Bayern Munich name Jan-Christian Dreesen to succeed Oliver Kahn as CEO, plus more – SportsPro

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German soccer giants Bayern Munich have named Jan-Christian Dreesen as their new chief executive, following the decision to part ways with Oliver Kahn.

This season’s Bundesliga champions chose to fire Kahn after the club produced sub-standard performances during the 2022/23 season, with a final day win over Köln narrowly securing an 11th league title. As well as Kahn, sporting director Hasan Salihamidžić was also dismissed by Bayern, with the sackings announced shortly after the club sealed the German top-flight crown.

“The decision to part with Oliver Kahn was anything but easy for the supervisory board,” said Bayern president Herbert Hainer.

“Nevertheless, due to the overall development, we have come to the decision to make a new appointment at the top of the executive board. We would like to thank Oliver Kahn for his commitment, his ideas and for everything we have achieved together. He will always remain a great figure at FC Bayern. We wish him all the best for his future.”

Dreesen, who has served as the club’s chief financial officer and vice chairman of the supervisory board since 2014, has now been made Kahn’s replacement. The 55-year-old had initially opted to step down from his roles, but he will now be tasked with sparking huge improvements.

“First of all, I would like to thank our supervisory board for the trust they have placed in me,” Dreesen said. “Actually, I had planned something else in my life – but when FC Bayern calls, you leave everything else behind.

“This club has always been a matter of the heart for me and I also know what positive power it can develop. I will continue to use all my energy to be successful with FC Bayern in all areas and I am looking forward to the new task. Those who know me know how much the club, its employees and our fans mean to me.”

In other news, sports media company DAZN has hired Rachelle Peterson as its new senior vice president of commercial distribution. Peterson previously served as the senior director, head of global commercial distribution at CNN. She will now help manage the company’s B2B operations.

DAZN’s Spanish branch has also appointed David Hatchwell as a strategic advisor. The entrepreneur will work closely with DAZN management to help find expansion and new business opportunities in Spain.


Appointments

Jacopo Volpi
Sports director, Rai

Rachel Knight
Co-managing director, Women’s Sports Group (WSG)
Previously: Commercial director, BT Sport

TJ Adeshola
Operating partner, Arctos Partners
Previously: Head of global content partnerships, Twitter

Tom Negri
Head of Octagon Rugby, Octagon

Felipe Lazaro
Head of media, FC Diez Media
Previously: Media sales director, Infront Sports Media

Roland Nikolaou
Vice president, head of soccer for MENA, IMG Media
Previously: Chief business development officer, Euronews

Brendan Napier
Commercial director, Scottish Football Marketing
Previously: Sales and operations director for Scotland, Molson Coors

Achim Morlok
Senior director of business development for DACH region, Fanatics
Previously: Director of winter sports and premium rights, Infront Germany

Mike Nealy
Chief executive, USA Pickleball
Previously: Executive director, Arizona Sports Foundation

Chris Rawlings
Business development lead for UK and Ireland, Secutix
Previously: Chief commercial officer, Scottish Football Association (SFA)

Michael Cross
Commissioner, Southern Conference
Previously: Managing director for communication and policy, Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics

Departures

Edwin van der Sar
Chief executive, Ajax

Chris Klein
President, Los Angeles Galaxy

Janet Duch
Chief marketing officer, XFL

Anthony Zucconi
Vice president of marketing and brand, XFL

Julia Wall-Clarke
Head of impact and communications, Extreme E

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