Over 140 individuals from more than 80 of our 300+ Member organisations were present in the room yesterday for the Sport for Business Sporting Year Ahead 2025 in partnership with Teneo.
It has become a keynote event to kickstart the year and the buzz of conversation was vibrant from the doors opening at 9 AM to the last departures in the early afternoon.
As ever we were humbled by the willingness of great speakers to share a stage and impart their views and their values.
Yesterday we kicked off with Lynne Cantwell, two weeks into her role as Head of Women’s Rugby Strategy at the IRFU but inspiring yesterday on the different challenges and joy she found working in South Africa and her excitement at first listening to what is in place and then building a legacy for girls and women to want to play the sport like never before.
David Courell, CEO of the FAI is an engaging personality who has earned his stripes in the sports industry and is proving to be an inspired choice to take up the reins at the organisation as it continues its forward progress from the darker days of recent years.
We spoke about managerial appointments, of hope and confidence in progress to the finals of major competitions in the future but also about the complexity of the game at every level, the turnaround in the perspective of Sport ireland and Government on what is possible and what is needed, and on the excitement of a new SSE Airtricity League of Ireland season.
Our partners in Teneo delivered a data set of what the general public think of sport and sponsorship that was exciting to hear and vital in terms of planning where next for Irish sporting organisations and sponsors.
We welcomed and congratulated three of our members that have or will shortly be stepping into new roles – Michelle Tanner into the Chairing of the Women in Sport committee at Sport Ireland; Patrick McKinney in the role of creating partnerships around the Amgen Irish Open, and Tomás Quinn stepping away from a lifetime of Dublin GAA to take the helm as the new CEO at Shelbourne FC, albeit not before delivering on some exciting initiatives which you can shortly read all about on Sport for Business.
Special Olympian George Fitzgerald inspired us all to follow him on the road to Turin for the Special Olympics World Winter Games in March to cheer on our ski team and our floorball team.
We finished out the formal proceedings with a wide ranging conversation with Ben Calveley, CEO of the British and Irish Lions. We covered the covid tour of South Africa and the strength that came from beating the odds their even if losing the series by the finest of margins. But also about the vibrancy of having more fans booked and ready to go to Australia then ever before and a first game on home soil.
Talking about manager Andy Farrell’s leadership of the team and his focus on always making the main thing the main thing was a key takeaway for me.
Over the coming ten days we will release a selection of highlights from those conversations as Sport for Business Podcasts.
We gave away two tickets to see Leinster against Bath on Sunday to Olympian Hannah Mcloughlin, courtesy of our friends at the Sandymount Hotel, and we started conversations on a host of new initiatives to bring to life in the next 12 months.
If you made it to Ballsbridge thanks you for your continued support and if you didn’t well we will be back again in 2026 and while there is a lot to be done in the meantime we are kind of excited for that already.
SPORT FOR BUSINESS PERSPECTIVE
We love bringing people together and this has become one of our top events of the year in doing just that to renew acquaintance, re-ignite passions and set up those in attendance to play at the top of their game.
WHAT’S UP NEXT?
We will be revealing details next week of our next two events on Sport and Data at the end of February and on Sports Tourism at the end of March.
MEMBERSHIP AND EVENTS
Over 140 individuals from more than 80 of our 300+ Member organisations were present in the room yesterday. Thanks for being there.
The Sport for Business Membership comprises nearly 300 organisations, including all the leading sports and sponsors, as well as commercial and state agencies.