Better Collective’s strategic emphasis on talent-led media is yielding substantial returns, with its North American brands surpassing one billion views and downloads since early 2023. The approach, which integrates prominent athletes and personalities such as Shaquille O’Neal, Jalen Brunson, Angel Reese and Jeff Marek, allows Better Collective to reach highly engaged audiences across key sports markets. This development strengthens its iGaming ecosystem by offering partners direct access to new, younger demographics.
Better Collective reports that these talent-led initiatives contributed significantly to its 2024 global sponsorship revenue, which exceeded €45 million. Brands such as Playmaker HQ, Action Network and The Nation Network have each shown notable growth, reinforcing the company’s role as a leading digital sports media group with deep ties to the betting industry.
Playmaker HQ’s five shows have collectively built more than two million social followers and generated over 15 million hours of YouTube watch time, averaging 75 million monthly views. Action Network, known for expert-led betting content, saw over 600,000 hours of consumed content this year and six million podcast downloads during the last NFL season, with an expected rise to eight million in 2025. In Canada, The Nation Network delivered 71 million streams and five million watch hours, highlighting further opportunities in that market.
Better Collective’s partner roster spans major sportsbooks and consumer brands, including DraftKings, bet365, Tim Hortons and Coca-Cola. These relationships extend beyond typical sponsorships into live activations, such as branded experiences at watch parties and meet-and-greet events. One example was Playmaker HQ’s live Roommates Show in New York’s Central Park, drawing thousands of fans for a combination of entertainment and partner engagement.
As the group continues to blend media, sports and iGaming, it plans additional live events aligned with major sporting moments, including the NBA Summer League. This multi-channel strategy demonstrates how Better Collective is evolving to meet the demands of modern sports fans while creating valuable commercial pathways for both endemic and non-endemic partners.
Karl Pugh, Group SVP of Revenue at Better Collective, said: “As a market leader operating at the intersection of sports media and sports betting, Better Collective provides partners with unparalleled global reach and commercial opportunities. Through our brands and their shows, we are not only reaching millions of engaged sports fans, but creating meaningful value for our partners by offering them direct access to these highly relevant audiences. With more than one billion views and downloads from fans across North America since the start of 2024, our brands have proven over time to be in high demand and an essential platform for partner activation. I look forward to continuing to grow these partnerships and unlocking new ways to drive revenue, audience engagement, and long-term business value together.”
