Gallagher taps pro athletes for summer insurance internships

Insurance firm Gallagher is breaking new ground by offering internships to professional athletes, providing them with a pathway to prepare for life after sports. This innovative approach has led to the discovery that these athletes tend to excel not only on the field but also in the corporate world. According to Chris Mead, Gallagher’s chief marketing officer, professional athletes possess valuable skills such as hard work, teamwork, and leadership, which are highly transferable to the business world.

Last year, Gallagher expanded its internship program to include professional athletes, and this year, it has opened the program to eight members of the National Women’s Soccer League’s Chicago Stars. Two of the athletes, Leilanni Nesbeth and Chardonnay Curran, a current and former midfielder with the team, respectively, have jumped at the opportunity for a paid internship. For them, this internship means a lot, as it provides a chance to get their foot in the door and gain experience in a corporate setting. As Curran noted, being a pro soccer player was her first career, and she had never been in a corporate environment before.

Preparing Athletes for Life After Sports

Gallagher’s Partnership Intern Program for athletes, which was piloted in 2024 with four players from the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons, aims to provide business experience, professional skill development, and career mentorship to participants. Over six weeks, athletes learn about insurance brokerage, sales, and corporate culture, while also gaining valuable skills that can be applied to their future careers. The program is tailored to accommodate the demanding schedules of professional athletes, and for many, this support is crucial, as pro sports careers can be short and unpredictable, with varying earnings.

The average NWSL salary is about $125,000 per season, according to the league. Gallagher’s goal is to prepare athletes for what comes next, and the company has already seen success in this area, with some athlete interns being hired as employees after their playing careers are over. In fact, Mead noted that the company employs a professional rugby player in Europe who is one of its star salesmen.

Crossing Over from Sports to Insurance

For Curran, the internship was an eye-opener, changing her preconceived notions about the insurance industry. She noted that everything she thought about insurance was the exact opposite after completing the internship. Similarly, Nesbeth gained valuable knowledge about the industry, joking that she could now bore someone with information about risk placement services. These experiences demonstrate the potential for professional athletes to transition into successful careers in the insurance industry.

Ties between insurance and professional sports are not new, with companies like State Farm and Nationwide running internship programs or partnering with sports teams. For example, Nationwide offers a professional development program for NWSL players at its headquarters in Columbus, Ohio. The goal of these programs is to provide athletes with new skills and experiences that can serve them in their post-playing careers, perhaps even leading to a career in the insurance industry.