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The biggest names in the global business of sport sit down with Leaders Editorial Director, James Emmett, and Content Director, David Cushnan.
318 Episodes
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James Emmett and David Cushnan look ahead to a new Formula 1 season and another potentially seismic shift in the sport. With significant gains in audience and commercial growth for the motorsport series in recent years, teams have felt the trickle down benefit, logging their own commercial gains. With the biggest set of rule changes for over a decade coming into force this season, the playing field - theoretically - has been levelled. At this stage, championship contention is a realistic goal for almost all the teams. One that stands a particularly realistic chance of improvement is Aston Martin, whose commercial MD Jeff Slack is the featured guest on the interview show this week. James and David reflect on Slack's comments, and take some time to look back on the Super Bowl as well as ahead to the future of the IOC's TOP sponsorship model. - -- -- -- -- Leaders Week London is moving to Stamford Bridge, home of Chelsea FC. We’ll see you on Wednesday 7th and Thursday 8th October. For more details visit leadersinsport.com/leadersweek
As F1 pre-season testing gets underway in Bahrain, Jeff Slack, Aston Martin F1's Managing Director of Commercial and Marketing, lifts the lid on how the team intends to reach the front of the grid. He reflects on the way the team has grown to over 1,100 people since it was rebranded as Aston Martin in 2021, its move into a new purpose-built facility at Silverstone and, after a 7th place finish in 2025, how owner Lawrence Stroll has set the course towards competing for world championships in the next few years, with the help of Honda and Aramco. Slack also draws on his wider sports industry experience, including stints in leadership roles at Inter Milan and IMG, to assess the overall health of F1 and the way it's evolving for brand partners as the 2026 season dawns - and reveals what the sport must be wary of as it enjoys its current fan and corporate boom.--- Leaders Week London is moving to Stamford Bridge, home of Chelsea FC. We’ll see you on Wednesday 7th and Thursday 8th October. For more details visit leadersinsport.com/leadersweek
James Emmett in Brisbane and David Cushnan in London reflect on conversations with Australian Open CEO Craig Tiley and his top team, and explain how the expansion - outwards and upwards - of Melbourne Park hints at a new trend across sport's major events - and opens up the opportunity to create new sponsorship, entertainment and fan-friendly spaces. There's also time to look ahead to the Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina, which begins on Friday, and will be spread across Northern Italy - bringing with it the potential for operational and sustainability challenges, that will help determine the future of the winter Games ahead of regional editions in the French Alps (2030), Utah (2034) and, most likely, Switzerland (2038). Plus, there's a run-through of the broadcast innovations Olympic Broadcast Services are rolling out for the Games. - -- -- -- -- -- -- - Leaders Week London is moving to Stamford Bridge, home of Chelsea FC. We’ll see you on Wednesday 7th and Thursday 8th October. For more details visit leadersinsport.com/leadersweek
As the dust settles on a tournament that attracted a record 1.3 million attendees, we explore the inner workings of the Australian Open in a special episode. James Emmett spent the weekend on the ground at Melbourne Park, as Carlos Alcaraz and Elena Rybakina claimed the big prizes, to find out how the AO operates, as a tennis and social event, and a best-in-class fan experience. James sits down with Tennis Australia CEO and Tournament Director Craig Tiley, and then a trio of Tiley's key executives: Chief Content Officer, Darren Pearce; Director of Product and Customer Experience, Amanda del Prate; and Director of Partnerships, International, Roddy Campbell. They explain all aspects of how the AO does what it does: designing, developing and delivering sponsor activations, creating hospitality offerings to suit all tastes and price ranges; retail and merchandising experiences; innovative content and broadcast products; and wide-ranging entertainment programmes. - - Leaders Week London is moving to Stamford Bridge, home of Chelsea FC. We’ll see you on Wednesday 7th and Thursday 8th October. For more details visit leadersinsport.com/leadersweek
The world’s top tennis have been barred from wearing Whoop wearables at the Australian Open, reigniting a debate over who owns personal performance data.James Emmett is on the ground in Melbourne for this week’s show, with David Cushnan back in the UK, to examine the various cases for ‘owning’ that data.They also reflect on recent events in Saudi Arabia, as well as the Public Investment Fund’s global sponsorship strategy, laid out in David’s conversation with PIF’s Director and Head of Sponsorship and Events, Alanoud Althonayan.And as British Cycling’s Jon Dutton is appointed as the next CEO of the British Olympic Association, what will the next period of leadership look like for British Olympic sport and its many governing bodies.- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -Leaders Week London is moving to Stamford Bridge, home of Chelsea FC. We’ll see you on Wednesday 7th and Thursday 8th October. For more details visit leadersinsport.com/leadersweek
