Available to book
Edwin van der Sar
High Performance
Dealing With Pressure
Team Building
Support resilient leadership and high-performance culture with Edwin van der Sar, former Manchester United goalkeeper and AFC Ajax CEO. Edwin shares practical insight on performing under extreme pressure, building elite teams, and transitioning from world-class performer to boardroom leader. Champions League winner with rare player-to-boardroom perspective.
Sports Leadership
Personal Wellbeing
After Dinner Sports
Mindset
Sport
CEO
Executive
Inspirational
Personal Development
Football
Soccer
Athlete
Edwin van der Sar won 26 major trophies as a goalkeeper, including two UEFA Champions League titles and four Premier League crowns with Manchester United, before transitioning to become CEO of AFC Ajax. He set a world record of playing for 1,311 consecutive minutes without conceding a goal and remains the oldest player to win the Premier League at age 40. Edwin also won Best European Goalkeeper twice and represented the Netherlands 130 times. After retiring, he led AFC Ajax as chief executive, navigating the complexities of modern football management at one of Europe's most respected clubs.
Edwin draws on his experience at the highest levels of sport and business to explore how individuals and teams perform under pressure, how winning cultures are built, and how leaders navigate critical transitions. His insights are grounded in lived experience, from elite competition to executive decision making.
Audiences gain a clear understanding of what sustained excellence requires, how to manage pressure without losing perspective, and how to build resilient teams that perform consistently over time. Edwin also speaks candidly about suffering a brain haemorrhage after leaving AFC Ajax, sharing what that experience taught him about resilience, recovery, and redefining success beyond trophies and titles.
Book Edwin to gain perspective from someone who has excelled at the highest levels of both performance and leadership.
Edwin's transition from world-record goalkeeper to AFC Ajax CEO makes him a highly credible speaker on both individual performance under pressure and leading organisational change. Clients value his candid perspective on building accountability cultures and navigating career transitions that demand entirely different capabilities, particularly relevant for leadership teams managing transformation or succession planning.
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frequently asked questions
Something we've not covered here?
Email edwin.van.der.sar@getapeptalk.com or call PepTalk on +44 20 3835 2929 (UK) or +1 737 888 5112 (US), and one of our speaker agents will contact you within hours to confirm Edwin's availability and fees. If you can, please include your budget upfront – it helps us fast-track your request. It’s also helpful to know the date, format (virtual or in-person), location, and a bit about your audience.
Edwin van der Sar structures his sessions around lived experience, drawing directly from his career as a professional goalkeeper, his tenure as CEO of AFC Ajax, and his recovery from a brain haemorrhage to illustrate how sustained excellence, leadership transitions, and resilience operate in practice.
Edwin van der Sar speaks on high performance, leadership transitions, resilience and recovery, pressure management, and building winning team cultures. He won 26 major trophies as a goalkeeper, including two UEFA Champions League titles with Manchester United, before serving as CEO of AFC Ajax, and holds the world record of 1,311 consecutive minutes without conceding a goal.
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