Post by Liam Binnie

Was chatting to an old colleague earlier and realised two things: 1) 2026 marks my 10th year in the sports industry, which is pretty crazy. 2) I was incredibly lucky to be surrounded by world-class leaders when I first started. I think back to my first two years in Nike Football. I was 21, and despite working through my studies, I’d never seen the inside of a large company. When I arrived, I was equal parts excited and nervous. “What if I don't have what it takes?” 10 years later, the biggest lesson I’ve learned is that companies are just people. So, although I believe it is important to be humble, there's no need to overthink things. No matter how big the brand name may be. That said, you do come across some absolute rockstars and that early group was full of them: Tomas Antonelius, Tom Harper, Dirk Van Onsem, Matthijs Van Der Horn, Aaron Orozco, Markus Graf, Jan Oehlschlaeger, Fabian Leitner, Niek Meesters, Cas Hermanns, Lorenzo Moretti. Those first years are so formative and these people shaped my path, both professionally and personally, more than they likely realise. It is no surprise to see the growth journeys of the above names, as well as those they influenced during that period. The word "culture" can be thrown around at times, but that team had it in spades. Looking toward the next decade, I’m excited to lean into my own leadership journey. I hope that I can help young professionals believe in what they are capable of, just as these leaders did for me, while continuing to learn from the great individuals I have around me every day at On. I'll end with some advice from my old gaffer Tomas Antonelius: "don't ask for permission, ask for forgiveness later.." 🫡