Every Sport Loves Vegas: SlamBall Founder Says Relaunched Sport Is Planting Roots In Las Vegas
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Q and A by Alan Snel Photos by RJ Forbus
Everyone loves Las Vegas.
Well, specifically, every sport loves Las Vegas.
Add SlamBall to the latest sport to call Las Vegas home.
The reboot of the sport is a blend of several sports and physical activities in one, playing out at Cox Pavilion at the UNLV campus.
LVSportsBiz.com caught up with Mason Gordon, SlamBall creator and CEO, to discuss the business side of the sport that moves into the quarterfinals Tuesday and the semifinals Thursday.
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LVSportsBiz.com: Why did you pick Las Vegas to host the events and why now?
Mason Gordon: The why now for SlamBall after all this time is simple. We had built and paused a property really before its time. Driven by short form highlights and freakishly talented athletes combining the best of football and basketball. We decided now was the right time because of where we are in the media business . . . streaming, social media, short form content and the continued rise of football and basketball not just as sports but as pop culture hubs. There was also a recent groundswell by fans of the original SlamBall to bring it back, and we were able to make it work. As far as Las Vegas, this summer the city has become the hub of basketball as we have seen, and we felt this type of event, with a residency at Cox Pavillion, made great sense, and we were not wrong. After all our goal is to be the UFC of team sports and what better place to relaunch than the home of the UFC.
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LVSB: Las Vegas is a smaller market and it’s already very saturated with many sports options. How have you marketed your sports events to differentiate your product from Aviators, Aces etc?
MG: This is a property that appeals to everyone. Athleticism, action, deep talent and most importantly, fun. We have also scaled the venue to be very intimate. We don’t see ourselves competing, we see ourselves as adding to the action, especially for the growing number of families and sports fans who call the area home.
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LVSB: How much money did you invest to re-launch the product and what are your biggest revenue sources?
MG: Our initial investor list has been well documented from this past spring and includes many of the biggest and smartest names in sports, media and entertainment. Revenue as we grow, we are just in year one, will come from our content licensing, traditional licensing, partnerships, special events, broadcast and other areas. We are just in the first year back and view this as a great learning experience, and will continue to tweak and refine the product with the input from all involved, including our partners at ESPN.
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LVSB: What is the average paid attendance per game so far and what percentage are locals and what percentage are Las Vegas visitors?
MG: We have seen a majority of families come from the area. Paid attendance is not something we disclose but our goal was to make it affordable and fun, and with a $15 ticket we achieved the goal with mostly full houses, scaled at about 2,000 people per night. Ironically as we have gone along we have seen people from far away as France and China come in, many of whom have seen the broadcasts and the highlights and were looking for something different to do while they enjoyed Las Vegas.
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LVSB: What’s the average salary of a SlamBall player and what jobs do they do when not playing SlamBall?
MG: We have guys from such varied backgrounds . . . teachers and writers, salespeople and engineers, and several are professional athletes. That’s been the beauty of this is to see how our sport is elevating the storytelling and the opportunities for these athletes and coaches. On the money side we don’t disclose, but it is incentive-based and a sliding scale that has kept everyone in town throughout the residency.
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LVSB: Will you be returning to Las Vegas to stage more games and are there any new revenue sources that can be developed after this season is done?
MG: Las Vegas is where we have set up shop. I have moved my family here and it is where we will call home. That being said this is a great first season back and we have tried many things as a startup that have been successful, and as a result we will look at all the options that have come in and assess going forward, but we know that las Vegas is a great fit for us as a home base, with lots of upside for future events here.
