Printable Biography of Alan Rothenberg

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Mr. Rothenberg was Chairman, President and CEO of the most successful World Cup in history the largest single sport event ever. It set records for total ticket sales, per game average ticket sales, sponsorship and licensing revenues and worldwide TV viewership.

In that capacity, Mr. Rothenberg built an organization from scratch that grew at its peak to 350 full time employees and almost 20,000 volunteers, operating out of 9 venues, plus a headquarters office and a marketing office.

The financial results were also record-setting: $70,000,000 surplus, which was used to fund a new non-profit foundation, the U.S. Soccer Foundation, which he established and continues as a member of its Board of Directors and Executive Committee.

As CEO of the 1994 World Cup, Mr. Rothenberg directed all activities including ticket sales, TV contract negotiations, sponsorship and licensing contract negotiations, stadium negotiations, government relations, international relations, and press relations. In addition, he oversaw major entertainment programs created by the 1994 World Cup including the 3 Tenors concert at Dodger Stadium, a week of separate performances at the Hollywood Bowl, Opening and Closing Ceremonies featuring, among others, Whitney Houston, Diana Ross, Jon Secada, and World Cups Legacy Tour and SoccerFest.

He assembled and worked with a prestigious Board of Directors that included at various times:

-Howard Allen (former Chairman and CEO of Edison Intl.)
-Ahmet Ertegun (Chairman, Atlantic Records)
-Lamar Hunt (Owner, K.C. Chiefs, among others)
-Henry Kissinger (former Secretary of State)
-John Nordstrom (Nordstrom Department Stores)
-Jay Pritzker (former head of Hyatt, among others)
-Steve Ross (former Chairman and CEO of Time Warner)
-Richard Rosenberg (former Chairman and CEO of Bank of America)
-William E. Simon (former Secretary of the Treasury)
-Peter V. Ueberroth (former Commissioner, Major League Baseball; President, 1984 L.A.
-Olympics)
Mr. Rothenberg also served as President of the United States Soccer Federation from 1990-1998, leading the growth of that organization from an annual budget of less than $5 million and with less than 20 employees to an annual budget of over $30 million and over 75 employees. In the process, he negotiated major sponsorship agreements (including a Nike contract believed to be the largest of its kind in the world), national television agreements (the first-ever for U.S. Soccer) and collective bargaining agreements with mens and womens national teams.

In forming Major League Soccer, Mr. Rothenberg secured investors for approximately $100 million (including such notables as Phil Anschutz, Lamar Hunt, Robert Kraft, John Kluge, George Soros and Stuart Subotnick) negotiated a national TV contract with ABC and ESPN, secured major sponsors (including Nike, adidas, Reebok, Anheuser-Busch, MasterCard, Honda, Fuji, ATandT) and hired the original league staff of over 25 key personnel.
Mr. Rothenberg served as Chairman of the Board of the 1999 FIFA Womens World Cup which was the largest and most successful womens sports event ever. He persuaded FIFA to let the Womens World Cup be played in major stadiums and cities, assembled the original management team (many of whom had worked with him in 1994, at USSF and/or at MLS), helped to conceive the marketing plan, including its integration with the U.S. Womens National Team, and generally oversaw the breakthrough event.

Other past business experience of Mr. Rothenberg has included work in an executive capacity, for sports teams (Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Kings, Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Aztecs), cable TV (Jack Kent Cooke, Inc./Teleprompter), live theater (the rock opera Tommy) and feature film (With Honors) and directorship on many not-for-profit (e.g. State Bar of California, Constitutional Rights Foundation, Music Center of Los Angeles, Los Angeles Convention and Visitors Bureau) and for profit companies (including First Los Angeles Bank, NBA, MLS).