ANDY SWIFT JOINS MLS AND SUM AS SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT of marketing & Communications NEW YORK (Wednesday, October 20, 2004) - Major League Soccer Commissioner and Soccer United Marketing CEO Don Garber today appointed veteran sports executive Andy Swift as the companies' Senior Vice President of Marketing & Communications. Swift joins MLS after one year as the Chief Operating Officer for Dallas-based D4P ("Diversity for Peace"), an organization that develops grassroots marketing properties in the youth and Hispanic soccer segments. From 2000-03, Swift served as the President and General Manager for the MLS Dallas Burn. During the three seasons with the Burn at the Cotton Bowl, Swift guided the team to consecutive overall attendance and team revenue increases each year. In 2002, the Burn surpassed team records for both season tickets as well as sponsorship sales for the second consecutive year. On the field, the Burn maintained its reputation as one of the most competitive teams in the league, qualifying for the playoffs during each of its first seven seasons. "Andy's extensive experience at the team level and intimate knowledge and understanding of our sports' two key demographics - Hispanic and youth - make him a perfect fit to oversee the League and SUM's Marketing and Communications departments," said Garber. "His expertise across several disciplines, including sales, media, broadcasting and the competitive side of soccer, make him an invaluable asset for the New York-based MLS/SUM headquarters." Swift originally joined the Burn in February of 1996, spending the 1998 and '99 seasons as Vice President of Marketing and Broadcasting. In that role, he was responsible for managing the team's advertising, media buying and planning, public relations, broadcasting, and community relations efforts. Swift also negotiated broadcast agreements for television and radio, which saw the Burn become the first professional sports team in Dallas to have regular-season games broadcast on both mediums in both English and Spanish. From 1997-98, Swift was Director of Hispanic Marketing for the Burn. In that capacity, he helped create the League's first Hispanic marketing department. In his initial year with the Burn from 1996-97, Swift served as the team's Director of Community Relations and Hispanic Media. In that role, he served as international player liaison and was the team's spokesperson for the Hispanic market. Prior to joining the Burn, Swift was a producer for KFWD, the Dallas Telemundo affiliate and later became an independent producer specializing in the Hispanic and corporate video markets. Swift, 36, was raised in five different Latin American countries and is a 1989 graduate of Texas Christian University with majors in psychology and Spanish. He is fluent in English, Spanish and Portuguese.
Congrats Andy! It's good to see him involved with MLS again. He's too valuable an asset for MLS to ignore. Of course you're now back to WORKIN' FOR THA MAN!!!!
This is good move for MLS and SUM. This guy knows what is important to soccer fans and he understands the bottom line. Two things some soccer execs don't always understand.
Excellent news for Andy, although a little sad for the rest of us if he has to move. Most importantly I think this is possibly the best sign from MLS in a while that they are heading in the right direction.
Yes, let me be the first to second the call for our ANDY SWIFT MAJOR EXECUTIVE REPLACEMENT ALLOCATION. Surely, SURELY, this can be cashed in to raise our cap. -bs
I close my eyes and I feel justice. While Andy may have been perceived as a 'victim' in the Southlake-mistake; he now is in a position to affect a trickle-down effect. No longer being constrained by HSG scrimp-and-save; he is now a cause at the highest level - including further growth with hispanic investments. I've seen the glory. -
Let me be the 3rd to concur. Andy seems to get it. (Not that I have ever met him, and not that he would even agree w/ my assessment of him). However, he seemed to keep all groups somewhat happy. The three headed markets that all used to come together at the Cotton Bowl: -The beer drinking soccer rowdies (which I assume are most of you on this board) -the immigrant hispanic fans -the kid market and the parents that they dragged hostage w/ them I don't think you would ever get people so different together in one place as did this team 6 to 3 years ago. It was kind of like one of those MTV reality shows where very different people are forced to live w/ each other but eventually end up growing fond of each other. Little details that he would notice and fix... allowing for more latitude in the behavior of some sectors of the fan base. Conversely, setting up non-drinking areas for families. Even the music selection during the games was expertly selected to make each group feel that this was indeed their team: Bob Marley, Mana, the Chipmonks. This was representative of so many things that made the overall Cotton Bowl experience special a couple of years ago. About 4 months ago, I used to waste my time fighting w/ a sweetheart of a guy, (Peledre), about the marketing direction of MLS. My contention was that focusing exclusively on the kiddie market was a loser. Just like focusing exclusively on the Hispanic market, or just the hard core beer drinking soccer fan that I call a "soccer rowdy". The evidence that I gave him for the failure of just the kiddie angle was WUSA. I hope that even if the local yokels have pooh-poohed the 3 pronged approach, MLS will take note. Here's hoping that Andy takes his market based soccer approach and gives us all that we want. To hubristically quote myself "given a take-it-or-leave-it marketing approach to soccer, people will leave it." Andy used to not only bring the product to your table, he would even ask you what kind of sauce you liked with your soccer. I wish he would address this board with his thoughts and philosophies to clear up whether this indeed is his thought.
Theo IMHO this is by far the best post you have ever made. On the money, acurte, with the correct conclusion. You get it on many levels. Which is why I am sometimes astonished by some of your other posts. When you seem to by taking a flying leap into space.
Oh Theo! You have kicked a galazo on this post! I've known Andy for about 9 years, and from what I know of him I believe he would concur with your observations and be pleased by your comments. While attending games at the Cotton Bowl in the wonder years wasn't quite like being at a world cup game, it was filled with the unifying diversity one feels during world cup - where the only commonality is the love of jugo bonito. Oh - for the record - I'm more like the church lady (no alcohol, no cursing, and the color RED, hmmmm) than your description of a 'soccer rowdie', but I am definately born in the USA and don't have kids dragging me to the game - I am not a soccer hooligan, I am a rabid, drooling Burn/FCD fan - I came to CHEER!!! And fight for the shirt!
I'm a soccer rowdie, I like beer, my kids take me to the game, and my wife speaks spanish....it's like the perfect storm.
ROFLMAF! Perfect Storm indeed...hehehehe "You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to BigNards again."
Theo, Very eloquent in your assesment of Andy Swifts and his accomplishments, but the kudos go to you for managing to praise, insult and stereotype soccer fans at the Cotton Bowl in the same message. Your agenda manages to get attention and attention you shall receive.
Nah, if she spoke Dutch, then it would be the perfect storm. English invited and the Dutch perfected it.