Sport & Business Network Becomes a Public Company—with Marc Walder

The Sport & Business Network (SBN) is setting the course for its next phase of development. The initiative, launched in September 2022, is now being transitioned into a professional organizational structure, and its activities will be consolidated under SBN AG. Together with Marc Walder, CEO of Ringier; sports visionary HP Strebel (OYM and EVZ); Thomas Hochstrasser, partner at Niederer Kraft Frey; and Gzim Hasani, CEO of smzh, founder Besfort Biljali is establishing the new company and assuming the role of CEO. SBN AG will be headquartered at the OYM AG campus in Cham, the center of excellence for elite athletics and research.

Four years of community building as a foundation

SBN AG’s goal is to further develop the community it has built over the past four years into one of the leading platforms at the intersection of sports and business. Since its launch in September 2022, SBN has organized more than fifty events, welcomed more than sixty prominent figures from the worlds of sports and business as speakers, and brought together more than 6,200 guests. Today, according to the company, the network comprises a select community of more than 4,000 business leaders.

Speakers to date have included Sergio P. Ermotti, Group CEO of UBS Group; Gary Nagle, CEO of Glencore; skiing legend Marco Odermatt; NHL pro Nino Niederreiter, former Swiss national soccer team goalkeeper Diego Benaglio, and Ruth Metzler-Arnold, President of Swiss Olympic and former Federal Councilor.

«The Home of High Performers»

SBN brings together leading figures from elite sports and business who have achieved exceptional results in their respective fields and wish to learn from one another. Entrepreneurs, executives, elite athletes, and other decision-makers come together at SBN in a personal and curated setting.

With the founding of SBN AG, the goal is to transform the event series and the growing community into the leading platform in this field. In the future, in-person interactions and high-quality events will remain a central part of SBN. At the same time, the platform is intended to grow beyond individual events and connect the community throughout the year. The focus remains on fostering exchange among people from different backgrounds who share many common traits: a drive to excel, entrepreneurial spirit, curiosity, a sense of responsibility, and the desire for continuous self-improvement. Under the slogan «The Home of High Performers,» the goal is to establish Switzerland’s leading platform at the intersection of elite sports and business.

Besfort Biljali, Founder & CEO of SBN AG, says: «When we launched SBN in 2022, the idea was actually very simple: We wanted to bring together people from the worlds of sports and business who think alike, are ambitious, and can learn from one another. What has emerged from this over the past four years has far exceeded our original expectations. With SBN AG, we are now laying the groundwork for the next step and aim to develop SBN into the »Home of High Performers’ in the long term.”

A founding team with experience in business, media, and sports

Along with Biljali, Marc Walder, HP Strebel, Thomas Hochstrasser, and Gzim Hasani will help shape SBN AG as co-founders. The founding team brings together experience and networks from the worlds of entrepreneurship, business, media, and sports.

Marc Walder, CEO of Ringier, explains: «Over the past few years, the Sport & Business Network has evolved into a unique Swiss platform at the intersection of business and sports. Our shared goal is to further strengthen and professionalize this platform, because agility, continuous learning, and teamwork are skills that sports instill and that are in demand in the business world—now more than ever.»

Announcement at Club Baur au Lac

The founding of SBN AG was first announced on September 23, 2026, during the exclusive SBN Speaker Dinner at Club Baur au Lac in Zurich. The evening centered on personal exchanges between prominent figures from the worlds of sports and business. Ruth Metzler-Arnold, President of Swiss Olympic, and Olympic champion Dario Cologna were invited as guest speakers. Among the guests were entrepreneur Olivier Bernhard, co-founder of On; Urs Wietlisbach, co-founder of Partners Group; venture capitalist Peter Friedli; and Formula 1 star Nick Heidfeld.

For more information about the Sport & Business Network, visit the website: https://www.joinsbn.ch/

Person in charge at SBN AG: Besfort Biljali, Founder & CEO