Does cutting game time boost the bottom line?
Business Daily
BBC
4.4 • 816 Ratings
🗓️ 29 April 2026
⏱️ 18 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The world of sport is being reshaped for the algorithm, with new formats emerging for quick, shareable moments online.
From influencers managing sport teams to bite‑sized versions of traditional games like 3-a-side football, more sports are fighting for the attention of younger fans. But is this paying off?
If you'd like to get in touch with the team, our email address is businessdaily@bbc.co.uk
Presented and produced by Matt Lines
Business Daily is the home of in-depth audio journalism devoted to the world of money and work. From small startup stories to big corporate takeovers, global economic shifts to trends in technology, we look at the key figures, ideas and events shaping business.
Each episode is a 17-minute, daily deep dive into a single topic, featuring expert analysis and the people at the heart of the story.
Recent episodes explore the weight-loss drug revolution, the growth in AI, the cost of living, the economic impact of the war in the Middle East, and why bond markets are so powerful.
We also feature in-depth interviews with company founders and some of the world's most prominent CEOs. These include Google's Sundar Pichai, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, and the CEO of Canva, Melanie Perkins.
(Photo: M7 FC in action against Wembley Rangers FC during Baller League UK at the Copper Box Arena, London, 24 March, 2025. Credit: Ben Whitley/PA)
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, podcasts. |
| 0:07.3 | Hello, I'm Matt Lines and welcome to Business Daily on the BBC World Service. |
| 0:12.7 | The world of sport is changing, and its aim is to get on your social media algorithm. |
| 0:18.5 | Tennis matches where pros play amateurs, football teams managed by influencers and three |
| 0:23.4 | aside games of ice hockey and basketball. |
| 0:26.1 | The game has changed, responding to social media and shrinking attention spans by innovating |
| 0:31.4 | and creating new shorter formats to keep fans engaged. |
| 0:35.0 | This is innovation and it's good for engaging the audiences. It's good for money. I think it's a bit of a winning formula. For some, it's the future. For others, it's a flash in the pan that won't ever become mainstream. But is it working? No, the new games getting the financial backing they need to stick around. You'd like to think some of these shorter formats are going to be around in 10 years, |
| 0:57.0 | but I'm not sure because it just feels sometimes like they're built to be controversial. |
| 1:01.5 | They're built for TikTok. |
| 1:02.9 | Short formats, social media and the future of sport. |
| 1:05.9 | That's Business Daily from the BBC. |
| 1:11.6 | What is baller league anyway? All right. |
| 1:12.6 | We've got a brand new football league that's changing the game. |
| 1:15.6 | The Baller League is coming to the UK. |
| 1:17.6 | The best part of hockey is going global. |
| 1:20.6 | Introducing the Three Ice World Cup. |
| 1:23.6 | The undefeated king of YouTube, KSI, will face undefeated pro-boxer Tommy Fury. |
| 1:32.9 | From football to ice hockey, cricket to basketball, sports all around the world are now |
| 1:38.7 | rolling out new, faster, more action-packed versions of their games, all designed to be shorter, |
| 1:46.0 | sharper and hard to ignore. The aim is clear, create shareable moments that dominate social media, appeal to younger viewers and attract the sponsorships that follow. |
| 1:54.0 | One of the newest of these formats is tennis's one-point slam, an event at the Australian Open, |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.