The Flywheel Effect: How integration can drive exponential growth |
Editor’s note: The following is an adapted excerpt from “The Modern Revenue Stack: Designing the Revenue Systems That Power Modern Sports Teams,” (August 2025), by Will Clayton.
In every sports front office, there have been moments of brilliance, when the right campaign, the right partner, the right offer all collide to create a win that feels bigger than the sum of its parts. But for many organizations, those moments feel sporadic, and dare I say it, almost accidental. They don’t have to be. What if those “lightning in a bottle” moments could be engineered? What if your commercial organization was designed in such a way that every win generated momentum for the next? That’s the essence of the flywheel effect, small inputs, compounded over time, accelerating as each function feeds into the next.
Historically, front offices were structured for functional success. Success was measured within verticals. If each department hit their number, the business was “healthy.” But functional health doesn’t guarantee system performance.
The flywheel model shifts this completely, with every department feeding the others. Media drives reach and engagement. Sponsorship monetizes attention and cultural relevance. Ticketing captures direct fan demand. Data connects, measures, and amplifies each node. When these aren’t just aligned but interlocked, you begin to see something rare, exponential growth. Not through more spend, more staff, or more assets but through more orchestration and efficient communication. To build a commercial flywheel, you need four core forces spinning in harmony. First, content drives demand. Every piece of content, whether a........