Eleven Sports appoints former Fifa digital chief Vicente as CEO

International sports broadcaster Eleven Sports has today (Thursday) appointed a new chief executive, naming Luis Vicente, who recently left his role as chief digital transformation and innovation officer at world football’s governing body Fifa, to the role.

Vicente will begin in his new position on January 15, taking over as chief executive from Marc Watson. Vicente will also become a board member and chief digital officer of Eleven’s parent company, investment group Aser Ventures.

Watson will continue in his role as Eleven’s executive chairman and board director of Aser Ventures.

Watson said: “Luis has a passion for innovation and new technologies and a history of helping to grow some of the biggest brands in sport. He is the perfect person to take Eleven to the next level.”

Vicente counts English Premier League football club Manchester City and Spanish LaLiga outfit Valencia among his previous employers. He began his career in talent management, representing Portugal’s Luis Figo and Brazil’s Ronaldo, among other leading athletes.

He recently left Fifa amid a restructure of operations undertaken by Simon Thomas, the international federation’s new chief commercial officer. As part of that restructure, the commercial and digital departments were combined. Vicente was appointed to the newly-created role of chief digital transformation and innovation officer at Fifa just over a year ago.

He said: “My mission will be to help Eleven continue to grow, to further democratise our offering and give fans everywhere the opportunity to enjoy the best sporting moments with Eleven.”