





Golazo’s purpose is to make you healthier and happier.
We do this by focusing on holistic wellbeing. This involves physical and mental wellbeing but also touches upon social and societal wellbeing in a direct B2C approach, as well as targeting you through your workplace.
In the first 20 years, the focus of our sports and health organisation was exclusively on physical wellbeing, convincing individuals to move at least 30 minutes every day. This has now shifted to physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing.
Through organising events or challenges directly aimed at the consumer. Examples are the Memorial Van Damme, Six Days of Ghent, X20 Trophy (cyclo-cross), but also the Antwerp 10 Miles, Urban Walks, marathons of Rotterdam and Nairobi or the Ronde Van Vlaanderen or Paris-Roubaix for cycling enthusiasts. Every year, we offer over 1000 events and challenges in dozens of countries, recently also in Africa.
Through setting up corporate wellbeing programmes in companies to improve the employees’ wellbeing, not just through exercising more, but also through mental coaching. We are helping to strengthen the corporate culture. Thanks to ‘Golazo inside’, employees feel fitter and mentally more resilient.
Furthermore, we advise other stakeholders and brands - predominantly in the world of sport - to be more effective in their mission. We also pay attention to government bodies regarding sports, health and exercising.
Our media arm focuses on community building through our own media brands and on customized digital media content.
2022
Golazo continues to grow with ever increasing event offers in sports such as golf, breaking, padel, 3x3 basketball,… In corporate wellbeing our focus is now on holistic wellbeing making employees healthier and happier with a physical, mental and spiritual approach.
We are servicing more sports rights holders and brands with activations and digital content. With a new African headquarter in Nairobi (Kenya), we will expand our activities on this continent. All this resulted in a record-breaking turnover of 125 million.
2018
Founder Bob Verbeeck sells a 20% equity stake to a group of national and international investors. A board of directors is installed with Johnny Thijs (ex-CEO Belgian Post) as chairman. The Golazo vision in the next ten years will be driven by focus and growth, both in activities, as well as in geography.
2014
Golazo goes international and opens offices in The Netherlands, France, Germany and the UK. This growth strategy is a combination of acquisitions and organic growth. A multi-brand strategy is part of the growth plan. Most acquisitions are related to events, consultancy and brand activation.
Due to different and conflicting views on the future of the company, Octagon and CIS decide to go their separate ways. Bob Verbeeck regains full control over the company. The company name changes to Golazo, which focuses on the development of their own event portfolio, athlete representation, sports media and consultancy, but with operations only in Belgium.
2000
With the European championships football coming to Belgium & The Netherlands, Octagon (a NYSE listed company under Interpublic IPG) is looking for an agency partner. Octagon and CIS start working together on a European scale, creating Octagon CIS. Founder Bob Verbeeck decides to sell CIS to Octagon, while staying on as CEO. Octagon CIS becomes a major player in sports consultancy and brand activation in Europe, servicing clients such as Hyundai, Mastercard, Sony PlayStation, Proctor & Gamble, the NBA, etc.
Without a solid business plan, but with a strong conviction that sport mattered in society, 1984 Olympian Bob Verbeeck starts CIS on 18 October 1990. The acronym stands for “Consultants in Sports”. The new company intends to consult brands on their sports sponsorship and strategy.
Several decades ago, the average lifespan of a company was approximately 40 years, while a decade ago, it was 20 years. Since the pandemic the average lifespan of a company has been 19 months. So on average a company is out of business in fewer than two years. Golazo has already existed 32 years and we want to build our organisation to last forever.
Verbeeck, CEO Golazo GroupAn eternal organisation starts with a very solid core or reason for existence. Why does your organisation exist? What is the added value that your organisation brings to society?
Starting from that mission, vision and purpose you strive to become a better organisation every day.
Growing is not just becoming bigger, it is all about becoming better. As a result of being better you become bigger.
What are the most important factors in assuring an eternal organisation?
It certainly does not start with a business plan. It starts with the passion, drive and grit of the company’s founder.
GRIT is a mix of total dedication and perseverance to build towards your long-term ambition. Ambition is much stronger than goalsetting. Ambition is the engine allowing your organisation to thrive. Goals are more technical, but important landmarks, which you want to realise.
When I founded Golazo, our purpose was to create a healthier and happier world by focussing on physical wellbeing. We were never just a sports and health organisation in a traditional sense, but focused on all kinds of movement and sports. We formed strong partnerships with brands and companies such as Nike and Unilever, to create new events and partnerships based on our purpose.
We have always focused on the tremendous added value of sports and healthy lifestyle for society as a whole and for all individuals.
Founders of companies have to focus on their passion and use that passion to build a better organisation every day. Start out small and grow better each day. In the organisation it is also vital that all your colleagues get infected with the same drive and that they are committed to the same purpose. Today at Golazo we have almost 400 entrepreneurs that are passionate about our common purpose.
This common passion and drive has to be translated in a clear and easy to understand purpose. Why does your organisation exist? We try to communicate this as simply as possible to our own colleagues, but also to all external stakeholders. Our why is to make you healthier and happier.
The next step is then to determine “how” you execute your purpose.
We do this by focusing on holistic wellbeing. This involves physical and mental wellbeing, but also touches upon social and societal wellbeing in a direct B2C approach, as well as targeting you through your workplace.
