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Sport for Business
Sport for Business
Looking Around Corners: How Data is Reshaping Sport
Let us know what’s on your mind
The digital revolution is reshaping sport in ways we couldn't have imagined just a decade ago. From wearable technology tracking every heartbeat, to AI analyzing performance metrics, to new platforms transforming how fans engage with their favorite teams – the future of sport is being written in code.
Dr. Kieron Collins of Technological University Dublin stands at this exciting intersection of tradition and innovation. As leader of the postgraduate diploma in Sports Analytics, Technology and Innovation, he's helping to position Ireland as a global hub for sports technology while developing the talent that will drive this revolution forward.
"Sport is this broad ecosystem of sport, health, community, social," explains Collins. "We look at the kids, how they consume sport. They don't attend events the same way that their parents have done. They consume it very differently – through TikTok, short video clips, and creating sharing communities on Reddit or other platforms."
The program, supported by Digital Skillnet and SportsTech Ireland, attracts a fascinating mix of participants: sports tech entrepreneurs, C-suite executives seeking strategic advantage, coaches looking to leverage data, and former athletes transitioning to the business side. What unites them is a passion for sport and a desire to understand how technology can enhance it rather than replace its fundamental human elements.
Collins takes a refreshingly practical approach to innovation, focusing on what he calls "McGyvering solutions" – finding creative ways to solve real-world problems by bringing together siloed information, creating more efficient processes, and ensuring technology serves human needs rather than the other way around. When discussing artificial intelligence, he emphasises that success isn't about the latest models but about the "last mile" of implementation within organizations.
For those concerned that technology might be "wrecking" the purity of sport, Collins offers a reassuring perspective: "It's just a tool. It's how you utilise it. It can stay in your toolbox, you may never use it, but it requires a skill set to use it." Technology doesn't replace the joy of movement or the expertise of experienced coaches – it provides additional information to make better decisions.
Want to be part of this transformation? Applications are now open for the September intake. Search "sport analytics technology and innovation" to find the TU Dublin website and application details.
Find out more about what we do day in day out at Sportforbusiness.com
We publish a daily news bulletin and host regular live events on a wide range of sporting subjects
Subscribe to the podcast wherever you get your podcasts from and look forward to upcoming chats with with Those on the front lines of Pride in Irish Sport and the GAA All Ireland Championships. We also have a chat with Enda Lynch, CEO of the Recent5ly awarded National Governing Body of the Year, Badminton Ireland.
Our upcoming live events on Athletic Leadership, the Future of the League of Ireland, the Business of Golf, Gaming and and plenty more are live on the Sport for Business website and we'd love to have you join us.
Hello and welcome to the Sport for Business podcast. I'm your host, rob Hartnett, and today's guest is looking to the future of sport through AI, analytics, innovation and everything in between. Dr Ciarán Collins of Technological University of Dublin is today's guest. If you're involved in sport in any way, shape or form, you have to be a technologist, or at least you have to have a good understanding of where technology is moving. One of the ways in which it has been possible to upskill over the last 12 months has been in the postgrad diploma in sports analytics, technology and innovation, which has been run by the Technological University of Dublin in partnership with Technology Skillnet.
Speaker 1:Dr Kieran Collins is the man who is the course leader and who is driving all of these changes. Like, technology is changing the way that we perform as human beings, the way that we engage as venues and as sports organisations, and the way in which we consume as fans. So it's touching on every aspect of sport. So does our conversation, and I think you're going to find it really interesting. So we're here in the academic halls of the Technological University of Dublin, delighted to be joined by Ciarán Collins. You're very welcome onto the Sport for Business podcast.
Speaker 2:Rob, I'm delighted to be here. It's a real pleasure.
Speaker 1:Collins, you're very welcome onto the Sport for Business podcast, rob. I'm delighted to be here. It's a real pleasure. Now. The reason that amongst many, but the principal reason that we're talking today is that you just launched the second edition of the Diploma in Sports Analytics, technology and Innovation. It's run through TU Dublin. Tell us a little bit about the course, because it sounds like the kind of thing that both I and a lot of my listeners would be intrigued by.
