Marc Horine is the chief business officer for a relatively new company, For Soccer Ventures. It’s a portfolio of businesses geared at driving participation and fanbase growth in the US by engaging, activating, and inspiring the American soccer community at all levels of the sport. It was founded by Richie Graham, an investor in Major League Soccer’s (MLS) Philadelphia Union club. At the heart of For Soccer Ventures movement is a media company built within For Soccer Ventures, and that’s the key to why I wanted to have Marc on our show.
Prior to joining For Soccer Ventures, Marc led the well-known Copa90, a lifestyle soccer media publisher from its infancy into a stable, self-sufficient company. He also had a 10-year stint at ESPN, culminating as VP of Revenue and Operations. He was the guy at the forefront of how ESPN added new revenue streams.
I’ve known Marc for several years, and I greatly respect him, in large part because he embodies the essence of why I built Brand Story, Inc. He lives the model of the media company mindset for creating profitable businesses that build communities within a niche.
Here are the topics Marc and I covered on this episode of Brand Story, Inc.:
- For Soccer Ventures origin story and the media company mentality within it.
- The lessons learned from running an independent media publisher and how it relates to this business.
- The macro landscape of media publishing and leagues, teams and specifically individuals as media entities.
- The vision for a portfolio business and how content builds value for the company.
- Marc’s time at the forefront of ESPN’s podcast business and how For Soccer Ventures is building out its own podcast network.
- Media learning curve and trends – what he saw coming at ESPN, what he didn’t and what’s next in the world of media.
- Business development, educating brands and partners about a sport and how that can apply to content studios at large.
- Morning Musts – we get inside Marc’s email inbox and social feeds to learn how a visionary stays, well, visionary.
- Bedside bookstack – As we do with every guest, we explore a lens into his life by what he’s reading for fun.
We want to hear from you. Share this podcast, give us your feedback and hit me up with topic suggestions and guest ideas. Brand Story, Inc. is for you, so let’s make it great together. You can ping me on LinkedIn or follow me on Twitter @_JaySharman. Thanks for listening. Enjoy!