Lance Fensterman, CEO of Fanatics Events and the former president of ReedPop — where he produced pop culture events like New York Comic-Con, Complex-Con, and Star Wars Celebration — said he sees several parallels between pop culture fans and sports fans.
However, he noted, while events like New York Comic-Con have evolved to embrace multiple difference fanbases and communities, the sports-focused event space is "ready to be disrupted a bit."
Tom Brady, Derek Jeter, Eli and Peyton Manning, Kevin Durant, Sabrina Ionescu and Hulk Hogan are just some of the big sports names scheduled to appear, Fensterman said.
"Those are the moments that we get excited about, and we just don't see it being done anywhere else in the world of live sports events," Fensterman said.
The festival was the highest-grossing and most-attended fan event in WWE history, according to Fanatics.
Persons:
Con, Lance Fensterman, ReedPop, —, You've, Fensterman, Tom Brady, Derek Jeter, Eli, Peyton Manning, Kevin Durant, Sabrina Ionescu, Hulk Hogan
Organizations:
New York, Star, Fest, Javits Center, NFL, NBA, WNBA, MLB, NHL, MLS, UFC, WWE, Endeavor, IMG, WWE's
Locations:
New York City, U.S, New, Philadelphia