Festive Message | Hamish Wilson
Happy Holidays everyone!
2024 has been an incredible year for the club both on and off the pitch. Despite only having been a part of this special club for a few weeks, I have been blown away by everyone I have met so far and seeing how much they care for the club. I have been fortunate enough to work in sport for a number of years but the way that people go above and beyond for each other at Saracens is truly special and I am excited to get more involved.
The welcome I have had from players, staff and supporters is very much appreciated and I look forward to meeting more of you over the next few months and the remainder of the 2024/25 season.
Whilst I only joined the club in November, I want to take the opportunity to re-cap some of the many achievements throughout the year.
The Showdown 4 was an incredible success with over 60,000 fans packing out the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for a huge win over Harlequins. It was the most watched match in Gallagher Premiership history on TV, and after signing an extension with Tottenham to host our showpiece event there until 2028, it will become a staple in the sporting calendar.
We have already sold over 35,000 tickets for the next instalment of The Showdown in March, so we are well on track for a sell-out.
Saracens Women lifted the Allianz Cup back in April with an incredible 31-17 win over Bristol Bears. Seeing the future generation of our Women’s team players thrive shows the quality we have coming through.
We said farewell to Sonia Green after an incredible 329 appearances across two decades for the club. She will never be a stranger to us as her work as Vice Principal of Saracens High School is truly inspirational and everyone at the club is incredibly proud of her.
The Duel against Harlequins saw a record crowd of over 3,000 for the first time, and for the more recent edition later in the year we sold out Tulip Club hospitality showcasing the growing demand for this fixture.
Whilst the end of last season might have felt like the end of an era with some of our all-time greats departing, there is real belief in the training ground that the new crop coming through is as good as ever. We welcomed the likes of Fergus, Rhys, Fraser, Sam and Louie and with more Under 18s and Under 20s England representatives than any other club, there is real excitement for the coming years.
Maro Itoje was announced as our new Club Captain in August just before our warm weather training camp in Portugal. He is a brilliant ambassador for the club and with the support of other great leaders we are well stocked in that area.
Ticket sales are 23% up on this time last year, and StoneX Stadium was voted the best matchday experience in the Premiership so we firmly believe we are on track to achieving our goal of becoming the best place to watch rugby in the UK.
Connecting with the local Community and local rugby clubs is also very important for us. Over 50% of tickets sold to our Vodacom Bulls match earlier this month were sold to clubs within our network and we are fully focused on locking in the future generation of Saracens fans!
In August, thanks to our fantastic partnerships team we announced the renewal of our partnership with StoneX who take pride of place on the front of our shirt and own our stadium naming rights. You will do well to find a more committed partner, and they are real joy to work with.
The Saracens Multi Academy Trust continues to thrive and in September we opened the Bell Lane Primary School in addition to the already established Saracens High School and Sixth Form. They achieved their best ever GCSE Results in the summer which is testament to all of their amazing work.
Our amazing Foundation keeps delivering incredible results on a daily basis. The Charity Dinner raised over £60,000, we had over 1000 performers at The Showdown, delivered over 6,400 hours of engagement, and introduced over 6000 children to rugby in the Rugby 4 Life Project. Click here to watch a truly inspiring video from their Love2Balance programme.
The start to the season on the pitch has been very encouraging, particularly in the Champions Cup with two wins over top quality opposition. We are well placed in the Gallagher Premiership for another assault on the top four which is always exciting as we head towards the business end of the season.
The Women are also right in place for a semi-final spot, and with the PWR Final coming to StoneX this season, the fight is more important than ever. Our live streaming and innovative broadcast delivery has put us right at the forefront of the Women’s game as we enter 2025.
We are fully committed to delivering the best event so far and can’t wait to see a bumper crowd for what should be a magnificent occasion. In the same month we will also have The Varsity Matches again which further shows our commitment to making StoneX an elite venue 365 days a year.
2025 is an enormous year for the sport. Not only do we have a Women’s World Cup in England, a British and Irish Lions tour to Australia and the most exciting Six Nations in a long time.
There is plenty for us to focus on and we will continually be pushing ourselves towards selling out StoneX, growing our brand and delivering results on the pitch.
I hope you all have a fantastic Christmas period, and here’s to a successful 2025!
Hamish
