📰 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
📺 NBCU sells out 2026 Winter Olympics ad slots on record advertiser demand.
⚽️ FIFA and TikTok reach first-of-its-kind Preferred Platform agreement to enhance coverage of FIFA World Cup 2026™.
💼 Interested in becoming an NFL agent? Applications are now open for the NFL Players Association Agent Certification.
🗓️ Partnerships in 2026 Virtual Event
Partnerships in 2026: New Dealflow, Categories & Playbooks in Sports, Media & Entertainment | Hosted by Arena
🗓️ Jan 14 | ⏰ 3pm ET | 📍Virtual
From emerging dealflow to new partnership categories and proven playbooks, we’ll explore how brands, rights holders, and media companies are approaching partnerships in 2026.
Join Arena’s leadership and industry experts to break down what’s changing, what’s working, and where the biggest opportunities are heading across sports, media, and entertainment.
🟣 Already 230+ RSVPs and counting. Register now - limited spots.
🗓️ Upcoming Events
The Science Behind Creativity | Hosted by The Social Social Club
🗓️ January 14 | 📍 | Register here
A reframing of social media creativity through exploration of strategy, structure, and disciplined processes that turn ideas into real impact.
Adobe Creative Cafe | Hosted by Adobe
🗓️ January 28 | 📍Austin, TX | Register here
An evening at the Adobe Creative Cafe featuring a design sprint, fireside chat, and hands-on demos of Adobe’s latest tools.
Breakfast Ball | Hosted by Front Office Sports presented by Polestar
🗓️ February 6 | 📍San Francisco, CA | Register here
An exclusive one-day golf outing bringing together top athletes, executives, and creators in San Francisco.
FestForums 2026 | Hosted by Fest Forums
🗓️ Feb 11-13 | 📍Santa Barbara, CA | Register here
B2B conference for festival producers and live‑event professionals across film, music, and entertainment.
SBJ National Sports Forum | Hosted by Sports Business Journal
🗓️ Feb 22 | 📍St. Louis, MO | Register here
A three-day gathering of 1,000+ sports business leaders for education, insider venue access, and high-impact networking.
2026 Mather Symposium | Hosted by Mather
🗓️ February 25-27 | 📍Dallas, TX | Register here
A symposium bringing together media and publishing leaders to drive audience growth, innovation, and sustainable revenue.
Future of Women’s Sports | Hosted by Front Office Sports
🗓️ February 26 | 📍Nashville, TN | Register here
A summit uniting leaders across sports and entertainment to explore the business, innovation, and future of women’s sports.
SportsPro Summit USA | Hosted by SportsPro
🗓️ Mar 12-13 | 📍New York, NY | Register here
Where the business of sport meets the future of technology, investment, and media.
Pollstar Live! 2026 | Hosted by Pollstar Magazine
🗓️ Apr 14-16 | 📍Los Angeles, CA | Register here
Leading live‑entertainment business conference bringing together promoters, talent buyers, venues, agents, and managers.
NIVA ’26 | Hosted by National Independence Venue Association
🗓️ June 7-10 | 📍Minneapolis, MN | Register here
Leading conference for independent music and comedy venues, festivals, and promoters.
💼 New Jobs This Week
🎥 New Regency Productions | Entertainment Distribution & Sales Analyst | Los Angeles, CA | $65K/yr - $80K/yr
💿 Sony Music Entertainment | A&R Manager - Ultra | Los Angeles, CA | $90K/yr - $100K/yr
📰 New York Post | Deputy Sports Editor, The California Post | Los Angeles, CA | $100K/yr - $130K/yr
📺 Fox Television Stations | FLX Account Executive | Southfield, MI | $125K/yr - $150K/yr
🎶 Pandora | Associate Director, Ad Product Marketing (Ad Tech) | New York, NY | $135K/yr - $170K/yr
🗞️ Hearst Magazines | Product Manager, AI-Powered Content & Operational Tools | New York, NY | $149K/yr - $181K/yr
🖥️ Haymarket Media US | Vice President, Digital Publisher | New York, NY | $175K/yr - $200K/yr
🏈 National Football League (NFL) | Lead Software Engineer, Mobile Development | Inglewood, CA | $175K/yr - $200K/yr + Bonus
⭐️ Starz | VP, Business Affairs (Original Programming) | Santa Monica, CA | $220K/yr - $260K/yr
🎮 Warner Bros. Games | Director, Market Intelligence & Insights | Burbank, CA | $146.3K/yr - $271.7K/yr
👀 Behind the Scenes
Partnerships Cohort Update: Applications for Arena’s Partnerships Cohort close this Friday, Jan 16th at 11:59pm ET.
If you're an in-house manager to C-Suite leader - at an established brand, league, team, studio, publisher, platform, or venue in in sports, media & entertainment - you don't want to miss this opportunity.
Members already onboard are people who've spent decades building relationships the hard way. Sending thousands of cold emails. Attending dozens of exhausting, mass networking events every year. Joining countless group chats.
Arena changes that. Every week, you get curated intros to leaders who align with your goals whether that's new business, your next role, or relationships that open doors down the line. When you match, you meet.
If you're already an Arena member, check your inbox for details from us at [email protected] and register for Orientation on Jan 26th!
That’s it for this week In The Arena of sports, media & entertainment.
-Arena’s founders | Parul Khosla, Adriene Bueno & Olivia Schwartz.
Follow us on LinkedIn for more.
Want to partner, sponsor, or advertise? Get in touch with us.