Demand
Player/Team
Health
United
Network(s)
Staffing
Efficiency
Contextual and Personalized
Fan Engagement or Experience
Real Time
Decisioning
Player/Team
Achievement
Demand Based
Connectivity
Real Time
Decisioning
Accelerate Team Performance On
and Off the Playing Surface to increase success
Optimize Venue Infrastructure and Operations
to create connectivity and efficiency
CREATING A SPORTS ECOSYSTEM
Creating an exceptional and meaningful fan
experience begins and ends with the artful
design and choreography of a fully integrated
IT and connectivity environment. It’s enhanced
with a deep design understanding of human
wants, needs, and meaning states. If a sports
event is the supreme expression of human
performance, an immersive experience
centered around a venue unbound is its logical
and emotional realization. Technology, data,
design, and strategy can deliver on this promise.
Through a single IT platform the sports
enterprise is transformed into a robust and
dynamic ecosystem. A single view of the
sports enterprise helps sports owners drive
engagement, performance and optimization at
every level.
Figure 4

Times, and fans, have changed.
Sports enterprises need to catch up.
BRINGING THE SPORTS ENTERPRISE BACK INTO THE GAME
As owners of sports enterprises field exciting
visions of the future there is a great opportunity
to capture the natural passion and ecosystem
of sport to create meaningful and personalized
relationship with fans.
There’s a whole world of statistics, sharing, fan
base and sports endeavors leading the new
frontier of live engagement viewing. Delivering
an optimal, immersive experience is reliant on
the design of a fully integrated IT system for
the entire enterprise. It is critical to establishing
a deeper connection with passive fans and
converting them into avid, loyal customers.
In the digital era, the walls of the venue (stadiums,
ballparks, arenas) are coming down. Physically
being inside the venue, used to be essential
to the fan experience. Now fans can engage
with content created inside the venue, outside
of it in many ways. Sports enterprises need to
recognize the expansion of the venue beyond
its physical boundaries into the digital world.
Venues now must also deliver the seamless
connectivity and extraordinary experience
that today’s fans can expect at home, and
much more – give them a reason to invest
time and money. Incentivizing that switch, from
the connected but passive experience of the
screen, to the unparalleled drama of live action,
is the core challenge to sports owners and their
teams.
Today’s digital disruption and a complex media
environment present myriad variables, from
integrating technology to determining price
point. It’s where fan engagement, business
performance, and infrastructure management,
must seamlessly coalesce to create a powerful
energy force that directly impacts the bottom
line. Seasons must last 365 days a year. It’s
where vision, anticipation and execution meet,
on and off the playing surface (field, court, ice,
pitch, track etc.), in and out of seasons. As
architects of a supreme fan experience sports
owners need ultimate transparency with precise
guidance and management through IT and
design, to outperform their stellar performers.

Despite all this promise, the reality often
outweighs the vision. From the logistics of
physically reaching the venue: traffic, public
transportation, parking, the vagaries of the
weather, and the long, frustrating lines once
fans reach the venue; to the emotional and
financial investment in the game: high ticket
and concession costs in a struggling economy
and access to play and teams from anywhere
in the venue and even 365 days a year, the
fan experience too often falls short of the
investment of time and money. While there are
many stakeholders, internal and third party, who
are responsible for the disparate pieces of the
experience, the fan only praises or blames one
group for their experience – The Team. All the
pieces are there. They just need to be aligned
and consistent.

The Three Pillars of
a Winning Game Plan
Whether inspiring growth in an existing business, updating
an old venue infrastructure, or designing a new stadium such
as Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium, there are three pillars that
are the foundation of a winning sports ecosystem.

