Saudi Arabian soccer giants Al-Hilal have appointed Esteve Calzada as their new chief executive. 

Calzada will take up his new position at the Saudi Pro League club at the start of 2024, arriving from City Football Group (CFG), the owner of Premier League champions Manchester City, where he served as chief commercial officer.

Calzada, whose career also included a spell as Barcelona’s chief marketing and commercial officer, will take over from Abdullah Al-Jarboua.

Al-Hilal, who are currently top of the Saudi Pro League, are one of the four clubs now owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF). 

‘Under the leadership of Mr Fahad Bin Saad Bin Nafel, the board of directors at Al-Hilal Club have made the decision to appoint the Spaniard Esteve Calzada to be their new CEO starting from January 2024, taking over from Mr Abdullah Al-Jarboua,’ read a statement from Al-Hilal. 

‘With a range of senior positions of experience at top European clubs – such as Manchester City and FC Barcelona – and recognised as one of the most renowned sports marketers, Mr Calzada has been welcomed to the role by the board and the team looks forward to working together for the benefit of Al-Hilal, their goals and successes.’

Elsewhere, WTA Ventures, the new commercial arm of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA), has named Sarah Swanson as chief brand officer, Marijn De Wit as chief financial officer, and Aditya Shenoy as head of strategy development.

M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment‘s global chief executive Steve Martin and UK chief executive Jamie Wynne-Morgan have both resigned. As a result , the agency has created a new division in M&C Saatchi Sport and Entertainment Europe, led by Europe and Italy chief executive Carlo Noseda. Noseda will be supported by M&C Saatchi UK chair Richard Thompson, who will also serve as non-executive chair of the new division.

Charles Ross is stepping down as director of finance and asset management for the NFL Players’ Association (NFLPA),while NFL Players Inc president Steve Scebelo is expected to leave by 1st March.

Former NBCUniversal chief executive Jeff Shell is in advanced talks to join private equity firm RedBird Capital Partners, leading its sports and entertainment investment business, according to The Wall Street Journal. 

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Appointments

Boris van der Vorst
President, World Boxing
Note: Van der Vorst was elected ahead of USA Boxing’s Elise Seignolle and will serve an initial two-year term at the breakaway body. 

M Scott Havens
President of business operations, New York Mets
Previously: Chief executive, Bloomberg Media

Stephanie Carlin
F1 business operations director, McLaren Racing
Previously: Team principal of F3 and F1 Academy teams, Rodin Carlin, and team principal of Team X44

Matt Graham
Senior vice president, direct to consumer, Tennis Channel
Previously: General manager, executive vice president, Acorn TV and Sundance Now

Terry Gilbride
Senior vice president and chief legal officer, Buffalo Bills
Note: Gilbride replaces former Bills general counsel Kathryn D’Angelo

Ruth Daniels
Chief executive, British Triathlon
Previously: General counsel and company secretary, head of corporate affairs, Superdry
Note: Daniels will officially join on 29th January 2024, with current British Triathlon chief executive Andy Salmon moving to Swim England the following month.

Nomsa Chabeli
Group chief executive, South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC)
Previously: General manager, brand and marketing, MTN

Andrew George
Senior vice president, live event experience and operations, TMRW Sports
Previously: Tournament director, The Honda Classic

Oliver Botti
Head of media sales EMEA, Deltatre
Previously: Senior vice president, sales and innovation executive director, GlobalMedia

Karen Matijak
Senior vice president, business operations and transformation, IMG
Previously: Principle managing partner, K2solutions

Ryokusai Inoue
General manager, Puma Japan
Previously: Country manager, Tesla Motors Japan

Paul Smyth
General manager, Wembley Stadium
Previously: Head of event operations, Wembley Stadium

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Departures

Victor Williams
Chief executive, National Basketball Association (NBA) Africa
Note: Williams is stepping down by the end of 2023 to pursue other business interests

Nicole Livingstone
General manager, women’s football, Australian Football League (AFL)

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