Click Each Day For Detailed Schedule

Register for SPW2026

1720 I St NW
Washington, DC 20006

5:00 pm Kickoff Reception

Generously underwritten and sponsored by:

5:45 pm Opening Keynote

AUTHENTIC IDENTITY:
The Last Competitive Advantage in a
World Chasing Artificial Intelligence

Every organization represented at Sports Philanthropy World exists because someone believed sport could become a force for something bigger. Bigger than competition. Bigger than championships. Bigger than business.

Yet today's leaders face a new challenge. The pressure to perform. The pressure to scale. The pressure to satisfy donors, boards, athletes, sponsors, communities, and an endless stream of expectations. Somewhere along the way, it's easy for organizations to become so focused on what they do that they forget who they are. And when identity becomes unclear, culture weakens, trust erodes, innovation slows, and impact begins to drift.

In this powerful opening keynote, internationally recognized executive coach and leadership strategist Michael King invites attendees to rediscover what may be the last true competitive advantage: authentic identity.

Blending compelling storytelling, cinematic visuals, original live music, and practical leadership strategies, Michael challenges leaders to move beyond performance and reconnect with purpose. Because the strongest organizations are not built on better messaging. They are built on leaders whose authenticity creates trust, inspires action, and unites people around a mission worth believing in. Whether you lead a professional team, foundation, nonprofit, university, governing body, or community initiative, you'll leave with a renewed understanding that lasting influence is never manufactured. It is lived.

MICHAEL KING

Executive Coach

Founder--Teams.Coach

The future of sports philanthropy will not belong to the organizations with the loudest message.

It will belong to the leaders whose identity gives people a reason to believe.

Because sport can change lives.

But authentic leadership changes everything.

6:30pm SPW2026 Pitch Competition

1720 I St NW
Washington, DC 20006

Click here for Main SPW2026 Pitch Competition Page

PITCH COMPETITION JUDGES

(Alphabetically by Last Name)

9:30 pm After Hours Networking

Marriott Lobby

Register for SPW2026