Alanoud Althonayan, Director and Head of Events and Sponsorship at Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, joins the podcast to explain PIF’s sponsorship strategy and dig into its current key partnerships. In the first episode of a new series exploring PIF’s growing sponsorship portfolio, Alnothayan sits down with David Cushnan in Riyadh for an extended conversation, outlining what PIF looks for in partners, and the ways it is striving to help solve societal and sporting challenges across its portfolio. She explains the rationale behind the new PIF WTA Maternity Fund programme, which provides WTA players up to 12 month of paid leave; how the AI powered PIF TennisIQ platform is revolutionising and democratising data for players and coaches on the ATP Tour; how the Electric 360 initiative co-developed with Formula E, Extreme E and E1 is supporting the growth of electric transportation; how the appeal of golf is being unlocked for locals through work with Golf Saudi; and how partnerships in football, notably with CONCACAF, are giving PIF a platform in the world’s most popular sport. Leaders Week London is moving to Stamford Bridge, home of Chelsea FC. We’ll see you on Wednesday 7th and Thursday 8th October. For more details visit leadersinsport.com/leadersweek
The NBA’s private event in London on Monday saw investors and other interested parties gather to learn more about the league’s plans for its European league; how is the project starting to come together and what happens now? James Emmett and David Cushnan unpack the latest on a potentially game-changing project, and reflect on James’ in-depth conversation with British & Irish Lions CEO Ben Calveley, touching on the upside and downside of scarcity, clarity of business models and innovation in rugby union. There’s also a look at the trend for NFL stadiums to have roofs, changing the look and feel of the league, and what that might mean for stadium refurbishments and new builds in the Premier League.
British & Irish Lions CEO Ben Calveley reflects on a record-breaking tour of Australia in 2025, and looks ahead to the inaugural women's Lions tour of New Zealand in 2027. The Lions - one of the most idiosyncratic entities in world sport - is the organization set up to manage the occasional rugby union side of the same name. Players are drawn from England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland to compete for a touring team historically every four years. The rugby unions of those same nations co-own the Lions. This episode may well have been subtitled 'how to turn a profit on tour', because since taking on the top job at the Lions in 2018 - first as MD, and then as CEO in 2022 - Calveley has ripped up the model that underpins the Lions and started again with a robust new framework that incentivizes the many stakeholders involved in making - or allowing - a tour to happen: from the competing unions, the host nation, the players and their agents, to the leagues and clubs that they're contracted to. The new model ensures a balanced share in the success of any tour, and revenues have ballooned. Calveley goes into depth on how the model works; puts his neck on the line by declaring the first women's Lions tour will be profitable; and talks leadership and life in this comprehensive episode.
Fanatics chief Michael Rubin thinks a new credit card could generate his company’s next billion dollar revenue stream, but could content and his new Fanatics Studios venture also be a contender? James Emmett and David Cushnan delve into the new projects, and reflect on David’s conversation with Chris Bryant, MD of Euro 2028. They also examine the raft of innovative, fan-friendly ideas the organisers of the Australian Open are serving up, and the way the Grand Slams are taking up more space in the tennis calendar. - - - Leaders Week London is moving to Stamford Bridge, home of Chelsea FC. We’ll see you on Wednesday 7th and Thursday 8th October. For more details visit leadersinsport.com/leadersweek
Euro 2028 Managing Director Chris Bryant joins the show to share how preparations for the tournament are going.He'll share how he and his growing team are working with multiple Football Associations, governments and Uefa to bring the tournament, which will be played in England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland, to life - and how his experience of running the Wembley part of Euro 2020 and the whole of Women's Euro 2022 are helping.As the World Cup approaches this summer, he also reflects on how major event organisers need to be attuned to the politics of the day, and ready to adapt accordingly. And he'll share what needs to happen in 2026 to make Euro 2028 great.
