Business of Sport Charlie & Harry Stebbings

This week's show is a very special one, as we welcome Lina Nielsen to the Business of Sport.
Lina is a 400m hurdler for Great Britain. She was recently a member of the bronze winning relay team in the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow, alongside her sister, and is about to compete in a series of qualifiers to reach this summer's Olympic Games in Paris. 
But there is a unique addition to Lina’s story that shone a light on her career in 2022. At the World Championships in Oregon, she announced he has been living with multiple sclerosis since she was 17. Multiple sclerosis is a lifelong condition that affects the brain and nervous system. Symptoms include double vision, muscle weakness and loss of sensation and coordination. The condition affects everyone in different ways. 
The fact she pushed through a relapse (when someone with MS experiences a flare up of symptoms) to participate in Oregon is an amazing story in itself. To be one step away from competing in the Olympics is another. 
For many reasons this is a special interview, and a unique spin on ‘The Business of Sport’. MS is something that has impacted mine and Harry’s life. Our mother was diagnosed with the illness 15 years ago. It is something we are hugely passionate about supporting and spreading the word on, so it is a real pleasure to welcome Lina Nielsen to the show.
We discuss:
Elite competition:
What does the day in the life of an elite athlete look like? What are the priorities and key focuses essential to high performance? Qualifying for an Olympics - what does the road to Paris involve and how much competition is there for places on the team? Small margins are the difference between success and failure. New qualifying times have made it harder than ever to make it. Financing a career in the sport. Funding is hard to come by; the importance of brand partnerships to ensure you can commit to a full time career.
MS diagnosis and Athletics:
Announcing to the world that Lina had MS was not an easy decision. Why did she decide the 2022 World Championships was the time to tell her story? How does multiple sclerosis impact the body and what challenges does it present to someone trying to make it in professional sport. The mental hurdles to overcome once the news was out in the open. Why did Lina fear critique and backlash from the community because of her achievements? When you have a story like this, your profile changes. How to deal with a new attention from the public and fellow athletes while still focusing on your performance.  Role of the Athlete
There is social responsibility that extends beyond performance in today’s society. Athletes have the ability to influence and inspire. The role social media can play in reaching fans, giving them access to your story, and bringing them into your world, offers endless opportunity. How being a figurehead or leader for something can be intimidating, but at the same time it can empower you with the support of an entire community. This show is brought to you by MS-UK, the charity supporting all those affected by multiple sclerosis. Visit https://ms-uk.org/ to find out more about their amazing work within the MS community. 

This week, we are delighted to welcome Nico Rosberg to the show. Nico is a Formula One legend. He competed in 206 Grand Prix’s, with 23 wins, 30 pole’s, 57 podiums, and over 1500 championship points. Nico’s World Championship win when driving alongside childhood friend Lewis Hamilton for Mercedes is one of the most iconic in the history of the sport, and saw him follow in the footsteps of his father Keke, who won the championship in 1982. It was in the days after this win that Nico announced his shock retirement, putting new meaning into finishing on the highest of highs. But that wasn’t the end. A serial angel investor and entrepreneur, Nico last week announced Rosberg Ventures, his new $75m Fund of Funds, a vehicle aimed at investing in leading funds to foster global startup innovation.
Whether we’re talking about sport or business, this conversation is the perfect demonstration of how a career at the top end of one industry can translate into significant value in another. As you will hear, the margins that separate success and failure in this sport are impossibly small. Dedication and sacrifice are non-negotiables if you want to achieve. This is the same in business.
He brings a truly unique perspective to the role of an athlete. This is sport, investment, leadership, culture, winning mentality. There is something in this for everyone.
