New Year, New Logo: (Aiming to) Build the Greatest Community in the Sports Industry 💪

The revamped Sports Pundit website is your hub for events, collaboration, and fresh perspectives...

Jan 07, 2025

Happy New Year!

We’re starting 2025 with a fresh logo, thanks to Ed Cowburn, founder of Acid FC and the creative genius behind kits for the likes of Leeds United and the NFL’s limited-edition Chicago Bears run for their London game. Ed is just one example of the incredible talent within this community, and I’m thrilled to continue building a space where expertise like his can thrive.

Over the holidays, I spent time reflecting on what makes Sports Pundit unique.

In the wake of AI’s rise, the question of defensibility kept cropping up in my mind. Sure, high-quality content still stands out—I can spot an AI-generated LinkedIn post a mile away—but we’re just in the first innings of this shift. So, as I set my goals for 2025, I’ve set one ultimate target that will enable Sports Pundit—and more importantly, you—to thrive:

To Build the Greatest Community in the Sports Industry.

In an increasingly augmented world, human connection is the ultimate moat. This is a theme I expect to see impacting every industry in 2025, but particularly sport, as it naturally satisfies people’s cravings for genuine, face-to-face interactions.

Last year, we saw proof of this within our own community:

The launch of Speakers Only,
Over 15,000 messages exchanged in the WhatsApp group since March, and
Regular meetups in London and New York, which drew over 1,750 RSVPs.

With this momentum in mind, I’ve redesigned the Sports Pundit website to reflect not only the new logo that Ed kindly designed, but also our ambitions for 2025 and beyond:

What Does This Mean for You?

1. Attend Events or Host Your Own

As well as attending events, we’re empowering you to host your own.

All events will be listed on the website providing a single source for members to search and find relevant events hosted by any member.
Events will be smaller (Happy Hours 15-30 people or Coffee Breaks 5-15 people) in order to be more intimate for attendees and to be easier to organise for volunteer hosts.
In major markets this also means we can get more specific about who an event is for (i.e. a London Happy Hour for Sports Marketers or a Coffee Break for Sports Tech Founders). We’ll also do some general events, too - like this Coffee Break next week and this Happy Hour at the end of the month (RSVP now).

If you’re interested in hosting an event of your own, you’re able to apply to do so directly via the website. This could be in your home city, or if you’re in a new place for an event/ conference it could be a nice way to meet new people!

If you want more info also feel free to drop me a note.

2. Do Business Together

The new website will feature a home for Group Asks:

A place to offer or find opportunities, whether it’s connecting with experts, sourcing a vendor, or looking for sponsorship or investment.
It will also help in enabling the WhatsApp group stay focused on discussions around news and trends.

Additionally, the site will spotlight featured jobs and allow members to share roles when hiring.

3. Hear from Fresh Voices

The Sports Pundit Podcast will continue throughout 2025, with Series 4 (March–June) and Series 5 (September–December) and we’ll strive to continue to amplify interesting people and ideas.

Also, Speakers Only is set to return in November (date tbc)—but the speakers won’t. Instead, the event will bring forward 50 fresh voices from across the industry, while reunion events (to be announced soon) will celebrate the 2024 alumni and allow them to continue to connect throughout 2025 and beyond.

So, what are you waiting for? Check out the revamped site and create an account to see many of these new features including the events, asks, and jobs board (sign up is separate from subscribing to this newsletter so you won’t receive things twice).

Wishing you a year with plenty of new connections and friendships. And let me know what you think of the changes! I’m very open to ideas and feedback.

Andy

P.S. Once approved please go to ‘My Account’ and set your profile to ‘Public’ - you can also update other details while you’re there. You’ll only be public to other members. Thanks!

Sports Pundit