51 million travellers see this network every month on screens they never choose to watch. This summer, it carried every single match of the 2026 World Cup live. Joining me is Lynnwood Bibbens, Founder and Executive Chairman of Reach TV. Lynnwood, welcome to Wall Street to Mena.
Thank you. I am excited to be here.
Reach TV carried all 104 World Cup matches live this summer. What did landing that kind of deal actually take?
A lot of work, a lot of collaboration, and a lot of planning. I appreciate Fox, FIFA, our airport partners, and our airport authorities — they really went all out. It allowed us to create fan zones and an experience for travellers who thought they were going to miss out and then found out they were not. It was a great experience for us to learn how travellers are still yearning for connection. We watched people hug people they did not know. We watched people sing country songs with others who did not speak the same language. We saw people exchange jerseys. To me it was really inspiring. It let me know that travel is such an essential part of what we are all yearning for on a global scale — we want real relationships, we want to be connected. In the US, from 2019 to 2026, the average traveller is taking double the amount of round trips they took in 2019.
And the viewership must grow with that too.
People stayed for longer. They were coming to the airport earlier because they knew World Cup matches were on. People on connecting flights were staying in one area longer. Dwell times were almost 70% higher in certain areas — some were even double. The better part was talking to our host cities and hearing them tell us about the emails they received thanking them for having the World Cup. You cannot put a price on that level of customer experience. Normally it is a complaint. Now it was the other way around. We are a customer service network with one audience — the traveller. We want to serve them wherever they are.
Do you have plans to go beyond the US — a global network?
100%. In the US we are very focused on entertainment and sports, but around the globe it is business. Business travellers are a natural fit to be inside lounges and other opportunities. We are aggressively doing that this year. Over the next 12 to 24 months, you will see us everywhere — business travel everywhere, powered by Reach. We are really focused on that global traveller.
You are here in Dubai for a congress. Why does this gathering matter so much for global investors right now?
I have been really thankful I was invited over. The UAE and Dubai and how I have been treated has been exceptional. One of the things media has the power to do — and also the power to hurt — is perceptions. There are some false perceptions about what is going on here. You need to be on the ground. When you get here and feel it, you understand that what you heard was wrong. I can now go back and say this is a corridor, this is a hub for things we want to do.
You did masterclasses yesterday and today — on finance and omnichannel content. What are you seeing from a global perspective?
Yesterday was around finance, entrepreneurs, and family offices — standing room only. Today was around omnichannel and how content works when you are being thoughtful about it. What I am seeing is how much everybody on a global level is looking for the same things — how we want to interconnect and find the access points, where is the opportunity for partnership. I want to come back more and more because of how impactful it has been.
You just moved from CEO to Executive Chairman right after your biggest deal yet. Why now?
It has been ten years. As a founder, you get to a point where you have done what you can do. The business needs to run on its own and needs new leadership. I am very humble about knowing what I can do and what I cannot do. When it is time to allow someone else to be in that seat and for me to go focus on bigger things and bigger opportunities — that is where I am. I am really happy for Rachel. She is amazing and she deserves that seat. She is going to take it to a different level.
You started in computer hardware and e-commerce. What from that world shaped how you built a TV network?
It taught me workflow. First — what are you trying to accomplish, step by step — and what best accomplishes that? Not what is the best technology out there. What is the best thing to accomplish the goal? My understanding of hardware taught me how to structure deals and how to grow quickly with partnerships. I always looked at partnerships and collaboration as a way to win. My uncle, who passed away a couple of months ago, used to say: put a one and a one together and you do not have two — you have eleven. That is the power of two things coming together. Thirty-five years later, I am still using that same mantra.
Thank you so much for being with us today.
Thank you for having me. We are here globally, working together — me from New York and you from here, and now I am here in person. If that is not an indication that the world is global, I do not know what else is.
