YTL Arena, the new 17,000-seat venue being built in the English city of Bristol, has hired Une Marija Jurkstaite as head of experience and Matt Blackhouse as senior events project manager.
Jurkstaite (pictured left) joins YTL Arena from Lithuania’s Žalgiris Arena, where she served as chief business officer. In her new role, she will help grow YTL Arena’s fan database and ensure each event at the venue sells to its targeted full capacity.
Blackhouse (pictured right) has 16-plus years of experience in the live events industry and previously served as senior events manager at Cardiff’s Motorpoint Arena. At YTL Arena, Blackhouse will seek to ensure the best back-of-house facilities for all touring artists, promoters and event organisers.
YTL Arena has also been working with consultants Richard Latham and Ian Tussie. Latham joins the team as senior security consultant, while Tussie will be working with the arena’s partnerships team to develop and support the delivery of its commercial partnership programme.
Venue and event management company ASM Global has announced that Dan Harris will be joining Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai as commercial director.
Harris (pictured right) has more than 20 years of experience in the live events and entertainment industries, and has worked across a number of UK venues within ASM Global’s portfolio.
Most recently, Harris served as the general manager for ASM Global in the UK at Bonus Arena in Hull, as well as The Baths Hall and The Plowright Theatre in Scunthorpe.
His appointment comes following the promotion of Mark Jan Car, who assumed the new role of general manager of the Coca-Cola Arena in June last year.
FC Barcelona chief executive Ferran Reverter has announced his resignation from the position due to personal and family reasons.
Reverter informed Barcelona president Joan Laporta of his decision, with his resignation due to come into effect as soon as the club has appointed a new chief executive. According to reports, his decision was linked to Barcelona’s imminent sponsorship deal with Spotify.
Reverter joined the club as chief executive on July 1, 2021 and played a role in Barcelona’s restructuring 2021-2026 Strategic Plan.
Elsewhere, Racecourse Media Group (RMG) has revealed its chairman, Roger Lewis, is to step down at the end of 2022.
Lewis joined the RMG Board in 2012 and was appointed non-executive chairman in January 2021.
He boasts a 40-year career in sport, media and business and has held senior positions at the BBC, ITV, Classic FM, EMI and Decca, and was the group chief executive of the Welsh Rugby Union for nine years.
A search for a new RMG chairman is underway.
Ascot Racecourse has brought in Lisa Perrin as non-executive director of Ascot Authority (Holdings) Ltd.
Perrin’s tenure as non-executive director will begin after Royal Ascot in June this year, where Guy Davison, who is currently in the role, will step down.
She was appointed managing director of international production for ITV Studios in 2020, and holds responsibility for ITV Studio’s production labels across France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Australia, the nordics and Israel.
Perrin has also previously held senior leadership roles at production company Endemol Shine Group – most importantly as chief executive.
Lancashire Cricket has co-opted Navin Singh as a non-executive board member at Emirates Old Trafford.
Singh is the commercial director for the English Football Association (FA) and will be put forward to members for election at the forthcoming annual general meeting (AGM) in April.
He has previously held roles as the United States Golf Association’s chief commercial officer and joined England’s football governing body in 2021.
New company LIV Golf Investments, which is aiming to drive the expansion of the Asian Tour, has added Emily Hamel as senior vice-president, global events experiences and Jeremy Krug as senior vice-president, experience design.
Hamel has joined LIV after 13 years with Major League Baseball’s New York Yankees, where she was most recently the vice-president of events and experiences.
Krug has been added to the team after 18 years with sports architectural design firm, Populous.
Scottish Championship club Dunfermline Athletic has brought in a new chief executive in David Cook.
Cook left English Championship side Nottingham Forest to take up the position at the club, which he said he has supported since he was a child as he grew up in Dunfermline.
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