A baseball season gives you 81 chances to get it right, and 81 chances to lose someone if you don’t. We sit down with Anthony Esposito, Senior Vice President of Ticket Operations for the Atlanta Braves, to unpack what actually creates lasting fandom when the calendar is packed and the expectations are high.

We start with what makes Braves fans distinct, including the long reach of the “TBS effect” and the way baseball becomes a family routine across generations. From there, Anthony shares how changes like the pitch clock and the new balls-and-strikes challenge reshape fan attention and even improve the in-venue flow, from bathroom breaks to concession timing. If you care about fan experience design, this is a rare look at how rules, rhythm, and predictability can strengthen engagement.

Then we go deeper on loyalty beyond the game itself: Truist Park as a destination, The Battery Atlanta as a live-work-play entertainment district, and the year-round relationship with A-list members through events, access, and intentional touchpoints. We also talk concerts, postseason ticketing whiplash, All-Star Week complexity, and the modern ticketing skill set that blends customer service with analytics, dynamic pricing, and clear reporting.

If you’re building a live experience brand in sports, music, theater, or attractions, you’ll leave with practical ideas on CRM-driven relationship building, “know before you go” communication, and the Braves’ simple “three bases of service.” Subscribe, share this with your team, and leave a review with the one touchpoint you’d improve first.

Recorded Tuesday, September 8th, 2026
Hosts: Damian Bazadona, CEO & Founder, Situation & Maureen Andersen, President & CEO, INTIX
Guest: Anthony Esposito, SVP of Ticket Operations, Atlanta Braves
Producer: Peter Yagecic, Founder, A Mind at Work

What turns attendance into loyalty? In this episode of Fandom Unpacked: In Case You Missed It, Heather revisits a conversation with Mel Barry of the New Orleans Pelicans about the rituals, energy, and sense of place that keep fans coming back. Because when an experience starts to feel familiar, meaningful, and shared, showing up can start to feel a lot like coming home.

Hear the full conversation with Mel in Season 1, Episode 2 of Fandom Unpacked: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2449648/episodes/16825422-converting-local-fans-into-lifelong-brand-advocates-with-the-new-orleans-pelicans

Ticketing works best when it disappears, and that’s exactly why we wanted this conversation. We’re joined by Andrew Bragman, VP of Ticket Operations for SoFi Stadium, YouTube Theater, and Hollywood Park, to unpack what it takes to deliver a seamless fan experience for everything from NFL crowds to global pop tours and World Cup matches. When tens of thousands of people show up with sky-high expectations, “just scanning a ticket” becomes a chain of tech, process, and human decisions that can either build trust or break it.

We talk about what fandom has in common across wildly different audiences, then get practical about where friction still lives today: the on-sale moment, the dreaded queue, app download resistance, and the realities of mobile ticketing when phones break or lose power. Andrew shares how the best ticketing teams operate in the shadows, plus why strong SOPs and real contingency planning matter more than flashy features when something goes sideways.

We also explore what the next five years could look like, including biometrics, facial recognition for faster entry and concessions, and personalization that helps fans without crossing into “creepy.”

If you enjoy smart conversations about fan engagement, venue technology, and the future of ticketing operations, subscribe, share this with a friend in live events, and leave us a rating and review.

Recorded Friday, August 28th, 2026
Hosts: Damian Bazadona, CEO & Founder, Situation & Maureen Andersen, President & CEO, INTIX
Guest: Andrew Bragman, VP, Ticket Operations, SoFi Stadium, YouTube Theatre & Hollywood Park
Producer: Peter Yagecic, Founder, A Mind at Work