Venu Sports, a joint streaming venture created by ESPN, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery, has appointed two Indian-Americans, Amit Dudakia and Gautam Ranji, to its leadership team, as reported by Barrett Media.
Amit Dudakia will serve as the Senior Vice President and Head of Product. In this role, he will oversee product management and design, along with programming and editorial functions for Venu Sports. Dudakia joins from Fox Technology and Digital, where he was the Senior Vice President of Product Management, leading product and design initiatives for FOX Sports. His tenure at Fox Corporation began at FX Network, where he played a key role in launching several projects, according to Barrett Media.
Gautam Ranji has been named Chief Financial Officer and will manage the financial operations of Venu Sports. Previously, Ranji served as CFO and Treasurer for Sphere Entertainment, where he significantly contributed to the financial and management team that launched the Sphere in Las Vegas. Prior to this, Ranji was involved in strategic planning and business development at CBS and co-led the integration process following the Viacom and CBS merger, now known as Paramount Global.
The new executive team at Venu Sports also includes CMO Brian Borkowski (formerly of FanDuel and Hulu), Chief Business Officer Tim Connolly (formerly of Apple TV+, Hulu, and Disney), Chief Legal Officer David Hillman (formerly of Paramount Global), Chief Technology Officer Skarpi Hedinsson (formerly of L.A. Rams and Disney/ABC Television), SVP & Head of People Judy Schwab (formerly of Apple and Disney), and SVP & Head of Communications Jessica Casano-Antonellis (formerly of SiriusXM and Disney), according to Barrett Media.
These executives will report to CEO Pete Distad and will operate from New York and Los Angeles. This diverse leadership team aims to position Venu Sports as a major player in the streaming sports industry.
