Anthony French
Anthony is an experienced commercial executive – with over ten years of leading teams through the highs and lows of the sports industry. After starting off his career in professional services as a lawyer with Ashurst and Maddocks, Anthony has developed a reputation as a reliable, passionate, trusted adviser with a strong network across the global sports industry and a track record of success.
During his time at Rugby Australia, Anthony was responsible for some of the game’s biggest achievements – headlined by leading the team to secure the 2027 and 2029 Rugby World Cup and the largest commitments made by the Australian and State Government for a single sport major event. He has also been a key player in various major stadia and high-performance infrastructure projects and investments.
In addition to the Rugby World Cup Bid team, Anthony has broad executive leadership experience and has led commercial, strategy, marketing & communications and external relations (international and government relations) teams. He also oversaw the delivery of an innovative experiential and engagement program at the 2023 Rugby World Cup. Anthony also has extensive project management, advisory and advocacy experience across complex projects, including Rugby Australia's capital raise and COVID-19 pandemic response and has been the key representative on various joint venture and cross-industry bodies.
Anthony has a deep understanding of the global sport's ecosystem and is passionate about collaborating and building strong relationships to unleash the power and potential of live sporting events and experiences. Through the collaborative and relationship-based approach of Upfront Sports Partners, Anthony is focused on driving value for commercial partners, rights holders, government agencies and investors.
Liz Manawaiti
With more than a decade of experience in global sports, marketing, and major events, Liz brings a demonstrable track record of success to Upfront Sports Partners (USP).
Prior to launching USP, Liz's career has seen her navigate the intricacies of the sports industry working with iconic brands such as FIFA+, All Blacks and Black Ferns at New Zealand Rugby, the Wallabies and Wallaroos at Rugby Australia.
As a Co-Founder of USP, Liz has applied this experience to a range of client engagements to deliver world class events and partner activations, and a number of live events. Liz has led the transformation of the Netball World Cup ticketing model and tournament delivery program and was appointed to the World Netball Global Events Evaluation Committee in 2026.
Having led marketing and event teams at both Rugby Australia and New Zealand Rugby she has an unrivalled knowledge of stadia across Australia and NZ. Her passion for developing unique match experiences has led to record-breaking attendances at international fixtures across the 2 markets.
Liz has also spent time in Japan, France and the UK delivering hospitality programs and commercial activations for the world's biggest sports teams and their commercial partners. Before landing in sport Liz gained extensive events marketing experience with
some of the world’s biggest financial brands, EY and Barclays, where she was responsible for managing sponsorship and hospitality programs across Australia and the UK.
Throughout her career, Liz has fostered positive relationships with key stakeholders including government entities, broadcasters, and major sponsors. This network and collaborative approach are core strengths of USP, and we look forward to sharing this experience and connections to add value to your organisation