Speaker 2:The programme is something that really excites us. It is sponsored by Digital Skillnet. It is supported by SportsTech Ireland. It is focused on how we make Ireland a central hub for sports tech globally, that we want to become number one in the world for it, and part of that is the development of talent. And when we're looking at talent, it is talent that is currently working in the sports tech business people working in the adjacent sport areas of governing bodies of the sports business areas, areas of governing bodies of the sports business areas. But it's also for people that are working in the tech areas that want to transfer across into the sports tech business.
Speaker 2:Sports tech is an incredibly exciting area. It is the intersection of so many different things, whether it is fan engagement, whether it is betting, gaming, esports, whether it's human performance, whether it is the technology that we use or how humans engage with sport. It is aimed at how we can make sport better into the future. So the program we're into our second year and we're usually excited about the program. The quality of candidates on it is just exceptional. It's the same as anything we do in life. It is not just about the learnings that we undertake in the classroom or the books we read, it is the people we meet and the networks that we create from it. And for me, that is the most powerful part of it Not just the people on the program, but the international faculty that deliver on the program. It is a groundbreaking, truly exciting program that we're very, very proud of.
Speaker 1:We've covered it in a number of different areas on sports business as well, and, talking about that, the way that people reacted to the first year of it because it looks like this is the moment for sports technology, particularly with AI and we'll talk about that in a short while as well but sports in its most traditional form is kind of almost anti-technology, isn't it? So it's all about getting out there and moving and being physically active, and you know tackles or strokes or whatever it is that floats your boat in sport, but that it's away from, as we perceive technology to be, the phone or the computer or anything like that. That has changed so much so that every time we go to a match as a fan or as a coach or as a player, you know that data is swirling all around us. So what was the inspiration Like? What was it that made you think, yeah, look, we need to just sort of begin to capture how people can capture that data cloud that's all around us.
Speaker 2:It's a great, great question Because, like we had, I lead a quite a large research team and we have been MacGyvering solutions for sporting bodies and sporting organizations for the bones of 15 years and what has come to pass is that we're producing more and more data and we're looking for solutions to create value out of it, create return of investment. So we had our thought process around Masters in data analytics for sport, which we, which we've also launched, but there was this intersection that really didn't capture fully that that it's. It's more than just data. It's about people and how people engage with, with sport. So it is taking that human-centered approach to that data and how do we create value? And it's not only how we create value in terms of the governing bodies, but it is the sports tech companies and the companies how, today, how do they create value and how do they get a return on investment from sport? And it ranges.
Speaker 2:And sport is such a diverse area. It is physical activity, it is human performance, it is golf, it is paddle, it is sport into the 90s and beyond. Sport is this broad ecosystem of sport health, community, social. So when we look at sport, it is not just about the data. It's much more complex than that, so we need to look at it from a more strategic direction in terms of creating value into the future. We look at the kids how they consume sport. They don't attend events the same way that their parents have done. They consume it very differently. They consume it through TikTok, they consume it through short video clips, they consume it through match of the day clips and they create sharing communities on Reddit or other platforms about sport.
Speaker 2:And we look at the brands that are in sport. The athletes are as powerful a brand as the brand itself. So we have this incredible intersection of social media, of events, facilities, sustainability, and we're trying to make sense of it and it is incredibly exciting for the future. But for the professional that is at the very centre of that, the ability to look around corners is really hard because there's so many competing factors.
Speaker 2:So that's where the programme came from is how can we prepare the executives, the C-suite, the companies of the future, to look around the corners and have products that resonate with customers and products that will sell and grow Ireland as a base for our sports tech, because you won't make your money in Ireland. You have to be able to sell globally, but Ireland is an incredible testbed for sports technology because we love sport. There is this passion for sport, whether it's horse racing, whether it's sea swimming or whether it is organic sports. We have this incredible passion for sport. We have the NFL coming in September and we will flock to these games. We love it. We absolutely love sport, and Ireland is an incredible testbed because of the quality of the organisations that we have here in Ireland.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and somehow we find the time to have this universal love of sport.