The Fans
1THE THREE PILLARS OF
A WINNING GAME PLAN
Unlock the Value of Your Ecosystem: Converting Fans Into Customers
The fan’s ability to build a relationship with
a sports enterprise, and their connection to
friends and fellow fans, regardless of time (game
day, non-game day, off-season), proximity (in-
venue, out-of-venue, at home), or relationship
(unidentified fan, engaged fan, customer) is the
baseline for unlocking the value created by the
ecosystem.
Today, a sports enterprise most likely has
millions of fans through traditional, social, digital
or mobile media, yet relatively few customers.
It also might have hundreds of thousands of
annual guests in the venue but have no idea
who they are.
No matter the action on the playing surface, it
is a fact that for today’s tech-savvy fans getting
online and seamlessly connecting with other
fans and apps is a base level requirement. And
yet, technology—the very problem—can also
be the solution, heightening fan engagement,
retention, and loyalty towards the bottom line.
Today,thefanrulesineverysense.ArecentCisco
study showed that 57% of fans prefer to watch
the game from home. It meets their expectation
for the ultimate experience, which provides the
unhindered connection to social media, the
venue, and their team. They control the narrative,
from sharing their take on the game in real-time
with key moments, to capturing those moments
without missing a minute of the action.
Fan engagement is the lifeblood of the
enterprise. When fans are transformed from
passive spectators into active participants,
they invest time, emotion, and money in the
pursuit. In this context, the enterprise must
assume a single view of the fan, designing and
providing an individualized experience tailored
to their personal and emotional needs. Today’s
fans expect to have continuous smartphone
access to social media and mobile apps. But
that’s just a start. Increasingly venues will
be expected to deliver a more personalized
experience, accomplishing that by notifying
fans automatically about seat upgrades and
best parking opportunities, sharing exclusive
video feeds and instant replays from multiple
camera angles, and enabling fans to place and
receive concession orders without ever leaving
their seats. All of these activities, in addition
to anticipating the fan’s intent based on their
location patterns within the venue, will become a
standard part of the in-stadium experience. As
a reflection of revenue potential, connected fans
become the organization’s most loyal customer.
Consider also that only a relatively small
percentage of fans have ever, or will ever, visit
your venue for a live game. Most are following
on a variety of different media channels, leaving
you to do business with only a fraction of your
actual fan base “on-premise,” so to speak.
In today’s competitive marketing arena, there is
no off-season. Engagement happens 365 days
of the year on a continuum that converts would-
be fans into loyal, invested customers through
integrated IT solutions that pave the path for a
singular experience. It is that experience that
drives the action that drives results.
EXAMPLES INCLUDE WIMBLEDON US OPEN

The Team
The modern sports enterprise is a complex
and multi-layered business of third parties and
internal departments overseeing operations,
from sales and marketing, to managing the
performance and health of team players. It’s
typically a fragmented system of silos – on and
off the playing surface -- with multiple moving
parts that impact the entire enterprise. When
sports owners have a clear line of sight into the
interdependencies of their operation they get a
real-time sense of the strengths, weaknesses,
and opportunities and transform them to
efficiencies when each element operates as
one.
Owners and senior managers need real-time
insight and a single view of key performance
indicators (KPIs) that impact the bottom line
off the playing surface and optimize revenue
performance. Sports enterprises will benefit
if they understand the attitude, behavior, and
needs that drive fan behavior if they are to
deliver customized and personalized solutions.
IT solutions that secure and connect disjointed
information from multiple apps contribute to this
seamless business ecosystem.
Consolidating data streams from the entire
enterprise through a single IT platform
harnesses it into one holistic view, through
an integrated system, that aligns legacy, new
systems, and third party business lines with a
single focus. By optimizing pricing and demand
it shapes real-time decisions for business-to-
business and business-to-consumer. A fully
optimized sports enterprise can scale, grow,
and innovate with ease.
An area of the enterprise that creates more
data than anywhere else is what happens on
the playing surface on game day or during
training periods. At one time, gut and instinct
ruled selection, development, health and
safety, and strategy for individual players or the
team as a whole. Informing multi-million dollar
transactions with predictive and cognitive
capabilities allows sports owners to make more
informed investments around players and team
selections, player team health, and ultimately,
player and team achievement.
A WINNING GAME PLAN
EXAMPLES INCLUDE OTTAWA SENATORS WARATAHS
Coordinating the Entire Data Stream: Improving Performance
On and Off the Playing Surface.

