What Happens When Everything is Fake. Except Sports.
Josh Bogdan Founder, CCO at Good Sports Creative
Our feeds are drowning in AI slop. We're second-guessing what's real in every video, every article, every post. And while that's an exhausting problem for most industries, it's a massive opportunity for sports.
Because you can't fake a comeback. A final score. The raw emotion of being that close to your heroes. Sports is the last unfakeable thing.
If you're a CMO at a team, a league exec, or a brand spending millions on sports sponsorships, that's your advantage. But that advantage only holds if you protect it. If you lean into what makes sports real instead of chasing what makes it viral.
I wanted to talk to someone who understands what makes sports different. Not theoretically, but operationally. Someone who's had to sell it, market it, and protect it across multiple leagues and markets.
Chris McGowan has done that across five major sports. Former president of the Portland Trail Blazers. Former president of Ilitch Sports & Entertainment (Detroit Tigers and Red Wings). Before that, 16 years at AEG with the LA Kings and Galaxy.
I asked him: In a world where everything feels manufactured, what makes sports different?McGowan didn't hesitate.
"Sports are the last bastion of appointment viewing. No other content category delivers guaranteed audiences, cultural relevance, and emotional engagement all at once—it's connection at scale."
The numbers back this up. Sports accounted for 96 of the 100 most-watched telecasts in 2025 (football alone accounted for 92).
But why does it deliver that strong of a connection when nothing else can?
McGowan told me about being on the ice minutes after the La Kings won their first Stanley Cup in 2012. He wasn't a player, but he was there, walking around, taking it in.
"I was struck by seeing fans I had known for years in tears. Those tears of joy hit me hard, and I realized how much emotional energy fans sacrifice for their team."
It might just be a game, but it doesn't feel that way to the players, fans, and cultures immersed in it. That emotion isn't something you can manufacture in a spreadsheet. It's something you have to nurture and protect.
McGowan put it this way: "Live sports remain one of the few truly unscripted experiences left. That unpredictability—the emotional highs and lows, the human moments—creates authenticity you can't manufacture."
The Trap Every Team Falls Into
I asked McGowan what he'd tell a CMO at a sports team right now. What should they not do?
"Don't chase trends at the expense of authenticity. Too often teams get caught up trying to mimic what's popular on TikTok or copy another club's viral moment. Fans can smell when something's forced. Start with your own culture, your players, and your fan base. Authenticity beats trendy every time."
Everyone wants the viral moment.
But if it's not grounded in something true, like your team, your town, or your fans, it's tone deaf. Worse, you look like you don't understand your own house.
McGowan's blunt about what happens when marketing tries to manufacture emotion:
"I've seen campaigns where teams tried to script rivalries. Fans are incredibly savvy. If it's not grounded in truth, they'll disregard it—and you lose credibility that is hard to get back."
The Realness Is Your Unfair Advantage
Every other industry is scrambling to figure out what's authentic and what's AI-generated noise. You already have what they're all chasing: stakes that matter, drama that's earned, emotion that can't be scripted.
The opportunity here isn't just about riding a trend. It's about recognizing that in a world where everything can be faked, what you have is genuinely irreplaceable. Protect it. Build on it. Let authenticity do the work.
