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Hangin' With... Rugby Football Union Chief Commercial Officer Sophie Goldschmidt

SOPHIE GOLDSCHMIDT is the chief commercial officer for the Rugby Football Union. She began her career with adidas, working as the brand’s tennis and women’s soccer sports marketing manager before holding roles at the WTA and the NBA. While at the NBA, she was instrumental in bringing the league’s first regular season games to Europe. Goldschmidt spoke to SBD Global about career transitions, stadium technology and preparing for next year's Rugby World Cup.

On transitioning roles...
Sophie Goldschmidt: I’ve had some great roles and have been able to work for some great people, but as I’ve moved through my career, I’m really proud of how I’ve made those transitions. I feel as though I’ve been able to move into new career opportunities, take what I’ve learned from the previous role and try and make a real impact at the next. I’ve tried to do that in a really innovative way, and in a wide variety of sports -- some very traditional sports that may be still very early in their professional cycle, and some very entrepreneurial, advanced and extremely successful organizations, for example the NBA. I’ve seen a wide variety, and have seen sports run differently. And I think how I’ve been able to transition between roles and make an impact in the different roles I’ve had -- I’m very proud of that.

On working in different markets...
Goldschmidt: Most of my roles have been quite global. I guess in some ways that makes the roles more similar, because you’re looking at it from a global perspective. Regarding the markets specifically, the U.S. is obviously a much bigger market. So the scale and scope of everything that happens over there is much bigger, whether it’s the size of the deals, the number of fans and participants, you add zeros, which takes it to another level. Also, I think professional sports in the U.S. in general are much more mature. I think professionalism happened earlier for the most part, compared to what’s happened in the U.K. The U.K. is catching up fast and is learning a lot from the U.S. and other markets. I think also with the number of professional sports, leagues, teams, etc., in the U.S., that to a certain extent does make it more competitive. The market’s bigger, so there’s almost more room for everyone as well. Because of how the different sports operate, there is a very competitive dynamic in the U.S. I think potentially, things evolve more quickly. That sort of change is by the year within Europe and definitely within the U.K.

On challenges...
Goldschmidt: Currently, the most challenging aspect is prioritizing the different opportunities that we have. We’re in a very exciting period here in England. We’re hosting the World Cup next September. It’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity for us, realistically. We’re not going to get the World Cup for quite a long time again. That is being a real catalyst for changing things, but also for growth. We think the World Cup being played here can take the sport to a whole new level. That’s led to a whole lot of new opportunities that we can look to capitalize on. It’s really making sure that we pick the right programs and we’re focused on the programs that are going to make a difference. Ultimately, our reason for being is to grow participation of the sport in this country and to try to be very disciplined around those initiatives that make the biggest impact, and having a long-term plan and trying not to deviate from that. Interest and demand have led to a lot of new opportunities which is fantastic. It’s a challenge, making the decisions on which ones to focus on and sort of balancing out the different areas of the business.

On innovations in stadium technology...
Goldschmidt: They’ve changed massively and I think they’ll continue to. It’s only just begun on that journey. To a certain extent they have to, because the at-home experience, the TV, broadcast and digital experience is so good that you’ve got to continue to improve the live experience. Otherwise why would people pay quite high ticket prices to come to live events? It has to evolve and it will continue to. I think the whole fan experience is much more engaging. I think technology is obviously a huge part of that. … [Fans] can now in many instances choose how they want to view it, whether it’s an extra angle they want to get on the replay or whether it’s the efficiency of being able to order stuff from their seats. There are so many different ways that it is coming to life. For us, Twickenham, for the most part, is quite an old stadium. The south stand was built in the last 10 years, but other parts of the stadium are decades old. It’s amazing, with new technology, how we’ve been able to enhance and upgrade the overall experience. New technology has allowed us to do that. Even though we play in quite an old stadium, I think that the match experience now is very innovative and progressive and comparable to any of the great new stadiums that are being built around the world.

On the RFU’s partnership with Samsung...
Goldschmidt: It’s been hugely important for us and we’re delighted to have entered into a new partnership with Samsung. We feel they are the absolute best partner for us -- a global leader in the electronics space. We absolutely share a vision around what we want to do with the match day experience. But the partnership is much more than that and is also having an impact on the grassroots game as well. We had long discussions, because I think for the both of us it was a very important decision and we wanted to get to know each other really well before we entered into the partnership. So far so good. We’re thrilled to have them on board.

On the England women’s rugby team winning the World Cup...
Goldschmidt: It’s already had a significant impact. We’ve already seen the media interest in the sport increase and an increase in participation. It’s already leaving a legacy. We have new role models now for any young girls and boys growing up, looking to play rugby, but also sports in general. There are many athletes that transcend their sports, and I think female rugby players are just the same. They are fantastic role models who’ve obviously achieved something incredibly special at winning the World Cup. Also the momentum and timing of it was very opportune, with us hosting the men’s World Cup next year, it’s been sort of a catalyst again for interest and demand in the game. It’s been hugely important and will have a significant and lasting legacy on the sport in England.

Hangin' With runs each Friday in SBD Global.

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