In the first 20 years, the focus of our sports and health organisation was exclusively on physical wellbeing, convincing individuals to move at least 30 minutes every day. This has now shifted to physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing.
Starting with our purpose to make you healthier and happier (our why) and by addressing holistic wellbeing (our how), the next level is “what”. What is our offer to those individuals that we want to make healthier and happier?
Our offer includes a very wide range of physical and virtual events, apps and challenges directed at individuals, corporate wellbeing programmes focusing on physical and mental wellbeing, and directed at companies of all sizes, consultancy and partnerships with local and regional governments and other rights holders in the area of sports, health and movement.
Running/walking and cycling are the most prominent events we offer by staging over 400 physical events ranging from traditional road races and marathons, cycling classics, to urban and nature trails and gravel rides, experience runs and walks around themes such as attraction parks, wine & beer, obstacle courses, city landmarks, corporate runs and rides and charity based events. Our app “Start to Run” has attracted more than 1.5 million users. We attract a total of approximately 4 million individual participants every year.
By installing holistic corporate wellbeing programmes in companies, we improve the physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing of all employees with a participation rate of up to 80%. These programs also have a positive impact on corporate culture.
We advise other stakeholders, federations and brands on improving their offering. Increasingly, we are also working with governments on sports, preventive healthcare and daily wellbeing. Our media arm focusing on data profiling, community building and social media.
When you have clearly defined your why, how and what; you have built the most important pillar of your organisation. There are three other pillars to work on. Those other three are offering, team and finance.
I have already mentioned our offering (our what), but have an important reflection on this. Your offering has to be permanently changed and adapted, primarily because your target group changes and society changes. Your focus needs to be flexible. Your ambition and purpose remain the same, but the path to realisation changes constantly. There are many external factors upon which you have little or no control.
When the pandemic hit us in March 2020, we changed all our physical events to virtual events all within a matter of a few weeks. We switched our corporate events and wellbeing programmes to webinars and used our event organisation expertise to build test and vaccination centres in many cities where we were formerly hosting events. Without that resilience and agility, 2020 would have been a catastrophic year, as 100% of our physical events were cancelled.
Thanks to all these actions, 2021 was again our best year ever and 2022 will top that. One of our board members Ignace Van Doorselaere (CEO Neuhaus) says that your organisation should have the characteristics of a dolphin, not a huge sea vessel. Dolphins are playful, joyful, curious, fast and agile. Be a dolphin!
The fact that your offer has to be adapted and changed constantly, has a fundamental impact on your team. It also needs to be agile and resilient to reach an optimal “speed to market”.
This cannot be achieved by setting up vertical organisations. We try to have as little middle management as possible and give every employee the required decision-making power. Always focus on the painting, not on the frame. The painting is your customer, the frame is the rules, procedures and processes. Too many organisations spend too much time on the frame. Also your top leaders need to combine operational responsibilities with a long term vision.
Peter Drucker’s “Culture eats strategy for breakfast” is our credo. A culture of trust, loyalty and dedication. Culture is not what you preach, it is what you tolerate.
Talent alone is not sufficient. Grit is crucial. We select our people on attitude and grit, not on competence. You have to build an ecosystem which attracts these kinds of people and avoids others.
These is a huge difference between competence and competitiveness. Competence is being good at something, competitiveness is the will to win. Competence is insufficient, if it this does not go hand in hand with competitiveness.
The last pillar of your organisation is finance. Make sure that your organisation is financially solid. As we have seen with the pandemic, it is nice and comfortable to have financial reserves. One of the most important reasons that organisations die is that they run out cash.
The ratio of debt to ebitda gives you all the clarity you need.
When you have taken care of your 4 pillars (purpose, offering, team and finance), you have only 1 daily concern: GROWTH.
Focus on growth planning, not budget planning. We grow by extending into new sports, such as basketball 3x3, breakdancing, gravelling, golf, and darts and championships in existing and new territories.
Take care of growth by improving that offering every day. Growth is the purest form of democracy. Individuals choose your offering, not by voting but with their wallet. Measure net promotor scores. Net promotor scores are the real boss of our company, because they tell us how valuable you really are from the customers’ perspective.
Without growth in your numbers, you will eventually die. There is no flat curve, either you go up or you go down. Make sure you’re not on the downward slide, because then you no longer control the speed of your decline.
Organic and sustainable growth is the best proof that you are on the right track. Topline growth linked to gross margin is a path to eternity.
Only time will tell if we make it to our centenary, even though I will not experience it in person. What is most important is the rule of thumb we live by every day: how we add value to the lives of our participants, spectators, fans and customers.
Golazo does not just want to get everyone moving, we want to provide everyone with an equal opportunity to do that. Even those who might struggle at first sight, we try to get involved in our activities as best as we can.
We treat everybody the same, regardless of gender, belief, skin colour, sexual orientation or physical ability, and we encourage and motivate our participants and spectators to do the same as much as possible.
We bring all of that together under the banner: “Bolingo Embracing Diversity”. Athlete Cynthia Bolingo is our proud and active ambassador. For Bolingo, embracing diversity is much more than slogans.
We include special Olympics disciplines in our cycling events (Baloise Belgium Tour, Lotto Zesdaagse,...).
