WSL Announces Erik Logan As New Chief Executive Officer
LOS ANGELES, California (Tuesday, January 14, 2020) - The World Surf League (WSL) today announced that Chief Executive Officer Sophie Goldschmidt will be stepping down from her post and that WSL’s President of Content, Media and Studios Erik Logan has been named as CEO, effective this week.
“Sophie has had a huge impact on the WSL. She is responsible for transforming both our business capabilities and culture in her tenure as CEO,” Dirk Ziff, WSL Owner and Board Member, said. “With the converging trends in sports, media and entertainment, we mutually agreed it was time to make a change. Erik Logan is a proven leader and a world-class media executive with a profound personal connection to the sport of surfing. We are excited about what he will accomplish as CEO. We will always be grateful to Sophie for her contributions to surfing and we look forward to the WSL’s next chapter.”
Goldschmidt, who took on the CEO role in 2017, led the transformation of the WSL’s organizational structure, refocusing the business with an emphasis on the opportunity around the sport and lifestyle of surfing. During her tenure, she led the institution of equal prize money across men’s and women’s surfing, negotiated a historic 10-year surfer agreement, secured the first-of-its-kind Facebook partnership and unprecedented levels of linear and digital distribution. She also delivered the first-ever competitive events at Surf Ranch (the WSL’s wave technology facility), relaunched the organization’s ocean health advocacy program WSL PURE, significantly raised the WSL’s profile globally and built a dynamic new leadership team.
“It’s been a privilege to collaborate with the caliber of colleagues, athletes, partners and communities around the world that I have during my time at the WSL,” Goldschmidt said. “Surfing is unique, captivating and inspiring and leading the WSL has been a professional highlight for me.”
“With the WSL now ready to become a more focused content and media company, the Board and I have mutually agreed it is the right time to make a change,” Goldschmidt said. “Having worked closely with Erik, he is the right person to lead the WSL into its next era. I am excited about what lies ahead for the organization.”
Following the transition, Goldschmidt will continue to help the company and join its Advisory Board.
Logan, who previously served as President of the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) and Executive Vice President at Harpo Studios, has operated as the WSL’s President of Content, Media and Studios since February 2019, revamping the organization’s live broadcasts, leading the development of off-platform content including its first non-scripted TV series, in partnership with ABC, Ultimate Surfer (airing Summer 2020), as well as 24/7: Kelly Slater on HBO. In his role as WSL CEO, Logan will utilize his decades of international business and media experience to continue to transform the WSL into a world-class live events, experiences and media company.
“The World Surf League is the most exciting, inspiring and promising opportunity I have ever encountered,” Logan said. “The power of the organization’s platform, the history of championing the world’s best surfers, the global fan base and the opportunity to accelerate the WSL as an international sport and media powerhouse is absolutely incredible.”
“Surfing is powerful. As someone who came to it later in life, I personally understand the impact surfing can have on individuals, communities and the world at large,” Logan continued. “To be able to lead world-class people at the WSL and combine my professional and personal passions is a dream come true.”
Logan will oversee all three business units of the World Surf League - Tours, Studios and WaveCo - with an experienced and innovative leadership team at the organization’s headquarters in Santa Monica as well as the WSL regional offices around the world.
The first stop on the 2020 WSL Championship Tour will be the Corona Open Gold Coast from March 26 - April 5, 2020.
Comments
That's a reasonably fast ascension to CEO, having only been employed by the WSL for 15 months.
This also shows (unsurprisingly) where the WSL is focusing its business model - Sophie came from a sports background, Erik from Media/Entertainment (non-sports).
He probably bought a SUP 14 months ago and has now got sufficient surf cred to say "bitchin" and "stoked" to Kelly.
Yes, if a company is pushing an unqualified individual to the top of the chain, they are either in trouble and without the proper experienced leadership they need, or this guy is connected to the financial backers of the WSL. Either way, Sophie who is a bit of a pistol herself, has probably had enough of the shenanigan's that acted called the WSL is made up of.
Maybe? It was always part of the succession plan... No entirely surprising the strategy is "media" and "content" so makes sense the CEO has history in those areas.
Shows how crap the WSL are going
Vomit
Beachgrit is gunna explode
The lunatics (SUP Lords) are in charge of the asylum.
It's hard not to be negative about all this corporatised mumbo jumbo. I guess the upside to Humpty Numpty taking over is his " leading the development of off-platform content including its first non-scripted TV series, in partnership with ABC, Ultimate Surfer (airing Summer 2020), as well as 24/7: Kelly Slater on HBO". Fuck me I can't wait to hit the record button!!!! It's like witnessing Alby Mangels World Safari morph into I'm A Celebrity...Get me Out Of Here.
