The Breeders’ Cup has hired Drew Sheinman, a longtime marketing executive who has worked with sports properties and major brands, as its new senior vice president and CMO.
Sheinman will spearhead the overall marketing, business development and sponsorship sales, as well as digital media and communications initiatives for the Breeders’ Cup, horse racing’s annual championship event. He will begin work on May 13 and be based out of the company’s New York office.
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Sheinman
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Sheinman will oversee a staff of about five marketing, sponsorship and licensing executives and will report to Breeders’ Cup President and CEO Craig Fravel.
“Drew has a tremendous background in sports marketing and brand extension, and we are just looking forward to him joining us and making sure the Breeders’ Cup brand is at the forefront of the sports marketplace,” Fravel said last week.
Sheinman was most recently CEO of the New York-based entertainment and sports marketing advisory firm Vision Works. Prior to that he held executive positions at Coca-Cola, the New York Mets, Baltimore Orioles and Madison Square Garden.
The Breeders’ Cup hired executive search firm RSR Partners late last year to fill the position, which was last held by Peter Land, who left in 2009 to join PepsiCo. RSR Partners managing directors Joe Bailey and John Keitt, an attorney with extensive relationships in horse racing, led the search.
Fravel said Sheinman’s diverse work experience was a draw for the horse racing organization.
“We have more than enough experience in the horse racing industry [at the Breeders’ Cup], so we were not looking for anything along those lines,” Fravel said. “There were many, many résumés that were reviewed and we narrowed it down to a field of five. I think Drew stood out because of his experience on both sides — on teams and on the corporate side of sports marketing.”
Sheinman’s first order of business will be to develop an overall business plan, as well as focusing on this year’s event, which will be held Nov. 1-2 at Santa Anita Park in the Los Angeles area. The Breeders’ Cup has about 10 corporate partners, but it hopes to expand that number, Fravel said.
“We are in the business of generating revenue, so a significant part of his job is to refine our marketing and outreach program to generate revenue in existing areas, like sponsorship, and to develop our opportunities,” Fravel said.
Sheinman said he plans to develop a long-term and short-term strategy after meeting with executives in horse racing, as well as sports marketing executives at major corporations.
“Part of it is getting in and getting wired to the corporate community and get past history and experience with the Breeders’ Cup and why they haven’t been involved,” he said.
He believes the Breeders’ Cup is an iconic event that has been underdeveloped in the past. “I think it’s a very visible property and brand, and I think the opportunity for growth is really quite significant,” he said.
