• The first-ever Greater Bay Area International Sports Business Summit concluded in February.
• The summit was sponsored by Galaxy International Convention Center (GICC).

Sponsored by the Galaxy International Convention Center (GICC), the first-ever Greater Bay Area International Sports Business Summit was successfully held on 23 February. The summit gathered over 500 representatives from top enterprises and institutions worldwide, inviting industry leaders to engage in discussions and exchanges on sports influence, sports marketing, sports investment and women’s sports, among other topics.

Guests of honor, including Vincent U, Representative of the Secretary for Economy and Finance of the Macau SAR and President of the Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute; Wan Sucheng, Director of the Department of Publicity and Culture of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Macau SAR; Cui Jian, Head of the Sports Bureau of Guangdong Province; and Pun Weng Kun, President of the Sports Bureau of Macau SAR, graced the summit’s opening ceremony together with Francis Lui, Vice Chairman of Galaxy Entertainment Group and Jay Li, Co-Chair of the GBA International Sports Business Summit Organizing Committee and Founder and CEO of Realeague.

The two-day summit hosted 12 panels, fireside chats and keynote speeches, with special invitations extended to several internationally renowned speakers. These included Alibaba Group Chairman and Brooklyn Nets owner Joe Tsai; Basketball Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade; founder and Executive Chairman of the Li Ning Brand, Li Ning; and President of the Chinese Basketball Association Yao Ming, who shared insights on sports business topics. A distinctive basketball invitational match was also organized during the summit to align with the theme of “Connecting the World through Sports”.

The event provided a platform for the industry to discuss the development of sports in the Greater Bay Area. Kevin Kelley, Chief Operating Officer – Macau of GEG, engaged in in-depth discussions on the strategies and opportunities for sports development in the Greater Bay Area during the “The Greater Bay Area: a Rising International Sports Hub” panel.

According to the organizers, the Greater Bay Area International Sports Business Summit is a premium event bringing together leaders and influencers in the sports business industry. The Summit provides a platform for knowledge-sharing and networking to drive the development of sports in the Greater Bay Area region and promote international collaborations.

Philip Cheng, Director of GEG, in his speech expressed great honor in supporting the summit’s establishment in Macau at the GICC. He highlighted that this summit was a vibrant example of cross-industry integration of “MICE + Sports” and “perfectly aligns with GEG’s philosophy of driving synergies between the cultural, entertainment, sports and MICE sectors.”

GEG has over the years actively supported the hosting of major international sports events in Macau, including the “WTT Champions Macau”, “Galaxy Entertainment Macao International Marathon”, “FIVB Women’s Volleyball Nations League” and the widely-applauded “Galaxy Entertainment Group 2023 the 11th Yao Foundation Charity Game”.