KSE appoints new president

Kevin Demoff has been named president of team and media operations for  Kroenke Sports & Entertainment. Demoff will now oversee the operations of the NBA’s Denver Nuggets, NHL’s Colorado Avalanche, and National Lacrosse League’s Colorado Mammoths in addition to retaining his role with the Rams and overseeing the operations of KSE’s media holdings.

RIPTIDE PARTNER WITH SANDS CORPORATION

The New York Riptide announced today that Sands New York (Las Vegas Sands) will become the team’s presenting partner for the remainder of the 2023-24 NLL season, plus the 2024-25 NLL season. The multi-year agreement comes into effect today.

The Riptide turf will be updated to feature the Sands New York logo, and a brand-new Sands New York VIP section can be found at each Riptide home game moving forward. Sands New York insignia will be featured on the backs of Riptide jerseys, both home-and-away, and Sands New York decals will be featured on each player’s helmet.

Full release can be found HERE

Seals CEO Paul Speaker

Full article can be found HERE

 

Paul Speaker, former co-founder and CEO of the World Surf League, was brought out of retirement and hired one year ago by Seals owner Joseph Tsai to raise the bar on lacrosse in San Diego. Tsai, co-founder of the Alibaba Group and owner of the Brooklyn Nets, in 2017 paid $5 million to bring the Seals as an expansion franchise to San Diego.

Speaker said he hopes the team will draw 8,000 to 9,000 fans to their home games at Pechanga Arena (better known as the San Diego Sports Arena), which has a capacity near 13,000.

Speaker said a study over the past 10 months gave the team a deep dive and better analysis of its fans and potential fan base. Red Door Interactive’s findings showed that the Seals had a very “low awareness” inside the San Diego market. The team is working to fix that, marketing itself through social media, a real-time dashboard and other means.

He said the research showed that of San Diego’s more than 3 million residents, more than 1 million are involved in some way with the military. To that end, the Seals will have two military appreciation nights with discounted tickets and tailgate parties for military members and their families.

Speaker said with the big military presence and the high cost of living in San Diego, it was important to the team to keep the prices affordable over its nine-game home season, and that tickets start at $19.

Speaker said lacrosse, with the physicality of indoor soccer and hockey with a touch of American football, was the fastest-growing sport before the recent surge of pickleball. He said the competition for consumer attention is fierce and acknowledges that “San Diego is a different market than most.”

Although the region doesn’t have as many professional sports teams as other markets in size, Speaker said the competition for fans’ time is from “the weather and outside dining in the evenings and going for a walk, he said, followed by waking up early to surf (or cycle or run).”

The Seals are looking to draw in sports fans to lacrosse by making games at Pechanga Arena “an unbelievably fun, engaging experience with your family and your neighbors,” he said. “There’s music playing the whole time and it’s a ‘bang-on-the-glass, drink a beer and have fun in this unbelievable arena’ experience. It’s really about sharing time with your buddies, your friends, your family in a place where you can do that without breaking the bank.”

 

Nick Sakiewicz finds new job

From NLL commissioner to  Business Officer of the Arizona Coyotes to the CEO of Hartford Athletic

And like us you probably never heard of the Hartford Athletic.

Hartford Athletic is Connecticut’s professional soccer team competing in the USL Championship (United Soccer League).

 

 

Refreshed logo and possible expansion

So the logo on the right is the new NLL French logo.

So with the NLL debuting a French logo.

Does that mean a team via expansion or relocation is coming to Montreal or Quebec City?

 

And here is the old Montreal Express logo.

 

 

NLL Refreshes Brand Logos and Introduces Its New NLL Authentics© Initiative

Full text release can be found HERE

Does NLL Authentics mean the end of the relationship with fanatics?

PHILADELPHIA – The National Lacrosse League (@NLL), the largest and most successful professional lacrosse property in the world, today unveiled a refreshed brand identity system detailing how the NLL league and team brand architecture operates, communicates, and interacts with various audiences.

The League’s updated branding includes a refined primary logo, stylized wordmark, and for the first time, a French language “Ligue Nationale de Lacrosse” family of marks.

“The refreshed NLL visual identity aligns with the League’s new strategic vision and centers our brand storytelling around authentic themes that tell our story perfectly,” said Kurt Hunzeker, the NLL’s Executive Vice President of Commercial Operations. “The updated brand look and feel not only captures our unique brand of box lacrosse but creates exciting opportunities for the League to break through and position the NLL as a major sports league in North America today.”

The updated logos and brand positioning framework coincide with the launch of the League’s new licensing initiative, NLL Authentics©.
“Centralizing our league and team branding under the NLL Authentics umbrella allows us to streamline merchandising potential, as well as helping our official partners connect with our fans and communities more efficiently,” Hunzeker said.

The NLL’s expanded portfolio of official licensees and new assortment of retail merchandise will launch in advance of the 2023-24 NLL season this December.

Mark Fine leaving the Las Vegas Desert Dogs

Las Vegas CEO Mark Fine is leaving for a new challenge.

Mark Fine will be taking on the role of CMO for the PBR.  Professional Bull Riding.

Paul Speaker has assumed the role of CEO of the Las Vegas Desert Dogs NLL fanchise.

NLL announces four new hires

Jenni Brozena – Director of Business Development

Ed Derse – Senior Vice President, Technology and Broadcast Operations

Scott Turken – Director and Executive Producer, Digital Content

Scott Zolotorow, – Coordinating Producer, Broadcast Production

NLL names Kurt Hunzeker Executive VP of Commercial Operations

Newly Created Position will Oversee NLL’s Revenue and Marketing Initiatives Including Implementation and Execution of all Global Sales and Marketing Programs

You can find the full release HERE

Hunzeker joins the NLL after overseeing all business-driving and revenue-generating functions of MLB’s restructured player development system and its 120 MiLB teams since 2021, including: national commercial sales and partnership activation, marketing and communications, content strategy and creation, media production and multimedia platforms, community relations and fan engagement, ticketing strategy, licensed consumer products, and ecommerce. He also authored the initial five-year business strategy and activation plan for MiLB’s new centralized business fully integrated within MLB, and generated the most commercial revenue in MiLB’s 122-year history in 2022.

Daniel J. Hilferty Joins Comcast Spectacor as Chief Executive Officer, Dave Scott to Continue as Chairman

Comcast Spectacor today announced Daniel J. Hilferty has joined the company as its Chief Executive Officer, effective today. He will partner with Dave Scott, Chairman of the company and Governor of the National Hockey League’s Philadelphia Flyers, and Valerie Camillo, who was recently named President & CEO of Spectacor Sports & Entertainment this past summer, on managing its portfolio and driving its growth.

 

You can find the full article HERE