It is always one of the most popular series we run through the year and our listing of 30 Under 30 Young leaders of Tomorrow for 2021, in association with our friends at PwC, starts on Monday, March 7th.
Our ambition is the creation of a network of people making a real difference within our industry.
Over the past five years, we have highlighted almost 150 individuals as part of the 30 Under 30 initiative and here we have taken a look back on who they are and where they have gone so far in their careers.
We have broken the list up alphabetically and will list 20 individuals a day as we build-up to the 2022 list.
During the 2022 run, we will also be dropping a new podcast series of interviews with some of those that have gone before.
They are an impressive group of individuals.
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Shairoze Akram 2020
Colin Armstrong 2021
Colin Armstrong joined Paralympics Ireland in 2019 as a graduate of the UCD Sports Management degree course.
He is the Communications and Marketing executive where he has taken over responsibility for the day to day operation of the Paralympics Ireland social media accounts.
Colin has proven to be an innovative thinker in the area as he has overseen the concept and delivery of the ‘Women in Sport’, ‘1 Year to Go’ and ‘Next Level’ campaigns.
he played a key role in the Paralympics Ireland media team in Tokyo in August last year .
Before doing the UCD Course, he had worked for four years at LifeStyle Sports. He spent three years on a soccer scholarship at Georgia Southwestern University.
Ryan Bailey 2018
Ryan was working as a reporter for The42.ie when nominated for the list in 2018. In October 2019 he moved over to become part of the media and communications team at the IRFU.
Bailey went to St Andrew’s College and graduated from Griffith College with a BA in Journalism and Visual Studies. While there he won two national student journalism awards, marking him out as a talent for the future.
After graduation he freelanced for Cricinfo, Extratime.ie and others in order to build what became an impressive body of work, before becoming a staff writer with The 42 in 2014, and then moving into the comms world.
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Richard Barrett 2019
Richard is the Co-Founder of Pundit Arena and worked there as Chief Operating Officer before exiting in 2020.
In August 2021 he became the Head of Content with Workvivo
He has gathered a raft of awards for entrepreneurship down the years. He has also been chairman of UCC’s Collingwood Cup-winning soccer team and retains a deep affinity with his alma mater.
He earned a Bachelor of Education degree from there in 2012 and spent two years as an Irish and PE teacher at St Patrick’s College in Cork but he was keen to test what would prove to be a talent in journalism and business. An injury that left him in a wheelchair for two months in 2012 gave him the motivation to set up Sport is Everything and then Pundit Arena.
He met fellow Co-Founder Ross O’Dwyer on an Ignite programme run by UCC and together they combined their ideas on publishing and sport which was to become Pundit Arena.
His co-written biography of MMA Fighter turned political activist Paddy Holohan was published in October 2019.
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Chris Best 2019
Chris was on the Sponsorship and Marketing team at Aviva, when nominated for the list in 2019. He then joined Pro14 Rugby where he led on Brand Partnerships and strategy.
In early 2021 he established Frontier Sports Management with Dermot Rigley where he is now Head of Talent.
He joined Aviva in January 2018 following spells as an intern with Golf’s European Tour and World Rugby. As part of the World Rugby team, he played an important role in delivering the 2017 World Rugby Awards in Monaco. As a member of the partnerships team at the European Tour, he worked with brands such as Rolex, BMW & Emirates.
He was a later arrival to sport having achieved a BA degree in Geography, Planning and Environmental Science from UCD and then a Masters in Real Estate Finance at Cass Business School in London.
Two years in the commercial real estate environment was enough though before he decided to follow his passion and pursue a career in Sport.
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Jason Black 2021
Jason Black was a key member of the team at STATSports and the Data Analyst working with the Republic of Ireland Senior Men’s team at the FAI, when he was nominated last year.
In May he became a Product Owner working across EMEA for Coca Cola.
Prior to his role as Product Owner at Stat Sports, he was a Key Account Manager looking after the Brazilian FA, Leinster Rugby, Manchester United, Stoke City, Olympiacos, Queens Park Rangers, Bristol City, Derby County and many more.
He qualified with a Science Degree in Sports Science and Health from Dublin City University before going on to gain a Masters in Sports Performance Analysis from Cardiff University and a Higher National Diploma in Data Analytics from the National College of Ireland.
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Stuart Bolger 2021
Stuart Bolger is a key player on the sponsorship team at KPMG where he has worked for five years.
Following the firm’s strategic shift to golf sponsorship in 2016 – signalled by the signing of young Wicklow-native pro golfer Paul Dunne – Stuart has been heavily involved in the subsequent KPMG sports sponsorships of Cavan twins Leona and Lisa Maguire, the Irish Kids Golf Tour, the Dublin Ladies Senior Football Team, the Irish Champion Stakes Race Meeting and the 20×20 Women in Sport National Campaign.
Over the past disrupted year, he led the execution of a large content calendar to keep the brand exposure high amid a lack of live sports. This included golf trick-shot challenges for kids, mobility exercise tutorials for adults, and in-depth interviews with KPMG’s brand ambassadors.
