Search for the Chief Executive Officer of Champions Blue, LLC and UK Athletics Director

LEXINGTON, Ky. – The University of Kentucky is seeking a dynamic and visionary leader to “strategically elevate and modernize the role of athletics” as the Chief Executive Officer of Champions Blue, LLC and Athletics Director.

The two titles are intentional components of a job description unveiled today as UK President Eli Capilouto begins discussions with potential candidates over the next few weeks. The full job description can be read here: go.uky.edu/AthleticsLeadership.

“College athletics is always changing, but that change now is occurring more rapidly and with greater financial impacts than ever before,” Capilouto said. “The leadership role must change and adapt as well. Putting the success of our students first remains a priority. Winning championships remains critically important — but, so too, is the financial and commercial acumen to generate more revenue,  manage expenses more tightly and align even more with our institutional mission to advance the state.”

Over the last several weeks, following Mitch Barnhart’s announcement that he would step down as Athletics Director on June 30, Capilouto has interviewed more than 80 people about college athletics and this crucial leadership role. Those interviewed included coaches and senior staff at UK as well as donors, supporters and leaders in the business of sports across the country.

Capilouto said UK’s next leader has big shoes to fill in replacing Barnhart. At the same time, the ability to adapt in what continues to be an era of rapid and dramatic changes is increasingly important. The two titles – CEO of Champions Blue and Athletics Director – reflect the evolution in the leadership role. Capilouto said chief attributes in the next leader will include:

• A commitment to student success, integrity, compliance and the pursuit of championships
• Financial and commercial acumen to administer larger budgets, generate more revenue and manage expenses
• A capacity to analyze costs and consequences of alternative revenue strategies
• Demonstrated skills in leading the development of a successful approach to athlete compensation, revenue sharing and NIL opportunities, working closely with the institution’s multi-media rights partner, JMI Sports.
• An ability to effectively communicate in a complex media environment as well as with other critical constituencies, such as donors, fans, the UK Board of Trustees and Champions Blue Board of Governors.
• A willingness to work collaboratively with a team of leaders, utilizing shared services across the UK enterprise to achieve unit and strategic goals

Champions Blue LLC was formed last year as a first-of-its-kind new business model to help manage the change occurring in athletics and ensure continued championship-level and financial success.

The seven-member Champions Blue Board of Governors – UK leaders and subject matter experts in sports outside the university – provides strategic guidance and counsel as UK Athletics must consider how to generate more revenue in an era where players can be compensated and expenses continue to increase for scholarships and other costs.

The CEO and Athletics Director will report directly to the UK President and work closely with other units – such as Student Success, Information and Technology Services, Marketing and Strategic Communication and Philanthropy – to achieve unit and institutional goals.

Capilouto said he is looking toward both sitting college Athletics Directors and people with varied backgrounds in pro sports and business as potential next leaders. Capilouto’s goal remains to name someone for the new leadership position by June 30.

“UK Athletics has long played a critical role in defining for so many people what the University of Kentucky is for the Commonwealth of Kentucky,” Capilouto said. “For that to be true long into the future, we must have a leader who can cast a vision and also execute on it – a vision for how we continue to win championships, develop and educate young people and also successfully run what is increasingly a significant business. That leader is out there, ready to join one of the nation’s premier athletics programs and universities. We are excited about the prospect of the right leader, at a point of inflection and change, joining an institution with undeniable momentum in meeting our mission of advancing this state in all that we do.”