SportAccord announces first speakers for World Sport & Business Summit 2024

The SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit 2024 in Birmingham, West Midlands has announced its first wave of high-profile speakers for sport’s most influential industry gathering.

A total of seven leading experts, unveiled today, will address some of the biggest challenges and opportunities in global sport with over 1,500 delegates at Birmingham’s award-winning International Convention Centre (ICC) on 7-11 April 2024 under the Summit’s theme “The Power of Sport”.

The complete speaker line-up across the Summit’s Plenary Session and four streams – CityAccord, LawAccord, HealthAccord and MediaAccord – will be revealed over the next two months.

Summit’s stellar speaker line-up – first reveal

• Chris Boardman MBE – Olympic gold medallist and world champion cyclist, and now Chair of Sport England and Commissioner of Active Travel England – will be speaking at the Summit’s CityAccord session.

Boardman said:

“I believe we have a broader responsibility – to advocate for the transformational impact that sport and activity can have on the nation’s health and wellbeing.

“I’m looking forward to speaking with leaders from all corners of the world of sport in Birmingham next year at the SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit, where among other topics we’ll be looking at the impact that active travel can have in making our towns and cities more civilised and more prosperous.”

Boardman is joined by six distinguished experts who operate in various sectors of the global sports landscape. These experts, spanning host cities, Esports, sports medicine, sustainability, and athlete representation, will lead Summit sessions centred around the transformative impact of sport on society, emphasising its unifying potential and role as a force for good.

• Melanie Duparc – Secretary General of World Union of Olympic Cities
• Paul Foster – CEO of Global Esports Federation
• Dr Margo Mountjoy – Clinical Professor and sports medicine specialist, Chair of ASOIF Medical and Science Consultative Group
• Dale Vince – Chairman of Forest Green Rovers and Founder/Owner of Ecotricity
• Ross Wenzel – WADA General Counsel
• Brendan Schwab – Director of Schwab Legal and former Executive Director of World Players Association

SportAccord President Uğur Erdener said:

“Birmingham and the West Midlands are an outstanding host for the SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit. This is a city and region with a rich sporting history that is keen to build on the legacy of hosting the successful 2022 Commonwealth Games.

“With excellent transport links by air and rail, superb facilities and accommodation all highly accessible within a square mile of the Convention Centre, and a well-earned reputation as a hub of sport, entertainment and culture, Birmingham and the West Midlands are an ideal destination for SportAccord 2024.”

Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands, added:

“After last year’s spectacular Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, we were clear that we wanted that to be the start of a new sporting journey for our region – not the end.

“If we want to keep hosting the world’s biggest sporting events then showcasing our region to sport’s global decision makers is mission critical. That’s why this SportAccord Summit is so important and I’m delighted we’ve been able to pull it off.

“This is the first time the conference has been held in the UK for over a decade, and the last host – Australia’s Gold Coast – secured the 2032 Olympic Games. There is no question therefore just what a major coup this is for the West Midlands, and we now must ensure we make the most of the opportunity and use it as a springboard for our future.”

Leader of Birmingham City Council Cllr John Cotton said:

“Last summer’s Commonwealth Games cemented Birmingham’s reputation as a global destination with the venues, culture, hospitality sector and expertise to successfully host major events. As a famously friendly city, we can also guarantee a warm Birmingham welcome to all SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit delegates.”