In today’s show we discuss:
The world of F1:
Growing up with a World Champion. How the success of his father Keke inspired a young Nico to become a Formula 1 World Champion. What does it take to make it in F1? The karting scene for young drivers is very intense, and requires a lot of time away from friends, family and school. Funding his own career in racing and the cost of participation to reach the top of the sport. What happened the first time Nico drove an F1 car? How important is the car to the success of a driver? What is it like to be driving for the team that is dominating a season and operating in an environment of invincibility?  The challenge of creating equal opportunity in a team of two world class drivers. At the end of the day there will always be one who gets preferential treatment. Why did Nico retire immediately after winning the 2016 championship? Mentality is key:
How to master the 1%’s. From constructing a fitness regime to optimally manage the best physique, to the weight of paint on a hemet, what do drivers do to get an edge? Failure is really important. Missing out on pole, podiums, race wins that spurs you on to greater success and achievement. The people around you can help create the most prepared mind, and sport is now embracing the presence of individuals specifically targeted with developing the ultimate mindset to live with pressure.  What happens when you achieve your ultimate dream? Learning how to enjoy the highs and manage the lows to build the strongest mentality required.  How is the mentality of the athlete similar to the mentality of the businessperson, and what can be learnt from each other? Business success born from sport:
There are so many traits that translate from professional sport into the world of business. What are the key contributions of an athlete in an outside industry? How has Nico built a career away from the race track in investment, entrepreneurship, and wider business? What are things that inspire him? The launch of Rosberg Ventures $75m fund of funds and the ambitions Nico has for building bridges between corporate Europe and leading global startups.  Learning a new language; the work required to get into a new industry is not to be taken lightly. What was Nico’s transition like from athlete to businessman?  Today’s show is brought to you by SeatUnique, the ultimate destination for elevating live events into unforgettable experiences. Visit seatunique.com to discover some of the incredible packages they have to offer across some of the biggest sport, media and entertainment events.
 

This week, we are delighted to welcome Eni Aluko to the show. Categorizing Eni’s career is a hard one. Former professional footballer, media personality, investor, sporting executive. Eni has been a prominent figure in the sport for nearly 20 years. As a player, she most notably represented Chelsea and Juventus, while winning over 100 caps for England, playing a huge role in establishing the women’s professional game we enjoy so much today. She is a leading pundit for ITV and TNT, while also being the first female to appear on Match of the Day. She has held Sporting Director positions at Aston Villa and Angel City in the US, and is now part of Mercury13, a multi-club ownership group focused on acquiring controlling stakes in professional women’s football teams. 
It’s an impressive list of achievements, but that’s not to suggest it’s been an easy road. From the challenges of accessing football in her youth, struggling to finance a career in football before it became professional, fighting against the vitriol of female pundits in the male game, and coming through a very public discrimination case with the FA, Eni has be instrumental in elevating the profile of women’s football and most importantly, women in football as a whole.
This was a special opportunity to sit down with her and talk through all of this. It is a conversation driven by frank honesty, with some fascinating opinion thrown in on the current footballing landscape for good measure. She openly admits she is not everyone’s cup of tea, but that doesn’t bother her.
In today’s show we discuss:
Accessibility of women’s football:
The lack of access when Eni was growing up. How did she begin her career and what were academy systems like? How financially feasible was it to commit to a career in football before the women’s game became professional? How moving to the US was Eni’s most viable route to professional football, and how the WSL has changed that today. Having to ‘pay-to-play’ for England: taking time off from a full time job away from football to be able to play for your country. Should women’s clubs be integrated into men’s clubs or should they be separate entities like we often see in the US. Brand, attendance and freedom to act independently? A career away from the pitch:
Breaking into the media: appearing as the first female pundit on Match of the Day to contracts with TNT and ITV. Putting yourself in the public and breaking down the barriers for women to play a major role in the world of sports media across the men’s game. Handling the pressures of live TV and the scrutiny that has arisen from social media. How to ignore the noise and focus on the job. The concern that women coming into football media are now not performing because they are fearful of making mistakes. A passion for football business and governance: ‘Director of Football’ roles at Aston Villa and Angel City and how football clubs are run. Investment into women’s football: Mercury13 and the multi club investment model. What are the opportunities and challenges facing the women’s game? The football landscape today:
How do transfers work? As an experienced sporting director, what is the relationship like between clubs when negotiating a deal? What is Eni’s view on the increasingly prevalent PSR and how they have been executed over the past 6 months? Will an independent regulator improve the Premier League? Should there be a salary cap introduced to control spending and protect clubs from getting into financial difficulty? Declan to Rice to Arsenal. Did City participate to help Arteta get his deal done? Communication is key. We need to know what is going within clubs to help the fans engage with their teams.
