Rio Ferdinand: How to win at business pitches

Rio Ferdinand is a legend at Manchester United football club, where he played from 2002 to 2014, winning six Premier League titles. He is also one of England's most decorated international players.

Since retiring from football in 2015, he has built a successful career as a TV commentator, while also getting involved in several business start-up ventures.

“It’s always a daunting task when going in and pitching your idea," says Ferdinand, "but you have to show confidence, you have to show spark. You have to show it means something to you, because you want it to mean something to them.”

Ferdinand was one of the star judges at the CoCreate Pitch event in London, which is where we caught up with him for the My Business Leader Secret series. CoCreate is a huge event organised by Alibaba.com, the global b2b marketplace for wholesale trade. Around 25,000 founders from around the world pitched to enter this competition.

Thirty finalists appeared on stage, including many side hustlers, with just a few minutes to pitch and impress the judges in front of a live audience of hundreds.  The overall winner walks away with a £200k cash prize, while the ten runners up receive £20,000 as well as support from Alibaba.com to grow their business.

“Go in there confident, shoulders out, chest puffed out,” says Ferdinand, “and punch them in the nose with your idea!”

It’s perhaps a good metaphor for someone who announced his intention to go into professional boxing back in 2017!