Former Philadelphia 76ers president Chris Heck is reportedly joining Aston Villa's senior management structure.
Heck spent nine years with the Sixers before resigning in June last year. Before becoming the team's president, overseeing all day-to-day business operations, in September 2017, he worked as their chief sales and marketing officer for the four previous years.
The Villanova University graduate spent seven years at the NBA league office as senior vice president of marketing partnerships. Heck also has previous experience working within football after spending two years as the president of business operations at Major League Soccer club, the New York Red Bulls, in between those stints with the NBA and the 76ers.
The Athletic reports that Villa's owners Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens targeted Heck, with the latter, in particular, pushing for the move. Edens has co-owned the Milwaukee Bucks since 2014, a year after Heck joined their Eastern Conference contemporaries Philadelphia.
In Pennsylvania, Heck worked under co-managing partners Josh Harris and David Blitzer, investors in Villa's Premier League rivals Crystal Palace. The pair expressed deep appreciation for the outgoing president's contributions and leadership while announcing his departure in a statement.
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As well as working for the Sixers, Heck spent a year with the city's NHL franchise, the Philadelphia Flyers, and held a senior position with the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles. He has also been in a prominent role with the Miami Heat.
The Philadelphia 76ers routinely sold out Wells Fargo Center during Chris Heck's time at the franchise (Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)HAVE YOUR SAY! Do you think an NBA president can translate commercial success in American sports to the Premier League? Join the discussion in the comments section.
Speaking to the Philadelphia Inquirer's Keith Pompeo last June, Heck mentioned European soccer, alongside Formula One, as sports trying a new twist on their marketing. "It was just the right time [to resign]," he said. "The world of sports is changing, too. I’m excited about [it].
"I don’t have another job, but I will start looking at the middle of the summer, if not the end of summer. So I’m really interested in being a part of something to do this thing all over again.”
Those achievements in Philadelphia include the Sixers selling out every game at Wells Fargo Center over the five seasons Heck was president. Commercially, their sponsorships also grew 30% from year to year.
Heck was also innovative in his role around the game day experience. He came up with the team's ceremonial bell ringing right before tipoff at home games, which continues after his departure, plus their postgame victory song.
Like many NBA franchises, the Sixers have grown considerably in value over the last decade, which Heck has as his proudest achievement. “The business side of me is going to say we took a $300 million franchise and made it $2.7 billion in worth over a nine-year period, which has never been done in history.”
In the latest Forbes valuation of the league's teams, Philadelphia are tenth out of 30 franchises. Their $3.15bn valuation is a 29% annual increase.
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