Reclaiming the Relevance of the NGB for Sports Participants
For most people who play sport, the National Governing Body is effectively invisible.
They join a club.
They enter a league.
They play, train, compete, volunteer.
And the NGB sits somewhere in the background – distant, abstract, largely out of sight.
This invisibility isn’t accidental. It’s structural. And over time, it has consequences.
Not a Purpose Problem – a Proximity Problem
This isn’t about relevance in theory.
Ask a participant what an NGB exists to do and many could give a reasonable answer: governance, safeguarding, development pathways, talent identification, national teams, international representation.
The problem is that most participants don’t experience any of this.
The work of the NGB happens behind the scenes, filtered through layers of clubs, leagues, committees and volunteers. Valuable as these layers are, they also create distance. The further away the NGB feels, the harder it is for participants to connect value to membership, fees, or affiliation.
Out of sight becomes out of mind.
And that disconnect quietly costs NGBs opportunity.
The Cost of Disconnection
When participants don’t feel a direct relationship with their NGB:
- Communications feel generic or irrelevant
- Value is hard to articulate or defend
- Insight into participant needs is limited or delayed
- New initiatives struggle to gain traction
- Commercial and participation opportunities are missed
The organisation becomes a necessary structure – not a valued presence.
Digital Transformation as Relationship Infrastructure
This is where digital transformation can genuinely change the game.
Not as “more technology”.
Not as another platform layered on top.
But as relationship infrastructure.
Well-designed digital experiences allow NGBs to engage directly with participants — not to replace clubs or leagues, but to complement them. To create a clear, consistent connection that sits alongside local delivery rather than behind it.
Direct, participant-first engagement enables NGBs to:
- Communicate clearly and consistently, at the right moments
- Personalise content and services based on real activity
- Offer tangible benefits, services and pathways
- Learn continuously from behaviour, feedback and data
- Shape the narrative around value, impact and purpose
This is a more modern, more human relationship – closer to a B2C model than traditional top-down governance.
And it allows NGBs to evolve their offer based on evidence, not assumption.
Relevance Is Earned Through Experience
Relevance doesn’t come from mission statements or strategic plans.
It comes from everyday interactions.
From moments where participants think:
“This organisation understands me, supports me, and adds value to my experience of sport.”
Digital infrastructure, done well, makes those moments possible – at scale.
A Simple Question Worth Asking
If a participant were asked today:
“What does your National Governing Body actually do for you?”
What would they say?
The answer to that question may be the clearest indicator of how relevant the NGB really is – and how much opportunity there is to reconnect.
