The region鈥檚 new Major League Soccer team announced this week it hired a chief experience officer 鈥� Matt Sebek.
The role is common for many consumer-facing brands, but it鈥檚 a first for MLS.
Sebek joins St. Louis CITY SC鈥檚 roster from World Wide Technology, where he focused on building relationships between the company and customers. Now, he hopes to bridge the gap between the new soccer club and potential fans.
Sebek said his job is to help make the team 鈥渂igger than soccer.鈥� He plans to build a platform for the soccer club to engage with potential fans and sponsors during the long lead-up to game play, in 2023.
鈥淔rom Day One, let鈥檚 organize ourselves to be more of a digital-first e-comm company that happens to play soccer, as opposed to every other sports club, which has tried to do the opposite 鈥� which is let鈥檚 focus on sports first, and then figure out all the other e-comm and personal relationship stuff later,鈥� he said.
Sebek started in his role on Oct. 1 and has already helped the soccer team hit records with season ticket deposits. Last month, St. Louis CITY SC received 30,000 season ticket deposits within the first 15 minutes and 50,000 in 24 hours.
Sebek is also working on ways to engage with fans on the progress of a under construction in Downtown West. It鈥檚 expected to be complete by mid-2022.
鈥淣o one really knows what鈥檚 going on in downtown St. Louis, but it is pretty monumental. There鈥檚 a big hole in the ground right now, but it鈥檚 starting to take shape,鈥� he said, adding that the stadium鈥檚 four major walls are starting to go up.
He said fans should expect more announcements this fall.
In a statement, CEO Carolyn Kindle Betz said this is an 鈥渋mportant moment for our team.鈥�
鈥淪ince Day One, we have strived to make each person in our region feel connected to the team. Matt's hiring as MLS鈥� first-ever CXO puts us in such a great position to show our fans鈥� spirit and passion, and our true commitment to them,鈥� she said.
Sebek鈥檚 appointment is the latest in a list of important hires since St. Louis CITY SC announced its .
The club named Lutz Pfannenstiel as sporting director and Edmound Elzy as vice president of ticket sales. Mike Forde and Bernhard Peters are also serving as consultants to help establish a youth academy, among other things.
