Chuck Fruit Passes Away

Chuck Fruit Was A Sports Marketing Pioneer

The sports business world is stunned today with the news that influential marketing exec Chuck Fruit died yesterday at the age of 61 after suffering a sudden heart attack. The modest and affable Fruit led the sports marketing efforts for several of the top brands in the world during his decorated career, including Anheuser-Busch and Coca-Cola. While at A-B, Fruit was instrumental in signing a 15-year deal as the exclusive beer sponsor for ESPN during the net's early days. Fruit also led the march into plastering the A-B logo on playing surfaces, including the now-ubiquitous fixture in boxing rings. After moving to Coca-Cola in ’91, Fruit handled the soft drink’s global accounts with both the Olympics and the FIFA World Cup. Fruit was named THE DAILY’s Industrialist of the Year in ’98 and was a multi-time selection to Sporting News’ annual Most Powerful People in Sports listing.

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