UNOFFICIAL PARTNER
THE SPORTS BUSINESS PODCAST
MURRAY BARNETT
Head of Global Sponsorship and Commercial Partnerships, F1
Best pitch presenter you’ve ever seen: Gabriel Clarke
Best sports marketing campaign (that wasn’t yours): Nike: Just Do it. Honourable mention to long forgotten Adidas Spirit of the Games 1984 Olympic campaign which got me into sports marketing.
Best agency (that isn’t yours): pass
Best young industry talent: Zarah Al-Kudcy or Michaella Snoeck
Best sporting event attended: So many good ones, all so different – Queens/Super Bowl/Henley/Cheltenham/Monza F1 GP/etc
Best sporting event on TV: Summer Olympic Games
Best brand ambassador: Roger Federer
Best industry event or conference: pass
Best film containing a scene depicting the sports business: Any Given Sunday
Best book recommendation: Any William Boyd or John Niven
Best bar or pub: Camparino, Milan
Best restaurant: River Café, London
Best holiday resort: Costa Rica
Best box set: Mad Men or Band of Brothers
Best influence on your career: George Bodenheimer (ESPN)
Best dinner companions (min 4, max 6): Presume fantasy: David Coulthard (pouring dinks), Des Lynam (obvs), John McEnroe and Olivier Reed
Best job in the sports biz: Sportswriter
Best professional regret: Never participated the Olympics…
Best skill you most covet: encyclopaedic/photographic memory

MURRAY BARNETT
Head of Global Sponsorship and Commercial Partnerships, F1
Best pitch presenter you’ve ever seen: Gabriel Clarke
Best sports marketing campaign (that wasn’t yours): Nike: Just Do it. Honourable mention to long forgotten Adidas Spirit of the Games 1984 Olympic campaign which got me into sports marketing.
Best agency (that isn’t yours): pass
Best young industry talent: Zarah Al-Kudcy or Michaella Snoeck
Best sporting event attended: So many good ones, all so different – Queens/Super Bowl/Henley/Cheltenham/Monza F1 GP/etc
Best sporting event on TV: Summer Olympic Games
Best brand ambassador: Roger Federer
Best industry event or conference: pass
Best film containing a scene depicting the sports business: Any Given Sunday
Best book recommendation: Any William Boyd or John Niven
Best bar or pub: Camparino, Milan
Best restaurant: River Café, London
Best holiday resort: Costa Rica
Best box set: Mad Men or Band of Brothers
Best influence on your career: George Bodenheimer (ESPN)
Best dinner companions (min 4, max 6): Presume fantasy: David Coulthard (pouring dinks), Des Lynam (obvs), John McEnroe and Olivier Reed
Best job in the sports biz: Sportswriter
Best professional regret: Never participated the Olympics…
Best skill you most covet: encyclopaedic/photographic memory


Rob Gevertz
Director & Founder


Best pitch presenter you’ve
ever seen
Colin Murray (then at talkSPORT) was one of the few creative/media people who understood the commercial side of the conversation.
Best sports marketing campaign (that wasn’t yours)
Roma’s Missing Children campaign that tied in with player signing announcements showed how powerful the club’s digital channels could be
Best agency (that isn’t yours)
Have real admiration for what both Dark Horses and 7League are doing at the moment.
Best young industry talent
Will Pithers @ Facebook. Previously built Man City’s eSports proposition from the ground up at a really young age
Best sporting event attended
Managed to get into Arsenal’s last game at Highbury without a ticket...
Best sporting event on TV
NFL Redzone every Sunday

Best brand ambassador:
LeBron James for Nike
Best industry event or conference:
Dare I say the Unofficial Partner Podcast series over all the events?
Best film containing a scene depicting the sports business:
Moneyball. I love the scene where Billy Beane is faced with a room full of old scouts who were spouting the same terminology from 50 years ago and he recognised the need to think differently to find success.
Best book recommendation:
Fever Pitch by Nick Hornby, for anyone doubting the emotion associated with fandom

Best bar or pub:
Kensington Roof Gardens
Best restaurant:
Love a bit of Al Fresno dining at Ham Yard Hotel
Best holiday resort:
Winelands outside of Cape Town
Best box set:
Does the Last Dance count?
Best job in the sports biz:
Being a dad
Best professional regret:
Try not to focus on them. Just use everything as a learning experience and move forward
Best skill you most covet:
Better fitness
Best trait you admire in others
Speaking multiple languages:
Best overrated virtue:
“Relevant experience”. Just because you know how things have always been done, doesn’t mean it’s the way things should be done moving forward
Best ambition:
For one of my children to become professional athletes.... Earl Woods here I come!!
Best influence on your career:
My father fostering my passion for sport at a young age
Best dinner companions (min 4, max 6):
Steve Kerr, Pete Carroll, Trevor Bayliss & Gareth Southgate. All 4 implemented huge cultural shifts in their sports organisations to create a winning mentality in a unique style