Deftly and succinctly summarised.
Alby Mangles? Showing your age garyg1412.
Do you remember when Alby "sailed" across the Tasman sea to NZ in a small boat only for a TV reporter to show him a couple of return plane tickets from Sydney to Aukland with his name on it.
Rumour has it, one of Alby's girlfriends got the shits with him and sent the tickets to the media!!
Remember that quite clearly VL.
He was the classic showman though. Something which Ultimate Surfer & 24/7: Kelly Slater will not be unfortunately. I'm going to call cringeworthy at best.
Just in case you forgot or some of the iGen don't know what the hell we are on about.
I remember he got in a bit of trouble for tossing his dog out the window of a moving car for the cameras.
Love the dubbed in clip-clopping sound of the horse on the sandy beach.
Alby also did a bit of super steep and dangerous horse riding (where all the trees grew at 45 degree angles!!!) Bit of eye candy for the female audience and Gary G.
Kelly Slater is a has been, it's like trying to connect George Michael the great musical artist to the new generation. No matter how great his love songs and booty bumping beats songs he has, the new generation is not able to connect to a bald headed has been.
Pro Surfing. Bringing millions of Chinese to a break near you.
definitely the biggest worry out there for recreational surfers in the WSL agenda to "grow the sport" (that no-one but the WLS and surf industry wants to grow) but somehow I don't think the masses will like:
- Great White Sharks cruising by
- being more than 2 kilometres from the CBD of a major city.
- all that open space in the ocean
- large sneaker sets
- sand
- jellyfish
- sealions during breeding season
“ Surfing is unique, captivating and inspiring and leading the WSL has been a professional highlight for me.”
“ The World Surf League is the most exciting, inspiring and promising opportunity I have ever encountered,”
Do executives and politicians use the same speech writers. Every time just sounds so hollow and monotone.
Yes. Politicians serve corporations.
Yes just ask Scomo. Spin is all important and the perfect example was his monotonous babble on the ABC. I couldn't work out what he was talking about other than something that included the words climate and change.
where's your profile photo gone
Branding, Corpo speak, you can't script this !
2 year token, back to business as usual.
Nothing to do with Elo, but after rewatching the excellent old ....Lost movie “ On the road with Spike “ , it’s easy to see why they chose never to release it on the internet.
Don’t think it’d do much for Strider’s career with the family friendly WSL.
Tried to find this Blowin is it on UTOOB?
No. I’ve got an old VHS copy. Hadn’t watched it in about 20 years I reckon.
Maybe it’s not as good a movie as I make out . But I Loved it back in the day and still do . Lots of variety and I was right into the soundtrack....Frank Black , Meanies , Sublime ....all kinds of good gear.
Boys got loose in the movie. You don’t see crew pissed and on the prowl in many surf vids these days.
“ Wanna make a porno ? “
Yeah the sound track sounds nice and thrashy (heard the Meanies are doing a concert soon/have) and it sounds similar to the old Pig of Steel comics from my vintage when Tracks was a newspaper. Extremely depraved describing hordes of surfers raping and pillaging up and down the coast terrorising the women folk, and frequent conversations with the white telephone (or a giant chunder as Barry Humpries would call it. Ahhh...there is another depraved and comic from the past) following a night of rampage. Yes was a different world.
Exactly.
And imagine if the Pig of Steel now had a cozy corporate career and his boozy , Scoob sucking ways were lurking in an old surf movie hidden in an old VCR cabinet , like an ancient forgotten sea mine which had drifted into a shipping lane .
Ha, ha ready to detonate at any time! Get Tony back this has got legs.
Such a credit to the man that he has not succumbed to the temptations of the corporate world. His art speaks well for him , past & present.
So a soggy kitten is being replaced with a wet blanket?
As you were.
(btw, please ditch facebook- that's when I stopped watching pro surfing for the most part,)
Alternative headline...
“Adult learner SUP rider charged with increasing the wealth of a man who inherited hundreds of millions of dollars”
"Fortune favours the brave."
Someone should steal his paddle
Who predicted US Queen's Sophxit!
To trophy Supper'z bitchy wahines...who's up shit creek without their paddles now.
https://beachgrit.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Screen-Shot-2019-06-28-...
Who predicted Milky Bar Grom making waves, conjuring up Olympic size Tsunami.
Who predicted Ultimate Surfer's revenge by out rating 'Summer' Olympic Surf Off.
