Swansea City Chris Pearlman

Swansea City is pleased to confirm the appointment of Chris Pearlman as the club's first Chief Operating Officer (COO).
Chris, who hails from New York, is highly regarded within the sports industry and will oversee the day-to-day commercial operations of the club, including stadium and corporate sponsorships, marketing, merchandise, ticketing, media and public relations.
He will report direct to chairman Huw Jenkins and the Board of Directors, while also working closely with vice chairman Leigh Dineen.
"I'm pleased and excited to be given the opportunity to help grow the Swansea City brand on a global basis,'' declared Chris.
"The club has a rich history and a fantastic story to tell. It will be my job to help tap into that from a commercial perspective, including the utilisation of new revenue streams and markets.
"The Premier League is a massive draw around the world and it is important we capitalise on that popularity to grow and become more effective as a business to compete with the best on the field.
"I'm really looking forward to meeting everyone involved with Swansea City Football Club, from the staff to its passionate fans.
"Additionally, I recognise the important role the Supporters Trust has to play and I believe being here on a daily basis will allow for more frequent and improved communications with them.''
Chris, who is currently in Swansea holding preliminary meetings before returning to America to assist his family relocate to Wales, will take up the post on the back of an impressive reputation Stateside as a leader within a competitive sports industry.
The father of two has spent the last decade at Van Wagner Sports and Entertainment as Partner and Executive Vice President, where he oversaw their Media and Properties division as well as the company's global sales efforts.
This included spearheading relationships with Soccer United Marketing (SUM), the National Football League (NFL), the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), the United States Ski and Snowboard Association (USSA), US Figure Skating, USA Gymnastics, College Sports Television (CSTV), CineSport, the Heisman Trophy Trust and a number of network television events, broadcasts and specials.
Chris got his start in the sports marketing and media business at ProServ, one of the world's first sports marketing companies.  After ProServ, he joined ESPN and was there during its merger with ABC Sports and the formation of the ESPN ABC Sports Customer Sales and Marketing division.  From there he moved to the ESPN Internet Group in 1999 before joining Premiere Sports & Entertainment (PSE) in 2001, a boutique sports marketing company which Van Wagner acquired in 2005.