We are delighted to partner with SeatUnique, the ultimate destination for elevating live events into unforgettable experiences. 
Visit seatunique.com to discover some of the incredible packages they have to offer across some of t

This week, ahead of the Grand National on Saturday, we are delighted to welcome Nevin Truesdale to the show. Nevin is the CEO of The Jockey Club, the largest commercial horse racing organisation in the UK. It owns 15 of the country’s most famous racecourses, including Cheltenham and Aintree, as well as thoroughbred horse breeding farm ‘The National Stud’ and land management company ‘Jockey Club Estates’.
Horse racing is the UK’s second most attended sport, with nearly 6 million people visiting racecourses each year. It is a sport steeped in history and tradition, but has come under fire in recent years for not embracing change, appealing to younger audiences, and of course well documented animal welfare concerns. 
Nevin, who has been Chief Executive since 2020, gives us a very honest account of the challenges the sport faces, but at the same time, all of the positive steps being made and the developments successfully implemented to counter some of the critique levelled at racing. 
On the show, we discuss:
The success and history of racing:
Where does racing sit in the UK and global sporting ecosystem in popularity and participation? The difference between jump and flat racing. What is the role of The Jockey Club? How has it influenced the sport over the last few hundred years and what is the organisation doing to ensure the sport continues to move forward. How is racing governed, and is it set up to be able to modernise and develop it’s proposition in this competition for eyeballs and attention? The importance of racecourses to local economies and an increasingly varied use of venues for commercial, events and social purposes. The international growth of the sport and the opportunities and challenges that presents to racing in the UK. Challenging negative perceptions:
Animal welfare issues have been a continuous issue for racing in recent times. How legitimate are these concerns and what is being done to improve safety in the sport. Accessibility and exclusivity. How The Jockey Club and the wider sport are tackling critiques around elitism and a lack of diversity, and how this is not an accurate representation of the sport. The fight to win the argument for reasonable opinion: how you are unlikely to change the minds of the most passionate critics, but it is the people in the middle that need to be convinced. How removing restrictions around dress codes and better cross platform communications can make the sport more appealing to the younger demographic. The importance of betting to racing, and the controls put in place to ensure people can participate in this side of the sport safely. Media rights and content:
How racing’s deal with ITV brings over 100 days of live racing to fans in the UK and continues to ensure the biggest events remain free-to-air. The opportunity to build relationships with ‘new media’ platforms, from social media companies to OTT platforms, and what that adds to the offering. The imminent release of a behind the scenes documentary in the summer will bring a new level of access to the world of racing and how it operates. Social media success has made some of the content produced a new staple in sporting TikTok and short form content. What is the impact of this on attracting new fans? This show is brought to you by SeatUnique, the ultimate destination for elevating live events into unforgettable experiences. 
Visit seatunique.com to discover some of the incredible packages they have to offer across some of the biggest sport, media and entertainment events.

Today, we bring you a guest who's sending ripples through the sporting and political landscape. Aron D’Souza is the President of the Enhanced Games, the first pro-choice and pro-science alternative to the Olympics. A lawyer by trade, Aron led Peter Thiel’s infamous litigation against Gawker Media involving wrestler Hulk Hogan, a relationship that has led to the PayPal founder becoming one of the Enhanced Games major backers.
Supported by some of the world’s top venture capitalists, the Enhanced Games describe themselves as the Olympics of the future. The major difference? Athletes are allowed to take performance enhancing drugs.
Now, the ethos of the Games is simple. Provide an environment that allows science in sport to flourish, and pay the athletes fairly in the process. Critique of the Games has focused on the risk to athletes' health and the undermining of integrity and fairness in sporting competition. 
