He has worked at the World Rally Championship, Tennis Australia, Cricket Australia and the National Basketball League—are you sensing a theme in Ben Jesse’s career? Now this sports-mad alumnus has the wind at his back in a new role with SailGP, the blazingly fast international sailing competition dubbed Formula 1 on water.
Indeed, SailGP’s advertising mantra sounds a lot like Mr Jesse’s career trajectory: “Adrenaline-fuelled races, legendary global locations, rival national teams and record-breaking speeds". After completing a Bachelor of Communication (Business) with majors in Communication and Marketing and a minor in International Relations, Mr Jesse (Class of 1995) charted a career course to collect new skills and contacts, living in Hong Kong, the UK and now Melbourne.
He was attracted to his new role as Head of Commercial, APAC by SailGP’s expansion - both in number of teams and race locations - and its future focus on the Asia-Pacific region. “I was also drawn to its ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) and DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) positioning which has been a constant since its inception,” he said.
“My role is firstly to ensure the three SailGP events in the Asia-Pacific region from 2026 generate the required revenues. Secondly it is to ensure Team NZ and Team Australia continue to expand their commercial clients and hosting opportunities. And lastly to support the teams in Europe and the US to deliver global partner opportunities for the series via brands from the APAC territory.”
Mr Jesse said his challenges included educating the market on a relatively new sporting series while showcasing the benefits that partnerships could offer. “Because Australia and NZ are relatively small markets there is a need to build the pipeline from within Asia, which means relying on our agency partners. So managing their efforts and ensuring everyone is working towards the common goal will need to be constantly monitored.”
SailGP was launched in 2019 by the sailing enthusiast and Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison and Sir Russell Coutts, a renowned New Zealand sailor and America's Cup winner. SailGP’s F50 catamarans are lifted out of the water on titanium hydrofoils that allow them to reach speeds of 50 knots (93km/h) in just 19.3 knots of wind. They race on the iconic waters of cities such as Dubai, Auckland, Sydney, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Rio de Janeiro and Geneva.
The Sydney leg of the 2024/25 series runs from February 24-25, while the Auckland races are on March 23-24. “The series has grown each season and will feature 14 events with 10 teams in 2024/25,” Mr Jesse said. “I am excited about welcoming a new team from Brazil and a new event in Rio de Janeiro.”
He said the arrival of the sport’s first female driver Martine Grael “was massive” and validated SailGP’s DEI strategy.“Martine is an elite sailor and she will be a wonderful ambassador for SailGP.”
Mr Jesse said his aim after graduating was always to work in the sports industry. “Despite the huge number of sports teams, leagues and events in this country, the industry was difficult to get a start in but I always had hopes of something that contained travel and the ability to do cross-border business,“ he said.
“I have always travelled with my various roles and accept that it is part of the commercial space. Face-to-face contact is extremely important and shows people that you are engaged and dedicated to reaching an outcome.”
Mr Jesse said his previous roles – including with Cricket Australia’s highly successful Big Bash League - taught him to manage stakeholders throughout the sales process.
“When I was younger my focus was more external, but now it encompasses the executive and my fellow commercial directors in the other territories. The financial targets are challenging but any global sports/entertainment property with big ambitions would have the same expectations.”
One of Mr Jesse’s “toys” to work with is The Dock — the SailGP rewards program. "It encourages fans to engage with the series between races and during events by consuming content, completing tasks or competitions,” he said. “Each activity you complete earns you points, and each tier unlocks rewards such as exclusive online content and exclusive experiences during events.”
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