Senior Account Executive, Sponsorship Sales

Playfly Sports

11d • $80,000 - $85,000 • Remote

About The Position

Playfly Sports is seeking an Account Executive, NCAA Championship Sponsorship Sales, to drive local sponsorship revenue across NCAA Championship Events. In partnership with the General Manager and NCAA stakeholders, this role identifies, prospects, pitches, negotiates, and closes local and regional businesses in designated championship markets. The position sells local sponsorship rights and integrated marketing opportunities, including on-site activations, hospitality, fan engagement, championship branding, digital and social integrations, promotional opportunities, and other approved local marketing assets.

The role requires a consultative seller who can uncover business objectives, develop creative partnership solutions, build relationships with local decision-makers, and convert prospects into new and renewing sponsorship revenue. The Account Executive also helps ensure sponsors receive a strong experience before, during, and after championships, supports activation and fulfillment, and attends select events. The position is remote, with travel and select evening and weekend work required. The base pay range is $80,000–$85,000.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree required.
• 3–6 years of sales experience required.
• Demonstrated success achieving or exceeding sales quotas or revenue goals.
• Proven ability to prospect, develop relationships, negotiate, and close new business.
• Strong presentation, communication, and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to build relationships with business owners and senior-level marketing decision-makers.
• Strong organizational skills and ability to manage multiple prospects, proposals, clients, and deadlines simultaneously.
• Proficiency with CRM systems, Microsoft Office, PowerPoint, and other sales technology.
• Willingness to travel and work select evenings, weekends, and championship events as required.
• Ability to lift up to 50 lbs.
• Ability to sit, stand, and walk up stairs.
• Availability to travel for client presentations.
• Ability to work nights and weekends around sporting events.
• Passion for sports, sponsorship, and marketing within college sports and athletics.

Nice To Haves

• Sales experience in sponsorship, advertising, media, sports, experiential marketing, hospitality, or related industries.

Responsibilities

• Assist in developing a proactive sales strategy to achieve and exceed individual and team revenue targets.
• Build and manage a pipeline of prospective local and regional sponsors in assigned NCAA Championship Event markets.
• Research businesses and brands with a connection to championship markets, attendees, fans, student-athletes, institutions, and local communities.
• Conduct high-volume prospecting through phone, email, networking, referrals, in-person meetings, LinkedIn, local business organizations, and other channels.
• Develop relationships with business owners, marketing leaders, CMOs, agency contacts, and other decision-makers.
• Lead the full sales process from prospect identification and discovery through proposal, negotiation, contracting, and close.
• Meet or exceed assigned revenue, activity, pipeline, and renewal goals.
• Develop knowledge of NCAA Championship Events, audiences, venues, markets, and available local sponsorship rights.
• Translate championship assets into business solutions aligned with prospect marketing and business objectives.
• Create customized sponsorship proposals, sales presentations, activation concepts, and partnership packages.
• Sell integrated opportunities across event branding, signage, fan engagement, hospitality and tickets, digital and social media, sampling, product integration, experiential activations, promotions, content, and storytelling.
• Identify opportunities to grow partnership value through customized activations and incremental revenue.
• Build long-term sponsor relationships and serve as a strategic partner throughout the sponsorship lifecycle.
• Develop and execute renewal strategies to retain partners and increase account value.
• Communicate regularly with clients to understand objectives, measure performance, and identify expansion opportunities.
• Coordinate with internal teams to deliver contractual assets and sponsor commitments accurately and on time.
• Support sponsor activation and fulfillment before, during, and after NCAA Championship Events.
• Attend select championship events to support sponsors, activations, hospitality, and client relationships.
• Develop expertise in assigned championship markets and their competitive sponsorship landscapes.
• Identify relevant industries, companies, decision-makers, business trends, and local partnership opportunities.
• Build relationships with chambers of commerce, tourism organizations, convention and visitors bureaus, local businesses, community organizations, and other stakeholders.
• Use local market intelligence and NCAA audience insights to develop sponsorship opportunities.
• Stay current on sports marketing, experiential marketing, collegiate athletics, media, and sponsorship trends.
• Partner with the General Manager, NCAA stakeholders, activation and operations teams, creative teams, and other Playfly personnel to develop and execute partnerships.
• Maintain accurate prospecting, pipeline, forecasting, activity, and account information in the company CRM.
• Provide sales forecasts, pipeline updates, and market intelligence to leadership.
• Collaborate on sales strategy, prospect prioritization, pricing, proposals, and negotiations.
• Represent Playfly Sports and the NCAA professionally, ethically, and in a brand-appropriate manner.
• Ensure sponsorship proposals, activations, and client deliverables comply with NCAA and Playfly guidelines.
• Perform other job-related duties as assigned.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior