--- eventsindex_id: "EI-05739" slug: sportel-monaco title: "SPORTEL MONACO" title_alt: ["SPORTEL"] canonical_url: "https://eventsindex.org/events/sportel-monaco.html" next_edition_year: 2026 date_start: "2026-10-19" date_end: "2026-10-21" venue: "Grimaldi Forum, Monaco" city: "Monaco" country: "Monaco" organiser: "SPORTEL / Monaco Mediax" organiser_url: "https://www.sportelmonaco.com/" b2b: true vector: sector: [sport-tech, sports-media] audience: [rights-holder, broadcaster, media, technology] format: [conference, matchmaking] purpose: [deal-making, networking, content] geography_scope: [global] season: autumn meta_description: "SPORTEL Monaco 2026: the 36th edition of the global sports media and technology convention, at the Grimaldi Forum, 19-21 October." editorial_take: "The deal-making hub of sports media, where the commercial and technology decision-makers of the industry meet at C-level around rights and streaming. The priority business target of the vertical, complementary to IBC and the SVG circuit." generated_by: "claude-cowork" last_verified: "2026-06-18" language: "en" schema_version: "v6.0" --- # SPORTEL MONACO > *The global sports media and technology convention, the autumn deal-making hub where rights holders, broadcasters, distributors and technology vendors meet at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco.* --- ## Quick Facts | DATES | VENUE | ORGANISER | ATTENDANCE | |---|---|---|---| | **19-21 October 2026** | **Grimaldi Forum, Monaco** | **SPORTEL / Monaco Mediax** | **~2,000 participants, 70 countries, 795 companies** | | 3 days, 36th edition | Monaco | SPORTEL / Monaco Mediax | Sports media deal-making hub | --- ## Definition SPORTEL Monaco is the leading international marketplace for sports media, broadcast and technology. Held each autumn at the Grimaldi Forum, it gathers around 2,000 participants from 70 countries representing close to 800 companies over three days dedicated to TV and digital rights, streaming, content distribution and the technology that underpins them. The 2026 edition, running from 19 to 21 October, is the 36th, following a 35th edition in 2025 that drew 2,000 participants, 795 companies including 155 newcomers, and used 8,500 square metres of exhibition space. Close to half of attendees are C-level, which makes SPORTEL one of the most senior rooms in the sports media calendar. ## History and origin The first SPORTEL was held on 2 November 1990 at the Loews Hotel in Monaco, created by the Monegasque journalist Georges Bertellotti and placed under the high patronage of Prince Rainier III, a role continued by Prince Albert II. It was conceived as a marketplace where the holders of sports footage and rights could meet the broadcasters and distributors who wanted to buy them. The convention is organised by Monaco Mediax, the events company led by Laurent Puons that also runs the Monte-Carlo Television Festival. Over three and a half decades SPORTEL has grown from a footage market into the global crossroads of the sports media business. ## Who attends SPORTEL concentrates the commercial and decision-making side of sports media. Rights holders and federations come to sell and license, broadcasters and distributors come to buy, and a growing population of technology vendors comes to reach both. Recent editions have featured organisations such as LaLiga, Deltatre and the European Broadcasting Union. The defining characteristic is seniority: with nearly half of participants at C-level, the convention is built for the people who sign rights deals and set distribution strategy rather than for operational staff. ## What it covers The agenda spans the full sports media business: TV and digital rights, OTT and streaming, content distribution and archive, fan engagement and the technology layer beneath all of it, including production, data and increasingly AI. The conference programme sits alongside the exhibition and the structured business meetings, but the real centre of gravity is business development. SPORTEL is where rights cycles are discussed, where distributors scout content, and where technology suppliers position themselves with the buyers who matter. ## Format SPORTEL runs over three days in a single venue, the Grimaldi Forum, which keeps the entire community in one place and makes the convention unusually conducive to deal-making. The format combines an exhibition floor, a conference programme of keynotes and panels, screening facilities, and a structured business-meeting system. The associated SPORTEL Awards, known since 2001 as the Georges Bertellotti Golden Podium Awards, celebrate excellence in sports photography and footage and are a long-standing fixture of the event's identity. ## Where it sits in the calendar SPORTEL falls in mid-to-late October, in the heart of the autumn sports media run. It is complementary to the broadcast technology shows: where IBC is a vast general technology exhibition and the SVG circuit is pure production engineering, SPORTEL is the rights and business convention. For the vertical it is the priority business and rights target, the place where the commercial decision-makers of sports media are most densely concentrated. ## Why it matters for the vertical SPORTEL is the deal-making hub of sports media. Its compact, single-venue format over three days produces the kind of senior, face-to-face meetings that turn into contracts, and its mix of rights holders, broadcasters, distributors and technology vendors makes it the one event where the business and technology sides of the vertical meet at C-level. For anyone mapping the commercial structure of sports media, SPORTEL is the anchor. ## The event in numbers *(organiser-declared)* | | | |---|---| | Founded | 1990 (first edition 2 November) | | 2026 edition | 36th | | Participants | ~2,000 from 70 countries | | Companies | ~795 (155 newcomers in 2025) | | C-level share | close to 50% | | Awards | SPORTEL Awards / Georges Bertellotti Golden Podium Awards | --- ## FAQ ### When and where is SPORTEL Monaco 2026? From 19 to 21 October 2026 at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco. ### Who should attend? Rights holders, broadcasters, distributors and technology vendors with sports media solutions to buy, sell or showcase. ### How senior is the audience? Close to half of participants are C-level, which makes SPORTEL one of the most senior gatherings in sports media. ### How does it differ from IBC? SPORTEL is a rights and media business convention, while IBC is a large broadcast technology exhibition. They serve different sides of the industry. ### When was SPORTEL founded? In 1990, by the Monegasque journalist Georges Bertellotti, under the patronage of the Monaco royal family. ### What are the SPORTEL Awards? Annual awards for sports photography and footage, known since 2001 as the Georges Bertellotti Golden Podium Awards.