Pro League Network Launches Production Studio To Serve as Content Factory for Bettable, Niche Sports

Branson, MO, facility houses ‘watch’n’wager’ combat sports, including SlapFIGHT Championship

With an eye on sports fans and bettors looking for something a bit more off the beaten path, Pro League Network is ramping up its content-production operation with the launch of a studio in Branson, MO. Dubbed PLN Studios, the new facility will serve as home to PLN combat sports, such as SlapFIGHT Championship, CarJitsu Championship Gorilla Games, and Ultimate Tire Wrestling, as well as to weekly PLN-focused entertainment shows, such as BFC Extreme studio show, and entertainment programming.

Pro League Network (www.ProLeagueNetwork.com) focuses on creating, fun, exclusive niche sports brands developed for broadcast audiences and betting. PLN prepares and monitors each sport for wagering and produces, distributes, and monetizes each sport through wagering, sponsorship, and affiliate.

Inside PLN Studios: Content Factory and Testing Ground

The PLN Studios facility is the former home of SlapFIGHT Championship, which the company acquired in September 2023. The studio is led by JT Tilley, founder/CEO, SlapFIGHT Championship, who joined PLN as creative director following the acquisition. PLN Studios features full production capabilities, including a dedicated sound booth, AV equipment, custom lighting, photo walls, green screens, control room for production and sound and video mixing, and graphics-production room.

In addition to serving as a content-production operation, the facility will also be used by athletes from PLN’s respective combat sports to test and develop emerging sports that will eventually become part of the company’s portfolio. In developing its own studio, PLN will have a centralized location to produce many of its sports, allowing it to offer increased competitions in the coming year. Additionally, it will help the company expand its sports-entertainment offerings, creating pregame and studio shows focused on its competitions.

Just the Beginning: Second Studio, Significant Content Output Planned for 2024

The studio is part of a larger plan for next year, which includes opening another studio on the East Coast and increasing its programming production to as many as 40 hours per week by the end of the year.

“Having a dedicated studio to produce our sports has been one of our goals from day one,” say PLN co-founders Bill Yucatonis and Mike Salvaris. “The PLN Studio will allow us to accelerate our entertainment and competition programming next year and will give us a great home to develop new sports that we’ll introduce to the market in 2024.”

The first series to come out of PLN Studios is the Pro League Network Grappling Challenge, in which PLN athletes compete across three of PLN’s sports: Gorilla Games, CarJitsu, and Tire Wrestling. PLN announced that the first episode of the PLN Grappling Challenge will drop later this month.

‘Watch’n’Wager’: PLN Sports Portfolio Continues To Grow

Last December, PLN launched a new type of sports entertainment that combines its unique sports portfolio with established creator audiences and deep expertise in regulated-wagering markets. The result is “watch’n’wager” content that is fun for sports fans and allows sportsbooks to better monetize the peaks and valleys of the schedule with compliant, regulated professional-sports content. Investors in Pro League Network include Roger Ehrenberg via Eberg Capital, Kevin Garnett via Big Ticket Sports, and Emmy Award-winner John Brenkus and BrinxTV. Industry veterans Chris Grove (Acies Capital, Eilers & Krejcik) and Jeff Ma (ESPN, Microsoft) are PLN Advisors.

PLN’s portfolio of more than 18 brands and growing includes sports like viral sensations World Putting League, CarJitsu Championship, and SlapFIGHT Championship, as well as emerging sports like XTreme Long Drive, Pro Footgolf, Pro Carrom Tour, Strongman, T3 TouchTennis, and Beastball. In February 2024, the company will launch its 3×3 streetball-style basketball league str33t, co-produced with Kevin Garnett and Big Ticket Sports.

PLN sports are carried by some of the nation’s largest sportsbooks — DraftKings, Bet365, Betfred — and is available for wagering in more than 16 states — including New Jersey, Tennessee, Arizona, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Illinois — and in several countries, including Canada, UK, and Australia.

PLN streams its sports and programming live via its social channels and owned-and-operated sites. PLN sports have aired via several distribution partners, including live streaming on The Action Network and The Hammer and customized social-media content on Betr Media and Dimers. In addition, earlier this month, Pro League Network named BrinxTV as its official Free-To-Play Platform.

Stay tuned to sportsvideo.org for more coverage of PLN and its new studio.