Gerrit Meier, the NFL's Managing Director and Head of International, is on the line from New York, to reflect on another season of games played around the world and the league's wider international ambitions. He reviews games played this season in London, Berlin, Madrid, Dublin and Sao Paulo, and explains how the NFL approaches operating in new markets, from commercial activity to fanbase development, diplomacy to participation. Meier also expands on the league's vision to ultimately play up to 16 games per season outside the US, and shares how the NFL is identifying cities and countries as potential future hosts.
Esteve Calzada, CEO of Saudi Pro League giant Al Hilal, assesses the evolution of football in the Kingdom, as he welcomes Leaders’ Content Director David Cushnan to the club’s corporate office in Riyadh. Al-Hilal SC is Saudi Arabia’s most successful football team, and has clubs in over 20 sports. In a wide-ranging conversation, the former City Football Club executive offers his advice to sports industry leaders thinking of making a move to Saudi Arabia; what life is like working and living in fast-developing Riyadh; and the challenge of managing a team of 300 made up of a mix of international and local executive talent. He also explains how football fandom plays out in Saudi Arabia; why he can’t go out to dinner with his counterpart at rival club Al-Nassr; the professionalisation process underway in the Saudi Pro League that saw the Public Investment Fund take majority ownership of Al-Hilal; and the private sector opportunities for sponsorship and commercial growth in the Kingdom.
IMG's VP and Co-Head of Multisport Content Sally Brown is in the Leaders studio, alongside David Cushnan, for the final part of the series that examines how to do business around the global sports industry.With a focus on EMEA - a region of established sports markets and fast-growing emerging territories - Brown explains how IMG’s suite of production offerings are helping grow sports across the region, including Euroleague Basketball and the Esports World Cup.Chris Guinness, EVP and Global Head of Commercial, and Roland Nikolaou, VP of Football in MENA bring two more IMG perspectives, to discuss media consolidation and its impact on rights and production across European markets; football fan culture in Saudi Arabia and across the Middle East; and advice for sports organisations looking to be more active in the MENA region.
IMG's SVP of Strategy and Growth Josh Humbler joins James Emmett in the Leaders studio in the second of a three-part series looking at how to do business around the global sports industry.
After digging into the unique sports media market that is Australia, Brisbane native Humbler is joined by two Shanghai-based colleagues Ellein Cao, VP, Commercial, Greater China and Rufio Zhu, VP, Digital at what was until very recently the Mailman agency.
On the agenda: how to make an impact in China and unearth the real economic opportunity ; making sense of the platforms, the numbers, and the content culture in China; tennis, soccer and the sports that are breaking through.
Paulius Motiejunas, CEO of European basketball's premier club competition, Euroleague, is the guest on this week's podcast. As the prospect of a new NBA-backed European start-up league edges closer - with suggestions recently that a competition might be ready to launch in 2027 - Motiejunas joins the podcast (interview starts at 19.58) to give his perspective on developments; from the dynamics of the multi-stakeholder discussions, to the ramifications for the sport in Europe should plans progress as the NBA indicate they will. He also reflects on two and half years of change during his tenure at the top of Euroleague, with a commercial restructuring that has seen a new sponsorship model brought to bear; IMG's comprehensive strategic partnership renewed for a further ten years; and significant headway made in expansion to the Middle East with a new team in Dubai and a successful partnership with Abu Dhabi as the new host of the league's climactic Final Four event. Elsewhere in the show, Henry Breckenridge reports from inside Formula 1's technical broadcast operation at Biggin Hill Airport.
