Commercial Director, The Athletic
International
3+ days a week in office
Subscription-based sports content publisher
Job no longer available
Subscription-based sports content publisher
501-1000 employees
Job no longer available
3+ days a week in office
501-1000 employees
Company mission
To produce smarter coverage for die-hard fans and redefine the way fans get access to sports content by flipping the normal model for sports journalism.
Role
Who you are
- 10+ years of digital ad sales experience, ideally with a blend of web/app, social media, video and podcast sales experience
- 2+ years of managing a team of direct sellers, though we are open to seasoned senior sellers who are looking for their first management opportunity
- Must be a player-coach, with an ability to lead a team, but also roll your sleeves up and sell
- Must be a strong collaborator with an instinct to collaborate with teams across the company
- Established agency and client direct relationships that you can leverage on day one
- Thorough understanding of the international markets, what makes each region unique, and what solutions are most in demand
- Demonstrated experience building on a foundation that is already in place but enjoy having the freedom and flexibility to make things better: better sales tools, better communication, better processes, etc.
- A passion for the sales process and the advertising industry
- A track record for being motivated by and meeting ambitious targets
- A self starter who is good at getting work done without someone looking over your shoulder
- A positive “all hands on deck” attitude
- You are an excellent communicator over email, on the phone, and in person
- You are good at working independently but enjoy being part of a team
What the job involves
- The Athletic is seeking an experienced sales leader to help expand its fast growing international Advertising business, and lead a growing International ad team
- Reporting to the Head Of Brand Partnerships and the GM, International, you will lead our growing international sales team responsible for driving ad revenue via client direct and agency relationships
- In this role you will help craft the vision and strategy for how The Athletic will grow its international advertising business and sales team
- You will own the end to end sales process for new ad partners who want to get their brand in front of The Athletic’s audience across all platforms including web, mobile, audio, newsletters, and social media
- Additionally, you will be responsible for maintaining and nurturing relationships with our most senior international clients
- You will be a key member of the Sales leadership team working cross functionally within the overall Advertising and Commercial teams to support the development of new, sellable ad products and opportunities
- Serve as the head of the international sales team based in the International HQ (UK), helping craft the overall vision and strategy for brand-focused ad sales
- Particularly during the growth phase, serve as the primary sales contact for key international accounts
- Lead an international sales team and a network of international rep firms, focused on audio sales, and brand partnerships via client, and agency relationships
- Lead the growth of our International sales team
- Lead identifying new format opportunities to generate advertising revenue
- Share partner and media landscape insights, and sales lessons across the team
- Represent The Athletic brand well
Salary benchmarks
Our take
The Athletic provides authentic, in-depth coverage written by journalists who know the teams they write about inside out. Its model bucks the trend of traditional sports journalism outfits by asking for a subscription rather than relying on ad-revenue.
Despite initial doubts that users would be willing to pay for sports journalistic content, The Athletic has found significant success and was acquired by the New York Times in 2022. Despite it operating at a loss directly after the takeover, it was clear that the New York Times perceived this as a long-term investment.
In 2025, it was reported that The Athletic was now profitable, which aligns well with its parent's prediction of profitability within 4 years. This has been aided by accelerated customer growth alongside the rising trend of subscription-based sports news.
Kirsty
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
Company
Funding (last 2 of 7 rounds)
Jan 2020
$50m
SERIES D
May 2019
$21.8m
SERIES C
Total funding: $139.7m
Company benefits
- Paid Time Off
- Paid Sick Leave
- Paid Parental Leave
- 401 (k)
- Short & Long Term Disability
- Free Subscription
- Competitive Health Care
- HSA & FSA
- Commuter Benefits
Company HQ
Financial District, San Francisco, CA
Leadership
Adam Hansmann
(President & Co-Founder)Previously a McKinsey Business Analyst and then Associate at Calera Capital.
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