A graduate of TU Dublin with a Degree in Marketing Bolger is currently studying for a Trinity College Certificate in Climate Entrepreneurship.
He spent two years as a project manager with Enactus and is a member of its Alumni Board.
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Eimhear Breen 2021
Eimhear Breen was appointed as BoyleSport’s Brand and Sponsorship Manager in October 2020.
This appointment has Breen managing BoyleSports’ expanding sponsorship portfolio, which includes the BoyleSports Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse,
the BoyleSports Irish Greyhound Derby at Shelbourne Park, partnership deals with Wolverhampton Wanderers, Birmingham City, Coventry City and Larne FC in football and the PDC World Cup of Darts.
After graduating in 2016 from Dundalk Institute of Technology with a BA Degree in Public Relations, she began her career in PR with Edelman before joining Legacy Communications Sports Sponsorship Team in 2019.
During her time there, she worked across clients including Littlewoods Ireland on their GAA sponsorship, Indeed on their sponsorship of Team Ireland, Aviva and Corporate.ie.
Breen was an integral part of the team that won the PRCA 2020 for Best Use Of Digital PR Including Content Creation for Littlewoods Ireland Style of Play.
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Caitriona Bregazzi 2021
Caitríona is a consultant in Teneo’s sport and sponsorship division. Having joined the organisation on a graduate programme in 2017, she has risen through the ranks to become a trusted advisor to many of Ireland’s leading sponsors.
Having originally worked in Teneo’s digital division creating content and managing brand social platforms, she then transitioned to the sport and sponsorship team where she works with a diverse range of sponsors and rightsholders involved in sport and the arts
She has played basketball and Gaelic football from a very young age. She has a keen interest in women’s sport with a particular desire to see women’s sport continue to thrive and develop and works closely with numerous brands in this area.
Caitríona graduated from Dublin City University with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Communication Studies and is currently undertaking a diploma in Digital Marketing with the UCD Professional Academy.
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Gordon Britchfield 2018
Gordon was Sponsorship and Marketing Manager at eir and when nominated for the list in 2018. He left to join RugbyPass and was involved in the Rugby World Cup of 2019 before joining Journal Media as an Account Director in 2020.
Originally from County Clare, Britchfield qualified from Limerick Institute of Technology with a first-class honours degree in Business Studies and Sports Management.
He has become a podcaster bringing an Irish slant to American football and is always fun to talk to.
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Hayley Burke 2018
Hayley was the Para-Swimming Operations Manager at Paralympics Ireland up to the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. After the Games, she took a turn away from the pool and is now the General manager of Clearspace Limited in Dublin
She managed the high-performance swim programme, coordinating the development programme as well as continuing on her coaching role with the para-swim team in the run-up to the Games.
She joined the organisation in February 2015, having previously worked as a volunteer for the Swim Team as a coach since 2011. Burke was part of the Irish team at the London 2012 Games, which saw the swim team win two gold medals.
A Level 3 coach, she was a swimmer of note herself with a 9th and 11th place finish at the European Youth Olympics in 2003, she is an Irish Senior Relay Record holder and also coaches the National Aquatic Centre swim team in her spare time.
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Laura Byrne 2020
Laura was the Brand Strategy Manager within Liberty Insurance up until September 2021.
She has since switched away from insurance and is now Ireland Brand Manager with Procter and Gamble responsible for brand marketing of a wide range of popular products from Head and Shoulders to Always, Pantene to Tampax.
While with Liberty she played a key role in the 2019 Camogie All-Star Tour that travelled to New York and also activated the Camogie Made Us grassroots campaign which promoted the important role of coaches within Camogie.
She began her career in Lidl working on the launch and activation of Lidl’s Ladies Gaelic Football sponsorship before moving to the United Arab Emirates where she spent a year marketing the FIFA Club World Cup and the AFC Asian Cup.
During this time she also rolled out the Asian Football Confederation’s It’s My Game’ initiative to encourage more women to participate in sport in a range of functions from participation and coaching to pursuing careers in the area and attending sporting events.
She is a graduate of NUI Galway, where she earned a Bachelor of Commerce degree and a Masters in Marketing Practice.
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Paul Byrne 2020
Paul Byrne is the Head of Athletics at Dublin City University having moved over from a position as Regional Development Officer at Athletics Ireland in October 2019.
Byrne represented Ireland at Senior and underage level during a distinguished career on the track, specialising at 400 metres hurdles.
The Laois native is the third-fastest Irishman to have raced in that discipline and has transitioned well from competing at the highest level into his coaching and development roles.
He was a Sky Sports athlete mentor during the run of that initiative between 2016 and 2017 and also worked with Intersport Elverys in the past.
Byrne studied at DCU in Environmental Science and earned a Masters Degree in Sports Performance from the University of Limerick in 2018.
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Jack Cantillon 2020
Jack Cantillon was a solicitor with Linklaters in London and the head of Syndicates Racing here in Ireland.
