Episode 010 - Selena Kalvaria of Fanatics Betting & Gaming

This week on Best Brands on Earth, Hayley and Matt break down the Good Good Golf x Callaway ad controversy that got the internet talking (and got Good Good dropped by every sponsor they had) — then sit down with Selena Kalvaria, CMO of Fanatics Betting & Gaming, for one of our best guest conversations yet. Selena has spent two decades building brands people actually love — Anheuser-Busch, Diageo, Away, and Gucci Americas — before taking on one of the most competitive categories in sports as CMO of Fanatics Betting & Gaming. We get into: The real story behind Fanatics' "Bet on Kendall" campaign and the internet's "Kardashian curse" meme that inspired it Why Fanatics went to market this football season telling a bigger brand story instead of just running promotions The data-driven bet on casting women as lead characters in sports betting ads (51% of NFL fans are women — so why weren't they in the ads?) How Fan Cash and Fair Play are built to reward fans, win or lose Casting Luke Wilson, Livvy Dunne, and Megatron for the new ensemble campaign Where AI fits (and where it doesn't) in representing real athletes The wildest pitches she's said no to Her Crumbs of Wisdom fortune cookie question, and the brands she's watching right now (hint: one of them isn't in sports at all) 00:00 Good Good Golf x Callaway ad controversy 06:57 Introducing Selena Kalvaria, CMO of Fanatics Betting & Gaming 15:34 Inside the Fanatics ecosystem: commerce, collectibles, betting 23:01 The new football season campaign and casting the ensemble 34:04 The "Bet on Kendall" campaign origin story 36:07 Why women are leading Fanatics' sports betting ads 47:10 What keeps Selena up at night 53:31 Crumbs of Wisdom: the fortune cookie segment 55:22 The brands Selena thinks are getting it right 57:44 Why Fanatics is one of the Best Brands on Earth #BestBrandsOnEarth #Fanatics #SportsBetting #Marketing #BrandStrategy #CMO #KendallJenner #SportsMarketing #Advertising #BrandBuilding #MarketingPodcast #TheClios #SportsBusiness #NFL #FootballSeason #FanEngagement