10 reasons to become part of the sports marketing event of the year, SBC Summit Ukraine 2026 Lviv

On October 28, the Barvy Event Hall will host the 6th All-Ukrainian sports marketing conference SBC Summit Ukraine 2026 Lviv. For the first time in its history the summit is taking place outside the capital. The event will be attended by over 700 representatives of sports clubs, leagues, federations, business and media. Over 50 speakers will appear on two stages.

SBC Summit Ukraine is the flagship conference of the Sport&Business Club community. The summit is held twice a year and since 2024 has become the main venue for dialogue between sport, business and media in Ukraine.

The organisers explain the move of the event to Lviv by the fact that sports marketing long ago ceased to be a Kyiv topic and matters for the entire country. There are at least 10 reasons why the reader of this article should become part of SBC Summit Ukraine 2026 Lviv.

1. A historic moment: the summit in Lviv for the first time

For the first time in the history of SBC Summit Ukraine, the country's main sports marketing event is going beyond Kyiv. This is a signal that the industry lives not only in the capital, and a chance for professionals from western Ukraine to get the level of a Kyiv conference close to home. For Kyiv residents it is an opportunity to see how sport works in one of the most active regions of the country and to meet its key people.

2. A scale that cannot be gathered anywhere else

Over 700 participants, over 50 speakers and two parallel stages throughout the day. The Main Stage carries strategic discussions and large panels, the Best Practices Stage practical cases. The programme can be built around your own tasks, and in a single day you get a cross-section of the entire industry: the state, federations, clubs, brands, media, bookmakers, foundations.

The summit opens with the Q&A “Ukrainian sport in a period of major transformations” featuring Matvii Bidnyi (Ministry of Youth and Sports). Moderated by Andrii Kovalskyi (ICTV). This is a question-and-answer format rather than a formal address, so one can hear the ministry's position on changes that affect everyone working in sport.

3. Who actually pays for sport

One of the strongest panels of the day brings together all the key players of the content market: Yevhen Dykyi (Ukrainian Premier League), Ihor Zaichuk (MEGOGO), Ihor Polosmak (Kyivstar TV), Oleh Shcherbakov (Tribuna.com) and Danylo Shchestiuk (1+1 media). Moderated by Aryna Yevdokymenko (UPL TV). The discussion will cover the economics of broadcasting, advertising and sponsorship — that is, the money professional sport rests on. A rare chance to hear rights holders, platforms and media on one stage.

4. Mass sport: how to attract those who have never taken part

The Mass Sports Agency of Ukraine appears twice. Andrii Rebryna will speak on the Main Stage about how to bring into sport people who previously had no interest in it. Anastasiia Mykhailovska will explain on the Best Practices Stage how to turn social media into a working instrument for developing mass sport. Useful for federations, clubs, communities and brands that work with a healthy lifestyle.

5. The 2026 World Cup through a bookmaker's eyes

Serhii Mishchenko (GGBET) and Vitalii Volochai (Maincast) will take apart the football World Cup in the Q&A format “Not by the forecast” from the position of a market player who sees the tournament through data, audience behaviour and marketing activations. Useful for everyone who works with major sporting events as a news hook and a business opportunity.

6. The sports code of Lviv

The closing panel of the Main Stage will be devoted to how sport shapes a city's identity. On stage: Andrii Rusol (FC Karpaty), Artem Fedetskyi (FC Karpatski Vedmedi), Ihor Zinkevych (VK Dynamo), Stanislav Horuna (Ukrainian Karate Federation), Olha Shvedova (UNI FORCE) and Oleh Shpur (Leo Family Group). Moderated by Yevhen Buderatskyi (Ukrainska Pravda). Football, water polo, karate, fitness and property development together explain why Lviv has become a sports city and how that experience can be scaled.

7. Veterans in sport and in professional life

The panel “Human potential without barriers” brings together those who already work with veterans every day: the veterans' club Veteranskyi Dukh Lvova, the para ice hockey club Nezlamni, Didukh Academy and the charitable foundation Shakhtar Social. Moderated by Artem Honcharenko (Institute “Architecture of Resilience”). One of the most important topics for the country, and here it is discussed by practitioners rather than theorists.

8. Sport as an investment in the region

The panel “Sport as an investment in the future of the Lviv region” brings together everyone who makes decisions in the region: the Sports Office of Lviv City Council, the Department of Sport, Youth and Tourism of the Regional Military Administration, the NOC branch in Lviv region, the Boberskyi University of Physical Culture and the Ukrainian Rugby Association. For business this means understanding the region's priorities and the entry points for cooperation; for communities, a ready model of how a city and a region work with sport systematically.

9. Networking that actually works

In one space there will be owners of clubs and federations, marketing directors of major brands, media managers and athletes. Interactive partner zones of leading brands create additional occasions for meeting people. Holders of BUSINESS tickets get a business lounge, a speakers' area and exclusive networking with key representatives of sport, business and media.

10. This is where deals and strategies for 2027 are born

It is precisely at SBC Summit Ukraine that sponsorship agreements are signed and media projects and brand collaborations are launched. The summit is held in the second quarter and at the end of the year, so this is the ideal moment to check your plans against the market and shape a strategy for 2027 — because here people talk about “how it will be”, not “how it was”.

Tickets are available on WayForPay in the SPORT and BUSINESS categories. With the promo code LVIV20 there is a 20% discount on both ticket types.

Source: Interfax-Ukraine. Interfax-Ukraine is the information partner of the event.