Licensing Director

Fanatics Commerce is the global leader in licensed sports merchandise, operating a vertically integrated platform that designs, manufactures, and delivers officially licensed apparel, jerseys, headwear, and collectibles for major leagues, teams, and events worldwide. With more than 900 e-commerce sites and a global omnichannel presence across digital, in-venue, and retail, Fanatics Commerce reaches fans in over 180 countries and powers official fan experiences for many of the world's most iconic sports properties.

At Fanatics, we bring our BOLD Leadership Principles to life every day - building championship teams, obsessing over fans, acting with entrepreneurial speed, and delivering with a determined and relentless mindset.

ROLE OVERVIEW

Fanatics Licensing Management (FLM) International is a leading in-house licensing agency managing a diverse portfolio of rights holders across global football, multi-sport properties, entertainment, and lifestyle brands. As Licensing Director, you will own and grow a portfolio of client licensing programmes from strategy to execution, operating as the senior point of accountability across commercial, creative, and operational dimensions — spanning IP positioning, category architecture, licensee recruitment, deal structuring, digital product strategy, and P&L ownership. The Licensing Director, FLM International delivers business and fan impact through BOLD leadership and execution excellence, leveraging data, automation, and AI-enabled insights.

HOW WILL YOU DRIVE IMPACT

Success is measured by the ability to deliver results through BOLD capabilities and measurable outcomes.

Team & Leadership Impact (Build Championship Teams)

Cross-Functional Leadership:

• Partner with Finance, Legal, Marketing, and Operations to deliver seamless client service across FLM's portfolio, ensuring commercial objectives are translated into aligned execution
• Represent FLM at major licensing trade shows — including Licensing Expo, BLE, and LIMA events — and contribute to the new business pipeline by providing market insight and supporting pitches for prospective rights holders

People Leadership:

• Line-manage and develop a team of licensing managers and executives, setting clear performance expectations and providing structured coaching and career development
• Communicate portfolio strategy clearly to your team, ensuring execution is consistently aligned to commercial objectives and client commitments

Fan & Customer Impact (Obsessed with Fans)

• Serve as the primary strategic advisor to senior rights holder executives, building long-term trusted partnerships and translating brand objectives into actionable licensing programmes with clear KPIs
• Lead annual business planning with clients across sports properties, federations, leagues, clubs, and entertainment brands, ensuring programmes are tailored to audience profile and commercial opportunity
• Maintain high-quality relationships with licensees across your portfolio, resolving issues proactively, ensuring contractual compliance, and conducting regular business reviews to assess and accelerate performance
• Collaborate with clients to build cohesive physical-to-digital licensing strategies that reinforce brand consistency and deepen fan engagement across channels

Innovation & Problem Solving (Limitless Entrepreneurial Spirit)

• Lead licensing strategy for digital and emerging categories including gaming integrations, licensed digital content, and social commerce, advising clients on platform prioritisation and new partnership opportunities
• Identify and pursue white-space opportunities within existing portfolios — new categories, geographies, and distribution channels — bringing fresh commercial thinking to each property
• Track market trends including DTC licensing, digital collectibles, and brand collaborations, and proactively introduce relevant innovation to client programmes
• Evaluate new platforms and partnerships — retail apps, streaming integrations, social commerce — and build recommendations that position FLM clients at the forefront of the licensing landscape

Ownership & Execution (Determined & Relentless Mindset)

• Own the licensing strategy and P&L across your assigned client portfolio, defining category architecture, market positioning, and revenue roadmaps tailored to each property's commercial opportunity
• Drive licensee recruitment across all categories — including core product, digital goods, gaming, and experiential — and lead deal negotiations from term sheet to execution, working with Legal on contract structure, guarantees, royalty rates, and audit provisions
• Oversee royalty reporting cycles in partnership with Finance, flagging anomalies and ensuring accurate P&L tracking across your portfolio
• Partner with the approvals team to uphold brand standards across product development pipelines, ensuring licensee output consistently meets the quality and integrity expectations of each rights holder

