Y Sport

What Y Sport does

Y Sport is a London-based boutique sports strategy and sponsorship consultancy founded in April 2016 by Managing Partners Sally Horrox and Sally Hancock, with Consultant Tatjana Haenni (former FIFA Head of Women's Football) joining the leadership team in October 2017. The firm provides strategic advisory services across three core service areas: Sport Strategy Advisory (strategy development, event creation, organisational change for federations and rights holders), Media Strategy (broadcast and digital media partnerships, media rights auditing, multi-platform content), and Brand Sponsorship Services (sponsorship strategy, portfolio auditing, activation planning, team coaching). A dedicated specialist focus on Women's Sport Development covers commercial and professional development for clubs, leagues, federations, and brand partners.

The firm serves three primary client segments: sports federations, governing bodies, and rights holders; global, regional, and local brands seeking sponsorship strategy; and broadcasters and traditional or digital media organizations. Disclosed enterprise clients span UEFA, FIFA, The FA, ECB, Sky, BBC, BT Sport, Nissan, TSB, SSE, and Lloyds Banking Group, with operations formally extended to Switzerland, France, and Canada through FIFA-adjacent work and event engagements. There is no proprietary technology platform; the offering is a pure human advisory practice differentiated by the founders' board-level credentials, deep women's sport expertise (including the creation of the FA Women's Super League), and award-winning track record on landmark deals such as the Lloyds London 2012 Partnership and the SSE Women's FA Cup.

Y Sport operates a sales-led B2B professional services model, acquiring clients through conference speaking (SPORTO, SportAccord), thought leadership articles in industry publications such as SportBusiness, and the founding partners' personal networks. Revenue is generated via quote-based professional services fees on project engagements, and the firm has no external institutional investment, parent company, or subsidiaries. Strategic alliances with Women in Sport, the 30% Club, Sported, and Cheshire County FA position the firm within the UK women's sport ecosystem and underpin a portfolio that includes the £70m North West football hub, the first integrated women's football facility of its kind in the UK.

Name

Y Sport

Legal name

Y Sport

Website

https://y-sport.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sports Marketing Consulting

akta.pro primary industry

Sponsorship Sales, Valuation & Analytics Services (Rights Sales, Measurement, Consulting) (MPAKALAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Sports Brand Strategy & Creative Services (Design, Content, Social) (MPAKAKAF)

Keywords

• Sports sponsorship consulting
• Sponsorship strategy advisory
• Women's sport development
• Sport brand partnerships
• Media rights consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Strategic Consultancy Services: Professional services fees for strategic advisory on sport and brand partnerships, sponsorship strategy, commercial development, and sports organization strategy.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Y Sport is a London-based sports marketing and sponsorship consultancy that provides strategic advisory services to global brands, sports federations, rights holders, and broadcasters. Its work spans sport strategy (performance, participation, profile, professional development), media strategy and broadcast partnerships, and end-to-end sponsorship consultancy (strategy, portfolio auditing, activation). The firm maintains a specialist focus on women's sport development, advising on commercial growth, investment, and partnership creation.

Product overview

Y Sport is a sports marketing and sponsorship consultancy that provides strategic advisory services rather than a software product platform. The company offers three core service areas: Sport Strategy Advisory (strategy development, event creation, organisational change management), Media Strategy (broadcast and digital media partnerships, media rights, content creation), and Brand Sponsorship Services (sponsorship strategy, portfolio auditing, activation, team development). A key specialist focus is Women's Sport Development, which leverages deep expertise in advancing women's sport commercially and professionally.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Sport Strategy Advisory Strategic consultancy services including performance, participation, profile and professional strategy development for sports organisations, designing new events and competitions, and driving organisational change.
• Media Strategy Consultancy services working with broadcasters, digital channels and traditional media to increase sport profile, audience and coverage; includes media rights auditing and creation of multi-platform content.
• Brand Sponsorship Services End-to-end sponsorship consultancy including strategy development, portfolio auditing for strategic fit and ROI, activation planning, and sponsorship team development and coaching.
• Women's Sport Development Specialist focus area dedicated to advancing the commercial and professional development of women's sport, including advising clubs, leagues, international federations, and brand partners on growth and investment opportunities.

Quantifiable outcome

• Lloyds Banking Group London 2012 Partnership voted Most Successful Sponsorship of the Last 20 Years in 2013
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Cheshire County FAcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 16 May 2018Y Sport is working with Cheshire County FA and partners to deliver a £70m North West football hub - an integrated facility with focus on best-in-class provision for women's football. This is the first of its kind in the UK.
• SportedcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 January 2018Y Sport facilitated a landmark partnership bringing TSB and Sported together to support community sport groups across the UK. Sported is a charity supporting over 3,000 community sport groups and youth groups that deliver Sport for Development programmes.
• Women in SportcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 7 June 2015Partnership with Women in Sport (formerly Women in Sport charity) to drive the £1 million pledge for women's sport investment and support female leadership in sport.
• 30% ClubminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 7 June 2015Partnership with Helena Morrissey's 30% Club to support women's sport investment initiatives and drive business-led change for gender diversity in sport.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• Sport Industry Group: UK-based industry body and conference organizer connecting brands, rights holders, and agencies in the sports business ecosystem. Comparable to Y Sport as an industry presence but does not provide consultancy services; functions as a peer through shared marketing channels (conferences, awards) rather than service offering.
• Women in Sport: UK charity advocating for women's sport participation and investment, with which Y Sport has a formal partnership (Sally Hancock is Non-executive Chair). Comparable as a women's sport ecosystem player and through Y Sport's own specialist service line in women's sport development.

Direct peers

• M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment: Sports and sponsorship consultancy within the M&C Saatchi network, advising brands on sponsorship strategy, partnerships, and rights-holder engagement. Comparable to Y Sport as a sponsorship strategy advisor serving global brands and rights holders.
• Synergy Sponsorship: Independent sponsorship consultancy advising brands and rights holders on sponsorship strategy, activation, and measurement. Closely comparable to Y Sport on the brand sponsorship advisory service line, serving similar enterprise clients with a boutique-style offering.
• Brand Rapport: UK-based independent sponsorship and sport marketing consultancy advising brands and rights holders on sponsorship strategy, activation, and partnership development. Closely comparable to Y Sport on the boutique sponsorship advisory model and UK focus.

Emerging players

• Two Circles: Data-driven sports marketing agency working with rights holders and brands on sponsorship strategy, fan data, and audience growth. Comparable to Y Sport as a sponsorship and strategy advisor to federations and brands, but differentiates through proprietary data and analytics technology rather than pure advisory.

Broad incumbents

• Nielsen Sports: Global sports measurement and sponsorship analytics business (formerly Repucom). Comparable to Y Sport's media rights and sponsorship valuation work but differentiated by data-driven measurement infrastructure rather than pure strategic advisory.
• Wasserman: Global sports marketing and talent management firm (formerly Lagardère Sports). Offers sponsorship consulting, media rights advisory, and brand strategy to federations and brands. Competes directly with Y Sport in sponsorship strategy and federation advisory, with vastly larger scale and global offices.
• Deloitte Sports Business Group: Strategy consulting practice within Deloitte advising sports organizations, federations, and investors on commercial strategy and rights. Overlaps with Y Sport's federation strategy advisory work but operates at much larger scale with broader consulting capabilities.
• Octagon: Global sports marketing agency and consultancy owned by Interpublic Group. Provides sponsorship strategy, athlete management, and brand consulting to rights holders and brands across multiple sports. Directly comparable to Y Sport on the sponsorship advisory and federation strategy service lines, but operates at significantly greater scale and breadth.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/y-sport

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Y Sport