Next League Makes Significant Investment in Emerging Technologies
Hires Shripal Shah, Sports Industry Veteran and AI Expert, as Chief Digital Officer
NEW YORK, NY - January 29, 2025 - Next League, the leading digital growth consultancy and technology services organization working exclusively within the global sports industry, today announced the appointment of Shripal Shah, a renowned sports industry veteran and expert in data-driven digital transformation, as its first Chief Digital Officer.
This strategic hire underscores Next League’s expanded focus on emerging technologies, MarTech, and AI innovation to reshape how sports organizations engage fans, increase fan loyalty, drive and diversify revenue and pioneer new avenues of digital transformation.
Shah's career spans sports teams, tech startups, top retailers, and leading agencies, all driven by a singular focus: harnessing the latest technology to help brands accelerate growth and stay ahead in a rapidly evolving landscape. In his over 20 years of experience, he is known for leveraging emerging technologies to deliver measurable business growth and industry-leading innovation.
Prior to Next League, Shah spent six years as Chief Digital Officer at Shop Your Way, the loyalty and credit card platform owned by the parent company for Sears, Kenmore and Sears Home Services. This experience in retail loyalty and FinTech helped shape his perspective on customer acquisition via artificial intelligence. While there, Shah spearheaded an end-to-end digital transformation that introduced a pioneering, retail-agnostic loyalty platform seamlessly integrating a consumer credit program.
Before then, he spent nine years at the Washington Commanders as their SVP, Chief Strategy Officer. During his tenure, he led the team's sponsorship strategy, marketing platforms, digital and retail businesses generating over $60 Million in sponsorship revenue and designing an affinity program with over 120,000 members. During his tenure, the Commanders were ranked #1 in the NFL in social media revenue and #2 in digital revenue, setting a new standard for fan engagement and monetization across the league.
Shah has also held executive roles at MOKO Social Media, technology services company KiwiTech and at CATALYST (now 160/90), where he developed award-winning digital campaigns for Subway, Under Armour and Dick's Sporting Goods that contributed to its successful acquisition by WME.
“We believe strongly that we are at a seminal moment in both the history of sport and what technology will mean to it,” said Next League CEO David Nugent. “As a proven leader in sports marketing, AI and digital transformation, we know Shripal will be able to demonstrably help our client partners approach these new emerging technologies. We are thrilled to have him join our team and are excited to leverage his extensive expertise. We believe investing in this area will continue to accelerate Next League’s vision of being the leader in global sports technology services.”
“We’ve reached a tipping point,” said Shah. “The sports industry now has the tools to understand its fans as deeply as other industries have known their customers. Emerging technologies are leveling the playing field, empowering sports brands to reach fans in unprecedented ways. The gap that once held sports back has closed, opening the door for teams, leagues, and their partners to thrive and innovate in the digital age.”
Shah shares Next League’s commitment to making enduring, impactful investments. He co-founded NextUp Ventures, a sports consultancy and angel investment firm, to nurture early-stage companies—including those out of the Techstars Sports and Comcast SportsTech Accelerators. Through 14 demo days, he helped startups secure over $1.5M in funding, with multiple companies featured on Shark Tank, and forged partnerships with brands like IRONMAN and leading professional teams. He has also served for over a decade as an adjunct professor in Georgetown University’s Sports Industry Management program.
A recognized thought leader in AI and sports technology, Shah has authored two pioneering books on Sports Marketing and AI, “Leveling Up with AI: A Strategic Guide to AI in Sports Marketing” and “The Art of Victory: Generative AI and the New Frontier of Global Sports.” His widely-read “AI Playbook” column for JohnWallStreet is considered the definitive resource for AI innovation in the sports business. He is a former Sports Business Journal Awards judge and is a frequent speaker on AI and digital transformation in sports.
About Next League
Next League is a global team of strategists and technologists, specializing in creating, designing, building and operating technology solutions for sports organizations.
Trusted by the teams behind the teams, we navigate complex technology landscapes to optimize engagement and maximize revenue with and for our partners.
The diversity of our team is our superpower. Individually we are strategic thinkers, creative engineers and skilled operators; collectively, we are a sports-obsessed, value and results-driven organization that brings innovative thinking to, and delivers meaningful impact for, our partners and our industry.
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Joanna Solowey
Next League
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