The Venue
Connectivity is often associated with the fan and
the organization. However, a fully functioning
ecosystem depends on a connected venue
delivering security and efficiency. Seamless
connections demand a high bandwidth network
that can connect the venue infrastructure
(including displays, screens, monitors), fans
(Wi-Fi, cellular) and IT infrastructure. Protection
against unplanned outages through reliable,
predictable recovery and restoration is also
critical.
Fans only see the action that relates to them at
the venue: getting to the right rest room at the
right time; grabbing food between play without
missing a beat; getting in and out of the venue
without the maddening congestion. However,
operational efficiencies behind the scene make
it all possible -- monitoring water, lighting, fire,
elevators, HVAC, crowd management and theft.
plan that oversees demand-based connectivity.
It covers everything, from streamlining security
activity and announcements, to monitoring
and managing the movement of fan traffic,
to clearing up congestion before it occurs,
ensuring energy efficiencies, and even tracking
the weather in advance to be able to predict
attendance and ticket sales. Ultimately, a single
vision of the enterprise enables all stakeholders
to invest their time and energy in an efficient and
profitable process.
A WINNING GAME PLAN
They are equally important to an exceptional
fan experience, and the cost infrastructure
that impacts the bottom line. When venues are
saddled with an old and outdated infrastructure
with no central point of IT command to manage
and oversee the various operations, there is
no quick way to connect the disparate efforts
and measure how they track or better deliver a
single experience.
Asthesumofitsmyriadparts,asportsenterprise
involves businesses within a business: multiple
vendors working in one space. There may
be as many as eight different groups working
in silos to accomplish their individual goals.
Optimizing the venue by bringing all the separate
components of the enterprise together in an IT
ecosystem touches concerns that are big and
small. An integrated approach, for example, can
create a unified infrastructure with a master
EXAMPLES INCLUDE AUSTRALIAN OPEN MERCEDEZ-BENZ
Connect and Control: Optimizing the Venue

10 to 33%
30 to 50%
30%
32%
583%
80%
Energy savings for green IT
Less network infrastucture material used
CAPEX and OPEX savings
Lift in engagement
Lift in revenue from the email channel
ROI in the first 4 months of launch
Developing the right ecosystem goes beyond
the integration of fans, team, and venue. At its
core, the ability to think differently about how
the environment and content fit together to
create a symbiotic whole has massive revenue
implications. Integration cements the brand
and drives sales and profitability with a level of
impact that has yet to be calculated. The benefit
of developing the sports enterprise as a singular
ecosystem with an integrated IT platform at its
core is significant.
THE FINANCIAL BENEFITS OF
THE HOLISTIC WHOLE
Figure 5

Our Strategy & Approach
IBM’s vision and strategy for a dynamic sports enterprise is focused
on your revenue and profitability growth.

Design
Venue
Tickets
Merchandise
Concession/Hospitality
Sponsorship
Integrated Media
Live, Work, Play-
Real-Estate Complex
Talent Management
Design Build Manage
ENGAGEMENT PERFORMANCE OPTIMIZATION
Fans Team Venue
Technology
Data Strategy
IBM’s vision and strategy for a dynamic sports
enterprise is focused on your revenue and
profitabilitygrowth.Ourapproachfusesstrategy,
design, data and technology to drive superior fan
engagement, improve team performance and
optimize the venue. This is the foundation of our
unique approach that creates an agile whole.
When it is put into play the entire enterprise
performs as one streamlined organization,
measuring,tracking,andrespondingtoreal-time
data that drives every opportunity to increase
revenue and profitability growth. We transform
the entire franchise from a fragmented business
into a living, breathing ecosystem.
Figure 6

So, how do we bring it all together? We’ve talked about fan engagement, team performance, and
venue optimization – now let’s see how the fan experience transforms when it is all integrated to
deliver a seamless personalized engagement for an individual fan. Remembering the three contextual
dimensions of Fan Experience – Time, Proximity, and Relationship—let’s consider the journey of
Adrian and his son Quinton as they enjoy a game at the venue as loyal customers (season ticket
members). Their individual experiences are crafted from an experience of many, to a personalized fan
engagement, drawing upon the sports enterprises’ infrastructure, data management platform, and
the delivered experience.
THE TRANSFORMATIVE SPORTS ENTERPRISE JOURNEY MAP
Adrian 43
Adrian, 43
Quinton 13
Quinton, 13
Season Ticket Holder - 8 years
Meets his regular friends before
every game
Wants his son to have a good time
Son’s safety is paramount
Is on a budget
ADRIAN’s Son
Player is his favorite player
Enjoys hanging with his dad and
continuing to learn about the game
Always communicating with his
friends via his mobile
Doesn’t have a wallet
46%
ALWAYS
CONNECTED
82%
ALWAYS
CONNECTED
Digital Somewhat Native
Somewhat Social Online
Old School - Box Scores,
News sites, Game Recaps
Digital Native
Heavy Social Online
New School - Real-time video,
highlights and stats

