Sport Business Chain

Join us in Bucharest, at Domeniul Stirbey, between 28 - 30 September at the largest sport business conference dedicated to the key Eastern European sport stakeholders. Check out a Preview of the event here.

Help us build the networking hub for sport business practitioners and enthusiasts to meet, share their hustle, develop themselves and grow the sport business landscape within Eastern Europe.

Sport Business Chain

Join us in Bucharest, at Domeniul Stirbey, between 28 - 30 September at the largest sport business conference dedicated to the key Eastern European sport stakeholders. Check out a Preview of the event here.

Help us build the networking hub for sport business practitioners and enthusiasts to meet, share their hustle, develop themselves and grow the sport business landscape in Eastern Europe.

IT'S ALMOST TIME!

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BUY TICKETS

ABOUT US

We’re all about propelling the Eastern European sport business sector further. We’re Planners. We’re here to help to shape the next generation of sport leaders. We’re Thinkers. We know the main ingredient for sustainable growth is ‘togetherness’, and we’re building a chain of opportunities for sport organisations, educational institutions, policy makers, sportspeople and students to interconnect. We’re Doers. We’re putting together an exciting networking event for regional sport business enthusiasts to engage, connect and develop.

MORE ABOUT SBC

SPEAKER LINE-UP *

Day 1

Yves le Lostecque

ALEX TRICKETT

Ehsen Shah

Yacine Sahnoune

Toma Nicolau

Wim Mathues

Maik Matischak

Galit Shiri

GEORGE OGARARU

Ioan Valeriu achiriloaie

KARINA STIOPU

Pablo Pintado

Diego Valdes

Dan Grămadă

Eduard Irimia

Day 2

Andreea Ogararu

Bruno Blumenschein

WOUTER KUPERUS

Orsolya Tolnay

Péter Zsédely

Vlad Stoica

Simon Chadwick

Doyin Layade

Gabriela Tichelea

MIHAELA CONSTANTINESCU

Nick Speakman

Adrian Stores

Malph Minns

Lukas Dorda

Pompiliu Constantin

Sebahattin Devecioğlu

Day 3

Ming Zhao

Lorand Balint

Radu Abramescu

ASLI KOÇ

Mustafa Aydın

Mike Farnan

Doru Dragomir

Our Sponsors

Our Partners

Work Experience Partners

Media Partners

Yves Le Lostecque

Head of the Sport Unit - European Commission

  • Head of the Sport Unit in the European Commission;
  • Spent two years as a member of the cabinet of the Romanian Commissioner, Leonard Orban;
  • Studied public, international and European law at the University of Rennes.

Alex Trickett

  • Director at Alex Trickett Consultancy;
  • Global Head of Sport at Twitter;
  • International Editor at BBC Sport;
  • Creative Strategist at brand agency Imagination;
  • Digital consultant to the sports industry, calling on two decades of senior experience, having worked closely with many of the biggest organisations in sport, including the IOC, FIFA, UEFA, Premier League, Man Utd, Man City, Liverpool, F1 and Wimbledon.

Ehsen Shah

  • Managing Director at B-Engaged LTD, managing the commercial activities of some of the world’s most high profile footballing talent in the English Premier League;
  • Lecturer on sports marketing and athlete marketing;
  • Trustee of Heart 4 More Foundation.
  •  

Yacine Sahnoune

Founder | SmartReplay

  • Founder & CEO at SmartReplay, an AI-powered interactive video technology;
  • Former News Anchor at Vinci Autoroutes;
  • Former News Anchor & Reporter at Radio France.

Toma Nicolau

  • Sports Blogger;
  • E-Sports National Event Founder @ Bloggers Lan Party;
  • Heineken UEFA Champions League Ambassador;
  • Former Marketing & Communication Director @ CSM Ceahlăul Piatra Neamț;
  • Former Professional Football Player: at FC Ceahlăul Piatra Neamț, Internațional Curtea de Argeș, Juventus București, CSM Ceahlăul Piatra Neamț.

Wim Mathues

  • Senior Manager Ecommerce & Digital Partnerships at Coca-Cola European Partners;
  • Owner of MCMC, a digital sports & entertainment marketing agency, working with clients like bwin, Brussels Airport, Pro Basketball League, Napoleon Games Cup, Sniper Pro Cycling Team;
  • Sports marketing lecturer at UCLL in Belgium.

Maik Matischak

  • Associate Vice President Communications EME, managing the communications strategy and leading the execution of all public relations activities for the league in the region;
  • Previously worked at Advanced Micro Devices, Inc., leading EMEA-wide PR activities for the consumer segment;
  • Senior International PR Manager for EA SPORTS in Geneva;
  • PR Director of NFL Europe franchise;
  • Director of Communications of NFL Europe. 

Galit Shiri

  • Director of Marketing and Business Development at WSC Sports, an AI-based platform for digital sports video production and distribution used by leading global sports media brands such as the NBA, Turner Sports, MLS, US Open, PGA Tour, Cricket Australia and others.
     

