Future Space - Student engagement opportunities with External Organisations by Gabby Leger, MSc Sustainable Sport Business and Future Space Ambassador
At Loughborough London University students have numerous opportunities throughout the year to engage with external organisations. Recently, coming towards the end of our Semester 2, a group of students were involved in the Stadia’s International Innovation Summit as well as the SEG3 event, a conference on sport, entertainment, and gaming.
The first event was hosted on Friday 23rd June, at Plexal, our neighbours, and it was centred around US sport leagues entering the European market but expanded to much more with discussions around sponsorship, fan engagement and spotlighting start-ups. One of the favourite start-ups of the evening was IDA Sports, a female-led footwear company designing for female athletes and putting women at the heart of the process. Who knew this whole-time female football boots were still designed based on male feet? The event was a compliment to the Major League Baseball hosting their London Series, St. Louis Cardinals vs. Chicago Cubs, on June 24th and 25th at the London stadium, just next door. It goes without mentioning our very own Professor Andrea Geurin, Director of the Institute for Sport Business, shared her latest research concerning creating authentic relationships within brand partnerships.
“Our aim is simple… we look to bring together “good” people. It’s a chance to spotlight early-stage sports tech companies that we have invested in, and spotlight some fantastic C-suite leaders in the Sports industry on curated discussions around topics of interest. To have 140 industry folks together @ Here East & Plexal was fantastic, and we truly value the support of Loughborough Students with our event” – Alex Chalmers, Managing Partner at Stadia Ventures.
“The event served as a catalyst, igniting inspiration and motivation in me upon hearing the words of wisdom from the renowned leaders. It was an incredible networking opportunity, and it fostered a deeper understanding of business principles and practices” - Ayush Choudhary, MSc International Management
“The volunteering experience is a great chance to network with numerous accomplished individuals from various sectors of the sports industry. I gained invaluable inspiration from their experiences and perspectives” - Ethan Qian, MSc Sport Business and Innovation
With over 300 guests, the following week SEG3 took place on Wednesday 28th and Thursday 29th of June at Arsenal stadium. Starting Monday morning preparations were under way, first meeting the lovely iSportConnect team followed by a tour of the venue. During the event, roles included registration, cloak room, microphones, stage management, etc. but most importantly simply ensuring all guests were having a good time. Alongside the jam-packed event with a main stage and 2 workshop rooms, many students had the opportunity to connect with organisations that were attending including Nascar, Umbrella, FIFA, Lush, Roblox, Square Enix, etc.
“Volunteering for SEG3 gave me the opportunity to experience the backstage of a large-scale event with companies from all over the world” – Lucie Lopez, MSc Sport Marketing
“Special thanks to all the attendees and speakers who shared their invaluable insights, engaged in enlightening conversations, and made the event truly memorable” – Arnav Vani, MSc Sport Analytics and Technologies
“Lovely to meet you all over the last couple of day. You did play an integral role in helping the event run smoothy. I certainly appreciated all the energy you brought” – Sandy Case, CEO iSportConnect