Speaker 1:So, whether it's Rory McIlroy, or whether it's Michael Murphy or whether it's Leona Maguire or you know, or anybody else that's out there competing at that very highest level, going all the way back to Sonia O'Sullivan and Amy Hoechlin, and we've always loved it and we've always found the time to love all sports, kind of you know in. In that sense, I love the idea of looking around the corners. It reminds me of Wayne Gretzky's quote about not worrying about where the puck is now, it's where the puck is going next, and that that's what this course is enabling. Paint me a picture of that kind of the person, the level like you've mentioned about. You know this could be for CEOs, but this could also be for, you know, for coaches and analysts and people who are actually rolling up their sleeves and getting involved in it, trying to capture where they're going with it as well as where maybe their teams of people are going with it.
Speaker 2:So your typical profile is somebody who's had a lifelong passion with sport or that has been immersed in it in some shape or form for a large part of their life. And they have founded companies and it doesn't matter which sector of sport that they're in, that they're founded companies, that they're leading companies, that they're within that they're founded companies, that they're leading companies, that they're within that C-suite within companies and they're looking for the next thing. And so we have really exciting cohorts that fit that profile. You also have another profile of people who are in their mid to late 30s. They're looking at how can I improve myself in terms of my own career prospects, how can I have the skills to help me grow within my industry, and it helps you in terms of that strategic thinking that you're giving you the skills for that. But we also have this cohort from the typical coaching or the non-government body perspective, of people that I've loved this all my life. I want to see can I make a career for for this, for me and they. They may be coming from a background in triathlon. They may be coming from a background in coaching kids. They may be coming from a background of being an elite athlete or captaining your national team. These are all people that are on the program and they're looking at. They're looking at how can they benefit themselves in terms of their own, their own companies, and but they're also thinking how can I benefit my sporting organization?
Speaker 2:And it is that storyline across so many different areas that makes it really interesting. Like one of the candidates that is undertaking the Masters, she's looking at well, she works in a sports tech company and she's a very successful athlete. She's looking at how can she help her governing body. So she's trying to bring those skills to help her, because that's where our passions lie, it's within our DNA and it is how can we be more proactive in helping our governing bodies or our organizations be better themselves and improving the dialogue, which is a challenge for us, because we have great organizations in this country and but we need to get better. If we want to compete internationally, it doesn't matter what sport it is, whether it's huddle or whether it is soccer or whether whatever it is. Yeah, we need to get better. We need to have better dialogue.
Speaker 1:We need to be more efficient at how we do things and it's it's how we actually take the information, because there is there's an ocean of information that's out there and how we take that. I I was listening to Pat Spillane on a podcast, you know, obsessing over the stats and the data from kickouts and things like that in the Greece, you know, provincial finals that we had, and I'm thinking if Pat, who would be died in the world traditionalist, but he has just captured this one element of it so that he's looking at those numbers and he's looking at the game in a different way than he ever did when he was playing it and even when he was on the on the tv analyzing it. So it's those perhaps kind of second chances that you're that you're looking at to attract people in as well. Interesting that it should be about how people who are working in the space but who might be looking at bringing it into another space as well, because, generally speaking, the people who will be most successful are the ones who are already incredibly busy and who will somehow find the time to actually do the course.
Speaker 1:Has there been a reach into the health sector? Because I always think, like you know, sport, physical activity, the best way to actually start off a journey that you might get ill is to actually be healthy. Going into it and in terms of preventative medicine, sport is the ultimate, isn't?
Speaker 2:it.
