We went to the FIFA World Cup, and we couldn't switch off the sport business lens while we were there, so we sat down to talk through everything we noticed.In this episode, Nathan and Reuben share their experience at the FIFA World Cup and what you notice when you attend a tournament as someone involved in the business of sport as opposed to a casual fan. They pick apart the things most people walking into a stadium would miss - the ticketing tech, the workforce running the concourse, the signage sponsors pay millions for, the choreography behind the broadcast breaks and the commercial engine behind the World Cup - the fan festivals, the activations, brands that performed well, and just how much revenue a tournament like this actually generates. They also run through a host city report, ranking the cities they experienced the World Cup from against each other, before comparing how the whole experience stacks up against the Paris Olympics, and previous World Cups in Russia and Qatar.And yes, we also get into the story of Reuben's " fairly sizeable hiccup" in Vancouver and how he almost never made it to the USA for the Socceroos game in Seattle and the rest of the World Cup. You don't want to miss this, it's a fun one!We cover:(02:50) - Discussion Begins(05:15) - Quick Fire Question(20:27) - Reuben's mishap in Vancouver(29:37) - What we noticed at the World Cup that most fans don't(44:38) - What Nathan observed from a commercial lens(55:01) - Ranking our favourite host cities at the World Cup(01:04:43) - How the 2026 FIFA World Cup ranks against other tournaments(01:15:34) - Sport Biz professionals we got to connect with at the World Cup(01:19:16) - Meeting SportsGrad member Jake Cohen in Kansas(01:24:48) - How to land a role at an upcoming major tournament(01:28:12) - Our takeaways from making connections on the ground at major tournamentsIf you liked this ep, give these a go next:#356: Career journey of FIFA World Cup Commentator David Basheer#357: From International Student to Major League Soccer with Adam Ferreira (Vancouver Whitecaps)#358: Sports Marketing in the Premier League and Major League Soccer with Sunny Dhillon (Seattle Sounders)#359: How to Build a Freelance Career in Sports Photography with Aleks Jason (Melbourne City & Socceroos)Want a job in sport? Click here.Follow SportsGrad on socials: LinkedIn | Instagram | TikTokFollow Reuben on socials: LinkedIn | Instagram | TikTokThanks for listening, much love! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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