Account Director, Sports - Brand Consulting

Job Description

Who We Are

Creative Artists Agency (CAA) is the leading entertainment and sports agency, with global expertise in filmed and live entertainment, digital media, publishing, sponsorship sales and endorsements, licensing, media finance, consumer investing, fashion, trademark licensing, and philanthropy. Distinguished by its culture of collaboration and exceptional client service, CAA’s diverse workforce identifies, innovates, and amplifies opportunities for the people and organizations that shape culture and inspire the world. The trailblazer of the agency business, CAA was the first to build a sports business, create an investment bank, launch a venture fund, found technology start-up companies, establish a philanthropic arm, build a business in China, and form a brand marketing services division, among other innovations.

The Role

The CAA Brand Consulting Account Director will play a key role with one of our Brand Consulting clients. The Director will lead the strategic management and day-to-day execution of a premier collegiate sports sponsorship portfolio on behalf of the agency and its clients. Serving as the primary client lead, this role is responsible for developing partnership strategies, negotiating commercial agreements, managing integrated sponsorship activations, and delivering measurable business results across a broad range of collegiate properties. The candidate will run a specific sports vertical and lead strategy, identification, negotiation and management of partnership(s).  Additionally, the candidate will manage a junior team and interface with the client while working cross-functionally with internal/external partners, vendors, clients and agencies. 

Partnership Strategy & Management

• Provide senior leadership in the day-to-day management of collegiate partnerships, with a focus on NCAA, conferences, universities, athletic departments, NIL initiatives, and campus engagement platforms.
• Develop and lead comprehensive partnership strategies, identifying, communicating, and maximizing sponsorship assets to deliver measurable value for clients and successfully secure stakeholder buy-in.
• Leverage established relationships across the collegiate athletics ecosystem, including universities, conferences, multimedia rights holders, agencies, and governing bodies.
• Lead negotiations for sponsorship agreements, marketing rights, naming rights, and partnership renewals, demonstrating a proven history of delivering successful commercial outcomes.
• Direct management of collegiate sponsorship portfolios, serving as the primary point of contact for university partners, conference leadership, rights holders, clients, and agency partners at the executive level.
• Own and manage senior client relationships, serving as a trusted strategic advisor throughout the partnership lifecycle.
• Lead cross-functional planning and execution of integrated sponsorship campaigns, campus activations, hospitality programs, student engagement initiatives, and experiential marketing efforts.
• Partner with Data & Analytics teams to establish partnership KPIs, measurement frameworks, ROI reporting, and optimization strategies.
• Collaborate with Creative, Experiential, Social, PR, Digital, and Insights teams to ensure all partnership objectives are achieved.
• Identify new collegiate sponsorship opportunities across athletics, campus life, NIL, women's sports, esports, and emerging properties that align with client objectives.
• Mentor, develop, and manage junior team members while fostering a collaborative, high-performing culture.

Events & Activation

• Attend collegiate sporting events, championship tournaments, conference meetings, sponsorship summits, and client activations throughout the year.
• Lead the planning and execution of bowl game entitlement programs, ensuring contractual rights are fulfilled across branding, hospitality, media, digital, on-site activations, and executive stakeholder engagement.
• Serve as the senior lead on multi-agency activation teams for major collegiate events, coordinating with university stakeholders, conference partners, production teams, and experiential agencies to ensure flawless execution.
• Oversee sponsorship activation planning from concept through execution, ensuring all contractual assets are fulfilled and client objectives are exceeded.
• Support hospitality programming, VIP experiences, on-campus events, and student engagement initiatives tied to partnership objectives.

Requirements

• Bachelor's Degree preferably in Marketing, Communications, Business or similar discipline.
• 8–10+ years of experience in sports marketing, sponsorship consulting, brand partnerships, collegiate athletics, media rights, or a related agency, property, conference, or brand environment.
• Extensive experience developing and managing college sponsorship programs across NCAA institutions, conferences, athletic departments, or collegiate media rights organizations.
• Demonstrated experience managing bowl game entitlement sponsorships, including strategic planning, contract negotiation, rights management, activation execution, stakeholder coordination, hospitality, and partner fulfillment.
• Established relationships throughout the collegiate sports landscape, including universities, conferences, athletic administrators, multimedia rights holders, and industry partners.
• Proven ability to develop partnership strategies that drive client investment and long-term commercial success.
• Demonstrated experience negotiating complex sponsorship agreements and managing partnerships from contract execution through activation and renewal.
• Exceptional client service and relationship management skills across clients, partners, internal stakeholders, and external agencies.
• Experience leading, mentoring, and developing high-performing teams.
• Strong understanding of collegiate athletics, NCAA regulations, NIL opportunities, student-athlete marketing, and the evolving college sports landscape.
• Proficiency in Google Workspace and Microsoft Office Suite.
• Experience managing sponsorship budgets, forecasting, and financial reporting.
• Ability to lead and execute integrated sponsorship programs across universities, conferences, governing bodies, student organizations, and talent partnerships.
• Recognized as a strategic thought leader capable of influencing clients and senior stakeholders with data-driven recommendations.
• Highly collaborative, solution-oriented, and able to thrive in a fast-paced environment.
• Willingness to travel extensively and work evenings and weekends as required by collegiate sporting events and client activations.
• Outstanding verbal, written, presentation, and executive communication skills.

Preferred Skills

• Agency experience highly preferred 
• Experience in tech/AI, a plus

Location

This role will be located in our New York or Los Angeles office. The Brand Consulting department offers a flexible work schedule and requires a minimum three days per week on-site.

Compensation

The annual base salary range for this position is as follows:

Los Angeles, CA -$115,000 to $165,000.

New York, NY -$115,000 to $165,000.

This position is also eligible for benefits and a discretionary bonus. Ultimately, the salary may vary based upon factors including, but not limited to, relevant experience, time in the role, business sector, and geographic location, among other criteria. Please talk with a CAA Recruiter to learn more.

Benefits

At CAA, we offer a competitive compensation and benefits* package for all regular full-time employees:

Benefits where the company pays 80%-100% of the cost include:

• Medical Insurance
• Basic Life and AD&D Insurance
• Telemedicine
• Employee assistance and mental health counseling in person, virtually or through text
• Paid Vacation / Holidays
• Paid Sick Time
• Paid Parental Leave and Other Paid Leaves of Absence
• NICU leave
• Bereavement resources
• Adoption Benefits
• Educational Assistance
• Mental Health Resources
• Employee Assistance Plan

Employees may also elect to participate in voluntary benefits

• Dental, Vision Insurance
• 401K Plan
• Flexible Spending Accounts (Health Care and Dependent Care) 
• Health Savings Account
• Voluntary Life and AD&D Insurance

Employee Perks

• Commuter Benefits

*Benefits offered also include other statutory mandated benefits

Qualified applications with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with the California Fair Chance Act and the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers.