The Wisconsin Sports Business Conference is ready to hear from industry professionals on March 6 in Madison to build students’ understanding of how to achieve their dream jobs in the sports world.

Ranked 39th as a National University and established as a Public Ivy in a new list published by Forbes Magazine, the University of Wisconsin-Madison offers over 230 majors and certificates. However, it doesn’t offer degrees and certificates for those pursuing a sports marketing or sports business career. 

As a result, Sports Business Conference co-founders Jaxon Zemachson and Devin Mehta teamed up to scout team members and orchestrate the first Wisconsin Sports Business Conference (WSBC).

Many universities, like Penn State and the University of Michigan, hold an annual conference catering to those in the sports industry. Now, UW-Madison is ready to host their first conference this spring.

Zemachson told The Daily Cardinal he was inspired to start the WSBC after attending other universities’ sports business conferences. 

“As a senior in high school, I had the opportunity to attend the Michigan Sports Business Conference, which showed me the power of bringing together like-minded individuals to move an industry forward,” Zemachson said.

After putting together an information deck, Zemachson pitched this idea of a potential WSBC to many faculty advisors, until “professor Doug McLeod accepted and took a shot on me.”

The handshake between Zemachson and McLeod sealed the deal. That’s where Mehta came into the picture. After an instant connection with him and Zemachson, they decided to get the ball rolling on WSBC1.

“Badgers are uniquely motivated, prepared, and inspired to be successful in this industry,” Mehta told the Cardinal in a statement. “We know what we want and we work exceedingly hard to earn successful outcomes. It’s our trademark.” 

Zemachson and Mehta then conducted an interview process to select the 20-person team to help put the conference together. With the help of this team, they secured speakers ranging from Sascha Malas, the director of content operations at Overtime, to Karen Murphy, the chief operating officer of the Chicago Bears.

Whether it be learning about how to get your dream job in the sports field, or coming to hear former Badger Top 10 NFL draft pick and Executive Vice President of Football Operations at the NFL Troy Vincent speak, the Wisconsin Sports Business Conference has room for all, Zemachson said.

This student-led conference will take place on March 6 in the Discovery Building at UW-Madison. It will consist of keynote speakers and planned networking sessions allowing students to talk to alumni and other professionals in the sports industry.