WSL Sportsmanlike interference call...no ones running keys over Jeeps...we got this!
Valet SUP at my bro's Ranch marina... I don't care...I love it, I love It, I don't care.
Where's Memla, pretty sure he predicted this with his profile image!
That was a great avatar. I had the lady with the backwards fins at about the same time. They've given so much.
Yes! That's right haha.
Yes was gold not sure how I lost it. That cheesy mug was all time and now we will see much more of it.
Let's just be honest, surfing really is a low tier competitive sport that's lucky to garner 10,000 eye balls (from across the globe) to their showcase CT events. WQS tour events rarely get 1000 viewers on Facebook. Crowds on the beach are tiny.
Compare that to cycling. I was watching the Bay Crits from Geelong on Facebook the other day. This is a minor semi pro race at best, staffed largely by volunteers. Viewer numbers on Facebook were 1.3-1.5K.
Not a lawn bowls fan, but watched a game on telly with my dear old Dad. Way bigger crowd than your average pro surf comp.
The WSL has poured many millions of dollars into pro-surfing and the audience numbers are craptacular.
They don't seem to be focussing on the competition side that much (so perhaps they don't care about comp audience numbers?) - the TV/entertainment side seems to be what they're into, right up the new CEO's alley.
Have been surfing a lot lately (hols) in biggish, dredgy, rippy gutsy beachie conditions and the more I do it the more I see surfing flat lining. There is nothing for the middle of the ladder people to embrace. It is bloody hard work; you really need to learn when you are a nipper; it is so fickle; and you have to be very fit and know the ocean. People have a go then drift out of it. Maintaining the level of fitness over a life time is not easy unless you live right on the spot and/or are part of the industry (if you can call it that). It takes real commitment and a burning desire to want to do it and keep doing it. The Chinese will never get into it for a range of reasons and the pro level is an alien planet when compared to your average hacks ability. People can ski until the 80's even on reasonably challenging runs; surfing decent waves on a proper board at that age will be a real challenge. Just can't see the audience beyond what it is.
Had a surf at my local break this morning and it was filled with proper dad-bods and wimpy 20 year olds. It's summer hols and this lot won't be near the ocean until easter and their next surf will probably be in December.
If it was 2 foot bigger, all the tubby 45 year olds wouldn't have been getting out.
Correct, and you would call it surf play, not surfing. It is only a hard core group, mostly up to around 40 who are keen all year round. Just hard to be as selfish as we are and to keep at it (many apologies to my long suffering wife and the family - except my brain washed son - asking me 'can't we go on a holiday where there is no surf?......nup).
Shhhhh don't tell all the punters. Dirk will go broke!
Gary wonders exactly what the terms of the '10 year agreement' with the CT surfers is; given the WSL are clearly interested in being a media & content company and seem to have little interest as the governing body of a competitive sport.
Recent highlights packages demonstrate this: they focus on excerpts from the commentary team, or lifestyle shots from the comp area with the surfing as a backdrop. The natural drama of competition or anything about the intensity of the contest is scrubbed out: just look at the delayed official response to the Caio / Medina incidents. They want to own the stories, not react to ones that they can't control.
What are the surfer's obligations: they are seeking a world title, the WSL are seeking to use them to create lifestyle content??
"What are the surfer's obligations: they are seeking a world title, the WSL are seeking to use them to create lifestyle content??"
So true Gary G. You'd have to wonder why Gabs wasn't rubbed out for a comp or two after burning Ciao. That cynical drop in clearly broke the WSL rules, but I'm tipping Gabie's half a million instagram followers means he gets special treatment.
Gary this is your most cryptic comment yet.
I'd suggest the 10 year agreement with CT surfers involves something like this: "If you surf in a rival professional league at anytime during the next ten years, WSL will sue your sorry arse back to the Stone Age."
And that's the most perplexing part. There is no rival professional surf league, and it's unlikely one will develop either.
It's unlikely one will develop given how much money the WSL is losing. It's even more unlikely if current CT surfers have signed contracts saying they won't surf in any professional comps not sanctioned by the WSL for 10 years.
Packer and WSC, super league, 20/20 cricket leagues, and multiple breakaway leagues across multiple sports in the USA means the WSL would certainly tie up their athletes / assets.
Totally understand the reckoning. But that's because the other sporting codes have massive audiences and a huge potential revenue source.
Anyone undertaking due diligence on Pro Surfing can see now that its true audience is very small.
Not to mention the current business environment for advertising, sports and media isn't very healthy either.