George Ogararu

  • UEFA Pro Licensed Coach;
  • Senior Consultant at Ajax Amsterdam Academy (via Ajax Coaching Academy) & Ambassador of Ajax Amsterdam;
  • Assistant Coach at A.F.C. Ajax Amsterdam U23;
  • Chairman of 'Asociatia George Ogararu pentru Cultura si Sport';
  • Regional Coordinator of Eccentric European Sports;
  • Former Professional Football Player
    • Romanian National Team;
    • F.C. Sion;
    • F.C. Ajax Amsterdam;
    • F.C. Steaua Bucuresti.

Ioan Valeriu Achiriloaie

  • Professional downhill skier competing for Romania in the FIS Alpine World Cup (Downhill & Super-G), being the first and only male representing Romania at this stage;
  • Graduated with a BA in Sports Management from Coventry University.

Karina Stiopu

  • Team Manager at BC SCM Timsioara;
  • Marketing Manager at BC SCM Timisoara;
  • Founder & Executive Vice President at 'ASC Academia de Baschet pentru Timisoara';
  • Graduated from the FIBA Academy Master's Programme.

Pablo Pintado

  • Business Development Executive DACH Countries at Blinkfire Analytics Inc;
  • Founder of LOGEST Sports Marketing  & Business;
  • Has led several projects for top-tier organisations such as America’s Cup, FIFA, Volvo Ocean Race, Valencia C.F., LaLiga, EA SPORTS, or Hyundai.

Diego Valdes

  • Director at the Sports Business Institute Barcelona;
  • International Football Journalist;
  • Provided training to executives from across the football industry at a global level including clubs, federations, and media outlets such as FIFA, UEFA, the IOC, Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Liverpool FC, Manchester United, Manchester City FC, West Ham United, PSG, Inter Milan, Juventus, Galatasaray, the Mexican Football Federation among numerous other sports organisations worldwide.

Dan Grămadă

  • Senior Manager Brand Partnerships & Licensing & Head of Ad Sales Turkey, Discovery CEEMCA (Central and Eastern Europe, Mediterranean and Central Asia);
  • Starting 2012, Dan Grămadă coordinates Discovery’s non-standard advertising team in the CEEMCA region, for a range of brands such as Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, TLC, Eurosport, National Geographic and Nat Geo Wild.

Eduard Irimia

  • Founder and CEO of Superkombat Fighting Championship, the best-known contact sports competition in Europe, whose current broadcast partner is CBS Sports Network. In the past, it was broadcasted on Eurosport International;
  • Founder of SuperSports.Agency;
  • Shareholder in Superfilm;

  • Founder of Local Kombat (2003);

  • Co-promoter of K-1 World Grand Prix;
  • Kickboxing promoter, television producer and businessman with an experience of 20+ years.

Andreea Ogararu

  • Sports Business Consultant at 'A Sports Business Management';
  • Account Executive at Johan Cruyff Arena International;
  • B2B Partner at Johan Cruyff Institute;
  • General Manager at 'Asociatia George Ogararu pentru Cultura si Sport';
  • Master's Degree in 'Sport Marketing & Sponsorship' at Johan Cruyff Institute.

Bruno Blumenschein

  • Co-founder of Overtime Sports Marketing, winner of the Sporto 2015 Media Award, together with RTL Television, for World Handball Championship project (Qatar 2015);
  • Entrepreneur and speaker on subjects like sports marketing, sports business industry, content marketing & startup development;
  • He has worked with many international companies, such as Nokia, P&G, Pernod Ricard, Visa, Deutsche Telekom, Styria Group, Podravka, Vipnet, EPH, Croatian national TV (HTV), RTL TV;
  • Graduate of Founder Institute and Zagreb Entrepreneurship Incubator.

Wouter Kuperus

  • CEO of sports consultancy firm NMC Bright, focussing on Academy Development;
  • Program Manager of the Quality & Performance Program for Youth Academies in The Netherlands
  • Lead assessor in Talent Development Programs and High Performance Sports Centres
  • Advisor of KNVB and Dutch Olympic Committee 
  • Chairman of grassroots Football Club DTS'35

Orsolya Tolnay

  • European sport policy specialist;
  • Manages ENGSO’s ASPIRE project;
  • Project Manager of the Sound of Sport project of ASVÖ Salzburg;
  • Founding Member of Sport and Sustainability International. 
  •  

Péter Zsédely

  • Founder and Head of 'Sportsmarketing Hungary', Hungary’s favourite sportbusiness portal;

  • Works on international sports marketing projects for brands such as Red Bull Air Race, European Stadium and Safety Management Association.

Vlad Stoica

  • Owner of SmartAtletic;
  • Business & NGO Innovator;
  • Organised 200 sport events, having created a mass sport phenomenon through sport events and sport education;
  • Founder & Vice-President of the Romanian Triathlon
    Federation.

Simon Chadwick

  • Professor of Sports Enterprise at Salford University in Manchester, where he is also Director of the Centre for Sports Business;

  • Founding Co-Director of the China Soccer Observatory;

  • Senior Fellow of the Asia Research Centre, at the University of Nottingham.

Doyin Layade

  • Senior Football & Rugby Executive at Wasserman
  • Managing professional athletes and consulting National Football Federations in regards to development and business strategy.

