Loughborough University London partners with The Collective

The Collective Think Tank is a global consortium of some of today’s greatest academic minds and industry leaders focused on gender parity and improving diversity. A first of its kind, this group will share data, insights and information to promote more opportunity for women to succeed in sports. The Collective Think Tank’s focus will be on cultivating partnerships between universities and researchers, as well as brands, properties, and media companies to educate and create solution-based strategies for industry-changing activations, campaigns and platforms.

This ‘first-of-its-kind initiative’ brings together researchers at academic institutions and sports organisations to gather and disseminate information to promote more opportunity for women to succeed in sports. Loughborough University London will be able to provide in depth research and discuss topics such as female fandom, including consumption and purchasing power, and how women who work in the business of sport are represented.

When talking about this initiative, Shelley Pirassa, Executive Vice-President of Wasserman Global Insights and Strategies, said:

“Women in sports – as participants, fans and consumers – currently face inequities ranging from a lack of exposure, to limited access and pay, and everything in between. Our goal with the Think Tank is to uncover the underlying basis for these inequities and address them head-on to set women on a clearer path to parity. We want to look at all angles of the industry and, by tapping into an incredible group of academic experts, we feel confident we can make a tangible, positive change.”

Dr Andrea Geurin, Institute Director for the Institute for Sports Business and internal representative for the group has spoken about this partnership and said:

“There are many sport scholars around the globe conducting research and attempting to tackle issues of inequity within women’s sport, including several of our faculty within the Institute for Sport Business. The Collective Think Tank provides an amazing opportunity for ISB to collaborate with faculty from multiple universities and one of the most successful sport marketing agencies in the world to hopefully amplify our impact on the women’s sport industry.”

This division is dedicated to boosting the visibility of women in sport and entertainment, by focussing on creating solution-based strategies for industry-changing activations, campaigns and platforms. To achieve its mission, The Collective Think Tank will work alongside brand partners such as AT&T, Nationwide and Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), as well as the likes of ESPNW and Concacaf, the governing body for soccer in North and Central America and the Caribbean, as well as Loughborough University London.

As global trail blazers, Loughborough University London aim to historically alter the eco-system for the many women in sport, whether as participants, consumers or those passionate about the sporting industry. The aim is to systematically abolish stigma towards women in sport by leading by example within our institution and making viable contributions with partnering groups, such as The Collective, and carrying out quantitative research. By just participating in athletics, women are taking on a status quo and empowering themselves and other women around the world. Women have not only been setting records in sport in the last decade, but they’re often dominating the sporting news cycle.  The amazing feats that women have achieved in sport continue to push us forward through that glass ceiling we aim to one day break through, creating endless equal opportunities for women in sport.