Jill Downey is to return as Chair of the Judges for the 2026 Irish Sport Industry Awards, bringing continuity and experience to one of the sector’s most important annual recognition platforms.
Downey, who serves as Chief Sponsorship and Sustainability Officer at Core, will once again lead the independent judging panel tasked with identifying and celebrating excellence across the Irish sport and business landscape.
The rest of the judging panel will be named in the coming weeks.
The Irish Sport Industry Awards have grown consistently in stature in recent years, reflecting the increasing sophistication and impact of commercial partnerships, innovation and social purpose initiatives within the sector. As highlighted before on Sport for Business, the Awards provide a benchmark for best-in-class activity, spanning sponsorship, media, community engagement and high-performance support.
Downey has been a central figure in shaping how sponsorship and sustainability intersect within Irish sport, bringing a strategic lens to the judging process.
The Awards also underline the wider economic and social contribution of sport in Ireland. The industry supports more than 64,000 jobs and contributes an estimated €3.7 billion annually to the economy, reinforcing its importance beyond the field of play.
Entries for the 2026 Awards are now open, with organisations, brands and rights holders encouraged to submit their initiatives, campaigns and achievements from the past year. The deadline for submissions is this Thursday, April 2nd.
As in previous years, the Awards will shine a spotlight on the people and organisations driving progress across Irish sport, from grassroots participation to elite performance and commercial innovation.
If you, like the Federation of Irish Sport, would like to be part of the Sport for Business community and see your organisation in our content, on our stages, and in the conversation happening every day around the commercial world of Irish Sport, email us today and let’s see what is possible.
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