Gabriela Tichelea

Managing Director | GTS Agency

  • Former handball player at CSU Reșița and SPE Strovolos Nicosia;
  • Managing Director at GTS Agency, a sports consultancy and coaching agency;
  • Accredited personal development trainer and coach.

Mihaela Constantinescu

  • Senior Lecturer of Sports Marketing at Bucharest University of Economics Studies;
  • Having undertaken a PhD in Sports Marketing, Mihaela is trying to make an efficient blend between theory and practice, in order to develop the use of marketing in sports organisations.

Nick Speakman

  • Founder & Head of SPORF;
  • Founding team member of Social Chain;
  • Sport Industry NextGen Leaders - Class of 2018;
  • TEDx Talker, Social Media Lecturer & Digital Events Panelist.

Adrian Stores

Founder of Acrobat | FCSM

  • Founder of Acrobat | FCSM, a premier consultancy firm concentrating on sport marketing, sponsorship and fundraising.
  • Advised 15% professional football clubs in England.
  • Senior Lecturer on sports business at UCFB (Wembley & Etihad) and MMU.
  • Former Chairman of the Chartered Institute of Marketing for sports and leisure.
  • 30 years of experience in marketing and fundraising consultancy.

Malph Minns

  • Managing Director of Strive Sponsorship;
  • Over 18 years international sport and entertainment sponsorship experience with brands, rights holders, agencies and investors;
  • Has worked with global businesses like Guinness, British Airways, Barclays, Sky, 21st Century Fox, Jaguar Land Rover, Gatorade and Oakley;
  • Has set-up and led professional cycling’s Team Sky commercial partnerships department for five years.

Lukas Dorda

  • Marketing & Sponsorship Consultant at Johan Cruyff Institute;
  • Tutor at Johan Cruyff Institute;
  • Brand Manager at ERIC Sports;
  • Marketing Manager Conde Sports International;
  • Marketing Executive at Adidas Group - Reebok Iberia
  • +10 years of working in Sports Business in different countries across Europe;
  • Former student of various Masters at Johan Cruyff Institute.

Pompiliu Constantin

  • Researcher at UNEFS;
  • TV Sports Commentator at Telekom Sport Romania;
  • Co-founder of www.ziaruldesport.ro

Sebahattin Devecioglu

  • Associate Professor at Firat University, Elazig, Turkey

  • Member of Turkish Youth and Sports Ministry Education and Science Board since 2018;

  • President of Peace Ball Project;
  • Committee Coordinator for Sport and Youth International organisation in 2015;
  • Commissioner at the Turkish Ministry of Youth and Sports, Sports Economics;
  • Honorable member of UNESCO Physical Education and Sport Committee in 2005;
  • General Secretaria of the 10th International Conference in Physical Education, Sport and Physical Therapy (Icpespt2016), Firat University.

Ming Zhao

  • Premier League Correspondent for Super Sports Media in China;
  • Marketing Consultant at Burnley FC;
  • Provides engaging football-related content for TV and digital audiences in China, whilst working closely with high profile footballers and celebrities;
  • Coordinated digital marketing and content creation campaigns in his roles across Bet365 and Fanatics International.

Lorand Balint

  • Head of Strategic Planning at Propaganda Creative Marketing;
  • Advisor to the President of the Romanian Olympic Committee;
  • Marketing Director at Handball Romanian Federation;
  • Managing Director at Leo Burnett Romania.

Radu Abramescu

  • Media & Communications at the Romanian Basketball Federation;
  • Commentator at Eurosport;
  • Former General Producer at Digisport;
  • Basketball coach at AISB (American International School of Bucharest);

Achievements:

  • Two times National Champion with Dinamo Bucharest as player;
  • Best commentators team with Digisport;
  • TV manager  for the Romanian side  and Sports Presentation Director for Eurobasket 2017 in Cluj venue.

ASLI KOÇ

  • Digital PR at Digiturk;

  • Expertise in event business & event marketing, mostly national and International Sports Events;

  • Writer at several digital and painted magazines about sports;

  • Alumni of Sports Management Master Programme at Bahçeşehir University.

Mustafa Aydın

  • Athlete psychotherapist at Galatasaray Football Sport Academy

  • Has worked with Bournemouth's team in the UK

  • Provides psychological consultancy for sportspeople in many sport branches

  • Works with disadvantaged people by giving psychotherapy consultancy, as well as voluntary psychotherapy for Syrian refugees in Syria

Mike Farnan

  • CEO of sports consultancy Redstrike;

  • Managing Director of Manchester United International during the Club’s most successful period;

  • Held board positions at leading clubs/team in both football and motorsport across Europe; Atletico Madrid, Sunderland AFC, Jordan Formula 1 and Sheffield United FC.

Doru Dragomir

  • President of the Romanian Centre for Sport and Educational Studies (CRSSE);
  • Lecturer at Management and Marketing courses in the National Coaches School from Bucharest;
  • Over 20 years of experience as an entrepreneur in corporations, entrepreneurial companies, NGOs and sport clubs.