Rugby Australia has appointed Andy Marinos as its new chief executive.
Marinos joins Rugby Australia having spent five years as chief executive of SANZAAR, the administrative body for rugby union in the southern hemisphere. He previously worked as chief executive of the Newport Gwent Dragons and sat on the board of the Welsh Rugby Union.
Marinos has also spent time with the South African Rugby Union, where his roles included general manager for commercial and marketing. He will join Rugby Australia in February, with a four-week handover scheduled with current interim chief executive Rob Clarke.
Hamish McLennan, chairman of Rugby Australia, said: “Andy is an extremely impressive and experienced rugby administrator who covered every key criterion that the board wanted to see in our new chief executive officer. He’s called Australia home for the last five years and he has an outstanding understanding of the rugby landscape in this country.
“He has a wealth of experience in managing broadcasters and commercial partners and also boasts impeccable relationships with the Six Nations Unions which, together with his SANZAAR connections, strengthens Rugby Australia’s Bid to host the 2027 Rugby World Cup.”
Danita Johnson (pictured) has been named president of business operations at Major League Soccer franchise D.C. United.
Johnson becomes the first black president of an MLS club and is believed to be only the third woman in league history to serve in the role.
Johnson joins the club from Women’s National Basketball Association franchise the Los Angeles Sparks, where she spent the last two years serving as president and chief operating officer. She previously developed and led the ticket sales and service department for the Washington Mystics while with Monumental Sports & Entertainment.
Johnson also has NBA experience with the Los Angeles Clippers and helped launch NBA G League team Bakersfield Jam in 2006 and WNBA outfit Tulsa Shock, which relocated from Detroit in 2010.
Scottish Premiership football club Hibernian has appointed David Davies as a non-executive director.
Davies has more than 30 years of senior executive experience in international entertainment and sport, with spells as chief executive of Queens Park Rangers and Edinburgh Rugby. More recently, he has worked for Live Nation as European vice-president for property and facilities.
Hibernian has also named Kathrin Hamilton, Gillian Hutchinson and Jemma Goba as non-executive directors.
Eduard Scott is stepping down from his position as chief operations officer of Euroleague Basketball.
Scott has worked at Euroleague Basketball since November 2006. The reason for his departure was not disclosed.
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 in our next round-up.
Image: D.C. United
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