OverviewMarketing Manager - American Football | Chicago, IL (Hybrid)The
Marketing Manager will lead marketing plans and activities to support avid player outreach & grassroots engagement specifically for American football and flag football.
Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
- Build, manage, and track 360-degree global football marketing plans and budgets to ensure strategic alignment, operational efficiency, and measurable business impact via retail sales and brand growth.
- Partner cross-functionally with Marketing, E-Commerce, PR, Social, Sales, Retail, Creative, and Commercial teams to develop and execute consumer-relevant, on-brand marketing programs that deliver business results in American football.
- Support the Marketing Director in developing and executing grassroots activation platforms designed to engage target consumers and grow participation globally.
- Identify, secure, and manage strategic partnerships while supporting key football organizations, including NFL FLAG, IFAF, and various grassroots partners, to ensure annual contractual deliverables are executed effectively.
- Build a scalable ecosystem of global football partnerships by evaluating organizations across youth, high school, and adult segments and developing clear points of view on strategic fit and value.
- Develop strategic marketing briefs for avid-focused product launches and initiatives, providing clear, actionable feedback to creative teams to ensure deliverables meet brand and business objectives.
- Identify content needs and manage the creation process through internal and external resources, partnering with social media teams to execute football content across relevant channels.
- Oversee football ambassador program, including contract management, recruitment, campaign planning, and ongoing program execution.
- Communicate marketing strategies, consumer insights, and category priorities in core team planning sessions, sales meetings, and cross-functional business reviews.
- Plan, attend, and manage experiential event activations, ensuring each event is executed to brand standards, reaches the target consumer, and supports overall football growth objectives.
- Other duties as assigned.
What We're Looking ForThis role requires a bachelor's degree from a four-year college or university in Marketing, Communications, or a related area; an MBA with a focus on marketing is preferred. We are seeking candidates with a minimum of 5 years of consumer marketing experience for a brand or a marketing agency.
Other qualifications include:
- Experience building and leading marketing campaigns, across digital, social, experiential, and retail.
- Experience writing creative briefs and working collaboratively with design team to bring new campaign assets to life.
- Experience managing contract negotiations with organizations and/or talent.
- Familiarity with American football, especially flag football, is desirable.
- Excellent written/verbal, time management and quantitative/analytical skills.
- Advanced PowerPoint skills - from content development to professional, streamlined formatting.
- Proven ability to work with limited resources and budgets.
- Self-motivated and empowered to take initiative & ownership, developing new programs and strategies, continually looking for ways to improve processes and platforms.
- Hyper efficient with proven ability to manage multiple projects in a dynamic environment with strong organizational, communication and follow-through skills.
- Highly collaborative problem solver who thrives in a team environment working cross-functionally.
- Positive thinker who sees challenges as opportunities and translates them into actionable items.
- Avid Fan - can speak authentically about sports, specifically American football.
- Experience working with content creators is desirable.
- Retail marketing experience desirable, in-store and e-commerce.
- Available to travel approximately 50% of the time, including work weekdays, weekends, and evenings as required by events and business needs.
What We'll ProvideA reasonable estimate of the
pay range is $85,000 - $110,000 per year at the time of this posting. Within the range, individual pay is determined by factors such as job-related skills, relevant experience, education, and/or training. Please note that the range details reflect the base pay only and does not include our competitive bonus program.
Located in the vibrant, sports-centric city of Chicago, Wilson Sporting Goods Co. global headquarters sits along the lakefront with first-class access to a burgeoning creative, innovative, energetic and active professional community. We offer an open, collaborative, high tech work environment with best in class amenities and perks, including:
- Medical, dental and vision
- Pre-tax transit discounts
- 401(k) with company match
- Life insurance
- Paid maternity/paternity leave
- Professional development opportunities
- Volunteering programs
- Team building outings
- Discounts on Wilson and Amer Sports products
- On-site health club
- Summer hours
- Company-sponsored sports leagues/teams
- Fun, active company outings around major sports events
