Episode

Can sport make huge profits sustainably?

Podcast
The Athletic FC Presents...
Published
Jan 21, 2026
Duration seconds
1980
Processing state
not_requested
Canonical source
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/podcast/220-beyond-the-headline/episode-67/
Audio
https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/68374afd998551779fb67f1a/e/6970a9d92ab571f71a321678/media.mp3
JSON
/v1/public/podcasts/the-athletic-fc-presents-1364368/episodes/can-sport-make-huge-profits-sustainably
Markdown
/podcast/the-athletic-fc-presents-1364368/can-sport-make-huge-profits-sustainably.md

Actions

  • POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-athletic-fc-presents-1364368/episodes/can-sport-make-huge-profits-sustainably/transcription-requests
    Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
  • GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-athletic-fc-presents-1364368/can-sport-make-huge-profits-sustainably.md
    Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

Summary

The global sports industry is booming — already worth an estimated $2.3 trillion a year, with projections suggesting it could almost triple by 2050. But according to a new report from the World Economic Forum, that growth is far from guaranteed. In this episode of The Athletic FC, Matt Slater digs into the findings of Sports for People and Planet, a report that warns climate change and rising physical inactivity could threaten sport’s long-term business model. So how can sport — and football in particular — continue to grow without undermining its own future? First, Matt speaks to Tony Simpson, one of the report’s authors from consultancy firm Oliver Wyman, to unpack the numbers and the risks facing the industry. Then, attention turns to the club level, with insights from Rishi Jain of Liverpool FC on how one of football’s biggest institutions is thinking about sustainability, responsibility and profit in the years ahead. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.