UK-based sports marketing agency Pitch International has unveiled a reshuffle of its media and advisory leadership team, including the promotion of Guy Le Grew to the newly-created position of chief revenue officer.
Le Grew switches from his current role of managing director of cricket and golf and will lead the media and advisory team across all sports.
Among other changes announced today (Friday), Henri Kamerling, who has been with the agency for close to 16 years, moves from his position of managing director, sales to managing director of football, rugby and global partnerships.
Sunil Kaikini, who joined Pitch International from the Premier League early last year in the new role of managing director of football, has become managing director of rights. He will assume responsibility for the media-rights sales team and also continue to identify key business development opportunities.
Austin Houlihan, who joined the agency’s senior management team in November last year as director of strategy and business development, has been named chief strategy officer. Houlihan is to work closely with Le Grew, Kaikini and the rest of the team to “augment Pitch’s media rights strategy and company-wide business development initiatives”.
Elsewhere, Kieran Donnelly, who joined from New Zealand legal firm Minter Ellison Rudd Watts in 2012, takes on Le Grew’s role as managing director of cricket and golf. The appointment, Pitch said, comes after Donnelly has delivered strong commercial results for many of its key clients in this area in the past eight years.
Clients that Pitch has worked with in cricket include New Zealand Cricket, the England and Wales Cricket Board, Cricket West Indies, Cricket Australia, Cricket Ireland, Cricket Scotland and Dutch Cricket. An agreement is also in place with the United States Golf Association.
Finally, Cat Watson has been named as director of women’s sport in a role that will encompass the areas of media, advisory, sponsorship and athlete representation. Watson, a sports lawyer, joined Pitch in August 2017.
Pitch said that the new structure has been put in place to bring an “innovative approach to the services it delivers to new and existing clients”.
Le Grew arrived at Pitch in June 2013, having previously worked in Singapore as senior director of syndication at pan-regional broadcaster ESPN Star Sports. He was also previously senior legal adviser at UK pay-television broadcaster Sky Sports.
Commenting on the new structure, Le Grew said: “I am looking forward to working closely with our media and advisory teams to further strengthen Pitch’s already significant presence in football, rugby and cricket, develop growing areas like golf and push hard into new sports and advisory services.
“Now more than ever it is imperative that we are constantly analysing how we can add value for our clients at every step of the value-chain. This new structure will ensure that Pitch continues to provide our clients with best-in-class service and that we drive a cohesive group-wide growth strategy.
“It’s an exciting time for Pitch – we have an amazing team of people, a fantastic group of clients and a real opportunity to consolidate and grow our market share.”