AI & DIGITAL CAPABILITY

We are building a future-ready organization. This role is expected to:

• Apply AI and technology to improve efficiency, quality, and outcomes
• Use data and digital tools to inform decisions and enhance performance
• Demonstrate curiosity and adaptability in adopting new technologies and ways of working
• Contribute to a culture of innovation and continuous improvement

CAPABILITIES & EXPERIENCE YOU BRING

Required Qualifications:

• 8+ years of experience in licensing, with at least 3 years in a senior client-facing or management role, including demonstrated ownership of complex, multi-property licensing programmes
• Sharp commercial instinct with hands-on P&L ownership experience and a proven track record of driving revenue growth across diverse brand portfolios
• Experience across both sports and lifestyle or entertainment licensing, with deep understanding of global licensing markets, category dynamics, and retail distribution
• Confident negotiator comfortable with complex, multi-territory deal structures, including experience working with Legal on guarantees, royalty rates, and audit provisions
• Proven people leader with a track record of developing talent, building high-performing teams, and operating effectively across cross-functional stakeholder environments
• Familiarity with digital licensing, gaming, and emerging product categories, including DTC licensing, social commerce, and digital collectibles
• Willingness to travel internationally for client meetings, licensing trade shows, and licensee visits

Education:

Bachelor's degree required; MBA or equivalent preferred.

WORK LOCATION

Hybrid: The primary place of performance of this role is the Company's office located in Paris, subject to the Company's current hybrid work policy. This role currently requires in-office presence3 days per week. 

At Fanatics, we operate with a BOLD mindset - We Build Championship Teams, we’re Obsessed with Fans, we embrace a Limitless Entrepreneurial Spirit, and we approach every challenge with a Determined and Relentless Mindset. If you’re ready to contribute to a dynamic, fast-paced environment that thrives on collaboration and growth, we want you to be part of our team.

ABOUT US
Fanatics is building a leading global digital sports platform. We ignite the passions of global sports fans and maximize the presence and reach for our hundreds of sports partners globally by offering products and services across Fanatics Commerce, Fanatics Collectibles, and Fanatics Betting & Gaming, allowing sports fans to Buy, Collect, and Bet. Through the Fanatics platform, sports fans can buy licensed fan gear, jerseys, lifestyle and streetwear products, headwear, and hardgoods; collect physical and digital trading cards, sports memorabilia, and other digital assets; and bet as the company builds its Sportsbook and iGaming platform. Fanatics has an established database of over 100 million global sports fans; a global partner network with approximately 900 sports properties, including major national and international professional sports leagues, players associations, teams, colleges, college conferences and retail partners, 2,500 athletes and celebrities, and 200 exclusive athletes; and over 2,000 retail locations, including its Lids retail stores. Our more than 22,000 employees are committed to relentlessly enhancing the fan experience and delighting sports fans globally.

ABOUT THE TEAM
Fanatics Commerce is a leading designer, manufacturer, and seller of licensed fan gear, jerseys, lifestyle and streetwear products, headwear, and hardgoods. It operates a vertically-integrated platform of digital and physical capabilities for leading sports leagues, teams, colleges, and associations globally – as well as its flagship site, www.fanatics.com.

Fanatics Commerce has a broad range of online, sports venue, and vertical apparel partnerships worldwide, including comprehensive partnerships with leading leagues, teams, colleges, and sports organizations across the world—including the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, MLS, Formula 1, and Australian Football League (AFL); the Dallas Cowboys, Golden State Warriors, Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea FC, and Tokyo Giants; the University of Notre Dame, University of Alabama, and University of Texas; the International Olympic Committee (IOC), England Rugby, and the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA).

At Fanatics Commerce, we infuse our BOLD Leadership Principles in everything we do:
· Build Championship Teams
· Obsessed with Fans
· Limitless Entrepreneurial Spirit
· Determined and Relentless Mindset

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