Sarasota Paradise

Sarasota Paradise is entering a defining chapter in its evolution as the club competes in its inaugural USL League One season and pursues an ambitious vision to become one of the premier organizations within North American professional soccer.

Backed by committed ownership and a long-term growth strategy, Sarasota Paradise is building far more than a professional soccer team. The organization is creating a vertically integrated soccer ecosystem centered around professional competition, player development, youth participation, community engagement, and future facility development. The club's vision includes expanding one of the region's most impactful youth academies, developing elite training and competition facilities, growing into a leading sports and entertainment brand throughout Southwest Florida, and establishing a legacy within the game.

Ownership views Sarasota Paradise as a long-term investment in the community and is committed to reinvesting resources into the club's growth. Over the next decade, the organization plans to pursue significant initiatives, including academy expansion, facility development, enhanced player pathways, potential international investments, and broader sports and real estate opportunities.

To lead the next phase of growth, Sarasota Paradise is seeking a transformational President who can build, scale, and lead a championship-caliber organization both on and off the field.

Position Summary

The President will serve as the senior executive responsible for the overall leadership, growth, and performance of Sarasota Paradise. Reporting directly to ownership, the President will oversee all aspects of the club, including revenue generation, business operations, academy development, organizational strategy, and administrative functions while partnering closely with soccer leadership on sporting operations.

This is a unique opportunity for an entrepreneurial executive who thrives in a high-growth environment and is energized by the challenge of building an organization. The President will inherit a solid foundation and a supportive ownership group while leading the club through a pivotal growth stage that will require strategic leadership, organizational development, and disciplined execution.

The organization currently consists of approximately 45 team members across its business and soccer operations and is expected to grow significantly in the coming years. The President will be responsible for building the leadership structure, hiring key talent, and developing the systems and processes necessary to support long-term success.

Ownership has identified two primary organizational priorities:

• Revenue Growth: Building a sustainable business model with a path toward financial self-sufficiency through ticket sales, sponsorship, academy revenue, and new commercial opportunities.
• Academy Expansion: Growing the academy into one of the largest and most impactful youth soccer platforms in the region, serving both competitive and recreational players while maintaining accessibility for the community.

Key Responsibilities:

Strategic Leadership & Organizational Development

• Lead the overall strategic direction and execution of Sarasota Paradise's long-term vision.
• Partner with ownership to establish and execute a multi-year growth plan across business operations, academy development, facilities, and community impact.
• Build organizational infrastructure, processes, systems, and reporting mechanisms that support scale and long-term sustainability.
• Serve as the primary leader responsible for aligning all areas of the organization around shared objectives and performance standards.
• Help establish Sarasota Paradise as a model organization within the United Soccer League.
• Develop and oversee comprehensive revenue strategies across ticketing, sponsorship, premium experiences, academy programming, merchandise, and future commercial ventures.
• Lead the development of the club's commercial platform and oversee leaders responsible for sponsorship sales, ticketing, academy revenue and marketing.
• Evaluate, package, and maximize the value of key commercial assets, including front-of-shirt sponsorship, stadium naming rights, and future facility-related opportunities.
• Lead the execution of a formal strategy for valuing commercial assets and ensure the club's sponsorship inventory is positioned appropriately in the marketplace.
• Create accountability systems and measurable performance standards across all revenue-generating functions.
• Build a scalable commercial organization capable of significantly increasing revenue over time.

Academy Growth & Community Impact

• Oversee the continued growth and development of the Sarasota Paradise Academy.
• Support the organization's long-term goal of expanding participation to several thousand youth athletes across the region.
• Ensure academy programming balances both elite player development and recreational participation opportunities.
• Enhance the club's role as a community asset and youth development platform throughout Southwest Florida.

Operations & Administration

• Oversee all business operations, including marketing, communications, finance, administration, game operations, customer service, and community relations.
• Develop annual budgets, forecasts, and operational plans while ensuring responsible stewardship of resources.
• Establish key performance indicators and operational accountability across departments.
• Maintain strong working relationships with league officials, vendors, partners, and external stakeholders.

Talent & Culture

• Recruit, hire, develop, and retain top talent across the organization.
• Lead several key hires in the near term as the club continues building its leadership team.
• Establish a culture defined by accountability, attention to detail, collaboration, urgency, and high performance.
• Develop leadership depth and succession plans across critical functions.
• Foster an environment where employees are empowered to take initiative and drive results.

External Relations & Stakeholder Management

• Serve as the club's primary executive representative within the community.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with local business leaders, community stakeholders, and government officials.
• Work closely with municipal and county leaders on initiatives affecting the organization and future development opportunities.
• Represent Sarasota Paradise at league meetings, industry events, civic functions, and community engagements.

Long-Term Growth Initiatives

• Partner with ownership on future strategic projects, including:
• Dedicated training and performance facilities.
• Real estate and mixed-use development initiatives.
• Expansion of player development pathways.
• Potential involvement with future international soccer investments and partnerships.

Qualifications

Candidates should possess a combination of executive leadership experience, commercial acumen, operational excellence, and entrepreneurial drive.

Preferred qualifications include:

• Executive leadership experience in professional sports, entertainment, hospitality, consumer-facing businesses, or similarly complex organizations.
• Demonstrated success leading organizations through growth, transformation, or startup environments.
• Proven ability to build teams, develop leaders, and scale organizations.
• Strong background overseeing revenue-generating functions, including ticket sales, marketing, and corporate partnerships.
• Track record of driving meaningful business growth and achieving ambitious revenue objectives.
• Experience developing and managing complex budgets and operating plans.
• Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills.
• Experience working with ownership groups, boards, public officials, and community stakeholders.
• Strong business judgment and decision-making capabilities.
• Bachelor's degree preferred; advanced degree welcomed but not required.

The Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate is a builder. They are energized by creating something special from the ground up and possess the leadership presence, strategic mindset, and operational discipline necessary to scale a growing organization. They are equally comfortable discussing long-term vision with ownership and diving into the details required to ensure execution.

This leader will be:

• A self-starter who takes initiative and drives results.
• Entrepreneurial and comfortable operating in an evolving, high-growth environment.
• Highly detail-oriented with a commitment to excellence.
• Strategic, analytical, and commercially minded.
• Skilled at building teams and attracting top talent.
• Collaborative and relationship-driven.
• Passionate about creating a legacy rather than simply managing a club.

Most importantly, the successful candidate will embrace ownership's vision of building Sarasota Paradise into a landmark sports organization, a premier youth soccer platform, and one of the most respected clubs in North American soccer.

ZRG'S Commitment

At ZRG, we do not just accept differences—we celebrate and support it. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, pregnancy, race, color, religion, national origin, disability, genetic information, marital or partnership status, military or veteran status, age, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. ZRG is an equal opportunity employer and workplace, and we encourage applicants of all backgrounds & communities to apply.