Jon Barmby
To kick off this series, we’re excited to share the stories of Fixtured’s co-founders. We may support different teams, but we’re united by a shared passion for sports and a mission to make following sports schedules effortless.
What teams and competitions do you have in your watchlist? Can you share the story behind this selection?
I'll start with West Ham—that’s been a long and sometimes torturous relationship that began around 30 years ago. My dad, born just a stone’s throw from Upton Park, took me to my first game when I was five. I instantly fell in love with everything about the club—the crest, the colours, the people, the area, and, of course, the misery. From that moment on, I spent most Saturdays following West Ham up and down the country.
The next set of teams comes from my fascination with one city. I grew up loving a lot of films, many of which seemed to be set in Boston… Eventually, I decided to go and experience it for myself. As a passionate sports fan, I felt an immediate connection with the city and its people. I’d always admired how, in the U.S., entire cities rally around their teams, but Boston takes it to another level. While there, I was lucky enough to catch the Red Sox and Bruins, so I kept following them from across the Atlantic. I eventually threw in the Celtics to complete the set, although I do have a soft spot for the Raptors as my friend is a big fan.
I've been getting into F1 recently—it's been great to see so many Fixtured users with it in their watchlist, so I thought I'd join the party!
Finally, I follow a few teams across European football for various reasons. I’ve spent a lot of time in Portugal, so I like to see how FC Porto are doing. I follow Dortmund purely for the kit (you can’t beat black and yellow), and Marseille—well, if Dimitri Payet likes them, then so do I. Plus, Clément is a fan!
How has Fixtured changed how you follow your favorite teams or leagues?
It's made me much more intentional with my free time—I see Fixtured cards as blocks of time, and if I only have a brief window, I love opening the app to see what's on or picking an event to look forward to.
It’s also made it so much easier to stay on top of leagues I’m not following as closely day to day. A great example is the NBA, I can quickly get a glimpse of how things are shaping up without needing to dive deep.
What’s your favorite feature on Fixtured, and why?
There are a few new features in development that will definitely be top of my list, but for now, I absolutely love the main feed. A big reason why Fixtured exists was our collective grievance with the traditional list format for sporting fixtures. The time block layout feels much easier to take in everything that’s coming up at a glance.
What advice would you give to a new user getting started with Fixtured?
Enable notifications—I get so much value from my morning digest notification, and I’d hate for others to miss out on theirs. Beyond that, I’d recommend starting small with your watchlist and building it up over time. You'll get much more value by selecting the teams that matter most to you rather than adding entire competitions in my opinion.
Any new sport, team, league or feature you'd love to see on Fixtured?
If you’d asked me this a few months ago, I would’ve had a long list of suggestions, but the team has done an amazing job recently in expanding Fixtured’s coverage. That said, I’m really excited for Golf events to roll out soon—I think it’s going to be a game-changer for golf fans like myself!
