Cardiff Hosts GANG 2026 Annual Conference

Cardiff has welcomed delegates from across the UK for the 2026 annual conference of the Greater Ambassador Network Group (GANG), a prestigious network of business events professionals who share best practice in working with local ambassadors to secure international conference bids.

Following a competitive bidding process, Cardiff was chosen to host this year’s gathering, with the two-day event taking place on Monday 16 and Tuesday 17 March.

Day One: Cardiff Castle

The conference opened at the iconic Cardiff Castle, with delegates arriving to reconnect before the formal programme began in the historic Undercroft Room.

Paul Black, Head of Business Events at Visit Britain, delivered a warm welcome to delegates, followed by an overview of What’s New in Cardiff from Ken Poole MBE, Head of Economic Development at Cardiff Council. The session highlighted new conference spaces in Cardiff Bay, recent transport improvements, and the city’s growing partnerships with Cardiff University and its ambassador community, as well as key conference wins and campaign activity.

The afternoon session featured two guest speakers. Professor Omer Rana from Cardiff University’s School of Computer Science and Informatics, a leading authority in AI and high-performance distributed computing, and Co-Director of the UK National Edge AI Hub, delivered an engaging trend spotlight on the future of business events. His talk explored AI tools for bid writing, the growing appetite for high-touch in-person networking, and the evolving role of technology in conference delivery.

The day concluded with a presentation from Louise McQuillan, Business Development Manager at Visit Belfast, who shared insights from the CityDNA surveym a Europe-wide study of ambassador programmes across convention bureaux, sparking lively roundtable discussion about how destinations are evolving their approach to ambassador and academic engagement.

Delegates then gathered for pre-dinner drinks at Barbara’s before enjoying dinner at Brown’s Brasserie in the Cardiff Marriott.

Day Two: Cardiff International White Water

Day two moved to the dynamic setting of Cardiff International White Water, where the focus turned to real-world case studies from Cardiff’s own Conference Ambassador community.

Three of Cardiff’s outstanding ambassadors took to the floor to share their experiences:

Professor Simon Jones, Co-Director of the Systems Immunity Research Institute at Cardiff University, spoke about his work in bringing a major international medical congress to the city, offering a compelling insight into how academic-led bids can put Cardiff on the world stage.

Professor Katie Webb, Professor of Medical Education at Cardiff University’s School of Medicine, shared her experience of championing Cardiff as a conference destination within the health professions education community. She most recently chaired the planning group for CLIC2025 — the Consortium for Longitudinal Integrated Clerkships’ first-ever international annual conference held in Europe, hosted in Cardiff.

George Pritchard, Head of the UK at the European Space Agency, described how he chose Cardiff to host one of six annual meetings of the ESA Industrial Policy Committee, bringing around 200 delegates from across Europe to the city. George highlighted the pivotal support he received from the Meet in Cardiff team in sourcing venues and delivering a successful event.

The ambassador presentations were followed by a contribution via Teams from Elaine Miller of the Edinburgh International Conference Centre (EICC). As a founding member of the GANG network, Elaine shared details of the Exchange Initiative — an academic advisory board she established at EICC to showcase the broader impact of research through business events and foster international collaboration. She also outlined the EICC’s recently launched Fellowship Programme, which offers funded conference places to early-career researchers.

The afternoon included a group discussion on sharing business event leads and facilitating ambassador connections, before closing remarks brought the 2026 conference to a close.

Cardiff’s selection to host GANG 2026 is a testament to the strength of the city’s conference ambassador network and the Meet in Cardiff team’s commitment to growing the business events sector. To find out more about Cardiff’s Conference Ambassador Programme and how our ambassadors are helping to bring world-class events to the city, visit Meet our Cardiff Conference Ambassadors • Meet in Cardiff.