South Africa has a new social media platform dedicated solely to sport. Called Discover Digital, the platform – launched by the same team that has built streaming media platforms in the past – is aimed at helping athletes promote their sports.
The mobile-first platform has attracted a number of backers – including MultiChoice Group-owned SuperSport, which will publish social content on Discover Sport – and is designed as a free-to-use, mobile-first destination where “athletes can share their journey, connect with fans, and access new opportunities no matter their discipline, performance level or background”, a statement on Tuesday said.
The platform was launched in partnership with Sascoc, the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee, which houses the National Olympic Committee and National Paralympic Committee, and which is the responsible body for South Africa at the Commonwealth Games.
Founded by Stephen Watson, a well-known figure in streaming media business in South Africa, the platform will allow athletes to “tell their stories”.
“Fans can connect authentically, and brands can contribute to building sustainable sporting futures,” Watson said. Discover Sport is available on the web at discoversport.com and there are also Android and iOS apps.
There will be a particular focus on sporting codes that are not well represented on television, including swimming, Padel, chess, gymnastics and showjumping.
“Discover Sport brings together user-generated content and professional sports media. Athletes can share authentic stories, training clips and highlights, while federations and media partners can showcase official broadcasts and documentaries,” the statement said. “Coaching, mentoring and live streaming are embedded into the platform, creating opportunities for growth, visibility and income generation.”
Scouting tools
The platform offers “scouting tools” for agents, managers and talent scouts to discover and monitor athletes across all disciplines. “This ensures that potential is not defined by geography, income, or media coverage,” the company said.
“Scouting selection allows you to track individual athletes with ‘whistle alerts’ about new content posts, and the scouting catalogue filters ‘recommendation’ white noise and streamlines all scouted athlete content into one collection.”
Read: MultiChoice to sell SuperSport United after 31 years of ownership
It also offers livestreams of some sports events that are “overlooked by mainstream broadcasters”, along with short-form content that will “appear prominently” in the user interface.
“Publishers (athletes) benefit from sharing their stories on the platform with a significant portion of future advertising revenue flowing back to athletes, teams, events and/or sporting establishments,” Discover Sport said. “In instances where an athlete’s own sponsors advertise on the content to leverage the athlete’s social audience and association, category exclusivity can be respected and the majority of funds flow back to the profile holder/athlete.”
In its South African pilot phase, Discover Sport streamed global and local events including the 2025 Invictus Games, WBC World Championship Boxing, the SA Davis Cup, IBERCUP and the 2025 World Games in Chengdu.
Although launched in South Africa, Discover Sport is globally accessible. A ByteBucks rewards system is available only in South Africa – for now.
“We are not a goliath; we are a small technology firm,” Watson said at Tuesday’s launch event. “We believe every athlete should have a voice and be empowered to talk to the community and tell their story.” — © 2025 NewsCentral Media
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