Emma Vetriano

Exeter alumna awarded prestigious sports leadership prize

Exeter alumna Emma Vetriano (International Relations, 2011) has been named a Sports Industry NextGen Leader for 2019.

This highly coveted award is for any professional aged 30 or under working in the UK Sports Industry, and is awarded by The Sports Industry Group, a prestigious group that leads the UK’s support of sport business.

Emma began her career in sales, planning and executing new business activities across Bournemouth Sevens Festival and Viper 10 Sportswear. She then led Brentford FC's marketing department before moving to her current role where she manages EA SPORTS FIFA’S Global Partnerships with the Premier League, EFL, Chelsea FC, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur, as well as Manchester City player Kevin De Bruyne. She is also a Co-Founder of Women in Sports Business and a member of Women in Football

“I am particularly passionate about equality and diversity in sports business. Although I started my sports business career in sales, I started my sports industry career playing, refereeing and coaching rugby.” said Emma. “Once I retired from playing and coaching, I used my knowledge to become the first female member of a Match Officials team at the European Rugby Champions Cup Final in 2015 – only known to those who studied the league regulations, although I believe I started a trend.

“Whilst at Brentford FC, I co-founded the Inclusivity and Diversity Committee and orchestrated the first showing of WonderKid (a film tackling one of football's biggest issues – homophobia) to professional football players. I also attended the 2016 Kick It Out #RaiseYourGame conference as a guest speaker, with the aim of sharing my career journey to inspire others to kick-start theirs.

“Now I’m able to use my professional network and the power of one of the biggest brands in football to positively influence the industry as a whole. Currently, I am spearheading a campaign to encourage more women to become professional FIFA players.

“As there are so few women working in sport, I hope to use the NextGen programme to encourage more young people to consider sports business as a career path.”

Sport Industry NextGen will work to nurture the Leaders’ talent through a tailored programme that delivers more than 12 experiences throughout the year designed to promote effective leadership and equip them with the skills and knowledge required to fulfil their potential.

Date: 12 October 2018