Speaker 2:It is the ultimate. We haven't had the traditional medical areas, but we have companies that do sell into those medical areas and that are looking to break into those medical areas, and what the course has allowed them to do is to think about the customers in terms of those sectors, who are the pinch points in terms of the organization, in terms of the buying power, in terms of how do you manage to actually sell into these environments and the medical environments. They're quite unique, but it's still the same issue in terms of its lifelong physical activity. It is about health. It is about that cross-section of sport, health, physical activity and the social dynamics that are created out of it, health, physical activity and the social dynamics that are created out of it.
Speaker 2:So a lot of the technologies that we would use in sport are directly translatable into health, and the biggest one that we will see is the technology that we wear day to day, whether it be our Whoop, our Oura Ring, our Apple Watch. People are obsessed with how many steps they they're getting, the quality of their sleep, their heart rate variability, we we look at the the colson brothers that they had a tweet there about, about their physiological responses. Yeah, people are just obsessed with it and it is. It is just a really, really interesting space, a space to be in.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm well beyond my mid to late 30s, but I've got a hoop on my left wrist and I've got a fitbit still on my right wrist, because that tells me something that I don't want to let go of quite yet. But I I wear them both and I do, and I look at them both in terms, then, of of where you can capture, because there is so much out there and yet it's a diploma course. It runs for a number of months. There's literally like there is a beginning, a middle and an end. How do you narrow down so much stuff that's out there into being the most effective, most important way that you can actually deliver? This? Like is it? Is there a focus on the elite sport end of it, or is there a focus on the sort of the more broader physical activity? Or does that change over the course of from year one?
Speaker 2:to year six. It's a really good question and we work very hard in terms of how we reflect the DNA of the participants in the assessments that we undertake. We try to create flexibility within their approach. We don't take a cookie cutter approach. Create flexibility within their approach. We don't take a cookie cutter approach.
Speaker 2:We look at the DNA of the individuals and the projects and the work that they undertake. There is no in the semester exams, it is all coursework. So it is focused on areas that are of interest to them and interested our companies and interest into what they do themselves. So the work feeds into their own experiences. So that's a really important part of it. And there's an interconnectedness of all the modules.
Speaker 2:So when we're looking at it, from starting off with strategy and business models right down through to design thinking and then into the technical modules and pulling then at the back end looking at evolving technologies and looking around corners. So the 12 months of activity it's really focused, but it is reflected that people can undertake work specific to their needs. So we have people that are working in esports and gaming. Their work reflects that area. We have others that are working in marketing. Their work reflects that. So we try to not have the cookie cutter approach, that we allow flexibility within the types of work that is produced so that they reflect the needs of the individual and reflect their DNA, so that they help them grow and develop.
Speaker 1:Okay, so you're learning from the outside, but you're also applying from the inside is what it is that you're doing now at the moment, which is a great thing. Has there been much of a change from last year, which was the first year of the course, into what is planned now for September, rolling forward?
Speaker 2:Have you learned from year one and brought that into year two, as I would expect from a good I class myself as an evidence-based entrepreneur, in that I listen to the evidence and we we adjust accordingly and so absolutely so. One of our the strongest components of of the of the program was our international faculty. So we had we have people from people from sports tech across the globe delivering on the program, and one of the feedback was that we want more of that, but we want it in specific areas. So, for example, we're bringing in more venture capitalists and people that are assessing companies and looking at that, and we're also bringing people that have, that have experience of scaling companies, and so we're looking at building on what we do well and adding to that the other things that we do well.
Speaker 2:We meet once a month face to face and making sure that people meet and interact not just with their cohort but with the faculty that comes in and delivers. Interact not just with their cohort but with the faculty that comes in and delivers because, like you know yourself, rob, it's as much the network, yeah, as it is anything else, and it is that intersection. Like the conversations that have come out of the first cohort have blown me away in terms of the future event trajectory that people are trying to bring to Ireland based on conversations that have taken place within the programme, and we want to do more of that. And what else do we want to do more of? We want to create more content that people can consume in their downtimes so that we can leverage people's these are busy people that we can leverage their full suite of time without being burdensome that you become a distraction.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's important because, as you said, like time is the kind of the one thing that we can't expand, that we actually need to fit this into it. But it does, it does it looks and it sounds and it and it is something which is which has got incredible value. We mentioned at the, at the top of the of the podcast, about AI and the impact which it has, and it is moving so fast and it is covering so many different areas and yet there is still maybe 1% of it that people actually sort of understand out there in terms of the value and in terms of the effort. Is that covered in the course matter Like, is that something which people will be smarter about as a result of doing the course? Oh, absolutely.
