Vice President, Naming Rights

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California (MO)

On-site

USD 180,000 - 260,000

Full time

7 days ago

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Job summary

Learfield is seeking an accomplished senior sales leader to drive naming rights and entitlement partnerships across its collegiate athletics portfolio. You will prospect, negotiate, and close multi-million-dollar deals with Fortune 500 brands, agencies, and senior marketing executives, while coordinating cross-functional teams.

This role requires extensive relationship-building, strategic sales oversight, and travel to campus sites and industry events to position opportunities and grow the

Qualifications

15+ years of sales, sponsorship, business development, or partnership experience.
Proven track record selling naming rights and large sponsorships.
Experience securing multi-million-dollar partnerships and complex deals.
Experience building relationships with Fortune 500 brands and C-suite buyers.
Strong business development and consultative sales capabilities.
Excellent presentation, negotiation, and relationship management skills.

Responsibilities

Lead high-value sales processes from prospecting through negotiation and contract execution.
Secure long-term naming rights agreements and integrated sponsorship platforms.
Collaborate with university stakeholders and senior marketing executives.
Develop and maintain a pipeline of naming rights opportunities.
Travel to university campuses and industry events to present opportunities.

Skills

Sales Experience

Naming Rights Sales

Relationship Management

Consultative Selling

Presentation & Negotiation

Job description

Lead Learfield's naming rights business development efforts across its portfolio of collegiate athletic properties
Identify and cultivate naming rights opportunities for stadiums, arenas, and other premium university assets
Partner with Athletic Directors, university presidents, athletic department leadership, Commercial Partnerships VPs, and senior university stakeholders
Develop and maintain a pipeline of naming rights and entitlement partnership opportunities
Prospect Fortune 500 brands, agencies, and senior marketing executives
Lead high-value sales processes from prospect identification through negotiation and contract execution
Secure long-term naming rights agreements and integrated sponsorship platforms
Collaborate with Commercial Partnerships, local sales, and national sales teams to develop customized partnership solutions
Serve as the naming rights subject matter expert throughout the sales cycle
Coordinate internal resources to position, market, and sell opportunities
Build relationships with university decision-makers and guide them through evaluating and commercializing naming rights assets
Present recommendations and opportunities to institutional stakeholders
Maintain knowledge of naming rights trends, industry benchmarks, and emerging opportunities
Represent Learfield at industry events, conferences, and executive meetings
Travel extensively for university campus visits, client meetings, conferences, and partner presentations

Requirements

15+ years of sales, sponsorship, business development, or partnership experience
Proven track record selling naming rights, entitlement partnerships, and other large-scale sponsorship agreements
Demonstrated success securing multi-million-dollar partnerships and complex platform-based deals
Extensive experience building relationships with Fortune 500 brands, agencies, and C-suite decision-makers
Strong business development and consultative sales skills
Exceptional presentation, negotiation, and relationship management abilities
Experience working across multiple stakeholders and managing long sales cycles
Experience in collegiate athletics, professional sports, sports marketing, media, or entertainment (preferred)
Existing network of senior marketing executives, sponsorship buyers, and agency leaders (preferred)
Understanding of collegiate athletics and the evolving landscape of college sports (preferred)
Ability to travel approximately 40–50% of the time

Core Competencies

Demonstrates extensive experience in sales and business development, particularly in securing naming rights and large-scale sponsorship agreements. Proven ability to build relationships with senior marketing executives and navigate complex sales processes in the collegiate athletics and sports marketing sectors.

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