Skip to content
‹ Back to IndustriesSports & Entertainment

Will Drive-In Events Endure in a Post-COVID World?

The fans remember the highlights but the franchises remember the technology, data, and inventions that powered their season. Host Tyler Kern sits down with the innovators, leaders and founders that are taking sports into the future.   This summer, Encore Live held Drive-In Nights concerts around that nation. It was a natural pivot for the…

This story was produced through MarketScale. See how Sports & Entertainment teams put it to work with Events & Onsite Capture.

·
Share
Will Drive-In Events Endure in a Post-COVID World?

Free workspace

Turn your Sports & Entertainment expertise into content.

Record interviews, organize footage, and write with AI on a free trial of the MarketScale platform for qualifying companies. No demo required, no credit card.

Try it Free

The fans remember the highlights but the franchises remember the technology, data, and inventions that powered their season. Host Tyler Kern sits down with the innovators, leaders and founders that are taking sports into the future.

This summer, Encore Live held Drive-In Nights concerts around that nation. It was a natural pivot for the live event company during a time that live events couldn’t be held. The events quickly spread to over 300 venues across six time zones, featuring world-class artists like Metallica, Garth Brooks and Blake Shelton.

This week on Salary Capped, host Tyler Kern sits down with Encore Live Founder and CEO Walter Kinzie to discuss how what was once a pivot is now becoming a permanent shift in their business plan. Kinzie explained that their events have been so successful because, for most of the population, planning an hours-long trip to a major stadium to see an concert or sporting event is a big enough obstacle to deter them from wanting to make such a big time commitment.

But driving to a local venue to watch a live stream of the event is easy enough. Last summer’s most popular event was their presentation of Metallica, which gathered over 200,000 fans to watch the live stream of their concert. The average price of attendance was $17 per person versus over $200 a ticket at a traditional concert venue.

This pivot has turned into a revelation for the company that culminated in presenting the recent UFC 257 fights live. The summer concerts proved to be a perfect preparation for the UFC fights, which resulted in Encore Live being the only company broadcasting the fights live during the evening without any delays due to technical difficulties.

Due to the resounding success of their UFC presentation, Kinzie is planning a future where over a million UFC fans will be able to attend a fight through their venue partners.

Follow Along for a New Episode Every Monday!

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @MarketScale

Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale

LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Your experts belong here

Every story in MarketScale Sports & Entertainment starts with a company putting its venue operators, production crews, and partnership teams on the record. Buyers are already reading this topic. The only question is whose experts they find.

Rights holders and partners back the operators they know, and coverage is how they get to know yours.

Book DemoSee how it works15 minutes, straight to a calendar.
B2B Weekly

The week in Sports & Entertainment, and sixteen other industries, every Monday.

Ten stories, one-line takes, five minutes. Free.

Sports & Entertainment: are you visible to AI?

Before they reach out, Sports & Entertainment buyers ask AI engines which vendors to trust. Explore how your experts, customers, and partners can become useful content for buyers and AI search.

Free Trial

You just read one Sports & Entertainment expert. Your company is full of them.

This article was produced through MarketScale. The same platform turns your venue operators, production crews, and partnership teams into the articles, video, and social content Sports & Entertainment buyers are searching for. Start a free trial and see it with your own people. For qualifying companies, no credit card, no demo required.

NPS +73 · 1,000+ creators · 38+ countries

What your free trial includes

Hands-on access to the MarketScale platform
Media requests to your crowd, remote recording, AI writing tools
No demo required. No credit card.
For qualifying companies. Company confirmation required.

More Sports & Entertainment Insights

NWSL refreshes finances as teams 19 and 20 wait

NWSL refreshes finances as teams 19 and 20 wait

The NWSL has no firm date for awarding teams 19 and 20. Commissioner Jessica Berman wants to finish the season and refresh the league’s financial information first.

  • 01NWSL has set no deadline for awarding franchises 19 and 20, with expansion timing dependent on market readiness rather than a fixed schedule
  • 02The league will update its financial data after completing the 2026 season, which ownership bidders will review when evaluating expansion opportunities
  • 03Jessica Berman positioned 20 teams as a next milestone, not a maximum, citing precedent from the NFL, NBA and NHL which each have at least 30 franchises

Oct 9, 2026

Rice renames stadium in 20-year deal ahead of $120M renovation

Rice renames stadium in 20-year deal ahead of $120M renovation

Rice University renamed Rice Stadium as First Community Stadium under a 20-year deal with Houston's First Community Credit Union. The package also covers alumni banking, internships and branded cards. A $120 million renovation, expected to begin at the end of this season and continue through 2027, will cut capacity from 47,000 to 30,000 seats.

  • 01First Community signed for 20 years just before the $120M Gateway Project, which is expected to begin at the end of this season and continue through 2027 and will reduce capacity from 47,000 to 30,000. That suggests much of the deal could run in a renovated, smaller venue.
  • 02The naming deal also makes First Community the official financial institution of Rice Football, Rice Athletics and the Association of Rice Alumni, with internships, career services and branded cards attached. Rice describes it as a naming rights and campus collaboration agreement.
  • 03Rice is also pursuing a jersey patch sponsor and naming rights for other venues. George said Rice wants deals that make sense for the university as a whole.

Oct 7, 2026

Premier League and EFL are $179M apart over five years on a funding deal

Premier League and EFL are $179M apart over five years on a funding deal

The Premier League has raised its proposed annual payment to the rest of English professional soccer to about $239 million. The EFL wants $275 million, and EFL Chair Rick Parry is said to believe $239 million is still not enough. The higher offer would still need a further vote of Premier League clubs.

  • 01Over five years the reported gap is $179 million, smaller than a single year's payment under the Premier League's $239 million-a-year offer.
  • 02An EFL yes on Friday would not finish the deal. The $239 million-a-year offer still needs its own vote of Premier League clubs.
  • 03Deal length may be easier to move. The EFL wants five years, the Premier League first proposed ten, and sources say it could compromise.

Oct 7, 2026

Explore More Sports & Entertainment Insights

Read more expert perspectives from across Sports & Entertainment.

Browse Sports & Entertainment Hub

For B2B teams

Your experts could be publishing here

Stories like this one run on content MarketScale captures from real practitioners. See how your team's expertise becomes coverage in Sports & Entertainment and beyond.

Book a Demo

Or call us. No forms required. We pick up. 214-945-2512