JT Batson Named CEO/Secretary General for U.S. Soccer
Executive has history with grassroots soccer throughout the country
Posted On: September 26, 2022 By :JT Batson has been named as the new chief executive officer and secretary general of the U.S. Soccer Federation, succeeding Will Wilson.
Batson has spent his professional career in media, advertising and technology. The first software he worked on was for the assignment of youth soccer referees for tournament organizers. A former member of the U.S. Soccer Finance Committee, Batson previously served as chief executive officer of Hudson MX, a software company which he co-founded and focuses on workflow and financial software for the advertising ecosystem. Prior to founding Hudson MX, he was an Entrepreneur in Residence at Greylock Partners and Accel Partners. He was an early employee of Mozilla focused on international growth efforts of the Firefox browser.
“It’s an honor and a big responsibility to take on this position with U.S. Soccer and I’m really looking forward to working with Cindy, our board, our senior leadership, our players, coaches and referees, and all of our employees, partners and membership across the American soccer landscape,” said Batson. “I’m a big believer in the power of teamwork and collaboration, and during this historic time for soccer in the USA, that will be vitally important as we continue drive the Federation forward to even greater heights.”
Batson played club soccer for Augusta Arsenal growing up in Georgia and later helped run the club while serving as a referee and a referee assignor. He has coached boys and girls at the grassroots level and has been active in supporting his childhood soccer club as a member of the Augusta Arsenal Soccer Club advisory board. His previous work with U.S. Soccer led to him helping spearhead the creation of the U.S. Soccer Development Fund which raises money to support U.S. Soccer’s development of world-class players, coaches and referees, all with the goal of continuing to inspire a nation.
“JT is uniquely qualified for this position as a person who has vast experience working with large, complex organizations as well as an understanding of the intricate workings of modern business,” said U.S. Soccer President Cindy Parlow Cone. “He also has a passion for soccer born out playing and growing up in a generation that saw a massive growth of the sport in the United States. His energy, leadership, creative thinking and personal connection to seeing U.S. Soccer and the sport thrive will be a huge positive for the future of our federation overall.”
As an undergrad at Stanford, Batson worked with the Stanford men’s and women’s soccer programs as a student assistant. He also worked with the Stanford men’s basketball team, building a recruiting CRM system and managing ticket process and fan development. Batson is a member of the board of the LGBTQ+ entrepreneur focused non-profit StartOut. He also serves on the board of directors for the NYC Ballet. Batson has guest taught at Stanford’s Hasso Plattner Institute of Design and the Graduate School of Business.
“When I was playing youth soccer, I wasn’t the kid that was dreaming of playing in the World Cup, I was the kid dreaming about organizing one,” said Batson. “As it did for many in our soccer family, the 1994 World Cup in the USA had a profound impact on me and opened my eyes to the potential and global impact of soccer. That World Cup helped me start thinking big about soccer in the USA and about how big investment can impact the future. With 2022 FIFA World Cup starting in a few months, the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup coming next summer and the USA co-hosting the 2026 FIFA World Cup in four years, we are heading into a special time in our history and I’m extremely excited to be a part of it.”
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