Most people experience sport not in a stadium, but on the side lines of a local club. From fundraising committees to coaching under-10s, volunteers are the engine of Irish sport. But as Emma Richmond, managing partner of Whitney Moore, explains in this episode of Sports Matters, that passion comes with real responsibility.

Richmond outlines the unseen legal landscape of community sport: safeguarding obligations, data protection rules, trusteeship headaches, and the challenges of running staff with volunteer committees. She also discusses how mergers — like the planned integration of the GAA, LGFA and Camogie Association — will test constitutions and ownership structures across the country.

From finance committees to safeguarding officers, her message is clear: understanding the legal framework isn’t optional. It’s what keeps clubs safe, solvent, and sustainable.

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What links Josh van der Flier, Kelly Harrington, Tadhg Furlong, and the O'Donovan brothers? Behind the scenes, it's David McHugh — advisor, strategist, and one of Irish sport’s most influential figures.

In this episode of Sports Matters, McHugh sits down with Ian Kehoe to talk through a career that’s taken him from Olympic hopeful to founder of Line Up Sports — and now to a leadership role at global agency Wasserman. He reflects on building trust with athletes, why he avoids the word “agent,” and how commercial sport has evolved from sentiment to science. McHugh also shares how he identifies talent, the future of women’s sport, and what elite performers are really like when they’re not wearing the jersey.

Sports Matters is sponsored by Whitney Moore.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.