How Jamie Horowitz Helped Peyton Manning Bring Omaha Productions to Life
Peyton Manning has been a winner for decades — but could he succeed running a media company like he did a football team? Sports media exec Jamie Horowitz thought so. And he was right.
Peyton Manning – Omaha Productions
Did you hear the podcast that came out last week about Peyton Manning and Omaha Productions? If you missed it, it’s definitely worth your time to go back and check it out.
Omaha Productions is already valued at more than $400 million. The company has over 40 employees and brings in more than $70 million in annual revenue (based on industry-standard multiples). And it’s doing it all with a simple statement: Create Content that Uplifts and Unifies People (it’s literally on their website).
Manning’s Iconic Audible Call
You might remember that Peyton Manning had no shortage of options when he retired from the NFL in 2016. He didn’t choose to become a coach, although all 32 teams would have loved to have him on staff. He didn’t choose to become a general manager, although most teams would have hired him immediately. And although he could have simply sat back and relaxed in his Denver-area home while enjoying his approximately $250 million in career earnings, he wasn’t interested in a quiet retirement.
Instead, the two-time Super Bowl champion is currently in the process of building his own billion-dollar sports media company.
Omaha Productions, named after Manning’s iconic audible call, is one of the fastest-growing companies in all of sports. In recent years, Omaha Productions has worked with ESPN, ABC, NBC, Netflix, and the NFL. It’s likely that many casual sports fans have unknowingly come across content made by Manning’s company – Omaha content is seemingly everywhere.
Most recently, Omaha made a wildly fun short video to promote the 3rd season of the ManningCast. The video stars Peyton and Eli as they host auditions for a third host for ManningCast. Celebrities from both inside and outside the sports world make cameo appearances, including Tom Brady, Patrick Mahomes, Pat McAfee, Reese Witherspoon, Mike Tyson, and DJ Khaled.
While it’s easy to assume that Peyton had been preparing to launch his new media giant for years, nobody should be fooled. There’s nothing about his plan that was premeditated. When he walked away from the NFL at age 39, he had no idea what he wanted to do next. Until that point in his life, his only focus had been to be the best quarterback possible.
This all changed in 2020 when William Morris Endeavor agent Josh Pyatt and sports media executive Jamie Horowitz flew to Denver to pitch Manning an idea. They pitch a vision of a company that could make content that could bring people together.
Fast-forward three years and Omaha Productions is already valued at more than $400 million. The company has over 40 employees and brings in more than $70 million in annual revenue (based on industry-standard multiples).
The signature project is the ManningCast, which averaged 1.6 million viewers during its first two years. Perhaps more notably, the average ManningCast watcher was six years younger than a typical Monday Night Football viewer. The success of the show is the brothers’ banter. Leaning into that relationship was a pretty simple idea from Horowitz – just have the brother talk the way they normally talk to each other.
Omaha Productions is also responsible for several popular Netflix series, such as Quarterback and King of Collectibles: The Goldin Touch. Its podcast network already features at least 15 shows, including deals with recognizable names in sports like Mina Kimes and Cam Heyward. It also produces Peyton’s Places on ESPN. The franchise has expanded to include similar content from stars like Vince Carter, David Ortiz, Sue Bird, Abby Wambach, and Ronda Rousey.
With Omaha Productions’ loaded resume, it’s easy to forget that the company is only a few years old. Jamie Horowitz and Josh Pyatt surely had high hopes when they pitched Manning on the idea in 2020, but they probably couldn’t have imagined they’d see such great short-term success. The sky is the limit for Omaha Productions, which could be worth $1 billion in the next several years. With Peyton Manning maintaining a prominent role in the organization, there’s a strong chance that his media endeavors will be more profitable than his football-playing career.
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About the Author
Dr. Jerry Doby Editor-in-Chief of The Hype Magazine, Media and SEO Consultant, Journalist, Ph.D. and retired combat vet. 2023 recipient of The President's Lifetime Achievement Award. Partner at THM Media Group. Member of the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, the United States Press Agency and ForbesBLK.
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