TEAMS Europe Entertains, Educates at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

TEAMS Europe attendees heard from experts on a wide range of topics throughout the sports-event industry from this year’s biggest sporting event to what is to come on various continents around the world in the future.

The fourth annual TEAMS Europe was held at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London in conjunction with the International Sports Convention. The show had record attendance in overall numbers and in event organizers and destinations from the United States looking to expand their international reach.

TEAMS Europe debuted in 2022 following the model of the TEAMS Conference & Expo in the United States to unite European and North American sport organizations with representatives from destinations, venues and suppliers from around the world.

Women’s Sports Continues Growth

The past year saw an inflection point when it comes to the power and impact of women’s sports at all levels. Leagues around the world are experiencing record attendance, television/streaming ratings and facility investment.

Panelists Sarah Massey, managing director for Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025; Theresa McCann, commercial director at the Ladies European Tour; Fiona Morgan, chief purpose officer with SailGP and Tammy Parlour, co-founder for the Women’s Sport Trust; discussed the trends they are seeing.

Parlour described the work of the Women’s Sports Trust and how women’s sport has developed throughout England and changed over time. McCann detailed the global reach of the Ladies European Tour and its increased exposure through broadcast and commercial partnerships that has led to more money in prize purses awarded to competitors. Massey discussed the upcoming Women’s Rugby World Cup, which has set records already for ticket sales and will have more venues and teams than ever before. Morgan described how Sail GP has worked to focus on gender equity, having men and women on the same teams for the organization — something foreign to previous sailing culture — including Brazil having the first female pilot for a team in Sail GP.

Each panelist also discussed the commercial and sponsorship growth of women’s sports and how it ties into media exposure, what it is like being a female sports executive, developing events and organizations that can inspire girls interested in sport and what they see for the future ahead.

Mixing Politics and Sports

As the world of sport becomes increasingly international, sport organizations at all levels and the destinations and venues hosting their events need to be up to speed on the latest legal trends and diplomatic challenges that impact the ability to bring players and spectators across the globe to events. In a session with legal and diplomatic experts, panelists dove into some of these issues, including visa requirements, and answer questions you have about your own events.

The panelists were Managing Partner Steve Smith and Partner Marc Trottier of Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLC and Travis Murphy, the founder of Jetr Global Sports & Entertainment.

The uncertainties surrounding various immigration policies in the United States can make for risky decisions for event organizers looking to bring events to the country, Murphy said. One area adding more uncertainty is a recent White House proposal to ban or severly restrict travel from dozens of countries, a move that could affect the ability of athletes as well as fans to come and compete or watch that competition. For event organizers, that is a risk calculation they need to take, he said.

Murphy also advised destinations to make sure they know their local and congressional representatives for when the time comes to lobby for an event, they have an established relationship.

Beyond the Olympics and Beyond Events

With the 2026 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games a year away in Milan-Cortino and the 2028 Games in Los Angeles on the horizon, several international federations talked about how to use the spotlight of the Games to leverage future opportunities for growth. The session also included insight from On Location, the official hospitality provider for the Games.

The panel featured Sarah Fussek, sports integrity director at the International Ski and Snowboard Federation; Lorenzo Cavallari, senior manager, business strategy and hosting at Volleyball World and Thomas Willdridge, vice president, global head of pricing strategy/Olympic & Paralympic Games at On Location.

Fussek detailed how the FIS has worked with local organizers and the IOC to make sure the logistics work for the Games in Italy as FIS-affiliated events will occur in multiple clusters. She also detailed the importance of sustainable and environmentally conscious sport as a winter sports federation and the growing commercial viability of Paralympic sport.

Cavallari discussed the ability of Volleyball World to market the sport thanks to the amount of branding and social media sharing of the 2024 Games’ site for beach volleyball under the Eiffel Tower. There also will be an emphasis on the U.S. market in the coming years with Volleyball Nations League events this season in both Arlington, Texas, and Chicago.

Willdridge discussed the variety of packages available at the Games as well as the rising importance and desire among fans to buy packages that include a hospitality component as well as an event ticket. Like Fussek, he also detailed how On Location is making sure that people buy packages know the various distances between clusters and are able to plan for time to go from one spot to the other to watch multiple events over their stay in Italy.

Driving Mass Tourism With Mass Participation

Mass participation sports don’t just drive large amounts of participants for running, triathlon, cycling events and the like. They also drive large amounts of tourism. Industry leaders and event organizers discussed the latest trends and statistics in these sports and how they are using these events as more than just lifestyle and fitness opportunities.

The panel featured Greek Athletics Federation CEO Sotiris Kyranakos, World Athletics Head of Product Research and Development Jakob Larsen, Triton World Series Founder Paolo Leite and Running Industry Alliance CEO and Co-Founder Rebecca Richardson.

Kyranokos detailed how the event his federation organizes — the Athens Marathon — has grown in recent years from less than 3,000 runners to more than 80,000 runners over several events held in conjuction with the race. And more than 50 percent of those runners are first-time visitors to Greece. The emphasis on tourism is paramount for his races.

That is a similar case with Leite, whose Triton series marks an entrepreneurial shift in the makeup of triathlon races. The series looks to purposefully be in markets so races don’t overlap, ensuing a high propensity for tourism related to the event.