Marie Kelly pictured at Old Trafford Football Ground after winning the University Campus of Football Business Sports Entrepreneur Competition
©UCFB
Professional cricketer and founder of Versatail, Marie Kelly, has won the UCFB Sports Entrepreneur Competition, securing a first prize investment of up to £50,000.
Nine finalists pitched their business ventures to an expert judging panel at Old Trafford Football Stadium on Wednesday, where Kelly emerged as the unanimous winner. The competition, launched by UCFB to mark ten years since opening its Manchester campus, celebrates innovation and entrepreneurship within sport.
Kelly, 29, who plays for The Blaze and the Northern Superchargers in The Hundred, impressed the judges with Versatail, her pioneering brand designing sports caps specifically for women and girls. The company’s trademarked technology allows users to adjust the ponytail opening to their preferred height and style, offering a practical and stylish solution long overlooked in sportswear design.
Drawing on her own experiences as a professional cricketer, Kelly set out to address a challenge that has frustrated countless female athletes: uncomfortable, ill fitting headwear. Her mission is simple: to help women and girls feel comfortable, confident, and ready to perform at their best on the field.
The competition – inaugurated by UCFB to celebrate a decade of inspiring the next generation of sports business professionals in Manchester – gave aspiring sports innovators aged 18–30 based in the UK the chance to win £50,000 in value to support their business ideas with the potential to make a real impact in the industry.
The final, hosted at Old Trafford Football Stadium, yesterday (October 22) saw nine shortlisted finalists present to an expert panel consisting of UCFB Founder, Brendan Flood; Andrea Chilton, CEO of the English Schools Football Association; Eni Shabani, Founder of the Rising Ballers media company; Adrian Harris, Chief Supply Chain Officer of Castore and Sam Mackenzie the CEO of National League football club, Altrincham.
The nine contestants were judged on five criteria – the market opportunity, innovation of the idea, its feasibility, the pitch quality, and the sustainability and impact of the idea.
“My main emotion is shock,” said Marie Kelly of her competition win. “I really didn’t think I would win. I was here for the experience. The process really helped me strategize the business and really think about where I wanted to go with it. To be named the overall winner, I’m really delighted.”
“The financial prize takes a bit of a weight off my mind about how to supply the demand that I’ve already got for my products and my caps. Hopefully I can just really develop the product so it’s even better and service even more, women and girls in sports,” added Marie.
Marie Kelly models her Versatail hat during her presentation at the final’s day at Old Trafford Football Stadium
©UCFB
“As we mark 10 years in Manchester, we want to celebrate not just our own journey but empower the young entrepreneurs who will shape the future of sport,” said Brendan Flood, Founder and Chief Executive at UCFB.
“This competition reflected everything UCFB stands for; ambition, innovation, and the belief that the sports industry is powered by creative ideas. The calibre of the entries was incredible so everyone who made the final judging stage deserves immense credit, but Marie was the unanimous choice overall.
“She has done an incredible job establishing her brand and we hope that this financial reward can help Versatail continue to cater for the diverse needs of women and girls in sport at even greater scale,” Flood continued.
The judges were incredibly impressed with the general quality of the submissions. Named in second place overall was Telford-based innovator, Ben Wiser, with his Touchline app development programme tailored specifically for non-league football clubs across the UK offering an easy-to-use, modular platform aimed to boost a club’s fan engagement and commercial opportunities.
Brendan Hourihan, a brand specialist at Amazon by day and founder of KnockOut Clean – a unique, reuseable boxing glove liner that prevents sweat and bacteria build-up – was selected in third place overall.
The Sports Entrepreneur Competition not only celebrated UCFB’s Manchester legacy but also strengthens its mission to be the go-to university for sports careers, inspiring and empowering future leaders in the sector.
The finalists of the UCFB Sports Entrepreneur Competition pictured at Old Trafford Football Ground
©UCFB
UCFB has become an established part of the higher education landscape in Manchester over the last decade and prides itself on offering innovative football and sports courses at undergraduate, postgraduate and executive education levels, which are tailor-made to give students and industry professionals the best possible chance of a successful career.
Results from UCFB’s 2025 Graduate Survey, show that 90 per cent of UCFB graduates are employed or in full-time study within 12 months of graduating. Furthermore, 62 per cent of UCFB graduates are working within the football and wider sports industry.
Since the opening of its first campus back at Burney in 2011, UCFB graduates have landed roles at each of the 92 professional football clubs competing across the 2025-26 season. This is in addition to graduates having worked at 12 of the 12 Women’s Super League clubs of 2025-26.
© Cricket World 2025