Speaker 2:What's interesting is like we get all our media information and they talk about these models and that models. We get all our media information and they talk about these models and that models, but in actual fact, the real challenge is the last mile of AI in terms of the implementation within organizations. Because what AI can do is it can make individuals be more productive, yes, but it's how we maximize that within teams, how we collaborate, how we make it more efficient, but how we implement it within the organization, not only in terms of delivery, but an upskilling perspective and in terms of this continuous evaluation. Because AI is it's not just about the data, it's the governance, the ethics, the security, but it's about how people engage with it. We have to have a human-centered approach and throughout the program, we take that human-centered approach in terms of how we deliver it. It is the element in the room. There is no like.
Speaker 2:We are at the very early stages of this and the leaders of tomorrow will have this down. They will have a good understanding of and they don't need to be tech people to understand the, the strengths and weaknesses, but what they do have to do is, or what they have to have is, to be able to deliver on the last mile, to give a return on investment for companies that are implementing this technology. And I, that is where we excel at, because we have the grazes on our knees, on our elbows and our on our heads. We've been MacGyvering solutions for organisations for a long time. We understand the human element of delivering on technology, delivering on digital transformation, but delivering on the execution of it, and this will give we feel it'll give immense value to learn from our scars, but also to learn from the case studies.
Speaker 2:The challenge in academia, rob, is that we can be behind a curve in some things just because it's moving too quickly. By the time something is published in academia, we could be three, four, five years behind the curve. Ai is changing by the week, so how we construct our teams to be agile is really, really important that we are not actually looking too far ahead because the technology chain is changing so quickly. But we have to have the basics in place, and that's what we're trying to do is to make sure that you are ready for the implementation of this technology. It is getting cheaper, but it is still costly to implement.
Speaker 1:On that point of the speed of development and the speed of execution, is it beyond the realms of possibility that the coursework which you have set out for the course of the 12 months of this course might actually change mid-flow to accommodate that?
Speaker 2:course of the 12 months of this course might actually change mid-flow to accommodate that absolutely 100 great 100. So, like the, by not taking that cookie cutter approach means that you have flexibility whilst you have academic governance and constructs around that in terms of quality assurance. There there is flexibility around the types of work we undertake and we're already after seeing it. The projects that people are undertaking are real world projects that they are seeing firsthand and they are getting the feedback in terms of their own work that they're they're undertaking, analyzing it, then implementing it within their organization, and it's incredibly powerful to see that life cycle of this work problem solution. And is the solution perfect? Probably not, but because they have evidence based, because of the structure around it, they have a better shot than the next person that's looking at it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, let me just go back. You mentioned a couple of times about MacGyvering solutions. Just in case anybody is listening that doesn't actually know what a MacGyver solution is, just give us a little explanation on that want to have so, for example, it could be something as similar, simple, as a dashboard.
Speaker 2:They have a siloed information in whole different parts. Pull those together so that they have visibility on each part of the unit. So it's. But what? What? It could be as simple as is pulling excel documents into one, into one place, or informing one dashboard so that you have some visibility across areas, because too often we're making decisions in that siloed view, we're not looking at the bigger picture and we need people to be able to look at the big picture and to look within the context of why we're doing X, y and Z, because there is an incredible human capital investment in whatever project, whatever job we do, and.
