Book your tickets now ESA Ireland’s flagship annual event on the morning of Thursday 11 June, when the European sponsorship community will gather for the first time at Croke Park, the iconic citadel of Gaelic Games and one of the continent’s largest stadia.
Hosted by the GAA, the ever-popular annual ESA Event Dublin will be a precious networking opportunity, with leading lights of the industry providing expert views on some of sponsorship’s most topical talking points.
ESA’s immediate past Chair, Sophie Morris, will deliver a presentation on the 2026 ESA Sponsorship Trends, and the agenda will feature three campaigns recognised with some of the highest accolades at the 2026 ESA Awards in partnership with Pearlfinders:
- Richard Sceats from Canon EMEA, which won the crowning glory of ESA Sponsorship of the Year for the Canon & RNIB – World Unseen partnership
- Pete Wilson and Gareth Hall from Sid Lee Sport, which delivered the Tommy Hilfiger x F1 The Movie campaign that won three trophies including the Chair’s Award
- Roald Stene from Sparebank 1 Østlandet, winner of Sponsorship with a Social Purpose – Small to Medium Scale via The Entry Room partnership with Retail Factory.
There will also be a panel of sponsorship category winners from the Marketing Institute of Ireland AIM Awards, comprising:
- Stephanie Bell, Head of Marketing at Mercedes-Benz Ireland
- Caroline Hutchinson, Senior Marketing and Sponsorship Manager at Vodafone Ireland
- Tom Noonan, Director of Brand at Cairn
- Shane McGonigle, CEO at Marketing Institute Ireland (moderator).
Another panel of Irish industry experts will discuss ‘Decoding the Power of Live Experience’:
- Jake Brown, Senior Commercial Partnerships Lead at Diageo
- Lorraine McCormack, Sponsorships & Brand Experience Lead at Vhi
- Tanya Townsend, Senior Sponsorship and Brand Activation Leader at Three Ireland
- Michael Pring, Global Client & Development Director at Verve The Live Agency (moderator).
Agenda
08:00 Arrivals; light F&B
08:30 Welcome and Introduction | Daragh Persse, ESA Board Director
08:40 GAA welcome | Peter McKenna, GAA Commercial Director and Croke Park Stadium Director
08:50 ESA update and 2026 Sponsorship Trends | Sophie Morris, Immediate Past Chair, ESA
09:10 Presentation I: The Entry Room | Roald Stene, Sparebank 1 Østlandet
09:40 Panel I: Decoding the Power of Live Experience | Jake Brown, Diageo; Lorraine McCormack, Vhi; Tanya Townsend, Three Ireland; Michael Pring, Verve The Live Agency (moderator).
10:10 Presentation II: Canon and RNIB World Unseen | Richard Sceats, Canon EMEA
10:40 Break; light F&B
11:00 Audience engagement with Quiz Wizards
11:30 Panel II: Marketing Institute of Ireland AIM Awards sponsorship winners | Stephanie Bell, Mercedes-Benz Ireland; Caroline Hutchinson, Vodafone Ireland; Tom Noonan, Cairn; Shane McGonigle, Marketing Institute Ireland (moderator).
12:00 Presentation III | Pete Wilson and Gareth Hall, Sid Lee Sport
12:30 Closing remarks | Daragh Persse, ESA Board Director
12:45 Networking
13:30 Close
