A big new player is joining the party of outlets covering sports business. On Thursday, Penske Media Corporation announced the launch of Sportico, a new sports-driven site focusing on the business side of the industry. According to its website, the venture aims to debut this summer.
Sportico will be headed by CEO Dick Glover. As Deadline’s Jill Goldsmith details, Glover has been an executive with many companies including ESPN, Disney, and NASCAR. Previously, he’s helmed the launch of Funny or Die and Mandalay Sports Media in a chief executive role.
Leading the editorial side is Scott Soshnick, a veteran of the sports business beat for Bloomberg News. He has also covered the industry for radio and podcasting, in addition to organizing events involving executives throughout sports and media. Soshnick has followed the scene for nearly 30 years and now takes a prominent role as this new venture’s editor-in-chief and head of content.
Working out of New York and Los Angeles, Sportico enters what’s become a relatively crowded space covering sports business, joining outlets like Sports Business Journal, Front Office Sports, Yahoo Finance, Forbes, The Athletic, Bleacher Report, and Action Network, along with coverage from traditional platforms like the New York Times, Bloomberg, the Wall Street Journal, and CNBC.
But this company will also have the considerable power of Penske Media Corporation behind it. PMC owns several prominent print and digital outlets that cover the entertainment industry and its business side including Variety, Rolling Stone, IndieWire, TVLine, and Deadline. With that track record, Sportico could establish quite a footprint in the coverage of sports business.
“We are truly excited about becoming the preeminent information destination for the $500 billion sports industry,” PMC Chairman and CEO Jay Penske said in an official statement. “This launch is consistent with Penske Media Corporation’s long record of success in business to business and consumer publishing ventures. Sports enables us to complement our technology, entertainment, art, music, fashion, media and lifestyle properties.”
In addition to its website, Sportico can also be followed leading up to the company’s launch on Twitter @sportico_social.
[Deadline]
About Ian Casselberry
Ian is a writer, editor, and podcaster. You can find his work at Awful Announcing and The Comeback. He's written for Sports Illustrated, Yahoo Sports, MLive, Bleacher Report, and SB Nation.