Speaker 2:But we need to step back and we need to look at is it? Is what we're doing appropriate? Is? Does it meet our needs? And sometimes we have to just capture information into one place to be able to do that. The majority of organizations really struggle with that, especially sporting organizations. Yeah, so that's that's one element of mcguivering, a solution, or like it could be that looking at the challenges in terms of the, how humans interact, in terms of the, in terms of creating value for their organization, and could be as simple as just creating, creating operating procedures around around how they do stuff. So at the very bit. But you're constantly dealing with the human and you're constantly looking at how do they do it, what is their efficiencies, and what you're never doing is creating something that they won't engage with. You're creating something that meets their needs and you're looking at it in a stepwise approach.
Speaker 1:Like in sport. We get the idea of a playbook. Yeah, but if a playbook is 700 pages long, then nobody's going to read it. No, that's where. That's where it comes from. The, the, the course is very much looking to the future, but with an eye very much on the present and the and the very near future. There are those within sport who would argue that perhaps we're going too far in this whole area of technology, that sport should all be about just letting people go out there and play and hit a ball or strike a ball or do whatever it is. How would you counter that if somebody came to you and said look, you're wrecking sport now by putting all of these numbers onto it and putting all of this data. Just let us play.
Speaker 2:And people will play. It's just a tool and it's the same as any tool. It's how you utilize it. It can stay in your toolbox, you may never use it, but it's a tool and it requires a skill set to use it. Use it, yeah, but it's a tool and it it requires a skill set to use it.
Speaker 2:But there's also in terms of coaching, in terms of sport, that there's not no way we can get away from the, the observation of an experienced person looking at the sport from for a long period of time, looking at the nuances, but it is just putting an evidence base to maybe a coach's gut instinct and helping them dissect what they mean, because too often we're making decisions based on bias and gut instinct. Can we have evidence to inform us? Yeah, we can. We can. We can say that evidence is incorrect and we want to go this way, but at least we are, at least we are putting more things on the table and but sport ultimately comes down to people getting up in the morning and moving. Yeah, we will never, ever get away from that.
Speaker 2:And sport is not just elite professional sport. Ever get away from that. And sport is not just elite professional sport. Sport is recreational sport, from getting up and striking a ball against the wall or a barn in wexford, or right up to the 90 year old who is exercising, to give the two fingers to everything else. Because I'm doing this yeah and that's what sport is.
Speaker 2:It is as much about the individual and how they engage with it. But sport, but technology, can be a tool to help leverage and change behaviors. We talked about the whoop, we talked about the smart technology. If there's things that can help motivate us and put us in the right direction, like there is so much information out there, so much, how can we choose what is the right and wrong information? It's, it's a real challenge because there is so much disinformation. But if we can educate ourselves and a growth mindset and utilize the technology, we can empower ourselves to be healthy, active individuals in told age, so that we can be better and that sport can be better.
Speaker 1:It kind of reminds me of the ideas that you know somebody who developed a football that didn't involve a pig's bladder, that had you know synthetic materials in it. And if they were told, no, no, no, no, no, no, we can't be changing that, then we never progress as a human race. It just it sounds fascinating. It's a real window on what the world can be and what the world will be. Give me the details on how people can actually sign up for the course this coming September.
Speaker 2:That's great. So they can. It's a very simple Google search of sport analytics technology and innovation. It'll take you to the TU Dublin website, which will direct you to the application TU Dublin website, which will direct you to the application. So we take a very strong approach in terms of curating the cohort that are going to be on the program so that people can get the maximum value for it. So they have to go through a selection criteria. We have a limited number of places, but they apply through the website and once they've applied, then they will get notification whether they are successful or not, and then we look forward to kicking off in September with our face-to-face sessions and just getting to know one another.
Speaker 1:Okay, and if somebody is traveling for an international event or something like that and might be out of the course for three weeks, that's okay. You don't need to be. It's not like you have to turn up for school every day.
Speaker 2:Absolutely. You can consume the information in your own time. So we have a curated content which you can consume at your own time. We have Thursday evening, we have a live session where we deliver content and we have guests the speakers and then once a month on a Friday, we have a face-to-face session. For whatever reason, people can't always make those, but they can consume them at another date and they will get access to not only people from Ireland undertaking the programme but people internationally. So you're getting a really nice mix of people.
