What makes a true leader? Is it a title — or the courage to change what isn’t right?

In The Captaincy, Mark Francis draws on forty years in elite women’s rugby and global leadership consultancy to reveal the real foundations of modern leadership. Through over 60 Captain stories — from world-class athletes, pioneering women, and bold change-makers — Francis shows that leadership isn’t a job title. It’s an ethos. A choice. An intention.

Central to the book is Sporting Intelligence (SpQ), a powerful model built on four essential leadership traits:

Positive Intention, Self-Command, Thin-Slicing, and Tribal Fire.

Together, they sharpen decision-making, build confidence, ignite team spirit, and help leaders act courageously when the path isn’t clear.

From the training grounds of women’s rugby to Olympic arenas, global boardrooms, heart-surgery theatres, entrepreneurial start-ups and community projects, The Captaincy uncovers how great leaders think, choose, communicate and inspire — especially when the pressure is highest.

You’ll discover:

• Why the world urgently needs more female leaders

• How everyday people become Champions of change

• How to overcome self-doubt and lead with clarity

• How to build communities, tribes and movements

• Practical tools to influence, decide and take action

• Real stories of courage, inclusion, resilience and impact

Whether you’re leading a team, shaping a project, launching an idea, or searching for direction, this book will equip you to act with intention, confidence and purpose.

The Captaincy is your call to step up — to lead with vision and heart, on and off the field.

The Captaincy is a call to embrace these lessons, step forward with courage, and carry the spirit of captaincy into every arena of life.

Open these pages and discover how you, too, can step into your own captaincy – and lead with impact, on and off the field.