Keith Pelley will take over as the new Chief Executive Officer of The European Tour, effective this summer. This follows George O’Grady’s November 2014 announcement that he would be stepping down from the role.
“I am very honoured to be joining The European Tour as its new CEO at an exciting stage in its development,” Pelley said in a news release. “The Tour already has a highly regarded reputation and I look forward to building on this using my previous experience in both media and sports to ensure it remains at forefront of the game across the globe.”
Pelley has more than 30 years of experience in the professional sports world. He is currently president of Rogers Media, a media conglomerate in Canada, which includes 51 radio stations, 56 publications, 12 national TV stations, 42 local stations, 300 digital properties as well as the Toronto Blue Jays, Canada’s only Major League Baseball team. While at Rogers Media, Keith helped orchestrate the largest sports rights deal in Canadian history, with the acquisition of $5.2 billion National Hockey League rights deal for 12 years to include all media platforms.
Prior to working at Rogers Media, Pelley was president of Canada’s Olympic Broadcast Media Consortium. He has also served as CEO of the Canadian Football leagues’ Toronto Argonauts.
His experience in professional sports, rights management, negations, sponsorship creating, marketing, communications and brand development made Pelley the unanimous choice according to the Board’s Nominations Committee.
“Throughout the interview process, it was clear that Keith has an unwavering passion for golf as well as a strong grasp of the challenges and opportunities facing not only The European Tour, but the wider game of golf as a whole,” European Tour Chairman David Williams said in a news release. “He knows the game, respects its history and I have no doubt he will bring an innovative approach to the development of The European Tour on the global stage.
Pelley is currently a member of Lambton Golf and Country Club, and Goodwood Golf Club in Canada. He has a handicap of 5.