Joe Meyer

Polo player and entrepreneur Joe Meyer was an obvious choice for chairman of the United States Polo Association, and he’s passionate about the opportunity to grow the sport

ILLUSTRATION PHIL DISLEY

My polo career started about 15 years ago. As a former Armor Cavalry Officer in the US Army, I studied General George S Patton. I was always intrigued by his passion for horsemanship and polo and made a decision that I wanted to learn to play. I was number seven of nine children, and my siblings and I learned independence at an early age and that if we wanted something, we had to set our minds to it and then get to work. You just took action. My parents provided the tools and the opportunity, but it was up to each of us to make it happen.

After I retired from active duty as a captain, I spent the next 10 years focused on my civilian career. Following a corporate billet with FritoLay, a Pepsi Company, and AT&T, I knew my entrepreneurial desires were calling. I like to work hard, take chances, but also to stay committed for the duration or long haul.

One of my passions as a child was technology. As the son of an engineer, building things and watching them work was a great joy. I loved radios and would always have one of the best in my tank. Understanding how the networks functioned and then getting to terms with the technology gave me a significant advantage when I looked at new opportunities. As a founder of the first pre-paid debit card company, Skylight Financial, we leveraged a lot of existing technologies and made them work in a way no one else had done before. Skylight was quite successful and we eventually sold it. I continue to start and build FinTech companies.

My wife of 25 years, Susan, is a keen supporter of all things equine and polo. In fact, she has a great eye for horses, as well as their care. On a trip to the West Coast, we were the guests of FIP founder Ambassador Glen Holden and his wife Gloria. As Glen was sharing his stories of FIP, Susan mentioned that she loved the travel and international aspect of polo. Glen graciously invited us to Argentina for the FIP Ambassadors Cup and I’ve been involved with FIP ever since.

Both of our children are involved in the horse world as well. My daughter Isabella was a competitive hunter jumper and my son J Paul an accomplished lacrosse and squash player who eventually picked up polo. He is currently in college, where he’s joined the Harvard Polo Club, and he’s played polo around the world – in China, France, England and Argentina. The fact that he plays so well and is passionate about the sport is one of my proudest personal accomplishments.

As the twentieth chairman of the United States Polo Association (USPA), I am excited, honoured and humbled by the tremendous opportunity to grow the sport and to move us forward as an organisation, while remaining loyal to the USPA’s past 125 years.

My job is to continue to lead our association with the help of the board and executive committee via our vision and core values. We make decisions and take action so that we can build a vibrant organisation and create a great polo experience for all involved, including our horses. As we implement those plans, we’ll make changes to continue to improve the game. I also work with the governors and committee chairs from the bottom up, to help our clubs and membership flourish. Our volunteer committees work hard to formulate plans to grow and enhance polo. Once they’re developed and approved by the board, the committees work with our staff to execute the plans.

Over the next few years, my focus will be to continue to concentrate on polo projects that can rapidly grow the sport while supporting our various committees that reach out and

I’m excited when I can support young players and get them on teams that help them improve

support our clubs. One of these initiatives is marketing polo, and a key component of this is obtaining coverage of the sport in the media. Getting folks to hear about and see polo will be a huge benefit and complement the game’s growth. We all know that if someone tries polo and has a good experience, they will continue.

We have also focused heavily on our polo development initiatives for our clubs, members and Team USPA. Our youth programmes have had a significant impact on our overall growth of polo in the US. We really focus on the clubs. We know that a healthy club with a good manager who can organise polo, as well as having lesson and youth programmes, will create a healthy polo environment. Having support from the USPA is critical for these clubs. Our Polo Development Initiative fund, which provides money directly to the clubs, has now grown to $425,000.

In Aiken, South Carolina, and now in Florida, I’m excited when I can support young players and get them on teams that help them improve. I am very proud of Team USPA – which now has 61 members – and seeing what has become of the original idea that I worked on with Tom Biddle. Charles Smith and his team have done a phenomenal job with the programme. The fact that our young men performed so well at the World Cup in Chile last year – finishing in second place, the highest the US has seen since its win in 1989 – is a testament to the programme. Indeed, watching so many of these young men and women play on high-goal teams is a real treat for me. Winning the Copper Cup, our national 12-goal championship, in 2013 with an all-American team of Will Tankard, Nick Snow and John Gobin was amazing.

The USPA finished the year with 5,267 members, 290 active clubs, and a record 111 Interscholastic and Intercollegiate programmes. I’m proud of leading the strategic plans that have given us road maps to get to where we are today. We’ll hit bumps along the way, but the USPA board and staff are focused on success. We work well together and I’m proud to support them.