Business Of Sport
Helping organisations create, protect and grow value through sport
Sport is one of the world's most powerful commercial and reputational platforms. But realising its full value is increasingly complex.
Decisions about investment, partnerships, governance, communications and performance carry significant commercial, brand, reputational and organisational implications.
Folgate Business of Sport helps organisations make confident decisions and realise the full value of sport.
We provide independent strategic counsel to Boards, CEOs and leadership teams navigating significant decisions and opportunities in sport.
Commercial value is fundamental. But sport can create value well beyond immediate financial return - strengthening brands and audience relationships, building reputation, influence and stakeholder confidence, and connecting organisational ambition with purpose and wider impact.
We help clients identify, create, protect and realise the full range of value sport can generate - including value they may not yet have considered.
The value sport can create
COMMERCIAL
Growth, revenue, partnerships and business performance
BRAND
Relevance, engagement, customer connection and brand value
REPUTATION
Trust, influence, reputation and stakeholder confidence
PURPOSE
Organisational purpose, social impact, community and wider societal value
INDEPENDENT COUNSEL, FOCUSED ON YOUR OUTCOMES
We have no rights to sell, media to buy or campaigns to deliver.
We bring objective challenge, senior judgement and trusted counsel - starting with your objectives, priorities and definition of value.
Where decisions involve commercial, brand, communications, reputation and stakeholder considerations, we bring together the perspectives that matter.
Our involvement can extend across the lifecycle - from defining opportunities and shaping strategy to strengthening performance, measuring impact and optimising value.
How we help
STRATEGIC ADVISORY AND INSIGHT
Understand the landscape, define the opportunity and make informed strategic choices.
COMMUNICATIONS, REPUTATION AND STAKEHOLDER CONFIDENCE
Build, protect and strengthen the relationships and reputation that underpin long-term value.
PERFORMANCE AND VALUE OPTIMIZATION
Ensure strategy and investment translate into measurable value
COMMERCIAL STRATEGY AND PARTNERSHIPS
Identify, structure and realise commercial value.
We shape our work around a client’s objectives, bringing together the right expertise for each challenge.
BRANDS
RIGHTS HOLDERS
INVESTORS
GOVERNMENTS
AGENCIES
TALENT
We advise these organisations wherever sport has the potential to create meaningful value.
Senior judgement. Connected expertise
Folgate Business of Sport is led by Jeremy Clark, Dave Scott, Josie Stevens and Peter Thomas, bringing together complementary senior experience across commercial strategy, partnerships, brand-building, marketing communications, reputation, issues and crisis management and stakeholder engagement.
Our experience spans international markets, global brands, major rights holders and some of the world's most significant sporting properties and mega events.
As needed, we draw on Folgate’s international network of consultants, practitioners and business partners and work alongside clients' existing advisers and specialist partners.
We bring together the right combination of independent, senior specialists for each challenge - no fixed team, no predetermined set of services.
Our principals
Jeremy Clark
Dave scott
Josie Stevens
Peter thomas
Jeremy Clark (London)
Jeremy Clark is an international commercial leader, strategic advisor and Principal of Folgate Business of Sport, with more than 30 years’ experience building businesses and creating value across sport, media and entertainment. Over two decades at WPP, he built and led an international specialist business operating across more than 60 markets. He has shaped, negotiated and delivered major partnerships spanning Formula One, the Olympic and Paralympic Games, global football, tennis, rugby, cricket, athletics and golf. Today, Jeremy advises Boards, CEOs and leadership teams, helping organisations make confident decisions, unlock growth, strengthen performance and create, protect and grow long-term value through sport.
Dave Scott (London)
Dave Scott brings 30 years experience at all levels within the financial sector for public relations and communications consultancies with the ability to demonstrate deep expertise globally, understanding the requirements of working for major global holding companies, and managing complex engagements with the procurement teams of major brands and platforms. Overseeing, supporting and managing global operations with skills in market strategy, growth and commercial management, having been central to some of the industry's largest most significant acquisitions and mergers.
Josie Stevens (London)
Josie Stevens is a strategic communications adviser with nearly 30 years’ experience spanning sport, global brands and major international events. Her career includes senior roles at Reebok and Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, agency leadership for adidas and sponsorship activation and media services across four Olympic Games, three Cricket World Cups, two FIFA World Cups and the Doha Asian Games. She has lived and worked in the UK, USA, Qatar and South Africa. She led the development of Sport England’s This Girl Can into a £10m integrated national campaign, bringing together multiple agencies and disciplines around the advertising creative. A longstanding guest lecturer on the FIFA Master programme, Josie advises leaders on reputation, change and stakeholder complexity, with a particular interest in sport’s wider social purpose.
Peter Thomas (Abu Dhabi)
Peter Thomas has spent over 30 years in global PR and marketing working for some of the world’s largest brands on the planet including Accenture, where he was European CMO, as well as PwC, Microsoft, Oracle and HP as clients. He was previously the Corporate Communications and Public Affairs Director of the Rugby Football Union (RFU). As a result he has worked at a Rights Holder (RFU), at a Sponsor (Accenture) and at an activation agency (Hill & Knowlton) so understands how to use the full sponsorship ecosystem works underpin commercial outcomes through a B2B lens. At Accenture he was responsible for shaping and activating sponsorship programmes with the 6Nations rugby, British Olympic Sailing, F1 Williams team and British Triathlon to not only drove brand awareness but more importantly create pipeline and drive sales.
TALK TO US ABOUT YOUR PRIORITIES
Whether you are considering a new opportunity, reviewing an existing investment or looking to create greater value from sport, we would welcome a conversation.