Paralympic disciplines have been a tradition at the Allianz Memorial Van Damme for a long time. We also include Para-cycling at the Lotto Zesdaagse Gent and we enabled the triple world record attempts of some of our Para-cyclists, leading to the World hour record of Ewout Vromans.
People with mental disabilities were involved in the Lotto Zesdaagse by inviting them to get creative with old bicycle wheels that were used to decorate the VIP entrance.
In cooperation with Engie and with the support of Memorial Director Kim Gevaert, 64 young refugees that are being looked after by Fedasil, SOS Kinderdorpen and Minor Ndako, were given an athletics initiation and were able to attend the Memorial.
In cooperation with Plan International, the Equal Rights Run has featured on the Memorial programme for years and in it men and women compete against each other in a 100m race.
Golazo partnered up with mama cycling, a project initiated by Kenya’s first lady, her excellency Rachel Ruto. Mama cycling not only promotes cycling in Kenya, it aims to provide bicycles more widely throughout the country. Bicycles help children in remote areas getting to school, carers moving around easily and local farmers transporting their goods to the market.
Golazo supports ten young girls in a new girls school in Iten (Kenya). The secondary school was founded by Richard Kaitany, who studied and trained on the same team as Bob Verbeeck. Ten girls – each from a challenging family background – will receive a scholarship from Golazo for four years allowing them to enjoy a free education (and school meals).
Health or medical problems should not always be a barrier to exercising and realising sportsrelated dreams. Climbing for Life does not just raise money for asthma, cystic fibrosis or diabetes; people with those disorders are closely coached so that they can fulfil their dream of riding up a mountain pass in the Alps or Dolomites on a bike.
During the VRT’s annual Warmste Week, Golazo organises the Warmathon. An easily accessible running event with all proceeds going to charity.
Beyond White Line is an initiative to break down barriers and build bridges between people of different backgrounds. It is a series of events aimed at informing Belgian citizens about the various societal issues of our time. The first edition dealt with all issues related to migration. This includes the welcoming migrants of all ages in our society.
This year, we welcomed human rights icons Mr. Tommie Smith and Mr. John Carlos in the Golazo family at the occasion of their honorary doctorate at the KU Leuven. They truly represent the universal values of our company.
A unique running event, in which teams of four run 100 km together to raise money for the fight against cancer. The challenge and group spirit are key.
• UZA and UA cancer research & Tele Onthaal (Antwerp 10 Miles)
• Nationaal Park Fonds (Nationaal Park Run & Walk Maasmechelen)
• Natuurpunt & Vogelopvangcentrum Kieldrecht (Havenland Run & Walk)
• Te Gek!? (AG Belgian Coast Walk)
• Sportaround (Sofico Gent Marathon)
• KWF Kankerbestrijding (NN Marathon Rotterdam, ASML Marathon Eindhoven, Maastrichts Mooiste, ...)
• Villa Pardoes (CZ Tilburg Ten Miles)
• Jeugdfonds Sport&Cultuur (Menzis 4 Mijl van Groningen)
• Stichting Ambulancewens (DSW Bruggenloop)
Events are an ideal way to get everybody moving. They give people purpose. The atmosphere and overall experience surrounding the events are crucial, making them so much more than just a personal effort.
Top sports events catalyse promotion of sport. Seeing your heroes at work upclose, encourages people to start taking up sport themselves. We are increasingly committed to signature events, such as big championships.
Our apps, challenges and digital events give everybody the opportunity to exercise, wherever and whenever. Through music, encouragement and tips, they add extras that help make it a not-to-be-missed experience.
Our hospitality business Gracias offers packages for companies during sports and culinary/cultural events. During these events, companies enjoy a premium experience where they can network with their business contacts under the best circumstances and experience all the action from the front row. Additionally, we organise corporate events and incentives that marry well with our hospitality DNA and get the well-known Gracias touch.
Through our cycling travel business Kortweg, we organise cycling holidays for all cycling addicts, cycling clubs and corporate clients. We offer fully-catered tours, including all logistics and create tailor-made solutions for companies.
We embrace technology to make our mission as scalable as possible, turning physical events into virtual challenges and fundraising initiatives. We capture performances, images, video using tailor made solutions on major events in more than 40 countries. Timing, TV Graphics, tracking, registrations, deep learning, big data analysis, flow management, access control, … With ChronoRace, we are the forefront of sports data technology to deliver a better experience to all participants, fans, and broadcasters.
We are a group of expert companies who believe that human energy is the most vital element for creating real progress in organisations and society. We help our clients create workplaces where people can be better, feel better and talent can flourish
Our vision is to move people, organisations, and society so they can thrive.
It is our ambition to improve the wellbeing and performance of all our customers. We believe that high wellbeing and high performance go hand in hand. So that people, teams and organisations can truly thrive.
We do this by energising them physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.
True wellbeing can only be achieved when it’s approached holistically. The wellbeing of an individual, team, organisation and society is defined by its physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health. All our programmes and solutions are built around these 4 principles.
Energy Lab motivates people and companies to move more and live a healthier lifestyle. We create and implement sustainable and impactful wellbeing journeys, including inspirational sessions, activations, workshops, and life changing experiences for our customers. We offer testing and coaching services in our labs and via online applications.
