IMG College COO Tony Crispino will leave the company at the end of the month to join George Pyne’s new venture. Crispino, an IMG employee dating back to '06, moved from the Cleveland office to IMG College’s Winston-Salem HQ in late '10. Crispino oversaw the college division’s financial operations and was instrumental in the day-to-day operations. He was one of the first senior hires by IMG College President & Chair Ben Sutton when he took over in '10, and brought Crispino over from Cleveland.
Sutton announced the move to his IMG staff on Friday, saying, “Tony has helped guide our strategic development, financial management and overall success. He is an incredible operator, trusted advisor and good friend.” Crispino joins Pyne’s new company, which is working with Allen & Co. to raise as much as $500M in order to acquire companies in the sports and entertainment space. Pyne, the former President of IMG Sports & Entertainment, left the new WME/IMG in August to start the firm. Pyne has said that he has no plans to compete directly against IMG.