Speaker 1:Okay, it sounds absolutely brilliant. A really nice mix of people. Okay, it sounds absolutely brilliant, and we'll have all of the details on the Sport for Business website, as well as on the TU Dublin website as well. It's been brilliant. Taking time before I let you go, I always like to finish out these interviews with some quickfire questions, just to get to know a little bit more about Ciarán Collins, the human being as opposed to the leader of academics in terms of sport and health. So a few quickfire questions. What was your first childhood memory of sport?
Speaker 2:First childhood memory, I think, was the 1988 Olympics the dirtiest race in history. That is one of the things that really stuck out with me and I think, one of the motivators to undertake a life in sport. But the other was Castlehaven winning the 1989 county final those two around the same time and it had a huge impact on me and where I wanted to go in the world. That sport was just this amazing thing and I was seeing greatness every day and it was just incredible.
Speaker 1:Great. I love the local and the global mix of the two of those. If I could give you a golden ticket to attend any sporting event around the world that you haven't been to yet, what might that be?
Speaker 2:Any sporting event. I would love to go to see Barcelona and Real Madrid in the Nou Camp. I would just. I would love that I was in the Nou Camp back a long time ago and I was marvelled by the stadium. But I would love to. I would love to attend that game in particular.
Speaker 1:How about on the opening of the new Nou Camp as well? That'd be a nice one to get, wouldn't it? Coming up in a city of barcelona near you very soon. By all accounts, are you a tea or a coffee drinker?
Speaker 2:both I. I love my coffee. I can only have two cups a day because I start deteriorating rapidly onto my turd. And then it's tea, and then in the evening time it's peppermint tea.
Speaker 1:So I'm a huge consumer, good, academic, you've got it all figured out there netflix, or a night of the movies, netflix, okay, and what are you watching at the moment? Or what have you watched recently that you'd recommend? What have I?
Speaker 2:watched recently. What have I watched recently? I'm just after finishing a good good american family which was quite traumatizing looking at the effects of it, but that was the last thing.
Speaker 1:I watched. Okay, so it was American, it was a family, but it might not necessarily have been good. How about a book? Any advice on a book that you might have read recently, either for escapism or education or any reason?
Speaker 2:Yeah, there's a number that I go back to a couple of times. Peter Thiel did a fantastic one, zero to one. I go back to that a lot, but one of my favorites is this gentleman called Naval Ravikant. He was an early investor in a whole range of different companies, but he he has there's this naval ravikant's almanac and it's just insightful things about human behavior, the human psyche, the human complex, and I go back to that quite a bit because I just find it really, really interesting his view on the world and how the world is changing. They're the ones that I really enjoy. But I suppose that you'd have a range of books that you're working through successfully and unsuccessfully.
Speaker 1:I'm an avid reader, but I look on it like watching television that. I can dip in and out of yeah. All sorts of different ones. So I've generally got about three or four books on the go at any one time Like it's.
Speaker 2:Like there's a general team in mind. Like I love matthew mcconnell, he's green lights oh yeah I I just like I have it an audiobook and he's just a great. I just, I just love his voice, but the stories and the messaging like you can never get away from good storytelling and I just that always resonates with me. It's a young person growing up in a in a bar and listening to people tell stories. I just love good storytelling and mixing them up.
Speaker 1:I I listened recently to richard e grant's book a pocket full of happiness. Brilliant, blows you away, guaranteed to bring tears to your eyes at various times, but also laughter as well. And I've just finished finished Omar El-Akkad. It's the book about. You know how Israel and Palestine and the world order and how we need to act now in order. So that our grandchildren won't be ashamed of us in the future. But that's the wonder of books, that there are so many, and ones for everybody. What would make you happiest in sport in 2025?