Turn your employees into your ambassadors. Let them embody your company values at sporting events in which you participate. Energy Lab offers your company the ultimate preparation on this journey. A selection of employees works towards an ultimate physical goal under the professional supervision of Energy Lab coaches. The ambassadors give a voice and face to the corporate wellbeing programme of your company and spread the “health virus” within the company.
Master Your Energy is a 100-day programme that focuses on turning your company’s and employees’ energy drains into energy gains. We boost the physical, mental and emotional energy levels of your employees and help you build and create a sustainable high-performance working culture. Where time is a finite resource, your energy can be expanded and reinvigorated.
Healthy and challenging teambuilding with your team or perhaps a family day where your employees and their families can enjoy a day of fun and sports?
Energy Lab & hospitality partner Gracias provide all of the necessary ingredients to make your event a raging success.
Whether you are a experienced athlete or complete novice at sports, our professional coaches put you on the right path towards your sports goal. Effort testing, body composition analysis, nutrition advice and tailor-made sports schedules… Whatever you need to make it across the finish line, we got you!
As of spring 2023 you will not only find Energy Lab in Ghent, Paal and Leuven but also in Zolder & Antwerp where a brand new state of the art centre is being built as we speak.
Coaching has been an essential part of Energy Lab and at the root of our DNA for many years. Not only do we coach some of Belgium’s top athletes like sailing champion Emma Plasschaert and Sport Vlaanderen Baloise cycling talent Rune Herregodts, we also take pride in discovering new, young talent and coaching them towards their first steps as professional athletes and later on guiding and supporting them throughout their careers.
Justine Ghekiere: how riding the Virtual Baloise Tour lead to a career as a professional cyclist
It all started two years ago when Justine decided to participate in the first edition of the Virtual Baloise Belgium Tour – a virtual event to replace the real Baloise Belgium Tour as the covid pandemic was in full swing back then. Her results were so astonishingly good that the Energy Lab coaches wanted to take a closer look at her cycling skills, so Justine came in for physical testing at Energy Lab Ghent. She blew our coaches away again with her performance during the physical bike test. The trained eye of coach Ward Van De Capelle spotted Justine’s talent right away and convinced her to try out for the Lotto Cycling Talent programme, on which she managed to get a spot. The programme allowed her to be coached by the Energy Lab coaches so she was able to explore her full potential and learn how to reach a professional level.
Fast forward to 2022… She is living her dream of being a professional cyclist as a member of the PlanturPura team. In the last two years, Justine has already proved to be a talented athlete with several successful performances in the greatest cycling competitions, including a 19th place in the World Championships.
Our Start 2 Run app has coached 700,000 users towards their first 5K of running, and many more afterwards, over the last decade. Easy to follow schedules, building up the runner experience slowly and getting motivational messages during your workout are the key ingredients for the success of the app. Start 2 Run has changed the lives of so many people who finally found their passion in running and adopted a healthier lifestyle because of it.
“This app gradually helps me improve my fitness. Evy coaches in your ear by telling you when to walk and run. After 4 weeks I notice that it’s all going a bit easier and I know that I’m healthier. I’m really a fan.”
Better Minds at Work helps to activate the entire mental capital of your organisation. We do this through professional advice, training, inspiration sessions and coaching. Our trademark is translating scientific theories into a fresh and accessible day-to-day approach.
The Human Capital Scan helps you find out what gives your employees energy, what stresses them and how they perceive the leadership and organisation.
During our leadership programmes we inspire your leaders in continuous innovation to become truly future-proof.
The New Now is our latest keynote on how to build resilience in a world where change is the only constant.
Sharing knowledge is one of our core values. That is why several of our experts put their pen to paper to share their most valuable insights and expertise with you.
Better Minds at Work has been providing leadership trainings for many years now. We have ample experience in guiding international groups of leaders and we take them in a leadership journey Dare to Lead, tailored to your organisation. For instance at Katoen Natie we are training hundreds of leaders from 100+
As today’s work environment changes, leadership must change as well. The shifts of social and political turbulence, work-life fusion and flexible work arrangements are redefining the leader-employee dynamic into a humanto-human relationship.
Sharing is caring is in the DNA of every Better Minds at Work expert. That is why we founded the Better Minds Academy in which we offer inspiring journeys for every professional. Courses vary from leadership skills, coaching skills to very specific topics such as perfectionism and focus. Immerse yourself and your team members in these courses in various cities across
Peak4 helps companies understand, plan, implement and communicate change within their teams and organisation. We use the latest knowledge available in organisational and behavioural science, best in class business practices and nature’s wisdom to guide leaders, teams, and organisations through their own personal change.
We help leaders embrace new ways of approaching change in which they explore the dynamics at play, discover new perspectives, make it personal, shift underlying mindsets and connect with a deeper source of creativity.
Our Talent & Leadership programmes are tailor-made, in co-creation with our client and create curious, resilient and agile employees.
Our individual and team coaching helps to create a healthy workforce and ensures successful companies in times where people’s wellbeing is under great pressure.
The ‘Deloitte TOP Program’ is a two-year program for starting talents at Deloitte Tax & Legal. The aim of this program is to train resilient and agile talents who will become the leaders of the future at Deloitte.
