Steve Simpson has been appointed as the executive vice president of team partnerships for FanDuel Sports Network South and FanDuel Sports Network Southeast, granting him oversight of the regional sports networks. Simpson will be entering the position following the retirement of Jeff Genthner and have responsibility for partnerships with teams such as the Atlanta Braves, Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, Carolina Hurricanes, Memphis Grizzlies and Nashville Predators.
“Steve’s deep industry expertise and long-standing relationships have been instrumental in driving our growth and meeting the needs of our team partners,” David DeVoe, chief operating officer and chief financial officer of Main Street Sports Group, said in a statement. “In this expanded role, he will help to further elevate our presence across key markets in the South and Southeast regions and enhance our ability to deliver innovative, premium sports content for our fans and partners.”
In addition to Simpson starting the new role, the company is also transitioning its leadership titles to reflect the position and deviating away from the “general manager” nomenclature. Those who are executive vice presidents of team partnerships will play integral roles in advancing the strategic operations and growth efforts of the FanDuel-branded RSNs, which are owned by Main Street Sports Group. Simpson joins a leadership team that includes Randy Stephens and Steve Tello, all of whom are responsible for reporting to DeVoe. The company also hired former ESPN executive Norby Williamson to oversee live productions and studio programming for FanDuel Sports Network.
Diamond Sports Group recently exited Ch. 11 bankruptcy following the approval of a restructuring support agreement, and it subsequently renamed itself as Main Street in the process. The company is said to have a “significantly deleveraged balance sheet” and currently has local linear media rights for 30 professional sports teams spanning basketball, hockey and baseball across 16 owned and operated RSNs. FanDuel Sports Network content recently became available to stream through Amazon’s Prime Video as an add-on subscription, further broadening touchpoints across cable, satellite and virtual multichannel video programming distributors (vMVPDs).
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