MY dad, George, and my uncles Brian, Peter, and Pat, have always been huge racing fans. From the 60s onwards, they would have been regular racegoers at our local racecourse in Bellewstown, having picnics from the back of the car in the middle of the track, and they made an annual pilgrimage to Galway with my granny and grandad too.

Racing has always been a massive part of my life. Attheraces [ATR] never left the TV in the house and I’ve been going racing from a very young age – mainly at Fairyhouse, Navan and our beloved Bellewstown. Aside from that, I don’t have any direct involvement in racing, only purely as a fan of the sport. I’ve sat on a horse twice. That’s as horsey as I get!

From going racing so early and being glued to it on TV, my passion for the sport just grew and grew. I always kickstarted the weekend watching ATR’s Get In with Jason Weaver and Luke Harvey. I started becoming more invested in the sport and remember running down to the bookies on my lunch break at school(different times then!), and seeing Dunguib getting beaten in the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle.

That was probably a good lesson to learn early, there’s no such thing as a good thing!

It was during secondary school and, into my early years at college, that I started going to Cheltenham with my dad every March. Hurricane Fly was turned over the first year I went and I started to think I was jinxing all these Irish bankers. It was the same year Kauto Star pulled up in the Gold Cup and the crowd stopped watching the race to applaud him back into the winners’ enclosure; a special moment at the track.

I went to college in Maynooth with a view to being a teacher originally, and I came out of college not knowing what I wanted to be! I did a BA in English and History in Maynooth and a Masters, and then found myself in the UK, starting a PhD in King’s College London.

I don’t want to say I fell into a career in the betting/racing industry, it was always something I was keen to be more involved in and the deeper I got into academia, the more my mind started to drift back to what I loved most.

Growth

I came back to Ireland and applied to The Irish Field for an editorial internship and luckily, Leo Powell and Mark Costello took a chance on me. I’ll always be grateful for that, as it allowed me to get my foot in the door and I learned an incredible amount. There was a great team at The Irish Field!

I’ve been with BoyleSports for just under two years now, originally starting as a PR Executive and then moving on to become Senior PR Manager. We’re going through a huge period of growth at the moment, committing £100m to our relaunch in the UK and there’s lots of opportunities for career development alongside that.

I work with a brilliant brand team who all bring a huge amount of experience, within and outside the industry, to the table and it’s a great place to learn.

Our sponsorship portfolio has exploded this year; we’re front of shirt sponsor of West Ham United for the 2025/26 season, we continue our strong commitment to racing on both sides of the Irish Sea, with the BoyleSports Lockinge Stakes and Irish Grand National the jewels in our crown in that regard and, of course the Irish Greyhound Derby too. We’re growing so quickly and it’s great to be a part of it.

Before BoyleSports, I spent three years working in the studio at Ladbrokes. It was my first, full-time permanent job in the industry and I loved it. My day revolved around watching racing - there are worse ways to make a living!

Each day is different in my current job. It’s a cliché but it’s true! Pitching to media, whether sending out our odds or organising interview access to our ambassadors, and building strong relationships with journalists is a big part of the role. The team also prices up novelty markets on trending news such as the weather, reality TV etc, but what I enjoy most is sports.

Representing

I act as the company spokesperson for a lot of betting queries to print and digital media and on television and radio, including on the likes of Sky Sports Racing, RacingTV, Galway Bay FM during the race week and plenty more. I’m also lucky enough to represent BoyleSports at events, West Ham United games, the World Grand Prix of Darts, and on the big racing days.

This means a lot of time spent in the press room, especially at the festivals, whether that’s prepping for a media interview or sending out reactive quotes and odds. But that’s what you do the job for. I love a day at the races any chance I get but the big occasions are just that bit special.

Whether it’s the DRF, Cheltenham, Royal Ascot or the Irish National, they all offer something different but the buzz is unmatched and that’s what sport is all about.

Commitment

The Munster National is on this weekend. It’s a sponsorship deal we signed last year as we reinforce our commitment to Irish racing. Michael Lynch and the team do a great job at Limerick Racecourse and J.P. McManus and his wife, Noreen, also run a charity sweepstake on the race meaning charities in the region will benefit from donations totalling €40,000. It’s a wonderful initiative and the race has lots of history and has been won by some real stars, including Tiger Roll.

Beyond racing, I’d call myself a general sports fan. Whether it’s golf, darts or football, if it’s on, I watch it. I’m not the most gifted in any of those, so my involvement rarely goes beyond the confines of my sitting room.

I’m a big reader and love travelling and try to fit a race meeting in far flung places, the likes of Japan and Dubai. It’s an industry I can’t see myself leaving; it’s what I love and that makes going to the office each day a lot easier!

Brian was in conversation with John O’Riordan.