16 May, Chengdu, China –The World Digital Sports Alliance collaborated with the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union to spearhead a session at the ABU Sports Media Conference Chengdu 2026, which took place from 14–16 May 2026 in Chengdu under the theme “Navigating New Eras: Sportscasting and Digital Platform”.
WDSA, led by General Secretary Sebastian Lau, facilitated one of the conference’s featured sessions titled, “Esports – Content Creation, Platform Cooperation and Youth Audience”.
During the session, WDSA President Kenneth Fok Kai Kong delivered a welcoming video message, highlighting how sports and technology are now deeply integrated. He emphasized that digital technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), robotics, Augmented Reality (AR), and Virtual Reality (VR) are profoundly reshaping sports content production, distribution, and audience experiences worldwide.
Mr. Fok also noted that audience behavior continues to evolve rapidly in the digital era. Over the past two years, WDSA has brought together key partners from the fields of technology, sports, and Artificial Intelligence across China and international markets, while maintaining close engagement with enterprises and government agencies seeking innovation within the digital sports sector.
In his remarks, Mr. Lau highlighted the rapid growth of the global digital and virtual sports industry, which is projected to surpass USD 47 billion by 2030 with an annual growth rate of nearly 17 percent. He also noted that China has emerged as a leading digital sports and esports market, with its virtual sports sector expected to grow from USD 2.1 billion in 2023 to more than USD 7 billion by 2030.
“At the World Digital Sports Alliance, we strongly believe that no single organization can shape the future alone. The future will belong to those who are willing to collaborate, innovate responsibly, and continue building bridges between sports, media, technology, and people,” said Mr. Lau.
He added that gatherings such as the ABU Sports Media Conference remain important platforms not only for discussions surrounding AI, streaming, platforms, and technology, but also for exploring how sport can continue bringing people together in a rapidly changing world.
The session also featured a keynote presentation by Jiang Li from Shanghai Jiao Tong University titled, “Towards the AI Era of Sports – From Intelligent Computing IDCs and Smart Chips to Agent Infra: Reshaping Event Production, Distribution, and Competition”.
During the panel discussion, WDSA Marketing Director and Technical Delegate for Esports at the 20th Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, Jeff Lam, served as moderator for discussions surrounding the future technological development prospects of esports and digital sports within sportscasting.
Among the panelists participating in the discussion was Aaron Liu, Assistant Coordinator for Esports at the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), who spoke about the need for clear boundaries, emphasizing that AI cannot replace human emotional storytelling. He also stated that AI-generated content must be clearly labelled to avoid misleading viewers and that ethical norms for AI broadcasting should be established to prevent risks arising from AI abuse. Other panelists included Renkai Yip, Co-founder of Reddentes Sports, and Julian Buehler, International Media Rights Distribution at Phygital International.
Following the panel discussion, WDSA and the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen cooperation in promoting digital sports through the ABU Sports Group Conference and supporting its global development.
The MoU was signed by Mr. Sebastian Lau on behalf of WDSA and Cai Yanjiang, Sports Director of ABU, marking a new chapter of collaboration between both organizations in advancing the future of digital sports in the region.
