Growing fears of a recession and a decline in advertising revenue have negatively impacted the podcasting industry, and Tom Brady’s media company, Religion of Sports, has felt the brunt.
The company, which Brady started with Michael Strahan and Gotham Chopra in 2018, recently announced that its entire podcasting division was being eliminated. That meant more than 12 producers lost their jobs according to reporting from the New York Times.
Now for Tomorrow With Deepak Chopra was the first podcast Religion of Sports produced. The show launched in 2020.
Religion of Sports raised $50 million in series B funding in June. That money is likely earmarked for unscripted TV and film projects, where the company is largely focused on creating content.
But even as the demand for podcasting remains strong, companies like Religion of Sports, Spotify and others have had to scale back at the sight of economic projections.
The podcasting industry saw a boom in recent years, with companies shelling out tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars to buy exclusive rights to the most popular titles and studios in the space.
Combined, Spotify has committed over $1 billion for podcast contracts with celebrities like Joe Rogan and Kim Kardashian.
