On December 10 2019, N3XT Sports became the Innovation Partner of the Euroleague Basketball FAN XP Innovation Challenge, joining existing partners, 4YFN and La Salle University. N3XT Sports will offer a wide range of advisory services to ensure the success of this innovation initiative.
N3XT Sports CEO, Mounir Zok: “Partnering with a partner like Euroleague Basketball at this time achieves many synergies. First of all, they are an established organization that has a very strong product and fan base. Secondly, they have grown massively over the past years. To launch such an initiative means they recognize that it pays to be a step ahead and leverage the innovation ecosystem. For us, innovation is one of the solutions for bringing such ecosystems together to generate new value, and so we will bring our full team’s expertise and global network to support this initiative. We are excited to see what many startups can offer, and honestly, to push them hard, to see what the most exciting fan experience-related solutions could look like in the coming years”
The FAN XP Innovation Challenge is a game-changing opportunity for startups with an ambition of revolutionizing the sports sector tackling one of the most transversal challenges of the industry: Offer the best Fan Experience possible.
We would like to invite all startups with a project on broadcast-related Fan Engagement, in-arena Fan Engagement and/or smart arenas solutions, fan Engagement through Digital Platforms to apply to this exclusive opportunity.
https://fanxp.euroleague.net/
Applications for the competition will be open until January 10th and the 10 finalists will be announced on January 20th.
The 10 finalists will get the chance to showcase their solutions to leaders in the sports & media industries, gain insights from the top basketball competition in Europe while receiving private mentoring sessions with Euroleague Basketball executives, and pitching sessions with N3XT Sports professionals. To top it all off, the 10 finalists will get a global platform and the world’s attention by exhibiting at 4YFN, the startup exhibition of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona from February 24th-26th.
Startup Challenges, one of the innovation mechanisms identified in our first-ever Football Innovation report, are commonly used by organizations who have identified a strategic area that they need to accelerate their understanding and discovery of innovative solutions. Through such an innovation mechanism, an organization would launch a call for startups operating in specific market verticals to send information on their technology, company structure, and financials. At this point, the organization assembles a judging panel composed of industry experts who weigh in on the merits of each startup and relevance to the challenge. Oftentimes, this is followed by an in-person presentation at the organization’s facilities and winners are chosen based on a predetermined set of criteria. The prize can vary in type and size, such as cash prizes, mentorship and an opportunity to work together with the organization to solve one of its needs.
Get in touch with us to learn more about how your organization can embark on such innovation journeys as well!