Thomas Doyle, Prominent Figure of NSGA and Sporting Goods Industry, Passes Away  

DOWNERS GROVE, ILLINOIS (April 28, 2025) – Thomas B. Doyle, who made a significant impact in numerous areas with the National Sporting Goods Association during his 39-year career in the industry, passed away on April 22. Doyle was 86.  

Doyle was NSGA’s Vice President of Information & Research when he retired in the fall of 2010. He was responsible for the growth of NSGA’s research products and its team dealer division and was also president of the National Ski & Snowboard Retailers Association (NSSRA), an independent association managed by NSGA, from its inception in 1987 until 2010. 

“Tom Doyle’s passion for the sporting goods industry and his significant contributions to the work we do cannot be overstated,” said Matt Carlson, NSGA President & CEO. “He did so much to build and grow vital areas of NSGA in research, advocacy, and ski and snowboard membership. He was instrumental in creating the National Ski & Snowboard Retailers Association and its relationship with NSGA. 

“I am fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with Tom and to get to know him before he retired after I came to NSGA. On behalf of everyone at NSGA we extend our deepest condolences to all of Tom’s family and friends.” 

^{Photo: Tom Doyle}

Doyle started in the industry by working for NSGA’s member magazine, Selling Sporting Goods. Before Doyle’s arrival, NSGA published only limited market research, but in 1980, the first Sporting Goods Market consumer purchases report was published. Doyle launched the publication of NSGA’s Sports Participation reports in 1985 and he built the foundation for a research department that today provides a wide range of products utilized by all areas of the industry. 

He also made presentations on the American sporting goods market in Europe and Asia and assisted in the development of Federal studies of the American sporting goods market. He also was responsible for the NSGA Cost of Doing Business Survey for nearly 20 years. 

NSGA created its Team Dealer Division in 1975 and Doyle was its first managing director until 2006. Doyle’s involvement in the ski and snow sports industry extended beyond NSSRA and he served as membership secretary on an ASTM snow skiing committee that worked on safety related issues. He also served as a member of the Strategy Committee for the President’s Commission on Americans Outdoors. 

Doyle also spent a year as the public relations director of the National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA), which represents boat, marine engine and accessory manufacturers. While Doyle was at NMMA he formed the National Marine Bankers Association. 

Doyle received master’s degrees in management from the Kellogg School of Business at Northwestern University and in philosophy from St. Mary’s in Mundelein, Illinois. He was a priest with the Archdiocese of Chicago before entering the sporting goods industry. 

Thomas B. Doyle was born December 25, 1938 in Chicago. He was preceded in death by his wife Patricia Ellen, brother Michael and sister Rosemary and survived by his daughter Patricia Kelly and brother John. A resident of Oak Brook, Illinois, he was a long-time member of the Village of Oak Brook Planning Commission, Friends of the Oak Brook Public Library, the Graue Mill Board and the LaGrange Soup Kitchen. 

Visitation will be Thursday, May 1, from 4 p.m.-8 p.m. at Sullivan Funeral Home, 60 S. Grant Street, Hinsdale, IL 60521. A funeral mass will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday, May 2, at St. Isaac Jogues Church, Fourth and Clay Street in Hinsdale with Internment to follow at Queen of Heaven Cemetery in Hillside, Illinois. In lieu of flowers, memorials are appreciated to the Doyle Family Endowed Research Fund at the Stritch School of Medicine of Loyola University Chicago or the Patricia K. Doyle Hesburgh Women of Impact Scholarship at the University of Notre Dame. 

About the National Sporting Goods Association 

Since 1929, the National Sporting Goods Association (NSGA) has been the leading voice and go-to resource for the sporting goods industry. NSGA helps the industry grow its businesses through research, advocacy and networking. For more information about membership or NSGA’s products and services, please visit www.nsga.org.