This is chapter 3 of our 6-part series “2026 and Beyond: Sports Industry Leaders on What’s Next”, bringing the voices of industry leaders from WSC Sports Madrid Huddle to wrap up 2025.
One lesson that shone through the most from the Huddle was: if you're designing sports content for someone sitting on their couch watching a 90-minute match, you're already behind.
Bob Carney of the NBA saw this shift coming years ago. "We got to a point in 2022 where 80% of our video views were vertical video," he recalls. "And at the exact same moment in time, we were relaunching the NBA app." The decision to embrace vertical video was about recognizing that, "our app is going to sit right next to all the other social media apps on everybody's phone, and we're going to be using social media to drive people to our app. So the content experience, the consumption experience needs to be familiar."
Marc Ciampa of the New Jersey Devils noticed a similar evolution in the NHL. "More and more, younger audiences will 'follow' the game live but not necessarily watch it," he explains in response to the results of “The 2025/26 WSC Sports Fan Engagement Study: How Gen X, Y, and Z Are Redefining Sports Fandom”, which was discussed in Madrid. "They'll get real-time updates through highlight clips and commentary. But they are still connecting in real-time, just maybe not plopped down in front of the couch watching the broadcast."
This distinction between "following" and "watching" is crucial. It doesn't mean young fans care less — it means they engage differently. "Focus on creating real-time, always-on access that fits how younger audiences actually consume sports," Ciampa advises. "They still care about the product, but they connect through short moments on apps and social media."
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The implications go beyond just creating more highlights. “Right now, too many rights holders are still building content for traditional viewing habits instead of how people consume sports today,” Ciampa continues. “They rely heavily on polished, long-form, broadcast-driven material when fans are engaging through quick updates, personality moments, and immediate context around what just happened. The miss is assuming that posting highlights alone is enough; audiences need analysis, storytelling, access, and real-time connection.”
But this doesn’t mean abandoning substance for clickbait. Jordan Levin, former Chief Content Officer at the NFL, offers a crucial guideline: “Focus on stories, not just hot takes, headlines and hype reels. Always remember to ask yourself: Why does this matter? Why is it important? Why is it different? Why should I care? Regardless of format or platform, if you’re not telling stories and getting an audience to care, then it’s all just noise in a world of endlessly expanding choices competing for this audience’s attention.”
The tactical playbook, according to John Barbarotta of ESPN, is straightforward but demanding: “Meet them where they are. Tailor your content to each specific platform through an understanding of the audience and their user behavior. This demo engages with high volume, high relevance, and constant iteration. Success depends on meeting them natively, not expecting them to come to you.”
The organizations winning with Gen Z are recognizing that “following” the game is its own valid form of engagement — and one that requires constant content updates, personality-driven storytelling, and the acceptance that most young fans will almost never watch a full broadcast. And that’s okay, as long as you’re building products and content strategies around that reality rather than pretending it doesn’t exist.
