As executive vice president and chief revenue officer of the National Football League, University of Mississippi graduate Renie Anderson is a leader of one of the largest and most profitable sports leagues in the world.
“I didn’t know this type of job existed, and so I’ve always been passionate about sports,” Anderson said in a Zoom interview with The Daily Mississippian. “I was lucky enough that my first job as an assistant (in the American Football League) at the time out of college was in sports, and then I was able to really learn from those around me to continue to, almost 30 years later, have a career in sports.”
After graduating from UM in 1997 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism, Anderson moved to California, where she thought she could write for television or movies on the side. She struggled to find time to do that.
“When you’re working full time, it’s hard to have a side hustle,” Anderson said. “I realized that I really enjoyed working in sports. I’m super passionate about it, and so I just laser-focused on it. I think I realized in sales, you tell a story — you just tell it in a different way.”
In her first job out of college, Anderson worked as the assistant to the commissioner of the AFL, David Baker.
“I was his assistant for about two years, and then I volunteered to move to the East Coast prior to 9/11 to start the East Coast office,” Anderson said. “I was kind of a group assistant, and then the boss at that office quit. So I started doing those jobs, and then I became, long story short, a manager of consumer products. And then I became a manager of sponsorship sales.”
Anderson’s time at the AFL taught her valuable skills and lessons such as work ethic, problem-solving and taking initiative.
“That was my first job in sports, and it taught me to really hustle and to learn, (as well as) a little bit of ‘If you don’t know something, (that) doesn’t mean you step away from that,’” Anderson said. “You continue to raise your hand and figure out problems. And ultimately, it also taught me that when there’s not anyone there to do the job and the job needs to be done, that I could figure out how to do a specific job that would give me a boost and opportunity to continue to grow.”
Anderson, a Kentucky native, said that being a woman in sports has not been as important in her career as her being a Southerner working in the North, specifically New York City where the NFL league office is located.
“I think I’ve been a little naive that I haven’t really thought about being a woman,” Anderson said. “Sometimes I think about being Southern before I do about being a woman, especially here in New York, but I think at times I could be possibly underestimated, which, by the way, is completely fine with me. Because then, ultimately, I want to make sure that I’m exceeding those expectations every time.”
Anderson believes people overlook her because she is from the South — specifically, because of her Southern manners.
“It’s our secret weapon that we’re so kind and nice,” Anderson said. “But I think that so many people are coming from the Northeast and going to schools down in the South, right? Because everyone knows the secret is out.”
Anderson has been with the NFL since 2006, making partnerships with companies that provide technology that teams regularly use on the sidelines, such as Microsoft Surface Tablets and Sony headphones.
Her work addresses product integration and sponsorships. The NFL recently announced a partnership with Lululemon, and Anderson is preparing for another partnership down the road.
“I was just in Los Angeles for the Thursday Night Football game with the Vikings at the Chargers, and we hosted a bunch of partners from our partner in trading cards starting in April with Fanatics and Tops,” Anderson said.
While Anderson is not one of the athletes on the field playing games, she certainly plays a big part in the NFL’s brand.
“I don’t put on a helmet and pads everyday, but my uniform is either a blazer or a business suit,” Anderson said. “I feel like I’m about to run through that tunnel every day, and so I like that same intensity that the NFL brings.”