The WSL just wants to own the rights to surfing.
They’re probably stoked if the whole Pro tour falls over cause it’s expensive without a path to profitability.
If they just own it all , including the surfers , they can do whatever they like.
The big wave tour is an insight. They’ve fucked off the expensive tour but still own the surfers on it , so now they can do as little or as much with it as they deem capable of profit generation and no one can compete with it.
With the surf brands collapsing, the surfers will do anything to stay on a payroll. They’ll be the saline soaked equivalent of unskilled Indian Uber drivers doing anything to ensure their visa conditions are met so as to get permanent residency.
It’s going to get funny when the top surfers start having to do the reality TV bullshit they’re introducing with the Ultimate Surfer competition.
Think along the lines of a TV personality who has a five year and 2 million dollar deal with a network.....they appear in whatever the fuck they’re told to appear in. Whether it’s utterly degrading or not.
Only the lower tier surfers will be on those short term Uber style independent contractors rates and they will be doing some ludicrous stuff.
“Only the lower tier surfers will be on those short term Uber style independent contractors rates and they will be doing some ludicrous stuff.”
Surfer wants a Wife
A surfing version of "Drawn Together". I would watch that.
I feel so disconnected from this world. Funny that.
Honestly, my two favourite contests, I watched on the old tv,
At my mates house/ shack,
I remember my buddy leaving the shack, returning with small television plugging it in and tunning into the Konica skins .
Watching occy win!
The damn contest even invented the claim.
They need to bring that format back people.
Epic , will never forget those two contests. It was overcast and raining outside.
Konica on the box
Big time!
Worth watching the movie “ Learning how to learn to surf “ if you want perspective of the WSL’s true core audience. Them plus the whole Insta/ Euro crew who have never been to a spot which was on the QT and don’t even understand the concept.
The WSL will now move more into the Red Bull territory , where they’ll be into selling the lifestyle and they have so little concern for the niceties , nuances and unwritten rules that it’ll be an even more impactful version of pro surfing than when they were restricted to just blowing up one or two quiet locations per year.
I can see the surfers becoming true employees of the WSL and if Elo hears about a secret spot somewhere whose exploitation may make Dirk Ziff a few dollars richer then the rippers on the payroll will be there in minutes ...consider it a done deal.
See where you are going here Blowin.
The whole content speal reeks of exposure.
Can't be any worse than pro's on Instagram or youtube though, can it ?
Got an insight about how the WSL wanted to present itself from a Surf Splendour podcast with graphic designer David Carson.
Carsons friend was with the graphic design company the WSL went to early on for their branding and logos. The company did the Super Bowl contract and that was the look the WSL wanted to look like football. After the designer suggested that surfing wasn’t like football. The response from WSL was they wanted that look and insisted on it.
Welcome to corporate sport. The dream of the Bronzed Aussies is coming true
Wow that is pretty interesting.
Surfing is nothing like football.
As if surf companies give a shit about people dropping $1000 on gear, then surfing 3 times a year. After every WSL comp, there will be at least a dozen fatties who drop a grand, get down the beach & become instant Kook Slams stars. When they give up, there are dozens more behind them.
The WSL is beyond a joke & deserves our sternest opprobrium. As for Dirk Stiff - he deserves to lose all his cash for trying to dumb down, package & sell the soul of surfing. It’s become the Muppet Show with Mel & “Strider”and all their bullshit. Fucking kooks.
Agree with the sentiment above
But in these “influencer” times, are the sheep becoming more sheep like and are they making up more of the (Surfing) flock? Ie paddocks (surf spots) will trend and fade and the core need to work around this? Maybe not sure
Roystein nails it...never about the crowds or webcasts.
Chix WSL PostCard insta is the face of Surfing
Trolley cart of Saltylick-lipstick + deck-wax aroma candles
Pro's Pukey Mango Brews are so last decade.
Not saying to pay men the same as Chix rounds.
Surf Shops advise WSL Chix to ditch the dead weight.
Is there any other sport in the world (and I use the term sport very loosely) where the rank and file TRUE participants absolutely LOATHE the governing body that runs the pointy end of it? I think not.
The sooner surfing can shake itself loose of these stinking $$$ driven kooks with ZERO connection to it the better.
Bring back the old ASP type set up just lurching from one event to the next. Run by surfers in the knowledge that it's just for us and everyone else can get fucked.
Soccer and FIFA. There’s some pretty strong loathing of those corrupt bastards.
OZ cricket selectors.
