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As Betway SA20 gears up for an anticipated Season 2, League Commissioner, Graeme Smith, outlines some of the key commercial successes that made Season 1 an unprecedented success. He delves into the strategy to grow the League into a commercially viable entity that will bring an unparralled fan experience, world-class cricket entertainment and stand up to become the best T20 Cricket League in the world outside of India.
What did it take to get Betway SA20 off the ground?
It was a proud moment to get the League off the ground, to the have the right people in the room ready to sign off on the vision. We built a shareholding outside of the Federation for the first time ever, with Cricket South Africa still being the majority as the licensee of cricket in the country, but it was a really strong broadcast deal with SuperSport that formed the base of building the product. Off that broadcast deal, the product was built to take it to market, it was a huge milestone for us to be able to attract the six IPL teams that won the bid to be a part of Betway SA20 and that for me was kind of the next big stepping stone in building the project.
How would you describe that feeling when the first ball was bowled in front of a sold-out Newlands crowd?
All of us that were involved in Season 1 see that build-up as one big work blur! The excitement was huge, when you are building something unique, you want it to be special. You feel the stresses and the pressure of being able to attract the right type of players, whether the team is going to be built the right way, how competitive the League will be, are the fans going to turnout. Personally, standing inside those stadiums in the first week, travelling to the first game in each stadium which was packed touched me on a number of levels.
The League has shown it is a strong commercial entity in a tough climate with the announcement major partnerships with some exciting South African brands, what do these partnerships bring to the League?
Betway came in as our title partner in Season 1, and finding partners that want to come in at that level and back a product is never easy when you don’t have a use case. As a partner, a lot of their activations were a huge success of Season 1. We’ve thoroughly enjoyed working with them, they’re a product that also challenges us on a number of levels to be better, to think about things slightly differently, to operate slightly differently, they bring a lot of expertise.
As we build to Season 2, we have acquired some exciting key strategic partnerships which will also elevate the overall fan experience at the stadiums and for those watching at home.
rain is a fantastic partner; they are innovating and they are growing. They are a newer telco in South Africa, and have learnt to be agile and dynamic. The tech side is huge for us, connectivity in stadium is important along with looking at opportunities that are aligned with the way sport is viewed globally.
Castle Lite are also a new partner and we’re very excited about this collaboration. They are a huge entity, they bring the lite side to life, and will bring immense value to the fan experience in the stadium as well.
The fan is important to us, especially when we make commercial partnership decisions. We are always thinking about the fans in the stands, our fans at home and how we can create a better experience for them.
It has been fantastic to find commercial partners that want to be a part of SA20 and want to build a partnership with us, hopefully that will go from strength to strength.
What can we look forward to in Season 2?
I think the cricket is going to be at a high level, I am excited about the local and international talent that will be on show. For us again the fan experience is going to be crucial, we want the people to come out in numbers and to create an unmatched vibe and atmosphere. That is the goosebump moment for us, when you are standing in the stadiums, seeing people having an incredible time, that is something for us that we will never take for granted. So from Jan 10th to Feb 10th, we want to own cricket, we want to own summer, we just want people to look forward to it every year.
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