THE TRANSFORMATIVE SPORTS ENTERPRISE JOURNEY MAP (CONTINUED)
1
Anticipates the game
day ritual
Adrian is sent suggested
travel times to get to the venue
2 hours before kickoff, his
preferred time.
2
Predicts routes from
captured traffic data
As the venue comes into view,
Adrian is rerouted around
traffic congestion and directed
to his parking lot.
3
Improves parking
in real-time
Adrian has already prepaid for
parking and is guided through
the Fast Lane and is guided to
a spot closest to the stadium.
4
Helps fans find friends
& family
Adrian pulls up his app and
sees that Aaron and his long-
time die-hard friends have
made their way to the usual
pregame spot for a pint and
a bite.
5
Knows ticket buyer &
ticket holder
Adrian’s son Quinton follows
his favorite player for his entire
pregame warm-up through a
special season-ticket only
camera feed.
6
Guides fans w/ Virtual
Queue Management
It’s 30 minutes to kickoff and
Adrian gets pro-actively
rerouted to avoid heavy crowds
at his normal entrance.
7
Virtually suggests the
fan’s next move
A bit dismayed he accepts
the reroute and immediately
gets an offer to upgrade his
seats closer to the field for the
inconvenience.
8
Right-sizes
commerce packages
As halftime approaches, Adri-
an is able to confirm his usual
concessions order and have
it delivered to his upgraded
seats. He doesn’t want to miss
any action with his team driving
in the closing minutes of the
first half.
9
Avoid the rush to key
amenities
The restroom facilities are
busy at half, so he and Quinton
keep track of wait times while
watching the halftime festivities
and eating.
10
Syncs with real-time
fan preferences
Adrian is offered a 20%-off for
2 of Quinton’s favorite player
following a touchdown. He can
have them ready for pickup
after the game or delivered to
his seat.
11
Distributes user
generated content in
real-time
It’s 30 minutes to kickoff and
Adrian gets pro-actively
rerouted to avoid heavy crowds
at his normal entrance.
12
Decreases egress
friction with relevant
diversion
Adrian gets an estimate for the
drive home. It’s going to be a
long ride. Good thing he pre-
sented with some options to
kill time around the venue. He
decides a former player guided
tour of the Hall of Fame.
13
Automates content
distribution with data
On the ride home Quinton
starts to share with his dad
some stats about his favorite
player. His favorite player ran
almost 6 miles during the
game, translating to a full
minute more of running than
any other.
14
Builds and reinforces
loyalty
A few days later Adrian
receives dynamic personalized
content marketing that antici-
pates his enjoyment level at the
match and features offers or
specials to reward/reinforce his
season ticket status.
Custom push
delivery automation
Profile Triggers
IOC/Smarter City
DELIVERING
EXPERIENCES
DATA MANAGEMENT
PLATFORM
INFRASTRUCTURE
Map integration to native device
Third-Party Data
Aggregation & Integration
IOC/Smarter City
Ticketing & parking user flows
& integration to device payment
Geo-Location, Profile Triggers
IVA Platform
Dynamic around-venue map
with contextual views
Social Connection, Geo-Location
Wireless Connectivity
Video streaming & video player
console customization
Relationship/Profile Mapping
Wireless Connectivity,
IPTV Content Integration
DELIVERING
EXPERIENCES
DATA MANAGEMENT
PLATFORM
INFRASTRUCTURE
Dynamic around-venue map
with contextual views
Geo-Location, Real-time
Queue Feed Integration
IVA Platform
Fan & Operations dashboard views
for stadium seating indicators
Next Best Action & Offers
Wireless Infrastructure,
IVA Platform
Dynamic in-venue map with
contextual way-finding
Geo-Location, Real-Time Queue
Feed Integration
IVA Platform
Marketing & commerce integration
& supporting communication
templates
Purchase Behavior, Profile
Preferences, Next Best Action,
Geo-Location
POS, Wireless Connectivity
Concessions ordering user flow,
Operations dashboard view
Geo-Location, Profile Triggers
IVA, POS Infrastructure,
Wireless Connectivity
FanHub/Social interaction
Second-Screen Experience
Social Feed, Real-time Content
Analytics
Wireless Connectivity, IPTV
Integration
DELIVERING
EXPERIENCES
DATA MANAGEMENT
PLATFORM
INFRASTRUCTURE
HOF second-screen experience
Next Best Action, Third-Party
Traffic Data
IOC Software Platform
Player data visualization &
delivery (coaching/scouting
& fan dashboards)
Player Data Tracking Integration
RFID
Traditional digital & in app dynamic
personalized marketing
Profile Triggers,
Loyalty Platform
Cloud Data Services

