The conference, which takes the theme, “Put Sports News at the Heart of Your Development Strategy,” will examine: sports news and marketing and diversification strategies; sport communities; local sports sites; sports rights and journalism; advertising and sports news; and much more. Full details of the conference, organised by the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), can be found here.
Confirmed speakers include:
• Laurent Louet, Chief Sports Editor at Le Figaro.fr and Manager of Sport24.com in France, who will talk about how Le Figaro is identified golf as a subject for its development strategy. This includes greater editorial coverage in the print edition, a dedicated website with premium content, iPhone and iPad applications, and the organisation of events. Le Figaro aims to become the prime media reference for golf in France.
• Juan Hevia-Aza, Marketing Manager for Marca in Spain (to be confirmed), who will discuss how diversification can maintain the relationship with readers. From opening a restaurant to creating animated cartoons on football, establishing a school of communication and sports journalism, Marca constantly reinvents itself to maintain its relationship with its readers and develop new business opportunities.
• Cyrille Frank, a WAN-IFRA consultant, who will present best practices from a wide range of publishing companies on how to animate a Facebook page or Twitter account to attract the sport community.
• Andrew Moger, Executive Director of the News Media Coalition, who will show how sports organisers are imposing unacceptable conditions on news coverage of sports events, and Stephan Phillips, Board Member of the Norwich City Football Club in the United Kingdom, who takes an opposite point of view and will show how traditional media can work collaboratively with football clubs.
• Marcin Gadzinski, Editor in chief of Sport.pl/Gazeta Wyborcza in Poland, who will report on his company’s initiative to create local sports sites in six cities, which led to increased traffic and sponsorship deals. - Plus much more, including a presentation by Havas Sports & Entertainment on what advertisers want, a presentation on the experiences of a “pure player,” Sport You in Spain, and a Bernabeu stadium tour.
