Launched on 4 June 2026 in Record, Portugal’s leading sports newspaper, SIGA’s weekly opinion column Linha da Frente (Front Line, in Portuguese) provides a dedicated platform to address issues at the heart of SIGA’s global agenda, including Sport Integrity, good governance, transparency, accountability, financial integrity, sports betting integrity, sustainability, youth development and protection, and the future of sport.
Click to read this week’s article in Portuguese.
Mentoring Beyond Careers: Shaping the Future of Sport
Laura Cordingley
CEO, Chelsea FC Foundation; SIGAWomen Mentor
I was in my early thirties before someone spoke to me about mentoring. I had started work at Marylebone Cricket Club (Lord’s Cricket Ground) and my line manager, the CEO asked me if I had a mentor. The concept was a bit foreign to me, I replied no and he looked at me and said, ‘Laura you need a mentor – there are times when you will need to and want to speak to someone who isn’t me – there are some brilliant people out there so let’s think about who I could help connect you with.’
That conversation really helped set me up for future success and true to his word he helped me find my first mentor, a senior female executive with a commercial & retail background.
What I learnt from that initial connection was ten-fold, we would meet regularly and unpick my current challenges, alongside always keeping an eye on my future. She would give me brilliant advice and guidance, alongside giving me plenty of food-for-thought, like the importance of building my network, my personal brand and staying true to who you are.
I currently have a wonderful mentor; John, whose career spans financial and many Non-Executive Director roles. He has supported me for over eight years, and I have gained so much by having a long-term mentor. Such is the strength, that he knows when to challenge and when to support. Not least he was instrumental in helping me consider moving on from my first CEO role when he said to me one day, ‘I’ve been reflecting and you don’t really need much support from me anymore in this role – you know what you’re doing, you’re comfortable – maybe it’s time for a change.’
What made me laugh about that comment was at the time, I’d just returned from maternity leave so it was the last thing on my mind, but it was actually what I needed to hear, as when I was latterly approached about this role at Chelsea I was in a good space to have the conversation. Personally, I like the fact that he’s from a completely different industry as it gives him a great sense of balance and perspective in his guidance.
It wasn’t until I had my first CEO role, at Chance to Shine, a UK-based cricket charity that I reflected on how important a role my then boss played in setting me up for success. By supporting me to find someone as a mentor – he did the bit that is quite often the hardest – finding someone who is a good match for you – particularly when you are earlier in your career journey and your network is developing.
That is why I believe in initiatives like SIGA women’s global mentoring programme. The power in this support alongside the initial connection and curating good pairings is key. Too many people do not have access to significant networks and/or senior figures, particularly female leaders, yet these are the people who will likely benefit the most.
I currently mentor six people, mostly females. Sometimes people ask me how I can make the time – for me, carving out the time to support the next generation is part of my role in the industry – to help and secure its future. It is important to me to help others in the same way that I benefitted and as ever with such relationships it is not one way – I have learned a great deal from people I mentor. Particularly, as I have found my whole life through sport, through mentoring you meet and speak to such a diverse group of people that their lived experiences and backgrounds enhance my understanding and broaden my horizons.
One of my mentees is a mother and I felt a great sense of pride as I helped her navigate her way to finding a work-life balance which works for her and her family.
With SIGA, I am paired with a brilliant young women working at an international sports federation. She has a bright future ahead of her and I hope that my experience can help contribute towards her current and future career. The fact that this is a truly global programme – developing a global network of future female leaders – leaves me very optimistic about the future of women working in sport.
I believe that mentoring is one of the most powerful investments we can make in the future. When we lift others through guidance and support, we create leaders who will continue to inspire the next generation beyond them.
More info on SIGAWomen Mentorship Programme
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Previous Front Line articles
- Front Line Op-Ed: Sport Integrity – The Value of Trust (4 June 2026, Emanuel Macedo de Medeiros)
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Front Line Op-Ed: Trust: Football’s Silent Capital (11 June 2026, Emanuel Macedo de Medeiros)
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Front Line Op-Ed: The Trust Test (18 June 2026, Emanuel Macedo de Medeiros)
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Front Line Op-Ed: Digital Success, IP Protection and Sports Integrity (9 July 2026, Martin Bland)
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Front Line Op-Ed: After the Greatest World Cup Ever, FIFA Faces Its Greatest Test (30 July, Emanuel Macedo de Medeiros)
ABOUT SIGA
SIGA is the world’s leading organisation for Sport Integrity. We are creating a whole new landscape for the sports industry by delivering independent global rating and certification for world Sport to ensure it is governed and operates under the highest integrity standards: The SIGA Universal Standards.
Funded by our Members, SIGA is a non for profit global independent organisation with one aim: To ensure the sport industry is governed under the highest integrity standards so that the values of sport are protected.
SIGA is the only organisation to bring together sport, governments, academia, international organisations, sponsors, business, rights holders, NGOs and professional services companies, from every region in the world, around a common cause of fostering greater integrity throughout sport.
SIGA is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, as a non for-profit association, and comprises of the following continental subsidiaries: SIGA AMERICA, SIGA EUROPE and SIGA LATIN AMERICA.
For more information on SIGA, including its vision, mission and reform agenda, please refer to the website: www.siga-sport.com and FAQs.
To contact SIGA, please email: comms@siga-sport.com.