49ers President Al Guido doesn’t claim to be able to future proof Levi’s Stadium, or any other venue for that matter. But he has some ideas on how to reinvent his NFL franchise in an age of rapid innovation.
During a fireside chat at SportTechie’s inaugural NEXT event at the Oakland Coliseum on Tuesday, Guido opened up about the Niner’s strategy to remain competitive both on and off the field.
The team has a number of projects in the works that are designed to better connect with fans and the local community, draw people into the stadium even when there are no major events taking place (see the stadium’s new TopGolf suites), and improve the experience for players and fans through the implementation of technology.
Staying in tune with the ST NEXT slogan, “together we craft the sport industry’s next chapter,” Guido said the franchise is on the hunt for startups and partners that will help turn the San Francisco 49ers into one of the largest sports and entertainment companies in the country—if not the world.
There’s no such thing as future proofing your venue
Let’s get the awkward part out of the way: Guido believes there’s no such thing as “future proofing” your venue. Despite the fact that new mobile-first stadiums are being built that promise unprecedented levels of connectivity via 5G, mobile-only ticketing and contactless concessions, Guido said that even the most futuristic and well-prepared venues can’t be completely set for the future.
“None of us can future proof our buildings,” he said.
There will always be unforeseen new technologies that emerge that will substantially change the way the game and its franchises operate. The 49ers, proving this very point, are currently in the process of ripping out and replacing their existing WiFi system, despite the fact that they’ve only called Levi’s Stadium home for five years.
Future proofing is a tricky buzzword because it insinuates that a venue is completely ready to take on technologies that don’t even exist yet. Guido believes constant innovation is a better goal for the Niners.
“When we built Levi’s Stadium we thought replays were going to be a massive thing. We delivered five different replay angles to every single phone within four to five seconds of every single play. One would assume that was going to be exactly what people would watch. Well now, they’re just uploading Snapchat photos and selfies. So to some degree, who knows what that future will look like.”
A platform for investment
Since future proofing isn’t possible, the best strategy is to actively invest in new technologies, founders, and companies that are envisioning new possibilities, according to Guido.
The 49ers have taken a stake in 40 different companies over the past two years through 49ers Enterprises, the team’s investment arm. Those investments have ranged from second-tier English soccer club Leeds United to the youth esports league PlayVS. The Niners tend to be attracted as a strategic investor to early-stage companies where they can partner and lend financial or operational support.
“The world is changing dramatically in sports and entertainment. I think this is the best time to work in sports, frankly, because of the changing landscape,” said Guido. “We’re just trying to stay up to pace with it.”
Earlier this year, the 49ers also partnered with several other sports and entertainment companies, including the Creative Artists Agency and Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, the owners of the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils, to form a non-traditional VC called Elevate Sports Ventures that’s focused primarily on venue innovation.
“The world is evolving,” said Guido. Elevate is about getting involved with technologies “that could change sports.”
Winning on (and off) the field
The 49ers’ big technology goals should’t diminish the franchise’s efforts on the field, said Guido. The president sees his efforts to find additional sources of revenue in technology and entertainment as complementary to the team’s ability to win on the field.
“John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan wake up and go to bed trying to be the best sports organization on the field every single day. The truth of the matter is, we’ve built a really good team, in my opinion. And those two gentlemen are trying to win on the football field. I’m trying to win off of it so I can give them the resources to then put back in the franchise to put the best team on the field,” he said.
“To me, it’s all a circular reference. I guess I would joke: If Amazon only wanted to sell books, they wouldn’t be Amazon, and that’s what they started off doing. If we all were going to be was a football team, then we should just pack up, go home, hire no staff, not try to get any better and just try to spend as much money as we possibly can to put the best possible team on the field and call it a day. I don’t think that’s what anyone gets into the world of sports to be. My answer to fans is: Our goal is to win Super Bowls every year, but we have a business to run and we’re going to try to run it the best way possible to give our football team the best chance to win.”
Guido says he also doesn’t define the team’s success only based off whether the team wins or lose on the field.
“We’re a sports and entertainment company at our core—who also play football,” he said. “We want to be the best sports and entertainment company in the country.”
In addition to investing in new startups and technologies, these efforts have stretched into community outreach. Earlier this year, the franchise launched 49ers Fit in association with 24 Hour Fitness to open branded fitness centers. The 49ers Fit program matches members with fitness programs that have been personally developed by the 49ers strength and conditioning team.
In-play, in-stadium gambling is coming
If or when California will jump on the sports gambling bandwagon is not yet clear, but Guido said the franchise is excited about the potential of gambling so long as the league ensures that the integrity of the game itself remains intact.
“There’s no doubt about it that the NFL has benefitted from those playing fantasy football or daily fantasy. It’s been here for a while in some fashion, and to some degree it grows fandom,” said Guido. “From the league level, it’s important to maintain integrity within our sport. To us, that’s paramount.”
This summer, the NFL began letting casinos advertise with franchise teams, and Guido says the team is “having discussions with multiple people on that front.”
Guido can imagine a world that’s no different from the English Premier League. In England, fans can make in-game bets from inside sports venues.
“Do I foresee that happening inside the world of all of US sports? I probably do,” he said. “The question is when and my thought it will probably be within the next five years.”