AUDIENCES | Perspectives Across Verticals Blog - Sporting Moments
Nicola Webb is Client Partner for Sports & Entertainment at AUDIENCES. working with brands, rights holders and data owners to help them activate first-party data more effectively during moments of peak engagement. With deep experience across sport, live entertainment and gaming ecosystems, Nicola partners with organisations navigating complex audiences, compressed timelines and increasing commercial scrutiny.
In this article, Nicola explores how major sporting and entertainment moments are shifting and why relevance and intelligent first-party data activation are now critical to turning attention into long-term value.
Every few years, the sporting calendar delivers moments that command attention far beyond the pitch or screen.
In 2026, those moments will arrive at pace. From the Winter Olympics in Milan to an expanded FIFA World Cup, alongside packed domestic leagues, live entertainment tours and always-on gaming ecosystems. Audiences will be more engaged, more fragmented and more valuable than ever.
For brands operating across sport, entertainment and gaming, these moments represent far more than spikes in reach. They are rare windows when audiences are open to deeper connection. The challenge is no longer whether to show up, but how to do so in a way that feels relevant, and effective.
For years, tentpole events were treated primarily as reach plays: big budgets and maximum exposure. That approach is increasingly out of step with how audiences behave today.
Fans no longer experience sport or entertainment in isolation. They move fluidly between live broadcasts, highlights, social platforms, gaming environments and second screens. Expectations have evolved accordingly. Presence alone is no longer enough; relevance is now the differentiator.
This is where first-party data becomes critical.
During major sporting and entertainment moments, attention concentrates but so do inefficiencies. Any weakness in data strategy is amplified. Slow activation leads to missed opportunities. Generic segmentation produces messaging that blends into the noise. Over-reliance on third-party signals limits differentiation at precisely the moments when brands need it most.
First-party data allows brands to recognise their core audiences, understand patterns of engagement and respond to behaviour as it unfolds. It enables a shift away from one-size-fits-all messaging toward experiences that feel familiar, timely and earned.
However, data alone does not create advantage. Activation is where value is either realised or lost.
Too often, first-party data remains under-utilised during the very moments it should matter most. Traditional activation models introduce complexity and risk by moving data between platforms and clouds exactly when brands need speed, confidence and control.
This pressure is also reshaping how marketing leadership operates internally. As budgets flatten and scrutiny increases, CMOs and CFOs are no longer operating in parallel. They are becoming strategic partners, aligned around outcomes rather than spend. Marketing decisions are now expected to stand up to the same level of financial rigour as any other investment.
During tentpole moments, this alignment becomes decisive. Spend is concentrated, timelines are compressed and the margin for error is small. The conversation shifts from “how much can we spend?” to “how do we maximise impact with the audiences we already know?” First-party data becomes a shared language, a way to connect media investment directly to outcomes, reduce waste and build confidence at scale.
For brands, these moments raise the stakes even further. Media activity needs to respond in real time scaling at key moments and pulling back when relevance drops. When this breaks down, the cost is immediate: outdated messaging, wasted spend or continued targeting of users who are already highly active. In an environment where every pound must justify itself, campaigns guided by first-party insight enable teams to optimise with intent rather than assumption.
The most effective brands do not treat major events as isolated campaigns. They use them as accelerators, moments that reinforce familiarity and preference long after the final whistle. That only works when peak-moment engagement connects back to a broader understanding of the customer and informs what comes next.
As expectations around privacy, governance and transparency continue to rise, more organisations are rethinking how first-party data is activated, particularly during periods of peak engagement. Increasingly, the focus is on reducing unnecessary data movement, maintaining control and enabling teams to act at speed.
Looking ahead to 2026, the sporting and entertainment calendar will offer no shortage of opportunity. But attention alone will not guarantee impact.
The brands that succeed will be those that truly understand their audiences, activate first-party data intelligently and use major moments to build long-term relationships rather than short-lived spikes. In an era where marketing and finance are aligned around profitable growth, making media work harder during peak moments will be defined not by how much brands spend, but by how well they know who they are speaking to.
As Client Partner or Sports, Entertainment & Gaming at AUDIENCES, I’m looking forward to working with brands and data owners who are thinking beyond the campaign and focusing on the foundations that will define success in the years ahead. Get in touch to find out more.
