Sheffield sports firm targeting expansion ahead of 2016 Rio Olympics

A Sheffield-based sports management company, which represents some of the world's top sportsmen and women, is targeting expansion ahead of the Rio 2016 Olympics.
Action from the 2014 EU Archery Festival, an event which pioneered use of Sport:80s technology, in turn becoming the first ever digitally automated archery event of its kind.Action from the 2014 EU Archery Festival, an event which pioneered use of Sport:80s technology, in turn becoming the first ever digitally automated archery event of its kind.
Action from the 2014 EU Archery Festival, an event which pioneered use of Sport:80s technology, in turn becoming the first ever digitally automated archery event of its kind.

Sport:80 is to raise funds on crowdfunding platform CrowBnk ahead of a listing on AIM, a sub-market of the London Stock Exchange, later this year.

Company bosses are targeting expansion within the 35 Olympic and Paralympic sports, which the directors estimate have a market value of £720m.

Gary Hargraves, chief executive officer of Sheffield-based Sport:80.Gary Hargraves, chief executive officer of Sheffield-based Sport:80.
Gary Hargraves, chief executive officer of Sheffield-based Sport:80.
Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The firm enables sport organisations and athletes to register for regional, national and international events, book accommodation and track their sporting performance.

Its clients include the British Olympic Association, British Fencing, Archery GB, Squash South Africa, BISFed and IPC Shooting.

Chief executive officer Gary Hargraves, who was born in Sheffield and is a former managing director of Brentford Football Club, said: “We are delighted to provide investors with a unique opportunity to gain exposure to a huge untapped market that is on the verge of a major digital transformation.“

Since its first year of operation in 2013 revenues have doubled year on year, with the year ended 31 December 2014 reporting revenues of £351,972.

Gary Hargraves, chief executive officer of Sheffield-based Sport:80.Gary Hargraves, chief executive officer of Sheffield-based Sport:80.
Gary Hargraves, chief executive officer of Sheffield-based Sport:80.
Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Sport:80’s platform allows sporting federations to monitor athlete profiles, check they have the accreditation to compete, and provides a secure gateway for payments.

The AIM flotation will coincide with new rules coming in this year that require all international sports federations to collect and retain data about athletes.

The company aims to replace the existing paper-based systems that many sporting organisations still rely on with a high tech alternative.

Mr Hargraves said his company’s proprietary, cloud-based platform will help “bring sport into the 21st century.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“In the wake of the Olympics and Paralympics in London, people began getting involved in sporting activities showcased during the Olympics at an unparalleled rate – Great Britain was awash with new archers, rowers and swimmers.

“But many of these sporting associations still use outdated systems to handle these increasingly huge member numbers and large events, relying on paper-based systems and numerous outsourced support agencies to manage their processes. “Sport:80 can propel these sports associations into the 21st century with one cloud-based platform capable of handling all of their administrative and management functions.”

The firm has already raised more than £200, 000 through crowdfunding and is targeting up to £750,000. The funds will be used to support the roll-out of its platform within the sports management sector.

​​Further information can be found athttps://www.crowdbnk.com/p/sport80