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Thinking from both sides of the table. Regular takes on sports sponsorship, audiences and the changing business of sport, for brands, rights holders and start-ups.

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Latest issueBUCS basketball game with partner branding courtside
Rights holders523 reads11 Oct 2026 · 6 min read

Show me more than the money

"The headline will nearly always be the money. The better measure may be what that money makes possible."

What Leaders in Sport revealed about the North American playbook, and what rights holders should ask of any investor or partner.

Read the issue

All articles

13 pieces · newest first

Managing partnerships76 reads

When reputation travels the wrong way

What happens to a partnership when the reputation you bought into heads in the wrong direction, from someone who has managed it.

"Reputation management doesn't start when there's a crisis. It starts when there's nothing to manage."

4 Oct 2026 · 7 min read · Read →

Athletes677 reads

The changing rules of athlete partnerships

Five considerations each for athletes, brands and governing bodies.

"Slapping an athlete next to your product on a poster is unlikely to really move the needle."

20 Sep 2026 · 10 min read · Read →

Start-ups and founders

What big organisations forget about growth

Two years with HiTZ Cricket, and the start-up behaviours established brands and rights holders should not grow out of.

"Do not just sponsor success. Sometimes help create it."

6 Sep 2026 · 12 min read · Read →

BrandsMost read703 reads

Is your brand on a shirt a sure bet?

What 92 shirts and one 27-year renewal say about buying the chest, plus the £1m Shirt Test.

"I'd want to know why before I knew where."

9 Aug 2026 · 10 min read · Read →

Brands

Why England is my Lovemark

From Italia 90 to the FA marketing team: what fandom teaches brands about how to show up in sport.

"Something people feel. Something people remember. Something that adds to what they already love."

19 Jul 2026 · 10 min read · Read →

Start-ups and founders

Cracking the LinkedIn code, well sort of

What changed when we got more deliberate about who we write for, and what the numbers say.

"Posting regularly is helpful. Posting regularly with nothing to say is not."

21 Jun 2026 · 7 min read · Read →

Women's sport

Why the Women's Cricket World Cup could be the catalyst

O2, Metro Bank, Airbnb and BUCS, and why women's sport is a test of whether a brand is building something or renting attention.

"The rights are the starting point, not the finished article."

7 Jun 2026 · 6 min read · Read →

Brands

The World Cup hasn't started yet, but the brand battle has

Nine World Cup activations, from a royal squad announcement to Burberry, and what the best ones have in common.

"The best activations are finding credible ways to tap into national pride, fandom, humour and culture."

31 May 2026 · 7 min read · Read →

Brands139 reads

Robots in disguise: why robot lawnmowers are showing up in sport

Why brands asking people to change behaviour, from cinch to robot lawnmowers, turn to sport to build trust.

"Sport isn't just something people like. It's something people care about."

3 May 2026 · 4 min read · Read →

Start-ups and founders

Starting from scratch: two years learning the new rules

Eight lessons from leaving a senior role to build a business of our own.

"Titles don't solve problems, solutions do."

12 Apr 2026 · 3 min read · Read →

Brands

This is not just sponsorship, this is M&S sponsorship

What retail sponsorship looks like when it is built like retail, with M&S, Aldi and Co-op.

"Sport creates moments; retail turns moments into behaviour."

5 Apr 2026 · 6 min read · Read →

Rights holders

The future of franchise cricket: a global super league?

Private money, new markets and a crowded calendar. Evolution or revolution for cricket?

"Stop debating 'if' a global league will happen and start discussing 'how'."

2 Feb 2025 · 3 min read · Read →

Put the thinking to work

The ideas in the Scoop come from our own framework and our client work. Here's where to go next.

Our framework

Bazballers 4P model™

Purpose, Proposition, Positioning, Performance. The four questions behind every partnership we work on.

See how it works → Try it

The £1m Shirt Test

Five questions to ask your leadership team before you buy, renew or sell a front-of-shirt deal.

Take the test → Proof

Our work

Case studies from brands, rights holders and start-ups, from both sides of the table.

See our work →
A University of Cambridge women's team in a huddle, smiling and looking up

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