A weekly survey of sports execs and personalities offering their thoughts on a handful of pressing (and trivial) issues in sports and pop culture. This week, a look ahead to the biggest sports business stories of '16 and some innovative brands.
- Upper Deck Dir of Product Development Grant Sandground
– Still owns the (tattered) copy of Fantastic Four Issue #1 that his parents bought him for his Bar Mitzvah.
- Molson Coors Canada Dir of Sponsorship & Strategy Hari Sihvo
– His favorite possession is a '55 Gretsch Duo Jet guitar, and he hopes to out-live Keith Richards.
- Red Bulls GM Marc de Grandpre
– His daughter keeps him up to date on all things pop culture, especially music.
- 16W Marketing Partner & co-Founder Steve Rosner
– Uses a flip phone so he can control how connected he wants to be.
| Going Off The Grid | |||||
| Most innovative brand in the sports space | Best sports uniform | Pizza topping(s) of choice | Best '90s TV show | Sports story you'll be watching over the next year | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Sandground |
MLBAM | Yankees and Raiders | Genoa salami and Kalamata olives | "Freaks and Geeks" | NHL expansion |
 Sihvo |
Red Bull | Canadiens | Sundried tomato, asiago, parmesan and goat cheese | "Seinfeld" | FIFA scandal |
 de Grandpre |
STATS | Canadiens | Mushrooms and pepperoni | "Seinfeld" | MLS expansion |
 Rosner |
Nike (still!) | Yankees | Mushrooms and onions | "The Sopranos" | "Thursday Night Football" TV rights deal |
Do you want to get your thoughts in the Grid? If so, shoot an email to
jperez@sportsbusinessdaily.com
.
