📰 In The Arena Weekly
The go-to newsletter for sports, media & entertainment professionals. Each week, we curate the top events, insights & people to know to help you stay connected to new opportunities.
⚡ Hot Takes & Headlines
🎬 Netflix’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD)’s studios & streaming. A deal worth approximately $82.7 billion could redraw Hollywood's power structures and force legacy studios to either scale or disappear. (Los Angeles Times)
⚾ Major League Baseball’s new three-year media-rights deals, with ESPN, NBCUniversal (NBC/Peacock), and Netflix, cement streaming + linear combo as the baseline for live sports distribution going forward. (Bloomberg Law)
🏀 The Houston Rockets + Astros move to a direct-to-consumer streaming model where fans are able to watch games on regional sports networks without needing a subscription to a cable or satellite provider. (Houston Chronicle)
👀 Behind the Scenes
We’re heading into the final days before Founding Circle closes, and we’re now at 191 members of operators, leaders, and builders across sports, media & entertainment who are all raising their hand for one reason:
The way people currently try to network just… isn’t working anymore.
So if you’re still wondering why so many people are joining Arena so quickly, here’s the clearest way to show you what members keep telling us, and how Arena is designed to fix it:
THE PROBLEM TODAY | WHAT ARENA DOES INSTEAD |
|---|---|
You meet plenty of people, but rarely the right ones. LinkedIn feeds, group chats, and random DMs pull you in every direction with little payoff. | Arena sends only aligned intros - curated based on your goals and what you’re actually open to, so every convo feels meaningful. |
Cold outreach has lost all credibility. Inboxes are flooded with AI messages and copy-paste DMs - even good outreach gets ignored. | No cold outreach, ever. Every member is vetted and every intro is intentional, so trust and relevance are built in from the start. |
Most “connections” fade instantly. You follow each other, DM once (maybe), then nothing. | Matches turn into meetings. Mutual interest = a scheduled 1:1. No guessing. No chasing. No drop-offs. |
Events are hit or miss. Who you meet depends on who happens to be in the room that night. | You get consistent momentum. Weekly intros turn into new opportunities helping you feel plugged into the industry year-round. |
Good convos fizzle without structure. No system to remember context, follow up, or keep the relationship alive. | Arena helps you follow through with tools that keep your relationships growing, so the people you meet actually stay in your world. |
This is the shift early members are already experiencing. If you want to be part of the group shaping the future of networking in sports, media & entertainment, you have til this Friday, Dec 12 to apply.
🗓️ Upcoming Events
Across the Industry
Digital Marketing Trends for 2026 | Neil Patel
🗓️ Dec 16 | 📍Remote | Register here
In this webinar, we’ll discover how AI, social search, and new paid media formats are changing how people discover brands and make decisions.
Entertainment Summit at CES | Variety
🗓️ Jan 7 | 📍Las Vegas, NV | Register here
Explore how new technologies and innovations are steering the future of film, TV, digital media, music, podcasts, gaming and more.
2026 Winter Sports Business Conference | Compete Sports Network
🗓️ Jan 14-16 | 📍Las Vegas, NV | Register here
Where the sports industry’s most purpose-driven leaders converge to build, grow, and connect.
New York Fashion Week Runway Show - AW '26 | Fashion Week Global
🗓️ Feb 13 | 📍New York, NY | Register here
Attend an unforgettable evening celebrating the next era of design, culture, and industry connection.
She is Football Career Summit | Fifth Third Bank
🗓️ March 6 | 📍Tampa, FL | Register here
Designed to advance your career, attendees will be able to connect and learn with national female business leaders from various industries through mentoring sessions.
2026 Business of Sports | Houston Business Journal
🗓️ April 21 | 📍Houston, TX | Register here
Bringing together athletic directors for an in-depth conversation on how college programs shape local economies, fan engagement, and the future of the sports industry.
Sports Leadership Summit | Informa
🗓️ April 14-16 | 📍Louisville, Kentucky | Register here
Where event leaders are addressing key challenges, exploring new opportunities, and supporting strategic growth across the industry.
💼 New Jobs This Week
Across the Industry
💸 BSE Global | Director, Ticket Sales & Revenue Strategy | Brooklyn, NY | $102k–$145k
🎟️ Disney | Sr. Producer, Special Events | New York, NY | $110k–$147k
🤝 Fanatics | Manager, Athlete Partnerships | New York, NY | $125k–$160k
🎵 Kobalt Music | VP, Global Digital Partnerships | New York, NY | $140k-$180k
🎬 Amazon MGM Studios | Sr. Marketing Manager, Series | Culver City, CA | $106k–$185k
🎮 The Pokémon Company International | Sr. User Acquisition & Performance Marketing Manager – Mobile Games | Remote (US) | $127k–$191k
🎮 Better Collective | Director of Media Sales | new York, NY| $150k - $200K
📺 EverPass Media | Director of Content & Business Development | Remote | $150k–$225k
🏈 Volo Sports | VP, Customer Experience | Remote | $200k–$225k
🏀 NBA | Associate Counsel, Global Partnerships | New York, NY | $200k–$230k
That’s it for this week In The Arena of sports, media & entertainment!
-Arena’s founders | Parul Khosla, Adriene Bueno & Olivia Schwartz.
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P.S. - If you’ve been thinking about joining Founding Circle, this is the last week. After Friday, we close the doors and start building with the group we’ve got. Learn more and apply here →