The sport, leisure and entertainment insurance market has grown steadily more complex, and the carriers best placed to serve it are those that can consolidate specialist expertise across geographies rather than operate in isolated pockets. HDI Global’s appointment of Sheena Williams (pictured) as global head of sport, leisure and entertainment is a move in that direction.
Williams joined HDI Global in 2019 as a senior underwriter within its contingency team, having moved to HDI from Swiss Re Corporate Solutions, with prior underwriting and broking roles at Sirius and other Lloyd’s syndicates. Her career spans both sides of the insurance distribution chain, giving her a grounding in how brokers and clients approach placement decisions as much as how insurers price and structure programmes. In the seven years since her hire, she has built out her position within the organisation. She is now being asked to use that knowledge at a global level.
Her remit covers HDI Global’s sport, leisure and entertainment proposition, with specific priorities around sports personal accident, the broader entertainment sector and film, and targeted geographic expansion, with a specific brief to deepen the entertainment and film offering and pursue geographic expansion where the insurer identifies viable opportunities.
Sport’s biggest risks are no longer confined to the field of play, according to David Griffiths, senior director of sport and entertainment at Miller, who has spent 30 of his 35 years in insurance broking focused on the sector. Event cancellation now intersects with geopolitical exposure, weather parametrics, reputational and disgrace risk, and the financial complexity of broadcast rights. A single major event placement can require coverage across multiple lines and jurisdictions simultaneously, and the underwriters capable of structuring those programmes are a limited and competitive resource.
The competitive pressure on that resource is visible across the market. Howden has built a global sports and entertainment platform spanning roughly 400 specialists across 23 countries, and formally launched a dedicated US division this year, targeting what is widely regarded as the largest single national market for SLE insurance premium. The market is attracting structured investment from brokers and underwriters alike, and the insurers without a clearly coordinated international proposition face the risk of being outpaced.
HDI Global’s approach, as Williams framed it, is not to impose a uniform global model but to make existing expertise more accessible across markets. The insurer already holds sports personal accident capability and client relationships across its international offices. The strategic intent is to connect those assets rather than build from scratch.
Rafael Rebitzky, global head of specialty lines at HDI Global, described the appointment as a way to solidify the insurer’s proposition by bringing together capabilities that already exist within the organisation. Williams’ background spanning underwriting, broking and a cross-market leadership role positions her to manage that kind of lateral coordination.
“Since I started my career in the insurance industry, I have seen just how important specialist knowledge, relationships, and a real understanding of clients’ businesses and needs are,” Williams said. “What excites me about this role is the opportunity to connect the expertise we already have across HDI Global and turn it into an even stronger international proposition.”
Whether that coordination produces a more coherent underwriting counterparty for brokers placing complex SLE programmes across multiple territories will depend on how effectively HDI connects its stated priorities: sports PA, film and entertainment, and geographic expansion.