The icing on the cake for the ‘TOPpers’ is the impact journey in the Alps at the end of their traineeship. During this journey they will work on themes such as their Growth versus Fixed Mindset and look back on the past two years of the program. The mountains contribute to being able to slow down, step out of your bubble and completely disconnect from the daily grind. A wonderful journey where many great insights are gained that help them with their further career at Deloitte.
Our focus is on brands and companies that want to communicate through sport and are aiming for the same mission. We advise and assist our clients creating effective and unforgettable campaigns.
Our divisions Sportizon, Hincha and Triple Double offer services like strategy, creation, digital, activation and events with one ultimate goal: connecting fans with brands.
Moreover, we cooperate closely with all levels of sports organisations, ranging from teams to federations, leagues, events, and also with athletes.
Golazo is continuing to lead the strategic planning & delivery for Bridgestone EMIA of their new Olympic & Paralympic campaign “Prepared to Perform” across 6 European markets.
Golazo also provided best in class advise to Bridgestone in defining Ambassador criteria, evaluation, selection and the subsequent contract development & negotiation in 2022 to secure 13 new Olympic & Paralympic athletes with whom the brand will partner throughout 2024.
In France, their key market, we launched the new campaign in Paris at a most iconic location for the city and of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games in September and will be launching the campaign in 4 others markets in early 2023.
LUCK DIDN’T GET ME HERE. MY PREPARATION DID.
In 2021, Allianz became the lead sponsor of athletics in Belgium for 4 years. This included the Allianz Memorial Van Damme, the National and Regional federations, the Golden Spike gala and several athletics ambassadors.
After researching and selecting athletics as the best fit for the brand’s objectives a series of communication and activations took place to reinforce the partnership over the years.
It all started with a press launch, setting up Allianz’s presence at the national/ regional championships and the Allianz Memorial Van Damme resulting in athletics fans already having better
As of 2022 the ambition is to focus on individual sports such as cycling, running, lifestyle sports, fitness and add a more emotional layer to the brand.
Together with Triple Double we launched the Ready for more campaign telling a relatable story: sport is a constant psychological battle with yourself, but once you conquer your mental obstacles, you are ready for more.”
We highlight the beautiful sport of cycling by organising AA Drink Social Rides with Thibau Nys & Lars van der Haar offering participants a unique experience.
We used the TV show “Spartacus Run” to create a specific social media campaign with Sven Nys offering participants a chance to win tickets for the event.
Launching the biggest golf event that Belgium has ever known and reaching all golfers in Belgium with a clear brand positioning. That was the assignment for us working on the Soudal Open, a brand-new DP World Tour golf event.
The Soudal Open tagline ‘Where golf dreams come true’ was created and implemented in the whole communication strategy. A young boy dreaming of seeing his idol Thomas Pieters playing in Belgium. He gets inspired to train even harder to become as good as he can be. The Soudal Open mood trailer ‘Where golf dreams come true’ was made to inspire and excite fans about the new Belgian Open and was used as TV commercial on Play Sports.
On top of that ‘we made a golf dream come true’ by arranging a surprise meet & greet for the young actor with Thomas Pieters during the Soudal Open.
Next to the clear brand positioning, we wanted to get the attention of our 75,000 golf players in Belgium. We created a content series, ‘Discover the course’ with Wesley Sonck and Thomas Pieters.
Thomas and Wesley played the most challenging holes of the Soudal Open. Every episode focused on how a top player plays a hole and its specific features.
As a result, spectators at the Soudal Open had a better understanding of the way a pro plays during competition and deeper knowledge of the new course.
The ION Hockey League is the result of a consultancy process held with ION and the THL.
In a first phase we guided THL in their strategical setup of the league and ION in their sport sponsorship strategy and connected both partners. To launch the partnership we organised a press conference and produced a new website.
On top of that we negotiated a TV contract for the league with different broadcasters such as Telenet, Proximus, VOO and Sporza. During every live TV game we take care of the TV visibility of ION to ensure the best integration of its partnership.
We developed the ‘Pro League Ultimate Shirt’-campaign for Eleven Sports, where Belgian football fans could vote for the most beautiful football shirt in the Pro League history.
In the first phase, fans could choose their top 3 from the 1,750 jerseys of all clubs, from 1972-73 to today. In a second phase, fans were able to choose the one and only “Pro League Ultimate Shirt” from the remaining 26 Ultimate Club Shirts.
Most important campaign results:
• >20,000 votes in the first 24 hours & 78,000 unique participants in total
• 9.6 million impressions
• +5 min average time spent on the platform
At Sportizon we create content that makes brands, fans, people, athletes feel the power of sports. We put people at the heart of everything we do, to create strategically relevant sport related content that informs and entertains.
Our goal as a creative agency expert is to create integrated campaigns, devise unique social led sports content looking at when, where, clients want a brand to relate to an event, athlete, federation, team, league and more.
It’s simple. We want to form a strong bond between the customer, the brand and the asset.
Q8 asked us to develop a campaign around sustainability as part of their partnership with the Antwerp Marathon. Together with Saartje Vandendriessche, we asked all runners to recycle their plastic drinking cups, resulting in the production of unique 3D printed furniture for a Q8 petrol station in Antwerp.
