Building a Sport Entrepreneurship Ecosystem

THE BRIEF

Across Africa, sport has the potential to generate far more than participation and entertainment. It can create businesses, jobs and routes into employment. Yet aspiring coaches, young entrepreneurs and event organisers often lack the skills, networks and support to turn their ideas into viable ventures. The challenge is not simply creating more opportunities in sport, but enabling people to build businesses around them.

WHAT WE DID

Drawing on experience in grassroots sport development and youth employment, Athleon developed an approach centred on turning skills and ambition into enterprise. This included exploring opportunities to establish grassroots coaching businesses, develop digital coaching solutions and create school sport events. The wider ambition was to connect emerging entrepreneurs with business mentoring, practical experience and strategic partnerships.

WHAT CHANGED

The focus moved from preparing young people solely for existing jobs towards helping them create opportunities of their own. Coaching became a potential business, technology a route to innovation, and school sport events a platform for enterprise, employment and community engagement.

WHERE IT STANDS

A vision for a more entrepreneurial sporting economy, where young people are not simply participants or jobseekers, but creators of businesses, services and opportunities. The future of sport depends not only on the talent we develop, but on the enterprises we enable.