Worcester Bravehearts Announce Return of New England Sports Summit‍

   Summit to be held on February 13, 2026 at The College of the Holy Cross

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WORCESTER, MA - The Worcester Bravehearts announced today the return of the New England Sports Summit on February 13, 2026, at the College of the Holy Cross. The event will build off the strong momentum of the 2025 Summit, which featured over 800 attendees from 52 colleges & 21 high schools, and 35 sports organizations represented.  

“This is the most anticipated event of the off-season for us” said Bravehearts General Manager and New England Sports Summit Creator & Co-host Donny Porcaro. “This has truly become the premier sports networking event for students in the northeast, and we’re excited to build off last year’s momentum.”

Key programming of the 2026 Summit will include:  

• Networking Etiquette and Need to Know: A pre-event presentation designed for students to build networking confidence for the day.

• Keynote Address : An interactive address to kick off the Summit from a sport industry leader. Last year’s keynote featured ESPN’s Head of Development Kati Fernandez.

• Interactive Workshops: New to the 2026 Summit will be interactive workshops where attendees can learn firsthand about roles and scenarios faced every day in sports & entertainment.

• Panel Discussions: An opportunity for attendees to learn about current sport professionals’ pathways into their current role, and directly ask questions about different careers, majors, and aspects of industry.

• Career Fair: An opportunity for attendees to meet hiring managers from sports organizations across the country.  

• College Fair: Open to graduate and undergraduate programs in 2026. For high school students, this will be an exploration of a college degree in Sports Management. For college students & young professionals, this will be a look at a possible next step in their Sport Management Education.  

Taking an increased role in the execution of the Summit is Bravehearts’ Community Impact and Fan Services Manager Helena Stamatakis. Attending the first Bravehearts-hosted Sports Summit in 2019 as a student, Helena has been a part of every Summit since, including last year when she helped to co-host the New England Sports Summit.  

“Going from attending the first Worcester Sports Summit as a student in high school to being a major planner of the New England Sports Summit is a major full circle opportunity for me,” Stamatakis stated, “the first event allowed me to get my start in the sports’ world, so being able to help the Bravehearts connect students who were in a similar position as I was to opportunities is really special.”

“This is what the New England Sports Summit is about,” said Porcaro. “We put this on to help build leaders in the industry in hopes that they give back to the next generation. The people who put this on are the people who attended as a student years prior, we think that’s important.”  

Community Partnerships for the 2026 Summit:  

• In partnership with the Worcester Railers, all Summit attendees will receive free tickets to the team’s Women in Sports Night on February 13, including a pregame panel featuring additional industry professionals.

• Boston College’s Woods College of Advancing Studies returns as a presenting sponsor, deepening its role in programming and professional networking.

Registration & tickets

Registration for Students, Employers, and Institutions is now open at newenglandsportssummit.com. For teachers and professors interested in booking a block of tickets at a discounted rate, please reach out to Helena Stamatakis at helena@worcesterbravehearts.com. Be sure to follow @newenglandsportssummit on Instagram for speaker and workshop announcements.

About the New England Sports Summit

Hosted by the Worcester Bravehearts, the New England Sports Summit is the premier Sports Summit in the Northeast focused on creating first steps in the industry for young professionals.

In 2019, the Bravehearts hosted the first ever “Worcester Sports Management Summit” featuring 150 students and 20 Sports Organizations. After a 3-year hiatus due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, the Bravehearts returned the Worcester Sports Summit in 2023 under new leadership and transformed the event to feature over 700 attendees. In 2025, the New England Sports Summit was created, reaching new heights in the Sport Networking event space.

Media Inquiries

For all media requests and inquiries, please contact Donny Porcaro at don@worcesterbravehearts.com.

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