The Great Experientializing: Sports Are About to Get a Whole Lot Weirder
The future of sports are is going to be weirder, wilder, and WAY MORE experiential. Let's break down where it's going next.
The next decade in sports won’t be defined by what’s played… but by how it’s experienced.
We’re shifting from “watching a game” to “living a story.”
And the formula emerging is:
Competition + Spectacle + Community = Modern Sports Experience
Let’s Dive In 👇
The Original Rule-Breakers
Long before TikTok highlights, halftime concerts, and AR fan zones…there were the Harlem Globetrotters.
Founded in 1926, they took basketball and turned it into a traveling entertainment act.
It is a perfect blend of athletic skills with comedy, choreography, and crowd interaction.
For decades, they sold out arenas not because fans needed to know the score…but because they knew they’d see something they couldn’t see anywhere else.
It was a reminder that sports aren’t only about competition (they’re a canvas for creativity).
The History of Experiential Sports
Before “experiential” was a buzzword, sports innovators were already fusing competition with spectacle:
1926 – Harlem Globetrotters: Basketball as traveling theater, mixing elite skill with choreography and crowd participation.
1950s – Roller Derby: Speed, crashes, and drama turned skating into a TV-friendly soap opera on wheels.
1980s – WWE (then WWF): Wrestling morphed into scripted, character-driven sports entertainment (created global superstars like Hulk Hogan).