Events and Reports
10 October, LONDON – 2018, Last night, Arsene Wenger received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the launch of the brand new, global Leaders Sports Awards. Wenger was joined on stage by David Dein, Gerard Houllier as well as two members of Arsenal’s infamous ‘Invincibles’ squad, Gilberto Silva and Robert Pires.
The award, previously received by Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations, Oakland Athletics, Billy Beane; Carlo Ancelotti, former Bayern Munich Head Coach and Herbert Hainer, former Adidas CEO, is presented annually to an individual who has led from the front and made an unparalleled impact on the sports industry across their career.
Wenger was recognised for his impactful career as one of the Premier League’s most influential football managers. Under Arsène, Arsenal won 17 trophies – three Premier League titles, including the famous season of the ‘invincibles’ in 2003/4 when the club was unbeaten, as well as seven FA Cups and seven Community Shields.
The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented at the event which welcomed over 600 sport business industry leaders to the Natural History Museum in London. After a 9-month nomination process, the glamorous evening celebrated individuals and companies who are shaping the future of sport which culminated in the Leaders Under 40 Class of 2018 – the talented individuals under the age of 40 who are and making waves within their fields. The Leaders Under 40, in partnership with Aspire Academy has been running for 4 years.
The evening also saw the main 5 categories On Screen Experience, Content Creation, Sponsorship, Live Experience and Innovation announce the winners of the shortlist. Judged by over 100 industry experts, the winners of each category were:
In partnership with facebook, Chicago Fire Foundation were identified and rewarded for their community programme that integrates football with social and emotional learning to develop youth performance in a safe environment.
Arsène Wenger
Chicago Fire Foundation
Adam Davis, Chief Revenue Officer, Harris Blitzer Sport & Entertainment
Adam Harris, Director of Custom Solutions, Twitch
Agustin Danza, Chief Executive Officer, Brazilian Rugby Union
Al Guido, President, San Francisco 49ers and Chief Executive Officer, Elevate Sports Ventures
Asma Al Thani, Director of Marketing and Communications, Qatar Olympic Committee
Chris Park, Executive Vice President, Product & Marketing, MLB
Cynthia Mumbo, Founder and CEO, Sports Connect Africa
Danny Menken, Group Managing Director, Eleven Sport
Dave Pietrycha, Chief Financial Officer, NBC Sports Group
Dewayne Hankins, Chief Marketing Officer, Portland Trail Blazers
Dustin Godsey, Chief Marketing Officer, Milwaukee Bucks
Evan Wasch, Senior Vice President, Basketball Strategy and Analytics, NBA
Jo Tongue, Chief Executive Officer, Tongue Tied Media
Jon Stainer, Managing Director, Nielsen Sports
Kelvin Smith, Senior Associate Commissioner and General Counsel, Big 12 Conference
Dr Laila Mintas, Deputy President, Sportradar
Louise Johnson, Managing Director, Fuse
Malcolm Booth, Sales & Marketing Director, The R&A
Mark Gorski, Chief Executive Officer, Sports Data Labs
Matthew Jafarian, Vice President of Digital Strategy and Innovation, Miami HEAT/AmericanAirlines Arena
Matthew Porter, Chief Executive Officer, Professional Darts Corporation
Megha Parekh, Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer, Jacksonville Jaguars and Bold Events
Nate Nanzer, Commissioner, Overwatch League
Nick Bourne, Chief Commercial Officer, COPA90
Nina King, Deputy Director of Athletics, Administration and Legal Affairs/Chief of Staff, Duke University
Rory Brown, President, Bleacher Report
Stephen Farrow, Director of International Events and Professional Game; Tournament Director of The Fever-Tree Championships at The Queen’s Club, LTA
Toby Craig, Director of Corporate & Commercial Communications, City Football Group
Vanessa Shay, Vice President, AEG Global Partnerships, AEG Global Partnerships
Zarah Al-Kudcy, Commercial Partnerships, Formula 1
Events and Reports
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