Speaker 2:Happiest in sport in 2025? Castle Avon winning another county title and going on to win in all Ireland. That would make me really, really happy, because I am a reflection of a very small parish in the southwest of Ireland where we should never be successful but we are and through sheer will and the compounding effect of effort makes us successful. And it is nothing about magic, nothing about anything or luck or anything like that. It is the compounding effect of effort and it is where my DNA is Local Gaelic football and the success and failures that go with that.
Speaker 1:I would love to see that. I don't want to make this sound as though I'm looking over my shoulder, having been there, but I come from a small little parish in South Dublin called Dorkie, and we've been there as well with a team that arguably should never have gotten to an All-Ireland. That won our first Dublininster and then all the way to an all-island. So, having been there, I can assure you that it is worth every single step of that journey. What's the last thing that made you laugh out loud? The last thing?
Speaker 2:that it was obviously good it was very good I got I. I know my brother won't be listening to this now, but my wife, my wife, rang me and she said that I got this call from the garda station in calarney that I was put down as a reference for my brother to, as a reference for for good license, and she was there. He never said anything to me and this is a call on this average Thursday morning.
Speaker 1:And I was there. Oh my God, That'll make you laugh out loud Hopefully it'll all end well as well. How about music when you're traveling between Dublin and West Cork? What would be towards the top of your playlist?
Speaker 2:It depends on the humor. I go from ACDC right down to Vivaldi. It just depends on what the mood is. I love my podcasts, but anything that gets the head bopping I love. But sometimes, when we need to chill, Vivaldi comes into the mix. Then.
Speaker 1:Cool Great Bit of four seasons and thankfully we're enjoying summer at the moment and long may that last Last one, if I booked a table in a fancy restaurant and I gave you one seat and then I gave you the opportunity to invite three people that you're not related to. So we won't, we won't, we won't bring it to that, but they can be dead or alive, they can be from sports or from politics, or from music or from any area of life. Who would you like to sit?
Speaker 2:and break bread with. The restaurant would be Deedee's in Baltimore. The people that I would like to bring to the mix would be John Hume, tony O'Reilly and who else?
Speaker 1:Phil Knight okay, yeah, the Nike man yeah yeah, great book as well oh, I love it. Shoe Dog love it, great book one of those to go back into yeah, it definitely is setting up a business.
Speaker 1:It makes you realise that even the most successful businesses go through quite a few twists and turns along the way. Look, it's been an absolute pleasure, always great spending time with you. We're going to do a few things together over the course of the coming months and years, and the very best of luck with the program for the course. It's one that I think anybody is going to learn from, and everybody, if they had the opportunity, should really grab it and do the course as well. So, ciarán Collins, thank you so much for your time.
Speaker 2:Thank you, grab it and do the course as well. So, kieran collins, thank you so much for your time.
Speaker 1:Thank, you so much, rob. It's been a great pleasure. It was great to chat with dr kieran collins. He really is a man who has his finger on the pulse of what is happening in technology and how that is impacting on sport. I hope you enjoyed it. If you are interested in investigating that course and making yourself as smart as you can possibly be in this brave new world, you'll find all of the details on the TUD website or on the sportforbusinesscom website as well. Thanks for taking the time to listen.
Speaker 1:Today. We've got a couple of really interesting series coming up on the podcast. We're going to be looking at a number of those who are on the front line of inclusion in sport for the gay community and looking at things to do with pride over the course of June. Some really interesting conversations there in football, in rugby and elsewhere. The other one that we have coming up is in the business of Gaelic Games. We are in championship season and we've got a couple of really interesting conversations with some of those working behind the scenes to make sure that the GAA championship season is as good as it possibly can be without having to kick a football or strike a slither. The Sport for Business podcast drops every Tuesday, with occasional additional bonus elements on Thursdays, and you can keep up to date with everything that is happening in the commercial world of Irish sport at our website, sportforbusinesscom. In the meantime, have a great evening or afternoon, or whenever you're listening to this, and we will no doubt engage with you again very soon. Thank you,