TEAM IBM
14
A Unified Team is a Win for Everyone
IBM Design Thinking
Parallel with your visioning
Fusion of design, strategy, technology and data
Driven by future state
Action oriented
One IBM
Caters to all business needs
Comprehensive and integrated solution suite
Single point of contact
Local and global execution
Skills and expertise
The Cognitive Business Journey
Understand and analyze quantum of  
unstructured data
Sports consumer's personality  
characteristics & attitudes
Relevant content and news
Improved player health
In a market undergoing radical changes the
customer is all. There’s no longer a distinction
between business strategy and how the fan
experience is designed. Investment in IT is no
longer just an IT investment; it is a strategic
engine to drive revenue and profitability growth.
The business must impact their customers at
a personal level so that their highest level of
expectation becomes the minimal experience
for all future interactions. When a fan has a poor
experience at a venue the opportunity to convert
them into a loyal customer who generates word
of mouth recommendations is lost.
Fans interact with their favorite team, player, or
sport with the access that sports enterprises
give them through multiple devices and
channels. IBM’s end-to-end technology
capabilities and design thinking help sports
enterprises gain a single view of their enterprise
to help them transform into an ecosystem that
allows scalability and growth.
Figure 7
Parallel with your visioning
Fusion of design, strategy, technology and data
Driven by future state
Action oriente
Caters to all business needs
Comprehensive and integrated solution suite
Single point of contact
Local and global execution
Skills and expertise
Understand and analyze quantum of
unstructured data
Sports consumer’s personality
characteristics & attitudes
Relevant content and news
Improved player health

40
The Transformative Sports Enterprise Architecture
Here’s how it all plays out…
Interactive Experiences
Personalized  
Content
Real-time
Actionable
Insights
Data
Management
As-a-Service
Delivery Integration Security
• Marketing
• Commerce
• Predictive Analytics
• Cognitive Analytics
• Master Data
• Data Lake
• Cloud
• Mobility Services
• Location Services
• Data Exchange 
• APIs
• Identity  
Management 
• Access Control
Infrastructure
• Network • Systems & Support • Cabling • Building Management Services • Physical Space40
The Transformative Sports Enterprise Architecture
Here’s how it all plays out…
Interactive Experiences
Personalized  
Content
Real-time
Actionable
Insights
Data
Management
As-a-Service
Delivery Integration Security
• Marketing
• Commerce
• Predictive Analytics
• Cognitive Analytics
• Master Data
• Data Lake
• Cloud
• Mobility Services
• Location Services
• Data Exchange 
• APIs
• Identity  
Management 
• Access Control
Infrastructure
• Network • Systems & Support • Cabling • Building Management Services • Physical Space
IBM Sports Enterprise Solutions can bring unique experience and capabilities to design the
experience and help sports enterprises differentiate through cognitive capabilities. Co-creation is our
point of difference. We work iteratively, drawing on strategy, solutions, and our client’s knowledge
as the expert of their own business to positively impact their bottom line. At IBM, our endeavor is to
cater to all the IT needs of a sports enterprise and help them benefit with a single point of contact to
drive efficiencies.
Figure 8

IT’S A WHOLE NEW GAME
The sports enterprise of the future goes beyond the venue, beyond the broadcast, into the fabric of
fans’ lives through their devices and their passions, creating a new definition of fan experience and
engagement. Consolidating the three pillars of fans, team, and venue paves the way for a single view
of the entire ecosystem that is critical to staying ahead of the game.
Figure 9

