The 2025 SVG Summit Draws Record Crowd for 20th-Annual Sports-Production Industry Homecoming in NYC

The event begins a year of celebrating the group’s 20th anniversary

Sports Video Group officially kicked off a year-long celebration of its 20th anniversary at the annual SVG Summit, which attracted a record crowd of more than 1,800 sports-production professionals to the New York Hilton Midtown Hotel. The two-day event (Dec. 15-16) was filled with informational panels, workshops, and cutting-edge–technology showcases and offered a chance to catch up with friends old and new.

Twenty years ago, the Summit had a different name (League Technology Summit), but the mission was the same: to bring the industry together once a year to assess the state of sports production and collectively look at and discuss game-changing technologies. Today, the SVG Summit continues to serve as an annual homecoming for one of the tightest-knit industries on the planet.

Day 1: Workshops Cover AI, Audio, Cloud, Content Workflows, Digital Engagement/Monetization, Live Production, Women’s Sports, and More

The first day of the SVG Summit once again comprised a full day of workshops — eight in all — offering a detailed look at the industry’s latest production technology and workflows.

The day kicked off with the SVGW Meet-Up, a breakfast featuring networking and inspiration for women in the sports-production community. Panel discussions (organized by the SVGW networking group) featured leading women in the industry and addressed how to enhance the role of women in the creation, production, and distribution of sports content.

Next up, the SVG Women’s Sports Workshop discussed the growing world of women’s sports and what it means for the coming years. Speakers from ESPN, NBC Sports, HBCU Go, and the USTA touched on a range of topics from behind-the-scenes to on-the-field and how we can join in to grow the impact even larger.

Innovation begins with a vision, becomes reality via execution, and transforms the industry via acceptance. The always popular Live Production Innovation Workshop focused on key developments in MXL (Media Exchange Layer), ST 2110, control-room technology, cameras and lenses, and AR and XR graphics. The full day of discovery and debate around the future of production innovation featured CBC/Radio-Canada, CBS Sports, FOX Sports, NBC Sports, Savannah Bananas, Diversified, Game Creek Video, Mobile TV Group, NEP Group, Canon, d&b solutions, EVS, Grass Valley, Imagine Communications, Key Code Media, Lawo, Manifold, Movicom, Riedel Communications, Ross Video, TAG Video System, TVU Networks, and Zixi.

Day 1 Live Production Innovation Workshop featured a panel with Steve Dupaix, Key Code Media, Sr. Director of Broadcast Innovation; Erling Hedkvist, Manifold, Sales & Business Development Manager; Jason Taubman, Game Creek Video, SVP, Technology; and Peter Wehner, Mobile TV Group, EVP, Tech Ops and Engineering.

New this year, the AI Production Tools Workshop spotlighted how artificial intelligence is revolutionizing the way sports content is produced, edited, and distributed. Experts from ESPN, FOX Sports, NBC Sports NEXT, PGA TOUR, PlayOn, USGA, West Chester University, AWS, Camb.AI, Comcast Technology Solutions, Intel, PTZ Optics, Ross Video, Spiideo, Twelve Labs, and Verbit explored how AI-powered tools are transforming the production pipeline — from virtual-camera operations and real-time graphics to automated highlights, content tagging, and localization.

As cloud-based workflows and AI-powered tools become ubiquitous, the sports-media supply chain is undergoing a drastic transformation. The Content Workflows Workshop explored the latest innovations and advances in media management and orchestration, archiving and storage solutions, and editing and postproduction. Leaders from NBC Sports, MLB Network, MSG Networks, PGA TOUR, Riot Games, University of Notre Dame, Warner Bros. Discover, Baltimore Ravens, Backblaze, Backlight, Bridge Digital, CineSys, IMT, Magnifi, Scoreplay, Telestream, and Veritone took the stage to discuss optimizing efficiency, improving user experiences, and adapting to the demands of a digital-first, multiplatform media landscape.

Cloud-based tools and infrastructure are increasingly essential to meeting the demands of speed, scale, and collaboration in today’s evolving sports-production industry. This year’s Cloud Production Workshop addressed how these technologies are reshaping the way sports content is created, managed, and delivered — from live applications and remote editing to asset management and distribution. Innovators from MLB, NHL, Riot Games, WDB, A+E Global Media, Appear, ASG, Audinate, AWS, BitFire, Grass Valley, MASV, Matrox Video, Tata Media Comms, and Wasabi shared case studies, technical strategies, and lessons learned from deploying cloud-based workflows across a range of sports productions, from major broadcasts to niche events.

As the lines between traditional broadcast and digital platforms continue to blur, engagement has become the ultimate KPI for sports video. The Digital Engagement and Monetization Workshop looked at the next wave of digital-content strategies, technologies, and workflows redefining how sports are distributed and experienced. Speakers from DAZN, FanDuel Sports Network, FOX Sports, MSG Networks, NBA, YouTube, NASA+, ATEME, Dolby, Eluvio, and RED5 addressed personalized viewing, data-driven storytelling, interactive streams, gamification, vertical video, alternate feeds, and more.

The SVG Audio Production & Distribution Workshop focused on Immersive Everywhere, virtualized audio-production workflows, and next-generation audio for streaming. Speakers comprised top A1s from around the industry, as well as representatives from ESPN, NBCUniversal, NBC Sports, Audio-Technica, IMMERSV, Salsa Sound, Shure, and Voyage Audio.

SVG Women’s Sports Workshop’s opening panel featured Sybil Wilkes, YoSy Media, Co-Founder; Jacqueline Coleman, HBCUGOtv, Supervising Producer; Gina Holland, HBCU Go Head of Remote Broadcast Operations and CEO of Ruby Red; Matisse Lee, Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA), Associate Commissioner for External Partnerships & Special Projects/SWA

Day 2 Keynotes and Case Studies: 2026 FIFA World Cup and Milano-Cortina Winter Games Take CenterStage

Day 2 of The SVG Summit kicked off with an Overview of FIFA’s broadcast operations for the 2026 Men’s World Cup, which will take over the U.S. next summer. Oscar Sanchez, FIFA’s Head of Host Broadcast Operations took the stage us to discuss how FIFA, HBS, and rights holders around the globe will cover what will be a massive event for everyone involved.

Oscar Sanchez, FIFA’s Head of Host Broadcast Operations took the stage for an opening keynote conversation with SVG’s Ken Kerschbaumer

Later that day, an official SVG Summit tradition continued as Devoncroft Partners Principal Analyst Josh Stinehour provided his annual “State of the Industry” presentation. Stinehour once again provided a deep dive into the financial health of the broadcast technology industry, as well as revenue trends for the world’s biggest media companies.

Bookending the day was a closing keynote conversation with NBC Sports and NBC Olympics production leaders taking the stage for Inside NBC Sports: Prepping for a Legendary February 2026. Next February NBC Sports will be at the center of the U.S. sports world when it broadcasts the Winter Olympics, Super Bowl LX, and the NBA All-Star Game all within a 10-day period. Craig Bernstein, VP, Remote Technical Operations; Ken Goss, EVP, Studio, Remote Operations & Production Planning; Amy Rosenfeld, SVP, Olympics & Paralympics Production; and Molly Solomon, Executive Producer & President, NBC Olympics Production discussed the planning and productions of those events, making the jump to 1080p HDR as a house format in Stamford, and much more.

In between all that, a pair of case studies went Inside the PGA TOUR’s Use of Hawk-Eye Replay Tech and Full Throttle to IP: Indy Motor Sports Productions’ Fast-Track Transformation for IndyCar Coverage.

Day 2 Panels: National Networks/Streamers, Leagues, Remote-Production Providers, and Media Biz Experts Take the Stage

Day 2 was also chock full of panels featuring industry leaders discussing hot button topics. In the morning, Follow the Money: How Sports TV Tech Can Benefit from Sports Investors looked at how broadcast technology creators can attract the type of massive investments that are fueling athlete performance technology, next-gen digital apps, sports leagues and franchises, and more. Sam McCleery, Host of the SVG Follow the Money Podcast, joined panelists Lori Bistis, PWC, Deals Partner; John Kosner, Kosner Media, President; and Serge Van Herck, EVS, CEO to discuss how the traditional tech industry can get closer to investors who believe that sports is an important catalyst for growth and technology.

