In recent years, the way we consume media has drastically changed. With broadcasted television becoming expendable, the desire for instant and on-demand entertainment reflects the evolution of technology. Streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime are accessible from any handheld device and come with any smart TV. There’s no surprise that online streaming platforms are innovating new ways to instantly entertain their audience with new and unseen content. Yet, one industry seems to be breaking its way into this new era of entertainment, sport.
Sport in the new era of entertainment
We all love sport, most of us can’t get enough. The sporting industry, along with streaming organisations, have realised this. Sometimes watching sport isn’t enough, we want to know the ins and outs of a club or player, the daily lives of superstars and how the sport works behind-the-scenes.
Netflix might have the solution with their new sport series ‘Break Point’, made by the team behind ‘F1: Drive to Survive’. Break Point has behind-the-scenes of the biggest names in tennis, following them to prestigious tournaments including:
The Netflix sport show follows a similar format to Amazons ‘All or Nothing’ which follows football teams across a season. The series aims to make non-tennis fans, tennis fans. Through the series’ dramatic highs and lows of tennis and what it means to be a player. We get to see behind-the-scenes of elite players, and most noticeably (love him or hate him) Nick Kyrgios.
How online streaming platforms are utilising sport
Streaming platforms producing sporting content is no accident. As mentioned, Netflix already has F1: Drive to Survive, Full swing golf documentary and have recently announced a Six Nations documentary. Netflix is releasing a wide series of sports. Previously mentioned in our blog Gen-z viewership, the way we consume sport is changing, we are watching less live sport. To counteract this, online streaming platforms have tapped into the sporting industry, moulding it for the younger generations and tailoring the content to suit their expectations.
As a tennis fan myself, Break Point is a great way to explore and get exclusive content on the biggest tournaments and some of my favourite players. However, the smart thing about a behind the scenes documentary on topflight sports is, sports fans will have incentive to get a Netflix subscription (or use someone else’s) and non-tennis fans who have Netflix might be inclined to watch an episode. This is arguably online streaming platforms niche. The content is so on demand, Netflix could convert non-sportfans into lifelong fans without long-winded tennis games. Instead Netflix are showing, quick, exciting, and personal episodes highlighting the best parts.
Break Point’s Success
Although Netflix’s sport show didn’t see as much success as its predecessor ‘F1: Drive to survive’ in spending two weeks in the top 10 of Netflix shows, Netflix see the potential in the series as the decision has been made to renew ‘Break point’ for season two. The show had mixed reviews but did gain traction in Australia and Ireland. The nine tennis players featured in the series also saw an increase in social media followers.
Despite the low reviews, this is a perfect example of how the fan-to-athlete relationship has changed. We are closer to athletes now more than ever, increasing the demand for exclusive, behind-the-scenes content.
If this Netflix sport show has taught us anything it’s the demand for sports content outside of the traditional match day is there. This is not limited to topflight sports and multi-million-pound online streaming platforms. Smaller teams and organisations can use their existing audience and platforms to generate a new revenue stream.
