Programmatic Innovation in Live Sports with Andrew Casale and Megan Pagliuca at Marketecture Live

Andrew Casale, CEO, Index Exchange, and Megan Pagliuca, Chief Product Officer, Omnicom Media Group, unpack how live sports and streaming are becoming more addressable through programmatic, why new standards are fixing real-time “spike” problems, and how sell-side decisioning and AI-driven curation could reshape efficiency and fees across the open internet.

Takeaways

• Live sports are becoming truly addressable through programmatic.
• Targeting is shifting to moment-level signals, not broad demos.
• Standards like podding and advanced ad requests reduce live break spikes.
• Pre-fetching and smarter pacing keep delivery stable.
• Sell-side decisioning now happens earlier and faster.
• That speed opens new optimization before bids reach DSPs.
• The supply chain may be split into modular parts to cut fees.
• AI is already boosting inclusion lists, safety, and creative workflows.

Chapter

00:10 Intro to live sports and programmatic.

00:45 Megan on addressable “magic moments” in live sports.

03:12 Andrew on podding standards for live streams.

04:23 How advanced ad requests prevent break spikes.

06:36 What sell-side decisioning is and why it’s faster now.

09:50 Two futures: bundled platforms or unbundled chain.

15:07 Megan on SPO and tighter partner sets.

17:45 Practical AI wins in lists, safety, and creativity.

23:20 Rapid-fire predictions for 2026.

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