Retired Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps, 33, will return to the stage as a closing keynote speaker of “Nielsen Presents: What’s Next in Global Sports.” Nielsen Sports and ONE Championship announced on April 24, 2019 that the second annual thought leadership event will take place in Singapore on May 16-17, 2019.

The conference will bring together the world’s leading brands, sports rights holders, agencies and broadcasters to discuss the top trends driving the global sports market and explore how companies are leveraging data-driven decision making to monetize fan engagement. Executives from Google, PGL Sports, Holcim Philippines and Great Sports, among others, will hit the stage to identify new strategies for global expansion of sports properties, sustainable revenue opportunities in sports and share how they are using data to make smarter decisions around media rights and sponsorships.

At the event, subject matter experts from across the global sports ecosystem will take part in panel discussions including:

• Dollars and Sense: Turning the Passion for Sports into Concrete Revenue-generating Opportunities
• Thinking Global, Acting Local: Navigating the Local In’s and Out’s to Achieve Global Success and Relevance
• Putting the ‘E’ in Sports: How Traditional Sports Entering the Esports Arena may be the Ultimate Opportunity for Brands
• Making Big Bets: Why Sports in Asia is the New Hotbed for Investors

“A perfect example of the globalization of sports is what we’re now seeing with Asian brands and rights holders who are increasing investments to gain recognition on the world sporting stage,” Nielsen Sports Asia Pacific, Africa and Middle East managing director Kelvin Watt stated. “This collaboration with ONE Championship is important to continue to spotlight the rise of Asia and help regional brands unlock and monetize global opportunities.”

“Nielsen Presents: What’s Next in Global Sports” will kick off with a welcome gala dinner at the iconic Gardens by the Bay in Singapore on May 16, 2019. It will be followed by the “Sports Business Conference” at the world-renowned Marina Bay Sands on May 17, 2019.

The two-day extravaganza will culminate with the ONE Championship event “ONE: Enter the Dragon” at the Singapore Indoor Stadium. It will be headlined by reigning ONE Lightweight World Champion Shinya “Tobikan Judan” Aoki, 35, of Japan and his challenger Christian “The Warrior” Lee, 20, of Singapore.

“The greatest minds in sports and business will converge at the What’s Next in Global Sports conference in Singapore, and it is my honor to have ONE Championship work closely with Nielsen in making this annual gathering a possibility,” ONE Championship chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong said. “Together we will revolutionize the way business and sports seamlessly integrate and how one can leverage the other to move forward in a fast-paced and evolving landscape.”

Athletes, industry leaders, media executives and sponsors must register for the invite-only event by May 3, 2019. If interested in attending, email your inquiry to Debbie Soon at d.soon@onefc.com.

Additional details about What’s Next in Global Sports 2019 may be found at http://nielsen.com/whats-next-in-global-sports.