22
Winning Experiences
Fan Engagement

A Digital Experience Capturing The Moments
That Mattered
IBM creates a new adaptive, responsive web
and mobile platform that puts content in context
– giving fans unique access to real-time data
and shot-by-shot analysis.
To supply its digital platforms with the most
compelling possible content, the team took
advantage of a unique advantage: its access
to real-time, shot-by-shot data on every match
played during The Championships. Over the
course of the Wimbledon fortnight, 48 courtside
experts captured approximately 3.4 million data-
points, tracking the type of shot, the strategies
and the outcome of each and every point.
This data was collected and analyzed in real time
to produce statistics for TV commentators and
journalists – and also for the digital platform’s
own editorial team.
The ability to capture the moments that matter
and uncover the compelling narratives within
the data, faster than anyone else, was key. If
you wanted to experience the emotions of The
Championships live, the next best thing to being
there in person was to follow the action on
wimbledon.com.
WIMBLEDON 2015
Harnessing the power of natural language
In addition, IBM’s natural language processing
technologies were used to help mine the
huge library of tennis history for interesting
contextual information. The team trained IBM
Watson™ Engagement Advisor to digest this
rich unstructured data set and use it to answer
queries from the press desk.
The same natural language processing front-
end was also connected to a comprehensive
structured database of match statistics, dating
back to the first Championships in 1877 –
providing a one-stop shop for both basic
questions and more complex inquiries.
The strategy and execution led to:
• 71 million visits to the digital platform, a 13
percent year-on-year increase
• 21.1 million unique devices connected to the
platform, a 23 percent increase
• 125% increase in the number of unique
mobile visitors
• Engaged fans with real-time, shot-by-shot
analysis, a first in tennis
• Coverage on digital sites with social media
analytics to focus on hot topics

Data, applications and
predictive analytics
deliver remarkable
digital experiences.
IBM’s solutions provided the USTA with the
capabilities necessary to host a connected and
accessible world-class tournament. Support
and management of the US Open website by
IBM helped deliver data to fan experiences,
which supports USTA engage fans, drives
revenue through ads and sponsorships. The
Official US Open Digital properties continued
with steady growth in 2015. Throughout the 14
days of the 2015 Tournament usopen.org digital
properties surpassed the 15 day totals from the
2014 US Open with 16.2 million unique visitors,
a 3% increase over 2014; 64.5 million visits, a
10.5% increase over 2014, in which over 82%
of all visitors returned multiple times a day; and
439.8 million page views, the second highest in
tournament history.
US OPEN
IBM created a scoring system network and
database to house over 41 million data points
compiled from various feeds, such as historical
statistics. IBM Slamtracker, a feature on US
Open’s website and digital applications,
visualizes data and predictive analytics to give
fans insight into featured matches.
IBM partnered with the USTA and delivered
remarkable digital experiences that American
Express sponsored.

25
Winning Experiences
Team Performance

Identifying Fan
Engagement
Opportunities
• Fan Insights and Clustering: Identify and
make sense of fan attitudes, behavior trends,
and psychographic characteristics to identify
individual fan preferences and offer more
personalized interactions.
• Fan Experience Effectiveness: Provide
visual analysis of fan interactions and
uncover opportunities for greater brand and
fan interactions.
• Lead Scoring: Drive more effective target
offers for renewals, upsells and incentives for
new customers to maximize revenue.
• KPI Dashboard: Track the success and ROI
on key initiatives and campaigns, review and
audit all fan metrics, and enable business
user discovery and analysis.
• Data Warehouse Strategies: Aggregate
all data source opportunities including
governance, data capture opportunities
and existing sources into a cloud-based
warehouse.
OTTAWA SENATORS
With access to more data about fans than ever
before,theOttawaSenatorsprofessionalhockey
club realized it was an incredible resource they
could use for engaging their fans where, when
andhowtheywanttobereachedwhileincreasing
their own operational efficiency. Using IBM’s
Behavior Based Fan Insight predictive analytics
solution the Ottawa Senators can inform every
aspect of the organization, including marketing
and ticketing teams, to personalize and tailor
communications, as well as enhance the venue
experience,andboostticketsales.TheSenators
plan to use the solution in five key areas:

