Why Sports Teams Are Becoming Media Companies (And What It Means for Brands)
November 5, 2025
By Leopoldo Garcia – Brand Partnership & Business Development Director
- The Golden State Warriors generated $200M+ in revenue from their media arm last year.
- The Dallas Cowboys created their own streaming content studio.
- Real Madrid has 650M+ social followers—bigger than most media networks.
The pattern? Sports teams are no longer just rights holders. They’re media companies.
And it’s changing how brand partnerships work:
Old Model:
- Team sells naming rights, signage, hospitality
- Brands buy reach through traditional media
- Value = impressions during games
New Model:
- Teams create year-round content across owned channels
- Brands integrate into storytelling, not just games
- Value = engagement, community, cultural relevance
The opportunity for brands? Direct access to highly engaged audiences without buying traditional media.
But here’s what most brands miss: treating these partnerships like media buys instead of content collaborations.
The teams winning? Those building creative studios and treating brand partners like co-producers, not just sponsors.
I saw this shift coming at HBO—premium content owners realizing they could monetize audiences directly. Now sports teams are doing the same.
The future of partnerships isn’t buying ads. It’s building stories together.
Are you treating sports properties like media companies yet?
