From the Unofficial Partner Substack newsletter:

Link to full fat newsletter here:

From the Unofficial Partner Substack newsletter:

Link to full fat newsletter here:

Influencers are the private equity of culture: draining whatever’s “cool” until higher prices and worse experiences push out the original fan base. Then they move on to the next thing, leaving the original to die as fans lose interest or the ability to participate. https://t.co/KtKXPX6HbZ
— Mason (@brxxklynbxby__) September 4, 2026
Where we keep track of the sport's relationship with the digital platforms. Use the hashtag #TheScroll
Sport and Digital Platforms: The Infinite Scroll
Core dynamic: Digital platforms have fundamentally altered how sport content is consumed, using infinite scroll mechanisms to transform sports from appointment viewing to continuous engagement streams.
Platform imperatives:
Content atomisation:
Behavioral transformation:
Industry tensions:
Strategic implications: Sports organisations must navigate between preserving traditional viewing experiences and adapting to platform-native consumption patterns that prioritise infinite engagement over finite events.

There's a bot that creates Linkedin posts from prompts, because of course there is. (HT Richard Ayers for the link)


Paddy Power doing their thing

Carlsberg's contribution was so good that I assumed it was AI. The wait for verification felt like a bit like the VAR pause.

>Picking winners
The LTA has got in to bed with Redrice Ventures.
Redrice is best known as an early stage investor in Castore.
It's OPM seems to come largely from the British Business Bank.

>Too big to care
Lina Khan's phrase, mentioned by Doctorow on Jon Stewart.
@weeklyshowpodcast Is there hope for breaking up giant monopolies? Cory Doctorow, author of “The Reverse Centaur's Guide to Life After AI,” thinks we’re well positioned to take on these companies. New podcast out now!
♬ original sound - The Weekly Show Podcast
>'Very large shoes to fill'
Lovely piece by John Simpson, the outgoing home affairs editor of The Observer. It's about his relationship with journalism and is a raw and impactful bit of writing. Contains a nice WCW reference:
“It is difficult
to get the news from poems
Yet men die miserably every day
for lack
of what is found there.”
William Carlos Williams
from “Asphodel, That Greeny Flower”
Also, great gag in Private Eye:
