The adtech company has been striking deals with the likes of Publicis Groupe, WPP and PMG as it cements its foothold in live sports marketing.

Genius Sports’ acquisition of global, digital sports and gaming media network, Legend, recently hit the headlines, partly because the move resulted in its stock price crashing from $8.51 to $6.19.

While the acquisition has been dubbed by some as the birth of a “super affiliate”, for sports marketers, it’s not where they should be paying attention.

The adtech, which describes itself as a betting data specialist, is one of the largest sports tech companies globally and over the past year, has been striking partnership deals with the big advertising agencies.

Just this week, Genius Sport announced a partnership with WPP Media. The deal will see the creation of WPP Brand Sports Momentum Score – a new intelligence tool that identifies the right sports, audiences and moments for advertisers to invest in and drive year-round engagement and return on investment.

Through the deal, WPP Media clients will be able to identify the sports, leagues, teams, and audiences based on fan momentum, commercial value, and behavioural insight; activate custom audiences and sponsorships across direct, programmatic and the WPP Open intelligence network; and have access to optimise and measure continuously.

The partnership comes just a month after WPP announced the launch of WPP Media Sports – a unified sports and gaming division for advertisers.

Martin Blich, Executive Director, Head of US Sports Investment and Partnership, WPP Media, says: “With a massive year of sports ahead, WPP Media is evolving how brands invest.

“By pairing our WPP Open Intelligence Network with Genius Sports’ real-time data, we’re moving past traditional ratings. We’re taking a precise, audience-first approach that ensures sports spend drives real business outcomes.”

Josh Linforth, Chief Revenue Officer, Genius Sports, adds: “In a fragmented sports media market, guesswork is expensive.

“Buyers need fan intelligence that actively guides decisions from planning through measurement, not static reports after the fact. WPP Media will now be able to give brands precise audience targeting and clear, outcome-driven measurement so every dollar works harder.”

Sports fans are the hardest audience to reach

WPP is not the only agency the adtech has partnered with. Back in July 2025, independent shop PMG became one of Genius Sports’ founding agency partners. In November 2025, Genius Sports announced a similar deal with Publicis Sport, part of Publicis Groupe.

Using Genius Sport’s FANHub (which WPP now also has access to), Publicis Sports can use its rich data signals to activate real-time campaigns that move in sync with key moments in live sports.

Genius Sports is moving to become the go-to sports tech company in the adland and partnering with the network agencies is just one of its plays. Its acquisition of Legend cements its data capabilities, and in today’s digital world… data is king.

The company is stamping its authority in sports marketing and you can see why. Sports has become one of the most powerful live mediums for advertisers to tap into, which is exactly what Linforth alluded to in his speech at the company’s investor day.

He pointed out that digital adspend had surpassed $700bn in 2025, with global spend on live contextual sports ads expected to exceed $100bn by 2028, adding that sports fans spend roughly 80% more on retail, streaming and entertainment than the average consumer.

However, they are also the hardest audience to reach.

“Fan behaviour has changed,” he says. “Modern fans watch the game on one screen, track fantasy on another, and debate plays on social in real time. They don’t watch sports. They absolutely live it. And that passion translates into spending.”

In response to this, Genius Sport has built a basis which blends live sports, fantasy, gaming and betting layers into an interactive experience that can be fully personalised, measured and optimised in real time.

And with expectations to bring $300m in media revenue by 2028, according to Linforth, it’s no wonder they are partnering with the big advertising giants. That’s the way to build scale and reach.

Could this be Genius Sports golden boot moment?…