Using Predictive Analytics To Reduce Player Injury
And Optimize Team Performance
NSW WARATAHS RUGBY TEAM
To improve athletic performance and increase
injury resilience to ensure that players spend
the most amount of time possible on the field,
the NSW Waratahs plan to use IBM predictive
analytics technologies to monitor its thirty-five
strong player squad.
The analysis predicts the likelihood of a
particular player being injured, which then
enables the NSW Waratahs coaching team to
adapt and modify each player’s personalized
training program to maximize their training load
and minimize their risk of injury.
The NSW Waratahs will collect player data
from a range of sources to build a clear
picture of each individual player’s welfare and
performance. This includes a GPS tracker fitted
to each player to measure and monitor intensity
levels, collisions, and fatigue during training and
matches. The GPS data is then combined with
medical data, wellness data and player data,
and over a period of time, clear patterns and
early warning signs start to emerge. The long-
term project for predictive insights will provide
the Waratahs a critical opportunity to anticipate
an injury and change the variables that put
players at risk.

28
Winning Experiences
Optimizing Venue

First-of-a-Kind Fan Experience
Mobile Wireless Support
MERCEDES-BENZ STADIUM
With a new stadium slated to open in 2017,
AMB Sports & Entertainment (AMB S&E),
which includes the Atlanta Falcons, Atlanta
United FC and Mercedes-Benz Stadium,
recognized it had an opportunity and an
obligation to reinvent the stadium experience
for its increasingly connected fan base. The
company was committed to delivering an
unparalleled interactive game and event day
fan experience and leveraging the latest mobile,
analytics, cloud and security technologies to
push relevant, timely and personalized content.
Understanding what was at stake, AMB S&E is
deploying a converged fiber network to provide
fast, reliable connectivity and pervasive high-
density (HD) WiFi coverage stadium-wide.
The converged fiber network with PON/DAS
is designed to provide fans and guests with
greater control by integrating physical security,
power and point-of-sale systems onto the
same fiber backbone. Unique features like
a 360-degree, 63,000-square foot HD halo
scoreboard above the stadium ceiling and more
than 2,500 video displays will bring Falcons
and Atlanta United fans closer to the action
than ever before. Specialty services like in-seat
ordering and better crowd management will
improve the fan experience. At the same time,
personalized offers, viewer polls and upcoming
event notifications will provide the organization
with new sources of revenue. The AMB S&E
objective is to reset the bar for the game-day and
event experience while creating a prototype for
sports and entertainment venues everywhere.

Real-time crowd tracking and social media analytics
used to enrich fan experience
With a new cloud-based crowd-tracking
solution, fans attending the Australian Open got
a real-time, top-down view of where they were,
along with a detailed heat-map view of crowd
density that steered them either to — or from —
the most popular areas. Real-time snapshots of
courtside social media buzz helped fans make
that choice. For event organizers, seeing traffic
patterns — which places fans went, which
routes they took and how long they dwelt —
helped guide placement strategies and other
operational decisions.
Tennis Australia can now engage its onsite fans
more deeply in the Australian Open, providing
a richer and more memorable experience. With
insights into dwell time and flow of foot traffic,
the organization improved its ability to optimize
its operational decision making in areas such
as traffic flow design, security planning and
the placement of sponsor activities, food
and beverage vendors, and fan engagement
activities.
AUSTRALIAN OPEN
Cloud managed by analytics
In the past, monitoring Tennis Australia’s server
workloads, and the adjusting resources, has
been a manual and reactive task. But once
Tennis Australia started applying IBM analytics,
they gained the ability to accurately predict,
allocate, monitor and adjust capacity. It was
done quickly, easily, and more cost effectively
than ever.
IBM technology automatically assigns the
computing power required by the Australian
Open website based on real-time analytics of
the tournament schedule, player popularity,
historical data and social media conversations.
IBMWatsonFoundations(BigDataandanalytics)
technologies are used to forecast Internet traffic
to the Australian Open digital platforms, with
IBM Cloud Orchestrator software automatically
increasing or decreasing capacity accordingly.
The result is just the right amount of resources
to deliver a great visitor experience, and minimal
energy and money wastage.

Game On! Winning at the Business of Sports

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