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Laughton Scott / Sports

Talk The Talk

Where Athletes' Voices Resonate.

We amplify athletes' stories, crafting powerful narratives that captivate audiences and elevate their personal brands.

A programme by
Adam Smith and Hugo Simpson

Adam Smith & Hugo Simpson

Adam and Hugo jointly created The Gloves Are Off and have worked closely on the communication skills of multiple boxers, presenters and TV personalities - allowing them to truly flourish.

Adam Smith

Adam enjoyed nearly 30 years at Sky Sports – where his iconic line ‘Lift off for AJ’ still rings around their corridors – and in sports lovers’ homes alike.

He provided the now legendary commentary for Floyd Mayweather v Conor McGregor, and Anthony Joshua’s dramatic fights with Wladimir Klitschko and Andy Ruiz.

A hugely popular TV presenter, commentator, author and television leader, Adam is a Broadcast Award and RTS Award winner.

Adam was nominated as Commentator of the Year at the Sports Journalism Awards 2020.

Hugo Simpson

Hugo Simpson founded Laughton Scott in 2008, building a trusted communication consultancy that works with CEOs, senior leaders and managers across a range of industries.

Hugo works with sportsmen and women, helping them to develop the communication skills needed to raise their profiles, building rapport with mass audiences, sponsors and club/association managers.

Network Rail, Barclays, KPMG, SKY and Openreach are just a small fraction of the high-profile clients he has challenged and galvanised to become better communicators.

Talk The Talk

Our Services

It’s your turn as we have now teamed up together to give you TALK THE TALK - offering the best advice, support and coaching for you to secure your future.

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Communicating with impact

At Laughton Scott we will train you in how to come across as the authentic and engaging version of you when you are feeling under pressure; whether it’s speaking in public, a TV interview a commercial or being a pundit, we can maximise your impact, make you feel more confident and help develop your brand.

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Public speaking

Successful sports people can command many thousands of pounds a night on the after-dinner circuit. Few make it because they lack the core skills to hold an audience. We can take you to that level. We’ll train you, write your content and have you perfectly primed to deliver a speech at a level you didn’t think possible.

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Becoming a TV pundit/presenter

Very few sports people successfully become television pundits or presenters. Why? It’s not that they lack the knowledge or personality, they simply need guidance on how to present and project themselves to large audiences. We teach the skills to perform under pressure; whether it’s reading off an autocue, learning how to use body language and tone of voice or learning how to structure questions and answers. Laughton Scott helps athletes develop successful TV careers.

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Navigating Media and Sponsorship Conversations

Surround yourself with Adam and Hugo. All aspects of communication, broadcasting and media are covered and we will lead you to greater success by becoming the best communicator you can be.

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Communication for athletes

The Importance of Communication for Athletes

We love sport, we love sportsmen and women and we want to help you - authentically - to become the best communicator you can.

This is absolutely critical for confidence, performance and brand.

Personal brand

Building a Powerful Personal Brand

Stay ahead of your rivals out of the ring, court, field, or cage by building your personality and story – authentically – to open serious doors for opportunities. Charismatic athletes can earn even more money from endorsements than their sports careers.

Unlike other celebrities, athletes have a relatively narrow brand image given that they are strongly associated with little else than the sport they play.

Without marketable superstars, sports wouldn't have heroes. They wouldn’t provide role models for kids. They wouldn’t have storylines that fans could relate to. Some star athletes are so talented and charismatic that they transcend their teams and sometimes even their sports.

Long-term success

Securing Long-Term Success

A warning - sports careers are short. Very short. Injuries or retirement loom, and to set yourself up for the best possible life, excellent communication is imperative as this opens so many doors - to media, coaching, and businesses for your future success and to be happy and content in your own skin.

There’s high pressure and difficult situations to manage, and you need to be well-armed, well-equipped to handle these challenges. Good communication ensures you stay relevant, even after your active career ends.

In the modern sports marketing environment, it has become increasingly important for professional athletes to build and promote their personal brands. There are many cases of athletes maintaining powerful brands even after finishing their active professional careers (e.g., David Beckham, Michael Jordan).

Athletes Hugo has worked with

Hugo has worked with professional sportsmen and women such as Anthony Joshua, Tony Bellew, Carl Froch, Kevin Pietersen and Ellie Simmonds to name a few.

