Billie Jean King Cup Limited announces appointment of new CEO and COO
26/02/2024 16:55
Billie Jean King Cup Limited has announced the appointment of Kerstin Lutz as Chief Executive Officer and Kris Dent as Chief Operating Officer.
Lutz and Dent will lead the day-to-day operations of BJK Cup Ltd, which focuses on the commercial, broadcast and fan growth of the Billie Jean King Cup, the women’s World Cup of Tennis.
Formed in August 2023, BJK Cup Ltd is a joint venture of the International Tennis Federation and the Sports, Media, and Entertainment arm of TWG Global. As well as accelerating the growth and appeal of the Billie Jean King Cup, it is looking to effectively leverage the premier women’s tennis team competition as a platform for women’s professional development programmes in leadership, officiating and coaching.
Lutz joins from TEAM Marketing AG, the full-service sports marketing agency, where she is Managing Director of Business Development. Her extensive experience in the sports industry includes leading sponsorship sales, event operations and partnership management for global sponsor, licensing and media partners. She has worked with UEFA for more than 20 years, and recently led the development of a new business unit to identify commercial opportunities in the entertainment and sports market. Lutz will begin her new role in April.
“I am delighted to be joining Billie Jean King Cup Limited at such an important time for women’s tennis,” Lutz said. “For 61 years, the Billie Jean King Cup has led the way in creating opportunities for women athletes to showcase their incredible talent around the world. The chance to build on that legacy and help create a truly world class sporting and entertainment property is a hugely exciting one. This is an event that is so much more than a tennis competition. It creates opportunities for tennis to embrace lives at all levels of the game. I look forward to working with the team at the ITF, TWG and of course with Billie Jean King herself.”
Dent joins BJK Cup Ltd as the Chief Operating Officer. He has 20 years’ experience in professional tennis and joins from the ITF where he was Senior Executive Director of Major Events and Strategic Projects, overseeing the ITF’s portfolio of events including the Olympics, Paralympics, Davis Cup, Billie Jean King Cup and Hopman Cup. He also managed the Officiating department, represented the ITF on the WTA Board of Management and supported the Presidential department on key strategic projects and industry relations.
“Kerstin brings a wealth of experience in identifying and delivering growth for some of the world’s most popular sporting properties. Her passion for women’s sport and for women’s tennis in particular, along with her ambition for the continued development of the Billie Jean King Cup and its mission to grow the event to the benefit of women and girls around the world shines through,” said BJK Cup Ltd Chair Ilana Kloss. “Kris brings a wealth of global tennis experience to the group and we have worked closely together for some time. I am delighted to welcome Kerstin and Kris to our team and I look forward to working with them on elevating this wonderful competition.”