The floating green was present at the first edition of the Soudal Open thanks to Telenet. This animation brought passionate golfers together and many smiles could be seen throughout the week. From children to grandparents, everyone had the chance to win a year’s subscription to Play Sports by making the approach in one shot. A great opportunity to show your talent at the 19th hole village.
This summer the creative approach was encapsulated in the word Freakology: the study of Giannis. It was brought to life at a series of Giannisinspired events in Milan, Paris & Berlin where kids received a personalised basketball training experience based on Giannis’ game, his work ethic, and his personality.
To reinforce Betcenter’s role as key partner of Belgian futsal and connect with futsal fans, we created a digital campaign & 13-part long web series entitled “Betcenter Freestyle vs. Futsal Challenge” highlighting the urban nature of the sport & promoting the clubs and players.
Before the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™, VRT was looking for short TV Bumpers to integrate within their daily broadcast schedule. We created 12 short movies showcasing Ghent (location of the WC 22 VRT studio) and freestyle football for Villa Sporza.
For the third year in a row, we are partnering with Eleven Sports to develop an innovative and fan-centric digital campaign linked to the Pro League. “The Ultimate Goal” activation will give Belgian football fans the chance to access the most iconic and legendary goals ever made on a Belgian pitch in digital form. The five-month initiative is again a collaboration between Eleven Sports, the Pro League, Pro League clubs and Panini. At the end of the 2022-2023 football season, the Ultimate Goal will be announced at the Pro League Awards.
AG Frunning is an inspirational campaign that tells the story of people who like to run in good company. Because running together is fun it becomes extra motivating. It gradually also becomes part of a healthy lifestyle if you share the joy of running with friends. It doesn’t matter how fast or how far you run. This is what AG Frunning is all about. With 4 short films we want to inspire people - highlighting the brand claim of AG (Supporter Of Your Life) - telling the story of people who like to run in good company in the lead up to the AG Antwerp 10 Miles.
Since 2017 Continental has challenged us to create, develop and implement a year-round cycling plan. Each year we present a full Event and Communication platform during the full season to answer and bring to life Continental’s “Missing link” challenge. This is from event concept development to the early ideation phase, pro Cycling Heroes integration, set up of multiple cycling events and production of a substantial content programme. A wide of range of former pro cyclist and celebrities have been involved over the years.
To help all the runners through those 20 kilometers, we provided bottles of Spa at the start, finish and along the course. By doing so, Spadel fulfilled their mission within this partnership: hydrating and refreshing people.
Throughout the day, 200 VIP guests got a special treatment at their stand and Spa branding was placed all over the course. Overall, we provided 300,000 bottles of Spa!
Pre-event race we asked friends & family to upload a photo with a personal message. During the race, Port of Antwerp-Bruges displayed these on a screen to give the participants a boost. At the finish, photobooths were set up to show individual finish times that could be shared on LED boards.
As the digital partner of St Raphäel, l’apéro du vélo, we built a social media strategy to develop a deeper relationship with Belgian cycling fans.
• Tactical photo shoot to feed the social media and webshop with content by integrating St Raphael merchandising items and products.
• Thumb stopping digital content linked to the most relevant rides on the pro cycling calendar
• Gamification campaigns linked to the biggest pro cycling events such as the World Championships, Tour de France and Ronde van Vlaanderen. Result:
More than 950K cyclist reached and more than 2000 cyclists won a St Raphaël cycling price.
It’s now official, Tacx is part of the Garmin brand in Belgium. For the official launch, a day completely dedicated to cycling has been put together for clients, influencers, pro riders and a limited number of consumers. All were invited to join the Garmin Peloton to ride together under the leadership of Pro riders, followed by lunch around the specially made display showcasing all Garmin and Tacx products. To close the day, there was a session about breathing effectively led by former Pro rider Karsten Kroon.
Tens of thousands of visitors, rating records and millions of views on social media. The first edition of the World Padel Tour Amsterdam - where the absolute world top was present - has stirred up something in the Netherlands. The backdrop of the tournament was the monumental Centrale Markthal.
WPT Amsterdam Open was coorganised by our divisions Golazo Sports and Triple Double. The sports marketing agency was responsible for all marketing communications, brand activations, media coverage and partnerships. Dentons, AA Drink, Circus and CBRE, among others, joined WPT Amsterdam for several years.
An unprecedented partnership in women’s sports: DHL became logistics partner and sponsor of the national women’s teams in football, hockey, volleyball and handball.
Dutch women’s sports is experiencing enormous growth in performance and popularity at the international top level. The goal is to continue achieving those sports performances at the highest level. This match in ambition and motivation to be among the best is summarised in #SameDream and embraced by DHL.
We were responsible for the partnership deal and to activate it. With four national tournaments (Hockey World Cup, UEFA European Women’s Championship, European Championship Handball and the FIVB Volleyball Women’s World Championship) it was a busy year.
DHL ambassadors, left to right: Laura Dijkema (volleyball), Pien Sanders (hockey), Lois Abbingh (handball), and Jackie Groenen (football).
In just over half a year, two Olympic and two Paralympic Games were organised. Special editions, with no fans or family in the stands. TeamNL wanted to use these memorable Games to permanently inspire young people with sport. Therefore we have unveiled a mural featuring ten Dutch sports heroes from the Tokyo and Beijing Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The Walk of Fame is a gift to PSV and its fans, from energiedirect.nl. It consists of tiles with footprints or handprints from former players and goalkeepers. At the moment twelve legends are part of the PSV Walk of Fame. It’s a ‘living’ monument, so more tiles will follow.