Tottenham Hotspur and England footballer James Maddison joins the Leaders Worth Knowing podcast to unpack his approach to social media. Fresh off the stage at the Summit at Leaders Week this year, Maddison was joined by fellow panelists Shaneil Patel, Head of Social Media at Spurs, and Rollo Goldstaub, TikTok's Global Head of Sports Partnerships. The trio piece together the winning formula that has made Spurs the most successful Premier League team on TikTok - with 43 million followers - and Maddison himself one of the most resonant active athlete voices on the platform today.
Andrew Abdo, National Rugby League (NRL) CEO, joins the show for a wide-ranging conversation, as its global ambitions solidify. In London for the England-Australia Ashes Test series, he reflects on five years at the helm of Australia's biggest sports league by viewership, a stint which has seen major revenue growth and international expansion, in the Pacific and to Las Vegas.He sets out the NRL's approach to international markets, reflects on the league's global vision - including its relationship with the Super League in the UK - and, as the NRL's next domestic broadcast rights cycle approaches, Australia's dynamic media market.Abdo also shares his approach to longer-term challenges, including artificial intelligence, private equity investment and real estate development, and gives his advice to international organisations coming into Australia as the 2032 Olympics loom on the horizon.- - -- Join 200 influential sports leaders at Leaders Meet: Australia in Brisbane on 4th and 5th February 2026 - for more information head to https://leadersinsport.com/sport-business/leaders-events/leaders-meet-australia/
IMG Executive Vice President & Head of Americas, Rights, Hillary Mandel joins James Emmett in the Leaders studio in the first of a new three-part series looking at how to do business around the global sports industry.After identifying the ramifications of media fragmentation, corporate consolidation and cord cutting in the North American media market, sports media legend Mandel, who has sold billions of dollars worth of rights across a 22-year career at IMG, is joined by colleagues Evandro Figuera, VP, LATAM, Rights, who's based in Sao Paolo, and Brian Pressman, VP of Brand Partnerships based in New York.On the agenda: how to make an impact in Brazil, from the boardroom to the field play; IMG's record-breaking partnership with Conmebol; Major League Soccer, the NWSL and the gigantic opportunity that is the 2026 Fifa World Cup.
Former AFC Bournemouth owner Jeff Mostyn and his daughter Janine, MD of search firm Huckleberry Sport, are the guests on this week's Leaders Worth Knowing. The Mostyns are two of the best networked people in the UK sports industry, and ahead of the release of Jeff's new book, The Chairman: The Man who Saved AFC Bournemouth, they visited the Leaders studio to reflect on a (very expensive!) fairytale journey. Having made a success of a financial advisory practice focused on the Armed Forces, Jeff began his association with AFC Bournemouth in 2006. At the time, the club was in the third tier of English football, saddled with debt and poorly run. Over the course of the next 16 years, Jeff took the club through administration, to the brink of extinction, via a trip to the very bottom of the English professional pyramid, before establishing the club as a force in the Premier League. Bill Foley's consortium, Black Knight Football Club, bought the club in 2022. Janine has led sport and entertainment talent firm Huckleberry Sport since 2017, and works with the likes of Premier League football clubs, Formula 1 racing teams, media and broadcast production companies, business consulting services and agencies and world-renowned gaming and entertainment providers.
Audi joins the F1 grid in 2026 and the team’s Chief Commercial Officer Stefano Battiston joins the show to give an update on preparations.Completing its phased, multi-year buyout of the Sauber team, the German manufacturer will join the grid as F1’s latest round of technical regulations come into play with the potential to shake up the competitive order.Commercially, Battison was at the heart of a new title sponsorship agreement with finance app Revolut - he explains what happened behind the scenes to get the deal done.He also reflects on the changing culture as the Swiss-based team grows, how Audi intends to make its mark as one of 11 teams in F1 next season and how he identifies new sponsorship categories and brands with marketing budgets.
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