Stagwell (NASDAQ:STGW) has evolved its Sport Beach activation–perhaps best known for its presence at the Cannes International Festival of Creativity in recent years–into a business unit dedicated to serving as a place to connect athletes, brands and creatives through lived experiences, building communities that drive real growth. SPORT BEACH thus expands its core value proposition: innovative events, peer-to-peer relationships between brands and athletes that drive business outcomes, and active play as a key element of any experience. Beth Sidhu will serve as CEO of SPORT BEACH while continuing her role as Stagwell’s chief brand and communications officer until a successor is named. SPORT BEACH will activate at major cultural moments across the calendar. On the heels of this week’s CES, plans call for a strong presence at such events as Super Bowl LX, NBA All-Star Weekend, Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, The World Cup Finals, US Open, and F1 Las Vegas. At each moment, SPORT BEACH will act as the hub for marketers, athlete-entrepreneurs and sport business professionals, with upscale hospitality, engaging stage conversations, and spaces and guests curated for quality networking. Events will be housed on SPORT BEACH’s AI-enabled app later this year. Year-round partners including Diageo (exclusive spirits partner), NBCUniversal (exclusive broadcast partner) and PepsiCo (with Gatorade as the exclusive hydration partner) will help bring SPORT BEACH to life via expertise in innovative sport-brand collaborations at each SPORT BEACH moment. Additional partners will join activations throughout the year, including The Athletic, Business Insider, the Chicago Bulls, Fanatics Advertising, InMobi, Nielsen, Superside, Sweatworking, The Trade Desk, TransUnion, and while on earth™. SPORT BEACH will help brands and athletes engage in three core ways: Events; facilitation (creating spaces where a diverse group of people, industries, experiences and POVs connect to drive new business; SPORT BEACH will offer a formalized convening and facilitation service, bringing together like-minded groups to drive business outcomes; and editorial (SPORT BEACH’s new editorial platform will serve as an always-on source of the most interesting global stories at the intersection of sports, business, culture, technology and creativity; across newsletters, www.SPORTBEACH.com and an upcoming podcast, SPORT BEACH will deliver unexpected conversations.) SPORT BEACH’s Advisory Board will be announced in February….
Street Talk for January 16, 2026
Robyn Freye has joined CourtAvenue as president and chief growth officer, a newly created role that further strengthens the agency’s specialist independent model and marks a defining next chapter in its evolution. Her mission at CourtAvenue is to formalize the company’s first dedicated growth engine across go-to-market strategy, client leadership and organizational scale, while advancing the agency’s integrated approach across commerce, CX, AI, media, data and experiential. Freye brings more than 25 years of experience leading growth for U.S. holding companies and independent agencies, as well as guiding clients and procurement teams through complex multinational agency reviews and marketing reorganizations in her role leading a search consultancy. Most recently, she was chief growth officer at Stagwell, where she was instrumental in scaling the network across North America, strengthening its commercial engine and winning Fortune 100 clients. She was also a founding leader behind Stagwell’s award-winning Sport Beach platform at Cannes Lions, helping establish it as a flagship industry destination. Freye’s appointment comes at a moment of significant acceleration for CourtAvenue. Demand for the indie agency’s AI-enabled capabilities and experience-driven offerings continues to rise, particularly among enterprise clients seeking a more integrated alternative to holding-company structures. In 2026, the agency plans to deepen its specialist capabilities through strategic M&A. In addition to leading the agency’s growth agenda, Freye will oversee client services, account leadership and overall commercial performance. Freye’s decision to join CourtAvenue reflects a broader industry shift toward high-growth independent... Read More