STATS Opens New European/EMEA HQ in Ireland To Be Headed Up by Gráinne Barry

STATS has opened a new office in Limerick, Ireland which will serve as its regional headquarters overseeing European, Middle Eastern and African (EMEA) operations. In addition, the company announced the hiring of Irish sports technology pioneer Gráinne Barry to run the new office and drive growth and development in Ireland and greater EMEA. This project is supported by the Irish Government through IDA Ireland. 

STATS will setup a temporary office in the city as they look for a permanent location. Upon opening of a permanent office, STATS will build its presence in Limerick to 30 full-time employees by the end of 2018, with 100 more part-time staff members, making it the largest sports technology company in Ireland.

“Over recent years, STATS has forged several major partnerships and acquisitions in the region, including Prozone Sports in 2015, which has led to accelerating growth in the EMEA market.,” says Kenneth Fuchs, CEO of STATS. “With the opening of our Limerick office and regional headquarters and the hire of Gráinne Barry, we will be strongly positioned to offer and expand our diverse and leading set of team and media products throughout the region. Our Limerick location will also help develop the next generation of sports technology products thanks to the expanding talent and resources in the market.”

Coined the “City of Sport”, Limerick was a natural choice for a central European hub for the sport data and technology company. By choosing Limerick, STATS will tap into what the progressive city has to offer—from collaborative education partnerships with the three local institutions to the technology and science clusters that are transforming the city. As the headquarters of EMEA operations, Limerick will serve as a hub for all aspects of STATS’ business to deliver live sports data and intelligence solutions to the 800 teams, leagues, brands, technology and media partners STATS services.

“I am delighted to welcome this new investment which brings more than 100 high quality jobs to Limerick,” says Frances Fitzgerald TD, a Tánaiste and Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation. “It follows a significant number of other recent Information & Communications Technology (ICT) projects which have been attracted to Limerick. My department has been driving the Government’s ambition to locate high value technology jobs to the regions and this project exemplifies that policy. The Mid West Region now has a growing cluster of strong ICT companies, and businesses like STATS, who are world leaders in a growing area, are especially welcome to invest there. I wish them every success in the years ahead “.

“This investment shows how combined strengths and synergies can be harnessed in regional locations to attract investment –  in this case Limerick’s strong sporting environment and facilities and the technology cluster located here,” says Martin Shanahan, IDA Ireland CEO.  “The establishment of its headquarters for regional operations in Limerick by this world leader in sports data and intelligence, creating 100 jobs, is great news for the city, county and Mid-West Region and I wish STATS every success.”

Gráinne Barry, who joins as Regional Operations Director – EMEA and head of STATS’ new regional headquarters in Limerick, is a co-founder of SportsTech Ireland. Barry is well renowned in the technology sector in Ireland, with a strong background in technology, data and software solutions. Barry will continue to be actively involved in SportsTech Ireland to support and grow the development of sports technology companies in Ireland.

“STATS is one of the most innovative companies at the intersection of sports data and technology—two of my passion points—and I am thrilled to join their team as they begin their operations in Ireland,” says Barry. “With a regional headquarters in Limerick, we will be located in a city energized by some of the best minds in tech and sport, where we can better service our clients and have a new location to unite functions that are core to our business.”