It is time once more to celebrate the many wonderful women who are influencing every aspect of Sport in Ireland.
The list for 2025 will be the 13th edition of the Sport for Business listing of 50 Women of Influence in Irish Sport, in partnership once more with our friends at AIG.
We began this journey in 2013, when, in response to a list in England, we were challenged to produce a list of twenty Influential Women in Irish Sport. The 20 stretched to 30, then 40 and 50, and it still does not do justice to the talent out there.
We are in a better place than we were then, but we are still not at the level of equality in sport that exists in other areas of the way in which we organise ourselves as a society.
That is a stain on sport and one that we will continue to rail against, in whatever small way we can.
Our Annual Women in Sport Conference will take place in the first week of December, with more details to be announced next week.
We are nearing the point where sport is sport regardless of gender. But we are not there yet.
By highlighting a selection of Women in positions of influence, we remind others that the pathway to leadership is open to them, and we remind organisations that outdated ideas requiring having performed in men’s sport as a prerequisite to lead are based on nothing more than prejudice.
This year’s list will again draw from all the multiple areas that make up sport. From the fields of play to the corridors of power, from the boardroom to the studio, and from every corner of the country.
Some of those listed will seem obvious, but that was not always the case, and a reminder of that is continually needed in order to keep moving forward.
We will have names from the CEO Club, the Sponsors Lounge, the Arena, the Leaders’ Table, and the Influencers Circle.
This year, we will challenge ourselves again to generate a minimum of 40 per cent of new entrants.
This will mean some who fully deserve to remain stepping aside but that is part of what influence and leadership is about and they are in no way diminished by their not being on the list this year.
So, who should be included? We have a good sense of the landscape, but we are always open to new suggestions, which is where you come in.
Every year, the number of nominees exceeds the ceiling of 50 that we place on the list, and we have no doubt this year will be the same again.
The list we will build over the coming weeks is a snapshot of women who are changing the way sport is played, consumed, grown, and delivered.
They are part of making the role of women in sport unexceptional by being exceptional in what they do.
Recognition of their contribution is rarely asked for but is entirely deserved, and we want your help in identifying those who you feel should be among them.
We will start publishing the first of this year’s lists on Sport for Business next week and simultaneously share them across social media.
So, who do you think should be on the list for 2025?
Image Credit: Sport for Business
Further Reading for Sport for Business members:
SPORT FOR BUSINESS AUTUMN EVENTS
On September 25th we will host our Annual Children in Sport Conference
On October 14th, our Annual Sport for Social Good Event will shine a spotlight on good work being done through the medium of sport across the country.
Then in November a new event focused on Sustainability in Sport and in December our 12th Annual Women in Sport Conference, in partnership with Lidl.
Find out More about Our Sport for Business Events Programme Here
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