In June 2021 he struck out on his own to launch Herd, an online community servive based around the prediction of sporting events.
He came to prominence through the period of 2020’s first lockdown with a series of YouTube sessions highlighting areas of the horse racing profession.
He has served two terms as a Congressional intern in Washington and is currently a member of the Young Leaders Board at the Ireland Funds.
In 2013, while studying at Trinity College Dublin he founded the Spin 103.8 Student Raceday which has set the template for many more around the country.
He is qualified as an Attorney in New York and a Solicitor in England and Wales.
In January 2019 he founded Syndicates Racing, bringing the potential of racehorse ownership to a larger market through selling individual shares of 100 in each of the horses they buy and creating a sense of community through communication, merchandise and enthusiasm.
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Paddy Carberry 2018
Paddy Carberry was a key member of the sponsorship team at Vodafone Ireland when nominated for the list in 2018. He joined Diageo in November of that year where he is the Sponsorship and Brand Manager, heavily involved in the Guinness Rugby partnerships and Carlsberg’s partnership with the FAI.
He was part of the Team Vodafone that won three awards at the prestigious European Sponsorship Awards in 2018 for the #TeamofUs and Centre Stage sponsorship platforms.
Carberry was with Vodafone for four years having joined as part of their graduate programme after completing a primary degree in DCU in Journalism and Irish followed by a Business Masters in Next Generation Management.
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Blánaid Carney 2020
Blánaid is the GAA’s National Health and Wellbeing Coordinator, a member of the Community and Health Department in Croke Park.
She leads out on major National Health Promotion Campaigns within the Organisation, having joined the GAA in November 2019 after previously working as The Sports Hub Coordinator with the Cavan Local Sports Partnership and as a research assistant at Trinity College Dublin.
She also serves as the Healthy Ireland County Coordinator for her native Leitrim.
Carney graduated from Dublin City University with a BSc (hons) in Health and Society in 2015 before going on to complete a Master’s Degree in Physical Activity and Public Health at the University of Ulster.
She has also represented her Club, County and Province on the World Stage as an Irish Dancer.
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Bethany Carson 2021
Bethany Carson joined Swim Ireland as a coach at the National Aquatic Centre in 2017 and in September of that same year stepped into the role of Women in Sport Development officer.
She had previously represented Ireland at the World University Games and at the European Championships, and Northern Ireland at the 2010 Commonwealth Games.
She graduated from Dublin City University with a degree in Sports Science and Health.
She shone during the lockdown period playing a key role in maintaining a bond with the swimming club community and in delivering Women in Sport initiatives across her own and the wider sports community.
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John Clare 2019
John was nominated for the list in 2019 while a Senior Account Executive with Legacy Communications. In August of that year, he joined Titan Experience where he forged a strong reputation as a committed and effective Account Manager.
In October of 2021 he joined Molson Coors as a Customer Marketing Executive
John graduated from Waterford Institute of Technology with a Degree in Business and Recreation Sports management before returning to education and completing the UCD Masters in Sport and Exercise Management in 2017.
He has a role working on spectator services with UEFA for the Euro Finals in Dublin, now all we need are spectators.
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Michael Collins 2020
Michael was the Project Lead for Participation Programmes and the National Anti-Doping Officer for Triathlon Ireland when nominated in 2020.
In May 2021 he moved to Sport Ireland where he is now a Safeguarding and Ethics Executive.
He joined the Triathlon Ireland in 2017 having graduated from the Technological University of Dublin with a BSc. Honours degree in Sport and Leisure Management.
Michael was appointed last year to an additional role as Triathlon Ireland’s National Anti-Doping Officer and during this process has also successfully graduated from the Law Society of Ireland with a Diploma in Sports Law.
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Harry Connelly 2021
Harry Connelly was a member of the Sponsorship and Events team in Ripple Marketing, and a key contributor to the marketing around SSE Airtricity’s extended partnership with domestic soccer, when he was nominated in 2021.
In May of that year though he joined Verve the Live Agency where he is now a Sponsorship Account Manager.
He completed a BSc in Sport & Exercise Management at UCD and had previously cut his teeth in work experience within the FAI.
He has also been involved in the campaigns of Lucozade Sport with the Dublin Marathon and the IRFU, and with KBC on the Dublin Marathon.
In 2019 he completed a Professional Diploma in Social media Marketing with the Digital Marketing Institute.
So who do you think is worthy of inclusion this year?
Who do you work with that has shone over the past twelve months or more and is deserving of recognition as they rise through their career?
Criteria
The criteria for submission is that the person should be working within the sports industry, or in a sponsorship or agency capacity that is bringing sport to life, and that they should be born in or after 1992.
You are invited to submit names and a short precis of why an individual deserves to be recognised below.
Our ambition from the start has been to create a network of people making a real difference within our industry.
Who should we be looking to for the next wave of excellence?
This is not the time to be shy, this is an opportunity to put forward those you have come across that have struck you as having real potential, or indeed for you to put yourself forward.
It’s not about where you are now. It’s all about where you could get to with the right breaks.