Titans Narcotics Squad
If NIKE which purchased HURLEY, could not make it profit for them, btw, Nike has way more cash on hand than the WSL, there is no way Logan or anyone else is going to make WSL profit. We are just experiencing the reinvention of the wheel with new eager staff at WSL. Running the WSL is like trying to control a day care nursery full of tots and teens. Good Luck.
https://www.surfertoday.com/surfing/the-best-quotes-by-miki-dora
some of these are very relevant right now...
Often the glare of exposure just dulls the interest and mystique. WSL does not get this. Surfin aint basketball with neat easy to follow scores and tight game times to hold interest.
I have piles of old surfing magazine from multiple eras. Reading surfing magazines used to be one of life's great pleasures. I never touch them now.
Same for famous people. Kelly is super smart and has (or had) some very interesting perspectives on many topics. What he said mattered and he kept aspects of his life very private. Pearls of wisdom and comments were savoured. Scarcity creates value.
But he is becoming too accessible, exposed and mainstream. He could have chosen a different path and basked in a few decades of retirement where people wanted more of him than they would ever get by keeping a lower profile and gracefully stepping out of the scene. But it seems he will take the path of over exposure that will lead towards disdain and ridicule.
David Bowie learned that lesson early and kept the "prophet from afar" mystique for his whole life and beyond.
Fortunately the ocean does not care a jot about all this and we can all turn our back on the land and find degrees of solace and inspiration undisturbed by such taints. Just a bit harder than it used to be...
Nice words mate. I fully get where you're coming from right down to the mags.
I too have a fair collection going right back to the start of the 80's. Used to go over em all the time. Can't even remember when they last saw the light of day now.
Everything is too accessible these days......
Aaaaah
How's the grin on him.....
I wonder how much cash WSL has to burn in their endeavour to produce content for an uninterested mass whilst alienating their only fan base? Happy to watch it fail and go full circle.
Hmmm, content and media needs substance. Either intense competition or drama. Ideally both. Does the wozzle have what it takes to achieve either without it being too trite?
Or
Does a new 'disruption' create a whole new level of engagement? Anyone heard of livestream via YouTube etc.? Why not a grass roots movement taking over the content and drama.
Imagine, great conditions and a crew of talent surfing for a cash pool based on a knockout format. Small event window, small competitor list, livestreamed ... Want drama? Action? Substance?
And, what about a new way to decide the world champion? Why the 'tour'? Why the points? What if the world number 1 is like golf or tennis? Link to the short events?
Hmmmm.
ShopEatSurf have a (paywalled) interview with Erik, in which he manages to neatly sidestep all questions about the currect success, revenue, subscription models etc.
The interview is full of blasé, sweeping, non-committal comments ("We are talking to partners about a number of other things and the interest is at an all-time high", "I think the ROI on content is a great place for us to evaluate", "Trying to become more ubiquitous with our content is one of our goals for this year", "We are going to become far more sophisticated about how we publish content in all of our territories", etc)
And, re: Subscription model: "In this evolving media landscape, we are trying to figure out where we want to play."
Does it really take this long? Oh, to be able to run a business where almost seven years can be spent figuring out which opportunity it is that you're gonna focus on.
But even more perplexing, in response to the question: "Is the WSL more of a content and media company now rather than a sports league?", Erik answers:
"We always will have the CT tour as the center of our organization – we are a sports league with a media company wrapped around it."
Then, the last question of the interview: "Can you name one of the biggest things you will change as CEO?", the response is:
"The word change is what I would change. I don’t think we need to change much. I think we are going to accelerate this evolution to a media company with a sports league wrapped around it."
https://www.shop-eat-surf.com/2020/01/new-wsl-ceo-on-evolving-into-a-med...
I thought some of the other comments on here were harsh.....until I read this. What a complete fire-trucking tool. Its clear to me now why he rides a SUP.
The biggest change he is going to make is to change the word change...
Let me help you out.
transmute, transform, vary, mutate, amend, modify, convert...just a pick a work. Job DONE. Thank you very much.
LOL, fantastic !
give him a gold medal for corpo speak.
Another version of Fox Sports then
Elo is just restrained by male , white corporate oppression .
We all know what he says about the competition behind closed doors....
Speaker: "There's a new chapter on Wall St,"
Someone in back of room "Yeah, Chapter 11,"
One of the newsbites that sticks with me from the GFC of 2008...
Why do all these guys look like sociopathic ken dolls from pleasantville?
With new position appointment
He shall now be referred to as CELO!
Sea low..............
"with a profound personal connection to the sport of surfing"
