The Will Smith film, "Concussion," was still in theaters, generating a great deal of awareness for a serious situation but not generating a lot of intake at the box office, when the NFL got the Hollywood ending it really wanted.

If I were to give you the opportunity to own one major league sports franchise, which one would you choose, the All-American Dallas Cowboys, the revered New York Yankees, or even that local team you bled the colors of from childhood into your adult years? I may be in the minority here, but I'd tell you none of them. Not because I wouldn't want one, but because the marketer and entrepreneur in me sees greater opportunity elsewhere - in eSports.

Taking some time to reflect over the holidays, I was pleased to consider how far the sports marketing world has progressed in its receptivity to analytics in assessing the efficacy of its efforts and in better understanding how to resonate with its stakeholders.

Man, 2015 was wild. But, I don't have to tell you that - you were there! And 2016 is shaping up to be just as insane, in local and global sports and in the sports marketing industry. Here is a quick forecast of a few headlines that figure to impact our industry in 2016.