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Industry appointments round-up: Brentford FC, New York Yankees and more

This week’s round-up includes Brentford Football Club’s announcement of Jon Varney as its new chief executive.

Varney (pictured), a former partner at sports marketing agency Pitch International Commercial, will take up the role on March 1. Varney is a lifelong Brentford fan and previously worked for the Rugby Football Union. He will replace Mark Devlin as the club’s chief executive and joins Brentford as the club prepares to move into a new 17,250-seat stadium in 2020.

Singapore Sports Hub has begun a global search for a new chief executive following the resignation of current incumbent Oon Jin Teik amid further managerial departures. Oon becomes the third chief executive to depart the consortium since the project initially opened in June 2014. For more details, read our story from earlier this week.

Major League Baseball team the New York Yankees has hired Allen Hershkowitz to the newly-created role of environmental science advisor. The team said the appointment is the first of its kind in professional sports.

The Yankees said the appointment represents a defining moment in its commitment to sustainability. Hershkowitz will help the Yankees further advance their sustainability efforts, as well as guide a number of new and existing environmental initiatives for the team and at Yankee Stadium. Primary areas of focus will include energy use, waste management, water conservation and food services.

Live event technology company Patron Technology has announced Michael Marty as its new president of engagement. Celeste Griffin-Churchill has also been named as vice-president of corporate development, while Jeff Kreinik has joined as vice-president of sales and client relations – engagement. Additionally, Rachel Bullock has been named as the general manager of ShowClix, a Patron Technology product.

NHL ice hockey team the Florida Panthers has named Jarret Seldin as director of hospitality of the franchise and its home arena, BB&T Center. James Versfelt has also been named as the executive chef of the two properties. Seldin previously served as a director of concessions for the BB&T Center and the Panthers, while Versfelt has been showcased at venues such as American Airlines Arena and Marlins Park.

Graham Dowling has started a new role as business development manager at ticketing software and services provider Red61. He previously served as business development manager at QlickiT, a leading provider of data visualisation and business intelligence solutions.

Steven Hall has been promoted to director of sponsorship and partnerships at Yas Marina Circuit, home of Formula One’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Hall has worked at Yas Marina Circuit since October 2014, firstly as sponsorship manager, then as head of sponsorship and partnerships. He previously worked as commercial and marketing manager for Worldsport Arabia.

Do you have news of an appointment that we should know about? Get in touch by emailing news.editor@thestadiumbusiness.com and we’ll include it on our next round-up.   

Image: Brentford FC