How I broke into the sports industry with a master's from emlyon

The sports industry is notoriously competitive. High numbers for applicants for entry-level roles means finding your footing in this high-stakes world is easier said than done.

Lucas Bollé is no stranger to sport—he moved to the US for college as a student athlete on a tennis scholarship. After graduating, and gaining two years of work experience in the US, he knew it was time to focus on his dreams of working in sports.

“I know it's not an easy industry, especially to get your first step in. It's really hard,” he admits. “In my opinion, it was important to apply for a Master related to the sport industry.”

Eyeing up programs in his native France, Lucas decided that the MSc in Sports, Entertainment and Lifestyle at emlyon business school could give him the skills needed to find his footing in this lucrative industry.

“I just didn't feel like living in the US, even though I had an amazing experience over there,” he adds. “I wanted [to study] something related to sports, and also something that was not going to last for two or three years.”

The move paid off—Lucas is currently interning for Adidas at their headquarters in Nuremberg, Germany. But how did he get there? 

Getting immersed in the sports industry 

The core curriculum on the two-year MSc in Sports, Entertainment and Lifestyle prioritizes future-ready skills that can be applied across a range of roles in sports and entertainment. These skills include strategic thinking, data analytics, and AI marketing.

However, for Lucas (pictured), one of the main highlights of the program was the opportunity to work on a hands-on project with a sports company. Students could choose between two different projects at two companies, the FIA (International Automobile Federation) or Adidas.

Lucas chose the Adidas project, and worked in a team of five on a business case for the company. At the end, Lucas and his classmates delivered a presentation in the Adidas France office. 

“There was quite a lot of managers and board members from Adidas France—important people with a lot of experience,” Lucas recalls. “To be able to get the first step in of what the culture of Adidas is, how the company works, definitely helped.” 

Networking with sports professionals during the program also helped Lucas better understand the challenge of working in the industry. 

“We were able to meet people that are part of the industry, and they're able to give us insightful tips on ways of thinking when you want to work in the sport industry,” explains Lucas. 

Acquiring industry-ready skills

 The wide-ranging curriculum on the MSc in Sports, Entertainment and Lifestyle at emlyon ensures that students are prepared for wherever their career takes them. 

The program’s focus on the connection between sports, entertainment, and lifestyle means varied job opportunities for graduates, including in modern roles such as influencer management and AI marketing.

94% of the program’s graduates find a job within six months of graduating*, and 83% find a job before graduation—often, through the mandatory internship experience. 

Lucas can testify to the variety of roles available to students on the program, 

“I’ve always wanted to work in a sporting goods company, but I know others wanted to work for a football club or for a sport agency,” he explains. 

“When we think about sport, yes, usually we think about Nike or Adidas, for instance. Or we may think about clubs, like PSG [Paris Saint-Germain]—but there's so much more.” 

Previous graduates of the program now work in organizations as varied as Chelsesa FC, The North Face, TikTok, and Paris’ iconic club, PSG.

Applying business skills at Adidas 

The MSc program concludes with a mandatory internship or professional experience, where students get to apply the skills they acquired during the on-campus portion of their degree. Lucas credits his in-degree project with Adidas with helping him land an internship with the sports giant, working in product marketing for rugby.  

“If you are applying for an internship at Adidas, and they already see that you have done a great project for three, four months related to, and for, Adidas—it helps a lot.” 

Though concrete, technical skills are essential for such a specialised role, Lucas says that the soft skills he acquired on his Master of Science degree have been just as valuable.

“While we were doing our Master, we had to do so many presentations, Now, I see it when I'm working—I don't have this fear of presenting, or of communicating with people,” he explains.

“The way you are presenting yourself, how you communicate with people—it might sound super basic, but at the end of the day, it’s important.” 

At the end of his six-month internship with Adidas, Lucas will officially graduate from the MSc program. While he isn’t certain what will come next, he knows that the decision to study at emlyon will continue to shape his future career. 

“For the moment, the only thing that I know is that I would like to stay at Adidas, but the department I'm pretty open about—maybe a different role in marketing,” he says. 

“There are a lot of positive things about this Master of Science, and I still believe that if I didn't do this program, I wouldn’t have got this job at Adidas.” 

*The employment data in this article comes from questionnaires completed in 2025 by 2024 graduates. This data is indicative, and cannot be guaranteed for any candidate/participant in the program.