A former chairman of Hamleys and House of Fraser is to lead a new company that has been created to drive rugby league’s commercial development.
Frank Slevin has been appointed as the first chair of RL Commercial which is to become fully operational by January 2023.
Mr Slevin has served as chair of British Cycling since January 2018 and also chairs the UK National Committee on China.
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He was chairman of Hamleys of London for almost three years to September 2018 and was executive chairman of House of Fraser from 2014 to the same date.
Mr Slevin has also held roles with the likes of HSBC, Citi, BNP Paribas and Brookstone.
Joining Mr Slevin on the board will be IMG Media head of sport, Ed Mallaburn. The recruitment of a further four non-executive directors is still ongoing.
The full board, which is expected to be finalised by October, will oversee work to develop rugby league’s value across all revenue-driving areas.
In a joint statement RFL chairman Simon Johnson Super League Europe chairman Ken Davy, said: "We are excited that the board of our new aligned joint venture, RL Commercial, is beginning to take shape with these two significant appointments.
"Frank Slevin is an outstanding business leader who impressed us with his experience, intelligence, decency and commitment. He is passionate about using his experience to help us build the board, grow the team and commercialise our sport. We very much look forward to working closely alongside Frank.
"We are also delighted that IMG has nominated Ed Mallaburn to serve on the board. Ed is a senior leader within IMG and will help to ensure that the relationship between IMG and RL Commercial is strong at every level. His wealth of experience in the commercial development of sport around the world will hugely enhance the board’s discussions."
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