Chris Halpin, executive vice-president and chief strategy and growth officer at American football’s NFL, is set to leave his role and the league at the end of January to become chief financial officer of private equity firm IAC.
He will take up this new post at IAC, which has extensive holdings across digital products and brands, on January 26.
Halpin has been at the NFL since 2013, having joined from the investment firm Providence Equity Partners.
He has most recently been involved with restructuring the league’s international presence and focus, as well as in assessing the potential for the NFL to get involved with the rapidly-legalizing sports betting industry in the US.
Indeed, last month the NFL gave 18 of its 32 franchises access to 26 International Home Marketing Areas (IHMA) across eight countries, a major initiative designed to give teams a strategic boost in building their brand appeal and fanbase globally.
In lieu of these projects, Halpin had been mentioned in some quarters as a potential successor to Roger Goodell as the league’s commissioner.
The NFL is reportedly set to divide Halpin’s responsibilities between other senior executives, instead of directly replacing him.
Joey Levin, IAC’s chief executive to whom Halpin will report, said: “Chris will be a tremendous asset as we embark on yet another chapter of growth at IAC … His breadth of experience has touched most major and emerging consumer technologies and platforms and spans a broad range of business models and categories.”
Halpin added, regarding his next employer: “A core theme of my career at both the NFL and Providence Equity has been understanding and capitalizing on the growth opportunities that result from changing consumer digital engagement. I’m excited to partner with the entire IAC team to continue to build shareholder value.”
Amongst IAC’s portfolio of assets are media holdings such as Anti and The Daily Beast.
Halpin will be responsible for corporate finance, accounting, investor relations, and mergers and acquisitions at IAC.
GlobalData Sport conducted an in-depth interview with Halpin in November 2021 in which he discussed the NFL’s international activities and plans.
