4 sports leadership lessons every manager should know

This summer, Spain is riding high on the waves of its international sporting successes. Carlos Alcaraz Garfia, the 22-year-old from the village of El Palmar in Murcía, retained his Wimbledon title after beating Novak Djokovic in the men’s final for the second year running. With victories in the 2022 US Open and 2024 French Open, Alcaraz is now only the second man in tennis history to win his first four grand slam finals. 

And, of course, the men’s Spanish football team beat England in the Euros to take a record-breaking fourth European title. In doing so, the team became the first to win all seven matches in a single European Championship tournament and scored a record 15 goals. 

While the nation celebrates, professionals and pundits will pore over the strategies, performances and training regimes that hold the key to the secrets of Spain’s success. And according to three Esade professors, all managers can learn from their sporting counterparts. 

Never take your eye off the ball

“In a tennis match, decisions are made at high speed and reactions are made in tenths of a second,” Academic Collaborator at Esade Mercedes Segura Amat told the Spanish business and economics newspaper Expansión.  

Tennis teaches us to take ultimate responsibility for the decisions we make

“At the moment of hitting the ball there is no time to reflect. It would be unthinkable for the player not to make an instant decision — he trusts his game and goes for it. A good business leader should also have this attitude.” 

Segura Amat, who teaches Communications, continues: “Tennis also teaches us to take ultimate responsibility for the decisions we make. The player can discuss strategy with the coach, train hard and prepare well. But on the court, they are on their own. They learn to take responsibility for their decisions and learn from them. In the same way, a business leader can rely on their team — but they will always have ultimate responsibility for the outcomes that were achieved.” 

Reframe failures as opportunities

While taking responsibility is an essential element of leadership, Carlos Royo says the ability to view failures as opportunities is just as important. Also writing in Expansión, the Lecturer in Esade’s Department of People Management and Organization explains: “At the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, a young swimmer from Equatorial Guinea took part in the 100-meter freestyle and achieved the worst result in the history of the event.  

One of the most important transitions that a manager must face is failure

“But just eight months earlier, Eric Mousanbani didn’t even know how to swim. He trained in a hotel pool twelve meters long and just a few centimeters deep — when he arrived to compete he’d never even seen an Olympic-sized pool.” 

It was a resounding defeat, but the young swimmer used his experience to improve himself and others. Mousanbani went on to compete in the 2004 Athens Olympics, before being appointed coach of his country’s national swimming squad. His story inspired thousands of young people to swim — and Equatorial Guinea now has two Olympic-sized pools. 

“One of the most important transitions that a manager must face is failure,” says Royo. “How do we relate to it? How do we build purposeful organizations that are able to cope with challenges? How do we end up relating success to purpose?” 

Respect the team

Even solitary sports such as swimming and tennis require a huge team of experts to get the best results. Nutritionists, physiotherapists, analysts, therapists: a sports manager knows it’s essential to build a team of experts, each with a unique level of insight into every aspect of performance. 

And, as Esade Academic Collaborator teaching People Management and Organization Norbert Monfort told Business People magazine, respecting the team and their unique skills is essential if you want them to be the best. 

In companies, too many managers prefer to be served than to serve

“In the dressing room of New Zealand’s All Blacks rugby team, the team captain and the coach stay behind to clean up the dressing room while the rest of the players go to enjoy the well-deserved beer with the rival team,” he says. “Why? It’s very simple: in the All Blacks philosophy it’s an honor and a privilege for the coach and captain to serve their players.  

“In companies, too many managers prefer to be served than to serve. They need to remember that in business, as in rugby, a captain is nothing without his team. The role played by each member is essential for optimal performance and achieving results.” 

Believe to achieve

Royo agrees: “When a swimmer is in the water and the focus is on them, it seems that they, and only they, have the power to win. But that’s not true. Their chances of winning started with a shared vision that was transparent, transmitted to every team member and worked towards as one.” 

And whether the goal is an Olympic medal, a tennis Grand Slam title or topping the sales leaderboard, everyone involved needs to believe it is possible to achieve it.  

“We have to believe in something to be able to fully put our intention and commitment into the change we need to move forward,” says Royo.  

“In today's organizations undergoing unprecedented changes, we are continually subjected to new realities — many of them difficult to manage. The ability that each manager has to address changes in a positive way and get the best out of their teams will undoubtedly be a predictor of their organization’s survival.”