In today’s show, we discuss:
The use of performance enhancers:
Performance enhancing drugs are banned in most sport. While the list of banned substances varies, what are the fundamentals that make this approach better than the current system? ‘I think doping should be erased from out language’. What are the issues with terminology used around scientific enhancements and the perceptions they form? How prevalent is the use of banned substances in sport today? Is the fact they are being used in the shadows one of the key reasons this proposition can attract ‘clean’ athletes? The health issue: this is the primary stick with which to beat this event. How dangerous is a regulated Games compared to what we see in Athletics today. Is it a free for all or will there still be some boundaries athletes have to adhere to? How have athletes reacted to this proposition? Improving athlete pay:
In the current Olympic/athletics system, athlete remuneration does not allow for many athletes to make a living off their participation. Creating a model that pays the athletes in accordance with the value of their talent is a major commitment from the Enhanced Games. Paying athletes ensures they can focus their full time on their sporting career and therefore perform better in competition.  Offering financial rewards for athletes accomplishing extraordinary things: James Magnussen coming out of retirement to attempt to break the 50m freestyle record for a prize of $1m. How backing from leading venture capitalists including Christian Angermayer and PayPal founder Peter Thiel facilitates an ambitious financial approach. This is a move we have seen in many sports over recent years, but how does the addition of performance enhancers + big payouts appeal to athletes? Changes in wider sport:
This is a privately funded sports event. What does that mean? How does a venture backed sports competition create fandom? The current sports governance landscape and the issues with legacy leadership structures in industries that require innovative and transformative development. What other sports would benefit most from the ‘Enhanced approach’?  How this event will deliver batter fan experiences, employ the latest technology, and leverage data to continually improve it’s proposition. Enhancements extend careers. Athletes will be able to compete at the highest level for longer periods of time! If you want to see more for Business of Sport, follow us across all our platforms. https://linktr.ee/bizofsport

Today, we are delighted to welcome Matthew Porter. Matthew is the CEO of the Professional Darts Corporation, more commonly known as the PDC, overseeing the sport of darts and it’s  iconic tournaments, including the World Darts Championship at Alexandra Palace. 
Since his appointment in 2008, Matthew has played an integral role in building out the darts calendar, introducing events such as the European Championship and Players Championship Finals, the PDC World Cup of Darts and the European Tour, as well as the implementation of the PDC’s development structure with Qualifying School, the Challenge Tour, and Youth Tour. 
Previously, Matthew was Chief Executive of Leyton Orient Football Club, becoming the youngest CEO in the football league at the age of 26 when appointed. He is also Chairman of Matchroom Multi Sport.
In today’s show we discuss:
World Darts Championship:
How the flagship event over the Christmas period drives mass engagement for the sport. The incredible viewing figures for the 2024 Championship that culminated in over 4m for the final, making it the most viewed sporting event on Sky outside of football. The importance of capitalising on attention when you are lucky enough to have it in sport, and ensuring you don’t let the opportunity to drive bigger and better engagement pass by. What are the key numbers around the event? What do sponsors want from their partnerships? How do media rights deals incorporate the rest of the calendar? Celebritisation of players:
The rise of Luke Littler and how he became the face of the sport. What does it do for the wider darts community? This is something that has been happening long before Luke came along. How have the Smith’s and Van Gerwen’s of the world help develop the profile of the sport? Does darts have an image problem? Do the professionals now play a key part in encouraging young people to get involved in the sport and realise the opportunity a career in darts can present? How has social media been leveraged to engage a range of demographics all tuning into the darts for different reasons? You can’t alienate the core audience but must speak to new fans. How do the players work together to positively promote themselves and the sport? The growth of the sport 
Darts is a global sport, but it is heavily centred around the UK and Europe. How important is it to take darts to new countries to ensure the sport keeps developing? In which countries do the biggest opportunities lie from a participation and viewing perspective and how do you take advantage of this? Bringing in new sponsors and making the sport more attractive to industry outside of the ones that normally commercialise in the space will be a key way in expanding the reach of the sport. Providing greater financial opportunity through tour funding and prize money will allow for more people to commit to darts and pursue a career to a professional level. As we talked about at the start of the episode, we will also be highlighting some of the most inspiring people, stories, and organisations across sport once a month on the show. To support the incredible endeavours of Russ Cook (Hardest Geezer!) as he takes on the continent of Africa on foot, please find his social media and fundraising pages in the link below!
linktr.ee/hardestgeezer