Industry Spotlight, Brian Gainor, Gainor Sports

Industry Spotlight

Brian Gainor, Gainor Sports

What’s your current position?

I am the founder of Gainor Sports, a premier sports marketing and sponsorship advisory firm dedicated to empowering sports, entertainment, and tourism entities worldwide. Our mission is to help these organizations drive significant new sponsorship, revenue, and fan/visitor growth.

In a dynamic landscape where sports, events, and tourism continually evolve, I specialize in helping organizations grow, adapt, and formulate strategies to drive greater revenue, elevate their positioning/storytelling, and attract new audiences and visitors to their events.

With over two decades of experience, I’ve worked with 200+ professional sports teams, leagues, sports commissions/destinations, sponsor brands and organizations globally. I love being able to help organizations problem solve and take inspiration from other leading sports, entertainment & tourism properties around the world who all share similar business goals and objectives.

What would you say most motivates you to do what you do?

I am a lifelong learner and am constantly exploring innovative best practices in sports, entertainment, and tourism. I believe there’s always “a better way,” and I love helping great people and organizations find a new and better way to grow their business, creatively generate revenue, attract more fans/visitors, and create more impact and incredible fan/ event experiences.

My wife Laura and I moved to Florida to be closer to family, embrace a pickleball lifestyle, and play a central role in the explosive growth happening in the world of sports & entertainment and pickleball here in the state. Laura is the founder of the world’s first pickleball marketing agency, Vossberg Gainor, and the creative force behind a pickleball lifestyle brand, Pickleball in the Sun, so it’s been a lot of fun to be entrepreneurs pursuing our goals together.

What led you to this line of work?

I’ve known since my time in college that I wanted to work in sports and was particularly drawn to working in sports marketing with a goal of helping leading brands leverage sports & entertainment to grow their business.

I started my career working on the team/property side with organizations like the Miami Dolphins, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and NFL Europe. I then shifted to the agency world, where I’ve spent much of my career advising sports and entertainment properties and brands at Legends, 4FRONT, and GMR Marketing.

Over the years, I’ve had an opportunity to work with (and learn) from various incredible organizations worldwide, including Cirque du Soleil, the Harris County Houston Sports Authority, Green Bay Packers, Cricket Australia, Chelsea FC, Space Center Houston, and more. These enriching experiences have allowed me to gain invaluable insights and perspectives that I now have the privilege of imparting to the partners I work with and help them problem-solve, think differently, and accelerate their organizations.

I launched Gainor Sports to help more organizations worldwide creatively generate more revenue, fans, and impact. We’re living in an exciting time with incredible opportunities to create and attract new international events, audiences, and attention. We love helping partners think differently and develop new strategies to grow and evolve their businesses.

In early 2023, I co-founded a Jacksonville Sports & Entertainment Networking Group, aiming to unite and raise the profile of our sports and entertainment community in our region of Florida. I am excited to play a key role in helping to continue to grow and elevate the Jacksonville sports and entertainment community and help leaders in the area create a positive impact in our community and new, best-in-class fan experiences.

Where did you grow up?

I’ve had a chance to live in many places throughout the U.S. and Germany, but I grew up in Miami, FL. Miami was a wonderful place to grow up in the ‘90s as it was fast-growing, a cultural melting pot, and an incredible sports city.

I attended the University of Florida as a business/ marketing major and went on to get my MBA/MSA degree at Ohio University, which has the world’s #1 sports administration program.

I loved my time at the University of Florida and had an opportunity to work in the athletics department all four years I was a student, gaining incredible experience and friendships that helped create opportunities for me to work with the Miami Dolphins, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Orange Bowl, SEC tournaments and NFL Europe.

Attending the Ohio University Sports Administration program for my Masters was one of the best decisions I have ever made in life. The program offers an incredible alumni network and experiences for students, and I am proud to be the current Chair of the Alumni Advisory Board to help continue to grow and evolve the program and its reach.

Did you have any key mentors or people who deeply influenced who you are, what you believe in, and what you’re committed to in your work and life?

From a personal perspective, my parents have been incredible mentors who have taught me a lot about putting family first, treating people with respect, and prioritizing the things that matter most in life. My dad was the CEO of International Dairy Queen and had an opportunity to work directly with Warren Buffett, so I have learned so much from him over the years.

From a professional standpoint, Dan Migala has been such an incredible friend, mentor and leader that I’ve learned so much from over the years. Dan is one of the most creatively brilliant people in our business and has taught me how to passionately lead by always putting people first, being curious, and challenging the status quo.

I also learned so much from Jan Katzoff, founder of SportsMark, about how to lead with transparency, authenticity and candor. Getting to work with genuine, authentic leaders like Jan over the years has taught me so much.

What projects are you working on now?

I am working on several projects that help partners reimagine their approach to sponsorships—from evolving their go-to-market story (“their why”) to creating new sellable platforms and assets, enhancing their prospecting approach, creating 365-day activation opportunities, evolving the way they manage and measure their partnerships, and more. We (the sports tourism industry) must evolve with the ever-evolving needs and interests of brand decision-makers, especially in a post-COVID environment.

Brian, you have worked with an impressive list of clients during your career. Yet, you continue delivering compelling campaigns that drive numbers and, more importantly, revenue. How do you keep the creative wheel turning?

I love helping organizations by starting with asking the following questions:

• If I owned & ran the organization, what would I do?

• Beginning with the end in mind, is there a new, better way we can evolve our approach?

• Who are mirror images (past clients/partners) with similar challenges and opportunities from which I can leverage what I have learned?

• How can we 1) stand for something, 2) take a risk, 3) own new moments in time, and 4) tell our story better?

• What are the top 2-3 audiences we deliver? Who are our 2-3 biggest growth audiences?

• If fans ran (insert organization), what would they do?

• What gets you out of bed every day to continue your drive? What motivates your work ethic?

I love helping great people solve their biggest challenges/opportunities and do things they never dreamed were possible. Over the past two decades, I’ve dedicated tens of thousands of hours to seeking out “new and better ways” to help sports and entertainment organizations creatively generate revenue, evolve their organizations, and grow their fans and visitor base.

I love waking up each day with an intense curiosity and drive to help partners creatively problem-solve and generate revenue in new ways.

My vision for Gainor Sports is to be recognized as a leading global sports marketing and consulting agency, collaborating with prominent organizations locally, nationally, and internationally.

What would you say are your best skills?

My greatest skills are creativity, problem-solving, sponsorship strategy, and revenue generation!

What’s next for you in your work? What are you looking forward to in your career?

I am excited to take a more “global” approach to my business, working with new and diverse organizations and events around the globe while also having an opportunity to create more impact locally in growing the sports, entertainment, and tourism industry in the state of Florida.

As a soccer fan and global sports enthusiast, I’d love to be part of the upcoming 2024 Cricket World Cup, 2026 FIFA World Cup, and 2028 Olympic Games in LA in some way!