During the first edition of the Champions Dinner, the players of the Keuken Kampioen Divisie (first division) got the podium they deserved. It was national coach Louis van Gaal who awarded the Golden Shields to Best Player, Best Talent and Best Goalkeeper, among others.
The Keuken Kampioen Divisie is pre-eminently a breeding ground for talent. The Dutch national team of national coach Louis van Gaal, for instance, on average consists of around 10 players who have played in the Keuken Kampioen Divisie.
As a supporter of footballing Netherlands, Albert Heijn stands behind the Dutch team; together we colour Orange. For the World Cup taking place in winter for the first time, there is a good chance we will be watching Orange in our jumper or perhaps a thick winter coat. Consumers at Albert Heijn received cool Orange patches to pimp their winter outfit.
The colour blue and PSV have been linked for decades. Many PSV heroes - from Romário to Ronaldo and Van Nistelrooy to Memphis - all played their PSV away games in blue in recent decades. That is why the shirt is called ‘Brilliant Blue’; a mix of all the blue kits PSV has worn in the past.
Strong and inspirational content can guide people in their choices to move. Our media titles (both in print and digital) serve targeted sports audiences and professionals. Our ability to create and produce crystal clear content on sport and health is an asset we offer to all professionals in sport to ease communication with their members, peers and fans.
bij een goede temperatuurregulatie. De sokken bevorderen je bloedcirculatie, waardoor afvalstoffen beter worden afgevoerd en helpen bij het herstel. Sockwell heeft zowel korte als langere compressiesokken in zijn gamma. Voor de lopers die ook weleens de wandelschoenen aantrekken, biedt Sockwell ook wandelsokken met compressie. Deze hebben een dikkere zool (met hak en teenstuk) en bevatten naast merinowol – ook alpacawol voor een optimale temperatuurregeling. Compressiesokken hardlopen: verkrijgbaar vanaf 14,95 euro (kort) en 22,95 euro (lang) & Compressiesokken wandelen: verkrijgbaar vanaf 22,99 euro www.sockwell.nl 104
te horen. Lopen geeft me rust.”
Together with Wandelsport Vlaanderen and the KWBN, we will take a great new step in 2023. Both federations will work closely together, a Flemish edition of Wandel.be will be published four times per year in addition to Wandel.nl.
38e Kerstwandeling Wanneer? Maandag 26 december Waar? Klazienaveen (Drenthe) Afstanden: 5 10 15 km
Met het kerstontbijt achter de kiezen, kun je in Drenthe een kerstwandeling maken. De tocht gaat door het veengebied van de Hondsrug en langs het nieuwe Koning Willem-Alexanderkanaal. Bijzondere plek langs de route is de spaarsluis, waardoor de boten in het kanaal het hoogteverschil kunnen overbruggen. Na afloop van de tocht is er snert of patat. wsvdetippelaar.nl
Oliebollentocht Wanneer? Donderdag 29 december Waar? Beesel (Limburg) Afstanden: 6 - 12 km
Zin om tussen kerst en oud en nieuw de benen te strekken? Loop dan de Oliebollentocht in Beesel. Halverwege de tocht is er een gezellige pauze met een knapperend haardvuur en met glühwein en chocomel. De winterwandeling eindigt op de Markt in Beesel. Geniet hier van de ingerichte kraampjes met wafels en, hoe kan het anders in deze tijd van het jaar, oliebollen. wsc-de-solberg.nl
ChocolateWalk Wanneer? Vrijdag 6 januari Waar? Zwolle (Overijssel) Afstanden: 5 10 km Chocoladeliefhebbers opgelet! Tijdens de allereerste editie van de ChocolateWalk wandel je langs chocoladewinkels en chocolatiers in Zwolle. De avondwandeling voert
door de sfeervol verlichte binnenstad. Natuurlijk kun je onderweg van de chocolade proeven. Maar wat dan met je goede voornemens voor 2023? Eén keertje zondigen mag best. bonbonnerieborrel.nl Egmond Wandel Marathon Wanneer? Zaterdag 21 en zondag 22 januari Waar? Egmond aan Zee (NoordHolland) Afstanden: 10,5 21,1 km (op twee dagen)
De Egmond Wandel Marathon is een mooie uitdaging in het nieuwe jaar. Je wandelt over het strand en door het Noordhollands Duinreservaat. Mul zand, wisselende weersomstandigheden en hoogteverschil gegarandeerd. Je kunt zelf bepalen of je één of twee dagen wandelt, welke afstand je loopt en of je de Noordroute of Zuidroute kiest. Op de Noordroute kom je door het gezellige dorpje Bergen aan Zee. De Zuidroute brengt je via het Noordzeestrand in zuidelijke richting. egmondwandelmarathon.nl
Embrace the winter
Wanneer? Vrijdag 10 t/m zondag 12 februari Waar? Schouwerzijl (Groningen) Afstanden: circa 10-16 km per dag Omarm de winter en geniet twee dagen van wandelingen en andere buitenactiviteiten in het noorden van ons land. Organisator Rick Mulder neemt je onder meer mee naar de donkerste plek van Nederland: het Dark Sky Park rond Lauwersmeer. Met wat geluk kun je hier in de winter zelfs het noorderlicht zien. Je leert dit weekend hoe je
een kampvuur maakt waarop je kunt koken. En je gaat zwemmen in (koud) natuurwater. Doel van Embrace the winter is dat je na afloop meer van de winter gaat houden. academy.ikwilhiken.nl
Zandvoort Light Walk Wanneer? Zaterdag 18 februari Waar? Zandvoort (Noord-Holland) Afstanden: 6 14 - 18 km
Wandel over het strand, over de boulevard en over het razendsnelle circuit van Zandvoort. En dat in het donker, langs een waar spektakel van licht. Onderweg kun je genieten van vele lichtkunstwerken en lichtacts.