Boxing

Anthony Joshua

Anthony Joshua, MBE is a British professional boxer.

Boxing

Tony Bellew

He was a cruiserweight world champion holding the WBC cruiserweight title from 2016 to 2017.

Boxing

Carl Froch

Carl Froch, MBE is a British former professional boxer, a four-time super-middleweight world champion, having won the WBC title twice, as well as the WBA and IBF titles.

Cricket

Kevin Pietersen

His playing record includes hitting 158 on the final day of the last test at the Oval in the 2005 Ashes, securing England a first Ashes triumph in 18 years.

Para-swimming

Ellie Simmonds

Ellie Simmonds, OBE is a British Paralympian swimmer.

“I would like to thank Laughton Scott for all their help and expertise in developing me and my presentation skills. Confidence is a deal breaker in this line of work and with your skill in bringing out my personality to connect with an audience live or via a camera has improved me as a presenter and a speaker immeasurably!”
Johnny Nelson
  • Boxing

    Johnny Nelson

    Johnny Nelson is a British former professional boxer. He was the WBO cruiserweight champion for over seven years, with thirteen successful title defences. Nelson also held the European and British cruiserweight titles.

  • Boxing

    Kell Brook

    He held the IBF welterweight title from 2014 to 2017.

  • Pole vault

    Holly Bethan Bradshaw

    Holly Bethan Bradshaw is a British track and field athlete who specialises in the pole vault.

  • Boxing

    Jack Bateson

    Jack Bateson was one of the youngest members of the GB Boxing squad.

  • Athletics

    Jessica Judd

    Jessica Judd is a prolifically talented middle-distance runner who reached the World Championships 1500m semi-final in 2017.

  • Boxing

    Lee Selby

    He held the IBF featherweight title from 2015, and previously the European, British, and Commonwealth featherweight titles.

  • Short-track speed skating

    Elise Christie

    She is a ten-time European gold medallist, including two overall European titles. In the 2017 World Championships she won world titles at 1000m, 1500m and the overall gold, the first British and first European woman to do so.

  • Cycling

    Lucy Garner

    She is a double junior world road race champion.

  • Para-athletics

    Olivia “Livvy” Breen

    Olivia “Livvy” Breen is a British Paralympian athlete, who competes mainly in T38 sprint and F38 long jump events. In 2017 at the World Championships she won gold in the long jump with a PB of 4.81m.

  • Athletics

    Mark English

    Mark won the bronze medal in the 800m at the European Athletics Championships in Zurich.

  • Cycling

    Quillan Isidore

    In addition to being the 2012 UCI Boys World Champion, Quillan has won three British Junior championships and is a two-time national champion.

  • Gymnastics

    Sam Joshua Oldham

    In 2015 Sam took European silver on high bar. At the 2017 British Championship Sam won parallel bars gold as well as pommel bronze.

  • Broadcasting

    Anna Woolhouse

    Anna is an established broadcast journalist and presenter.

  • Boxing

    Savannah Marshall

    Savannah is a World and Commonwealth boxing gold medallist. She turned professional in 2017 and won her debut fight on the Floyd Mayweather vs Conor McGregor undercard.

  • Cycling

    Team Wiggins

    The team was founded by Bradley Wiggins, after much speculation in the latter part of the 2014 road season, in order to better facilitate his return to the track as part of his preparations for the 2016 Olympic Games.

  • Boxing

    Paul Smith

    Paul Smith was a British professional boxer. He held the English middleweight title, the British super-middleweight title, and challenged three times for a super-middleweight world title.

  • Boxing

    Natasha Jonas

    In 2012, Jonas became the first female British boxer to fight at the Olympic Games, reaching the quarter-finals.

  • Boxing

    Matthew Macklin

    Matthew Macklin is a former professional boxer. He challenged three times for middleweight world titles and held British and European titles.

  • Boxing

    Dave Coldwell

    Dave is an ex-professional boxer who has produced multiple world champions. He was an integral part of the Bellew win over David Haye at the O2.

  • Swimming

    Siobhan-Marie O’Connor

    Siobhan-Marie O’Connor (born 29 November 1995) has represented Great Britain at the FINA world championships and European championships, and England in the Commonwealth Games. O’Connor competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in the 100-metre breaststroke event.

Talk The Talk

Mastering Communication Under Pressure

Navigating Media and Sponsorship Conversations

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