“Most sports live hand to mouth. Money in. Money out. There really isn’t any backup or reserves to tide them over in difficult times”
John Feehan and Derek McGrath are two of the country’s top sporting administrators. Feehan is the former chief executive of Six Nations Rugby and the British & Irish Lions, while McGrath is the former CEO of the European Rugby Cup and the Curragh Racecourse. In recent weeks, they have launched a new business, Sport2Sport, which aims to help sports organisations, event owners and brands deal with Covid-19. In this podcast with Ian Kehoe, Feehan and McGrath speak about the impact of the crisis on the sports industry – from governing associations to media rights' holders to sponsors. They also explain the rationale for their new business and outline who their target customers are. Both men also talk about their own backgrounds in sports administration, and what it was like to run some of the world’s biggest rugby tournaments. Looking to the future, they explain how Covid-19 will change sport going forward, and why sporting bodies need to increase their interactions with fans.
