Tag Archives: sports business

American Association Announces Three Year Contract Extension for Commissioner Joshua Schaub

The American Association of Professional Baseball today announced a three-year extension of the contract of Commissioner Joshua Schaub, whose contract was set to expire after this season after being appointed on March 1, 2019.

“The growth we have experienced across the board as a league is unprecedented, and we are proud to be able to continue to expand our success under Josh’s leadership for years to come,” said Sam Katz, Board member and owner of the Winnipeg Goldeneyes.
“It has been an honor to help lead such a talented and professional group, from our league staff to our ownership groups and our business and broadcast partners, as well as our managers, coaches and athletes,” Schaub said. “While we have made great strides across the board, our biggest opportunities still lie ahead and I am looking forward to seeing how far we can grow, especially with the buy-in of our fans.”

Under Schaub’s leadership, the American Association has continued to excel on all levels of measured success as the leading MLB partner league. The league’s broadcast footprint now exceeds 70 million homes, its social footprint has seen over 1000% growth across every major category in the last three seasons, and new sponsorship revenue is up 20% in just the past season and 100% in the least three seasons.

Schaub is the chief executive for the American Association and oversees the American Association’s operations, media, expansion, revenue initiatives, technology enhancements and emergence, public relations, and relationships in professional baseball. He succeeded league founder Miles Wolff, who retired at the end of 2018 after 13 seasons as Commissioner. His baseball background is extensive. He is the former CEO and co-owner of the Joliet Slammers baseball club of the Frontier League, a board member of the Frontier League, the former Commissioner of the Major Arena Soccer League, and has previously worked in the Milwaukee Brewers scouting department as an intern and associate scout. Schaub also previously clerked for the Northern League. He further serves as an adjunct professor of Sports Law at the University of Wisconsin. Additionally, Schaub has served as a consultant and legal counsel to numerous professional baseball teams for both business, legal, and baseball matters.

Jeffrey Pollack Named First Executive-in-Residence at Rutgers University Global Sports Business Master’s Program

Jeffrey Pollack, a sports business executive with more than 25 years of leadership experience driving catalytic change, growth, and innovation, has been appointed the first Executive-in-Residence in the Global Sports Business master’s program at Rutgers University.

Pollack will serve as a guest instructor and coach and guide students as they begin to navigate their career paths in the sports industry.

“We are thrilled to have Jeffrey as part of our GSB family,” said the program’s executive director Mike Finkelstein. “His career in sports has been extraordinary and we know Jeffrey will provide our students with a unique, seasoned perspective as they begin their professional journey.”

“It is an honor to support the Rutgers Global Sports Business program,” said Pollack. “I look forward to working closely with the students, Mike Finkelstein, Art Burke, and the rest of the faculty. The Rutgers approach to sports business education is progressive and entrepreneurial, and I appreciate the opportunity to share my stories and experiences.”

Jeffrey most recently served as President and CEO of the XFL. He joined the XFL in 2019 as President and COO to lead all strategic planning and business operations, reporting directly to Chairman and Founder Vince McMahon. Under Pollack’s leadership, the XFL launched in 2020 to critical acclaim and proved that spring football in the United States can work.

Among other projects, Jeffrey is currently advising Basketball Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady on his launch of the Ones Basketball League (OBL), a new global one-on-one-basketball tournament that has just tipped off its first season.

Lauded for helping businesses and brands rethink, recalibrate, and evolve, Pollack — immediately prior to his leadership role at the XFL — was Special Advisor and Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer for the NFL Los Angeles Chargers. He has also served as Executive Chairman of the Professional Bull Riders, President and Commissioner of the World Series of Poker, Managing Director of Broadcasting and New Media for NASCAR, and Strategic Communications Consultant and Vice President of Marketing and Corporate Communications at the NBA.

Pollack is the founder of The Sports Business Daily, the original trade publication for the sports industry. Through his vision and direction as President and Publisher, “The Daily,” launched in 1994, immediately became the industry standard and must-read for sports executives, and gave rise to a proliferation of sports business news and information services around the world.

Trained as a leadership and organizational performance coach at the Rutgers University LCOP Program, Pollack also serves confidentially and selectively as a coach to other executives in the sports, entertainment, and media industries.

Pollack has a bachelor’s degree from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University, a master’s degree from The Graduate School of Political Management, and a master’s degree in sports management from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. He also completed Harvard Business School’s Advanced Management Program.

The Global Sports Business Master’s Degree Program at Rutgers, recently ranked No. 18 in the country and 32nd in the world among sports management graduate programs, is designed to train leaders for careers in all sectors of the sports industry. It is a broad-based, inherently global, industry-specific program of study that reflects Rutgers’ traditional strengths in finance, marketing, management, and law, as well as its location in the New York/Philadelphia/Washington northeast corridor, the center of the sports industry.