Inside the Evolution of League/Rights Holder Relationships panel featuring Grant Nodine, NHL, SVP, Technology; Barney Carleton, NBA, Associate Vice President, Broadcast Planning and Strategy; Patti Fallick, USTA, Managing Director, Broadcast; Blake Jones, NFL, Senior Director of Broadcasting; and Ryan Zander, MLB, SVP, Broadcasting

2026 is an even year and historically that means one thing: a very busy time for the world of sports. And next year, arguably, will be the biggest year ever as there is not only a Winter Olympics but the largest FIFA World Cup ever. Toss in new rights deals, new technology, and new demands and it all adds up to new challenges and opportunities. During the National Perspectives: What to Expect in Production in 2026, production and operations leaders from ESPN, Fox Sports, Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery,

Producing a live sports event begins with great on-site facilities, technology, and production crews. That afternoon, the What’s Happening in Remote Production? panel spent some time with key executives from Dome Productions, Game Creek Video, Mobile TV Group, NEP Group, and Program Productions who face the challenge every day of an industry which is in a state of constant change as it evolves to meet the needs of broadcasters across the country.

The Inside the Evolution of League/Rights Holder Relationships panel looked at the transformative moves in the past 12 months that are indicative of a tighter relationship on the production side between sports leagues and their rights holders. More than ever both sides see the need for high-quality productions that go deeper on the field of play and even go deeper off the field of play. Leaders from MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL, and USTA discussed the changing ecosystem, its impact on relationships with rights holders, and what it means to fans around the globe.

Away from the mainstage general sessions, The SVG Summit expanded its Tuesday Tech Talks program this year with in-depth interactive workshops for attendees exploring key technology issues, including spectrum loss, MXL, and 5G for live production.

TVNewsCheck’s 12th-annual NewsTech Forum also took place on Tuesday, focusing on emerging AI applications for news, reaggregating fragmented audiences, and cutting-edge work in news storytelling, production, and digital.

Plenty of Tech: 70+ Exhibits Roll Out Sports-Production Offerings

The 2025 SVG Summit was made possible by Title Sponsor AWS; Diamond Sponsors BackBlaze, BitFire, NEP, RED5, Spiideo, and Tata Comms Media; Gold Sponsors Dante, LiveU, TVU Networks, Verizon Business, Vizrt; and the full roster of sponsor companies. No SVG Summit would be complete without a Technology Showcase spotlighting the latest in sports-production technology.

The SVG Summit featured an exhibit floor with more than 70 technology providers rolling out their latest offerings

CLICK HERE for a full rundown of the tech exhibited by these companies: Adder Technology, Aggreko, AI-Media, AIR, AJA Video Systems, Amagi, Appear, Arista Networks, AT&T, Ateme, Audio-Technica, Audioshake, Backblaze, Bitfire, Blackmagic Design, Broadfield Distributing, Calrec Audio, Camb.ai, Canon, CES Power, Chyron, Cinnafilm, Clark Wire & Cable, Cobalt Digital, Daktronics, Dante, Dolby, Evertz, EVS, Forecast Consoles, Fujifilm, Grass Valley, Hawk-Eye Innovations, Imagine Communications, intoPIX, Joseph Electronics, Kokusai Denki, LiveU, Lumen, Mark Roberts Motion Control, Markertek, Matrox, Meinberg USA, MyCaseBuilder, Narrative AI, Netgear AV, Oracle, Packetstorm Communications, Program Productions, ProximaVision, Quantum, Red5, Riedel Communications, Ross Video, Scoreplay, Shure, Signiant, Solid State Logic, Sony, Rock It Sports, Spiideo, T-Mobile, Techex, Telestream, Telos Alliance, Teradek, The Studio at B&H, TVU Networks, Vecima Technology, Videoship, Vizrt, Wave Central.

Stay tuned to Sportsvideo.org and SVG PLAY for video recaps and further coverage of the 2025 SVG Summit.