Lindsey Vonn and Tom Foley to headline ISPO 2026 Leaders’ Summit

The appointments signal ISPO’s strategic repositioning under new management, with the Leaders’ Summit designed as an exclusive C-suite forum addressing industry challenges from retail transformation to sustainability compliance.

Vonn and Foley join a speaker roster including filmmaker and mountaineer Jimmy Chin, Decathlon Global Game Changers lead Celine Del Genes, The North Face founder Hap Klopp, UEFA Vice President Professor Laura McAllister, Pentland Group Deputy Chair Andy Rubin, Burton CEO John Lacy, and former Ingka/IKEA Group Chief Sustainability Officer Pia Heidenmark Cook.

Lindsey Vonn: from slopes to business summit

Vonn announced her return to competitive skiing in fall 2024 after a partial knee replacement earlier that year, rejoining the US Ski Team following a five-year retirement. She has already returned to the World Cup podium, winning her 83rd career World Cup race in St. Moritz in December 2025 and stating that 2025-26 will be her final season, with sights set on the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina.

The most successful female alpine skier in history – with Olympic gold, four World Cup Championships, and eight World Cup season titles – has increasingly focused on business ventures alongside her competitive return, including investments in women’s sports properties and her Lindsey Vonn Foundation.

“There are so many parallels between competing at a high level and leading a business,” Vonn said. “I’m looking forward to joining the Leaders’ Summit in Amsterdam and connecting with the people behind the brands we all love.”

Tom Foley brings retail realities to the stage

Foley’s inclusion reflects ISPO’s focus on retail economics and omnichannel strategy. As CEO of IIC – INTERSPORT International Corporation since 2023, Foley oversees one of Europe’s largest sporting goods retail cooperatives, managing relationships between brands, independent retailers, and consumers across multiple markets. His previous roles include CEO of French retailer Go Sport and founder of the Independent Sports Retailers Alliance in Ireland.

The pairing of an athlete with global brand power and a retail executive navigating consolidation pressures underscores the Leaders’ Summit’s positioning as a forum for commercial strategy rather than aspirational storytelling.

€3 million bet on content and experience

Raccoon Media Group and Messe München have committed €3 million to ISPO’s transformation, with €1 million allocated specifically to content across the Summit and expo floor. The investment represents a significant departure from traditional trade show economics, where content typically functions as programming filler rather than a strategic asset.

“ISPO 2026 will be so much more than a trade show,” said Kate Jamieson, Raccoon Media Group’s Content Director. “ISPO will meet the needs of the head, the commercial side of what makes our industry vibrant, profitable and thriving. However, we will place equal focus on the heart.”

Repositioning for relevance

The Leaders’ Summit and expanded content programming are central to ISPO’s repositioning under Raccoon Media Group, which took operational control in 2025 following years of declining attendance and exhibitor consolidation at the Munich event. The new operator has realigned ISPO’s calendar with global buying cycles, moved the event to Amsterdam for better international accessibility, and restructured pricing to address cost barriers that had limited attendance from smaller brands and independent retailers.