De kortste route is een Family Walk: een unieke wandelbeleving voor het hele gezin. De langere routes gaan door Zandvoort en door de duinen. In de watertoren van Zandvoort is een rustpost ingericht. zandvoortlightwalk.nl
Wist je dat je met de Wandel. nl-app kunt deelnemen aan wandelevents? Tijdens je wandelavonturen verzamel je unieke badges en kun je je prestaties delen met vrienden. Meer informatie vind je op wandel. nl/app.
Publicaton on the occasion of the the 75 th anniversary of the Dutch Basketball Federation (Nederlandse Basketball Bond) 544 pages | 3,6 kg 2.000 copies sold within 30 days.
Een VOG helpt om een veilige sportomgeving te creëren. Met zo’n door de overheid erkend bewijs van goed gedrag, vormt het verleden van vrijwilligers op de sportvereniging geen probleem om op de club actief te zijn. Dat is fijn voor jongeren, een geruststelling voor ouders en goed voor de club. Vraag voor de vrijwilligers op de club daarom de gratis VOG aan op centrumveiligesport.nl/vog. Zo creëren we samen een veilige sportomgeving. Help je mee?
het noodzakelijk is om de VOGs te bewaren of wanneer vrijwilligers uitdrukkelijk toestemming geven, mag een organisatie de originele VOGs (of een kopie daarvan) van vrijwilligers bewaren. De organisatie is dan wel verplicht dit zorgvuldig en veilig te doen en op papier te zetten waarom het noodzakelijk is en hoe de veiligheid van de persoonsgegevens geborgd is.
Hoe hou je dan bij wie een VOG heeft? Om bij te houden of iemand een VOG heeft, kan met namenlijstjes gewerkt worden waar eenvoudig met een vinkje achter een naam aangegeven wordt dat de vrijwilliger de VOG heeft laten zien. De organisatie moet er wel op letten dat de vrijwilliger de originele VOG laat zien en niet een kopie, omdat een kopie van een VOG geen geldigheid heeft. Dergelijke lijsten met persoonsgegevens moeten wel veilig bewaard worden op plaatsen waar alleen de personen die het aangaat toegang toe hebben. Dat betekent dat organisaties in het beleid moeten opnemen waarom het nodig is dat vrijwilligers een VOG laten zien, hoe die persoonsgegeven bewaard worden en wie toegang hebben tot die informatie. Dat is vergelijkbaar met hoe organisaties met hun ledenbestand moeten omgaan. Wat is een actief en gedegen preventie- en integriteitsbeleid? Hieronder worden maatregelen verstaan die bijdragen aan de veiligheid binnen de vereniging. Dit kunnen gedragsregels
An environment where everyone can train and compete and enjoy sports in healthy, safe and supportive surroundings lies at the core of a society where sports and exercise are accessible for all. In 2022, we helped the Dutch sport federation/ Olympic Committee in its efforts to create a sport environment that is respectful, equitable and free from all forms of harassment and abuse by running a full media campaign, including digital and print content, radio commercials, billboards and print advertising.
We help the Dutch Sport Federation/ Olympic Committee (NOC*NSF), the biggest single-sport federations such as the KNVB (football), the KNLTB (tennis) and the NGF (golf) and very recently the KNCB (cricket), the KNSB (chess) and the NBB (bridge), as well as sport organisations in general in getting their message across to specifically targeted audiences. Digital, interactive products are highly appealing and tailor-made to have maximum impact.
To shine a brighter light on events or to emphasise certain aspects of them, we commissioned television production company Bargoens to make three completely different television programmes. Belgian celebrities competed against each other in a specially created Spartacus Run, we followed some of the Climbing For life ambassadors in their preparation to climb Dolomite peaks and we looked back at the rich centenary history of the Lotto Zesdaagse.
Gent was mijn wereldkampioenschap, mijn Olympische SpelenSpartacus Run (VTM) De klim van je leven (één) Honderd jaar Zesdaagse (een)
Athletes competing successfully at the highest level are a true inspiration for all. For many kids, watching these role models is a first stepping stone to discovering a sport. The perseverance of athletes that leads them to the top motivates people in their daily lives.
These athletes are the perfect ambassadors to our mission and our company. In return for their support for what we do, we take care of everything that distracts them from training-competing-sleeping.
“By design, Golazo is an activist. We want to bring social change and add value to society.”
“If you’re going to live, leave a legacy. Make a mark on the world that can’t be erased.”Maya Angelou