What happens if AI floods content in sports, media & entertainment

Your insider's guide to the business of sports, media & entertainment.

Welcome to Student of the Game, where we break down the strategic moves, emerging trends, and opportunities that matter most to professionals in sports, media, and entertainment. This edition focuses on what happens if AI floods content in sports, media & entertainment.

Quick reminder: I’m Adriene Bueno, author of Student of the Game, co-founder of Arena, and 13+ year sports, media & entertainment industry pro who previously worked at companies including the NBA, LinkedIn, EA, LA Clippers, Adidas, and IMAX.

You’re receiving this email because you either subscribed when I shared a list of WNBA All-Star weekend events in Indy and/or you’re just really excited to tap into the business of sports, media & entertainment.

So I've been tracking AI's impact on the sports, media & entertainment industry for months, but last week, everything clicked for me...

And before you think I'm fully anti-AI, I'm actually not. I use AI as a thought partner (not a copy-paste replacement) or boring repetitive tasks, and with Arena to help match 6000+ industry pros to opportunities.

Well, a few months back I came across this creator’s video on the the future of AI in social media and I just couldn’t get it out of my head.

Everywhere I went and everything I watched kept having me come back to it, but I just kept thinking to myself, “How does this translate to content in sports, media & entertainment?”

Now I’ve got it down to a science - here's what's actually happening as AI floods our industry’s content ecosystem.

The first 3 outcomes are driven by PHYSICAL actions.

The 2 extremes we're already seeing…

🤖 AI slop everywhere.

My inbox is drowning in AI spam (I hate it here 🙄) and every platform is basically flooded with some sort of slop every few scrolls. Since Google Veo 3 release in May, my feed just hasn’t been the same.

🚫 People rise up.

People try to ban AI entirely which I understand and respect, including Spotify protests, But it looks like not going to slow down based on the laws. I truly wish there was more transparency with the use of AI videos in particular.

That said, the space between the two is where sports & entertainment finds its NEW identity.

PATH 1: Premium IRL 🎟️

• Live sports attendance hitting records

• Concert tickets selling in seconds

• Award shows becoming destinations

PATH 2: Virtual "proof of humanity" 📱

• Reality TV exploding (Love Island 🏝️)

• Live streaming becoming THE format (with Kai Cenat leading the way)

• Behind-the-scenes content dominating

The other 3 outcomes are driven by EMOTION.

Fear. Skepticism. And smack in the middle is a search for TRUST which brings us to...

NOSTALGIA. 🎬

• Pre-AI music catalogs

• Legacy movie/tv franchises (Personally, I’m happy to see remakes of Avatar: The Last Airbender and Harry Potter, but maybe that’s just the result of the above talking).

• OG influencers from before Google Veo 3

I think the logic is that if you knew about it pre-AI = human-made (for the most part) & therefore more trustworthy.

Because when people SUSPECT it's AI engagement drops 50%.

AI is training audiences to be paranoid - and idk about you, but I already am. Especially of every single ad I see and it's exhausting. 😓

That's why studios recycle IP like their life depends on it. Legacy = Trust = Survival.

So how do you win as a post-AI creative?

Connect pre-AI nostalgia + live experiences = your recipe for success.

Real examples NOW:

🏀 StudBudz WNBA ASW: Players + livestream = VIRAL

🕷️ Spider-Man BTS: Swinging on wires, fans watching the making of the film, because if audiences think it's all CGI/AI, why even buy a ticket?

What this means:

1. Creators: get on camera, go live, and definitely show the messy middle of your journey. Here’s how authors are posting TikToks to protest AI use in writing and to prove they aren’t doing it.

2. Businesses: ask yourselves - how does whatever it is you do, prove you're human, what nostalgic elements work, and what moments can you activate live? Need inspo? This 19 year old made a feature film for $10K and got picked up STARZ all while documenting the whole journey and uploading it to YouTube.

tl'dr:

My prediction is that the winners in the end won't have the biggest AI budgets. They'll understand that in an ocean of AI slop, REAL HUMAN CONNECTION becomes priceless.

I've been tracking these patterns for months and the signals are everywhere.

What are your thoughts on AI's impact on sports & entertainment?

That’s it for now! I’m still shaping up what this newsletter will look like and include. What would you like to see in future editions? Hit reply and let me know!

Have an awesome week,

Student of the Game is your source for strategic insights into the business of sports, media & entertainment. Subscribe for more industry intelligence delivered to your inbox.