The Award for Blogs About Awards Goes To…….

Awards ceremonies are always fascinating, not because of the winners, but because of the runners‑up. Especially when actors are involved. It’s the one moment they can’t quite fake it, and those genuine flashes of emotion are often far more interesting than the acceptance speeches.

That’s only one of the reasons I’ve generally kept the organisations I work with away from the awards circuit. I am afraid, and this platform is probably not the easiest place to say this, that many awards don’t really mean anything. They don’t resonate with employees, clients, or partners. Too often they become a night out for the exec team, followed by a gush of self‑congratulation that irritates the wider staff more than it inspires them.

But every so often, an award does matter, when it has integrity, when the prize is meaningful, and when the story aligns perfectly with the heart of the organisation.

The first time I entered an organisation for an award was 20 years ago. A national newspaper was offering £50,000 to a small or medium‑sized business doing something genuinely different. The company I was working with had exactly the right story and £50,000 would transform their business. They won and marked the moment by giving me a quarter bottle of champagne. One of those moments when no gift would probably have been better…

Most recently, I worked with Maidenhead United Football Club on two submissions for the Football Business Awards. These awards matter. They’re the gold standard in the sector. And for a non‑league club even to enter is unusual, but I knew they had the right stories for the right categories: Community Programme of the Year and Sponsorship/Partnership of the Year.

The club does genuinely meaningful work in both areas, delivering huge value to the community and showing what a real football club can be beyond 90 minutes on a Saturday.

I’m delighted to say that both submissions were shortlisted yesterday.

Like an unexpected cup run, Maidenhead now stands as the non‑league representative among the finalists, including going up against Juventus Football Club and its partnership with TikTok in one category.

When the story is authentic, when it resonates, the application writes itself.

There’s no £50,000 prize this time, but for a club like Maidenhead United, making the final list of such a prestigious award means far more to staff, volunteers, partners, and supporters.

Here’s to a shock 1–0 win over Juventus when the winners are announced in May (and it would be a bonus to have Ricky Gervais as the host, he has done more for taking down meaningless award reactions than anyone I know!).