3Step Sports Director of Partnerships Tony Leko has made a name for himself through his versatility and top-notch results.
In baseball parlance, Tony Leko is the ultimate utility man. “I’m a Jack-of-all-trades,” said Leko, who is now director of partnerships at 3Step Sports, his third role in five years with the country’s largest youth sports and club operator.
He credits his flexibility as the secret to 18 years and counting in the sports world. Among the organizations Leko has worked for are the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour, USA Cycling, and USA Lacrosse, rising to events director at the latter two national governing bodies. He started in lacrosse events at 3Step, but his role has evolved to servicing and developing relationships with corporate partners such as Gatorade, Under Armour, Delta Dental, and Fidium, as well as sports-specific partners and destinations.
“I think that variety has kept me well-rounded and helped me build a broad skill set,” Leko said. “I enjoy being able to adjust, take on different responsibilities, and learn new things.”
Earning revenue is certainly one of Leko’s top goals, but the partnerships are built to create activations that enhance athletes’ experience. For perspective, more than 3 million athletes have come through the company's ecosystem in some form, including events and club programs, according to Leko. The company operates in seven sports: lacrosse, basketball, football, volleyball, soccer, field hockey, and combat sports, including youth mixed martial arts and Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
It’s likely 3Step, backed by private equity firm Juggernaut Capital Partners, will continue to grow. But Leko said the emphasis is on producing the best events, if not necessarily the most. To that end, 3Step has jumped into the event tech world with its own proprietary software designed to simplify and enhance the tournament experience, including making it easier for athletes to stay connected after the games.
Leko describes Match INDOOR as an opportunity to serve a specific audience—indoor sports clubs and organizations—that may not receive enough attention at broader industry conferences. He believes the conference can help professionalize the business side of youth sports while expanding access to education, resources and partnerships, particularly for organizations without the connections or resources of larger operators.
Read on for our conversation with Leko.
Tell us about your career and how you got started in the sports industry.
I originally studied sports medicine as an undergraduate because I thought I wanted to go into physical therapy. But right before finishing my degree, I had a moment when I realized that wasn't what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I moved into a sports management program and got an internship with the AVP Pro Volleyball Tour. That internship turned into a job running event operations pretty quickly, and my career took off from there.
Three Step is already a major player in youth sports. How do you think about the next phase of growth?
Being the biggest isn't necessarily the end goal. Size alone doesn't mean you're a good company. You could be making a million dollars but spending $3 million, and that doesn't make you successful.
We've increasingly focused on becoming more efficient and improving the experience we provide. Technology is a big part of that, as is finding ways to connect with athletes before, during and after events. We want to listen to what athletes and their families actually want and need instead of simply deciding what we're going to provide them.
Why has Three Step invested in its own technology platform?
Having a direct connection with our customers is vital. We want to control our registration and communication processes, hear feedback directly and make changes ourselves. We have a lot of athletes coming through our system, and being able to respond to their needs without having to go through a third party makes our lives easier.
What are the advantages of working for a privately backed company like Three Step?
One of the biggest advantages for me is the speed at which we can work. I've spent time with nonprofits and national governing bodies where decisions can take a long time because you have to go through committees, boards, and multiple levels of approval.
Our industry changes quickly, so being able to move fast and adapt is important. We're a large organization, but we can still be agile. Having capital behind us also gives us flexibility to grow, whether that means acquiring another organization, bringing in talented people or finding ways to operate more efficiently.
Why do you prefer talking about partnerships rather than sponsorships?
Sponsorship isn't a bad word, and there's a time and place for transactional relationships. But I look at partnerships as something more ongoing. It's not simply that a company signs an agreement, gives us money, receives a set of deliverables and then we're done. It's about working together day to day, finding interesting and dynamic ways to collaborate and delivering something valuable to our customers. Coming from an event operations background, I'm particularly interested in the experiential side. I want to see how we can bring these relationships to life.
What interests you in Match INDOOR?
I thought it was a good idea because it's focused on a specific audience. There are a lot of conferences and expos on the industry calendar, and you can make an argument that there are too many. But Match INDOOR has identified a particular lane: indoor sports and the clubs and organizations that operate in that space. Instead of trying to be everything to everybody, it's focused on what those organizations want and need.
Why is a dedicated event for indoor sports organizations important right now?
Youth sports organizations are becoming more business-oriented, but many are still developing their business operations. We see that firsthand when we acquire organizations. Even some very successful clubs and events are run by people who started small and grew quickly without necessarily having formal training in finance, accounting, internal operations or other business functions.
A lot of these people are former athletes who put an organization together, found success, and kept growing. That's great, but they might not have the resources or connections to develop every part of the business. An event like Match INDOOR can bring those people together with others who have faced similar challenges.
How can Match INDOOR help clubs connect with vendors and suppliers?
You don't know what you don't know, and that includes not knowing who you don't know.
Youth sports is still an underdeveloped space from a business standpoint. Many organizations may not realize how many vendors and suppliers are out there or how those companies could help them grow. Bringing clubs and teams together with those vendors gives them an opportunity to discover resources they might never have encountered otherwise. It also creates a chance to meet people face to face, build relationships, and find partners who can help them improve their businesses.