• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, June 10, 2022

Warner Bros. Discovery has named Luis Silberwasser chairman and CEO of its sports division. 

Silberwasser, who most recently served as president of the U.S. Networks Group at TelevisaUnivision, will lead the company’s domestic sports portfolio and oversee a unified, global sports strategy. 

He previously spent 16 years at Discovery Communications, most recently as executive vice president and chief content officer. 

He will report to David Zaslav, now CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, previously CEO of Discovery Inc. 

“I have known Luis for many years and have tremendous respect for how hard he works, how collaborative he approaches the job, and his ability to build very successful global businesses and brands,” said Zaslav said in a statement. “I am thrilled to be working with him again, and believe Luis’ strong international business relationships, leadership track record and passion for delivering the best content and consumer experience make him the ideal leader to oversee the continued growth and expansion of our world-class sports business." 

Lenny Daniels, president, Turner Sports, and Patrick Crumb, president, Regional Sports Networks, will report to Silberwasser.

Andrew Georgiou, president and managing director, WBD Sports Europe, will continue to report to Gerhard Zeiler, president, International.

The new posting fills the new company's last outstanding executive leadership role and makes Silberwasser one of the most powerful executives in sports media.

Warner Bros Discovery has a global portfolio of media rights, sports networks and sports-focused streaming platforms through Turner Sports, Eurosport Networks and its BT Sport joint venture.

In the U.S., the company has long-term broadcast rights to Major League Baseball, the National Basketball League, the National Hockey League and NCAA Basketball.

In Europe, it has rights to the Olympics, PGA Tour and ATP World Tour, as well as cycling, tennis and football, and in Latin America, to the UEFA and multiple local football leagues.

Its four sports streaming services include Eurosport Player, which  offers localized sports to customers in 52 European markets.