Business of Sport

Matt Richards, double Olympic gold medallist and entrepreneur who founded Sponza to help athletes monetise sponsorship. He discusses the financial reality behind Olympic success, the tight commercial window after the Games, balancing building a business while training, and why athletes must learn to market themselves to secure income.

A financial deep dive into what relegation would truly cost a top club and how parachute payments, transfer factoring and wage commitments could create a catastrophe. A look at the real price of winning Winter Olympic gold and why Britain targets niche sports. Coverage of the Vinicius Jr incident, Mourinho's remarks and the challenges of proving and deterring racist abuse in football.

Anthony Watson, former England international and double British & Irish Lion who retired young after injury, reflects on life beyond rugby. He discusses preparing for retirement during long rehab spells. He talks about balancing elite sport with education, the clash between player welfare and growing the game, and why the Premiership needs radical innovation. He also covers medical autonomy, commercial pressures, and rebuilding purpose off the field.

Charlie Methven, sports executive and commentator, explains how a club can actually go bust and why Leicester’s finances are perilous. He digs into the Glazers’ $-scale interest in IPL franchises and why those values keep exploding. He also debates the NBA’s push into Europe, the politics with EuroLeague, and the commercial headaches any transatlantic plan would face.

Claire Williams, former Williams F1 team principal and daughter of Sir Frank Williams, shares operational insight into team life and rule changes. She discusses the 2026 technical reset and how interpretation and engineering will trump budget. She weighs driver pressure, rookie turnover and where talent like George Russell might fit. She also reflects on commercial growth and the risks facing new teams.

We break new ground this week. A couple of English guys taking a look at what makes the NFL so powerful on Super Bowl week. Add that to a review of challenger football leagues after Baller League paused their tournament in Germany and a look ahead to the Winter Olympics, and we have ourselves a breakdown!

Tom Harrison, CEO of the Six Nations and former ECB chief, explains running the tournament as a global rights and media business. He discusses calendar reform and the Nations Championship's year‑round structure. He covers private equity’s role, protecting heritage while innovating, and using data, player personalities and content to broaden rugby’s reach.

They dig into India's growing political and commercial clout in international cricket and the fallout around Bangladesh at the T20 World Cup. They unpack why top English football clubs lag behind Europe off the pitch, from TV deals to stadium projects. They explore rugby’s push into TikTok and how player-driven social reach is being used to grow audiences.

It had to be done. It was the greatest upset in FA Cup history when Macclesfield beat holders Crystal Palace a couple of weeks ago. 117 places between the two teams in the football pyramid. But there is much more to the story than that result. A club that went out of business six years ago. An owner who was in the depths of addiction when he bought the club, now delivering one of the great football stories. Can they do it again against Brentford in a couple of weeks? You wouldn’t bet against them. But in the meantime let’s take a look at how this magic has been made possible. We’re delighted to welcome Rob Smethurst to the Business of Sport.On today’s show we discuss: The FA Cup Run That’s Changed Everything:What it meant for a sixth-tier club to beat Crystal Palace, the FA Cup holders.The financial impact of a single cup run, from gate receipts to TV money and global attention.Why moments like this can fund an entire season and transform a club’s trajectory overnight.Running a Sustainable Non-League Football Club:How you build a squad from scratch with part-time players earning a few hundred pounds a week.Why promotion often makes clubs poorer, not richer, at non-league level.How Macclesfield built a seven-day-a-week business around the club through gyms, bars, pitches and education.Turning football into part of the business, not the whole business, to survive and grow.Buying a Football Club on Rightmove:The unbelievable story of buying Macclesfield FC while in the depths of addiction and not remembering the purchase.Taking control of a club that had been stripped bare by receivers and rebuilding it from nothing.Why owning the club gave Rob purpose at the lowest point of his life and ultimately helped save it.Investment, Ambition & the Road Ahead:What it really costs to climb the football pyramid and why outside investment is unavoidable.How infrastructure underwrites club value as you move up the leagues.Why Macclesfield now has belief, momentum and a clear plan to go further.A huge thank you to our amazing partners on the show: Gemini SportsWe empower the most confident sports organisations on Earth https://geminisports.ai/SlateThe complete content creation platform for social teams https://slateteams.com/

It’s a big show this week. So much to cover, a fight as always to keep it to the point. Managers are back on the menu as we take a look at the ongoing discussion on whether power of selection should like with the head coach or the medical department. That inevitably feeds into a quick look at the chaos unleashed by Oliver Glasner in the media last weekend. It’s then the turn of tennis to celebrate the start of the Australian Open and a look at whether the Grand Slams should give a higher percentage of revenue to the players, before wrapping up with a look at F1 on the week the liveries for the 2026 season are revealed; how important is how the car looks to the brands spending tens of millions to sponsor them? Let’s get straight to it. Welcome to The Breakdown!