OAKLAND, Calif. – The Oakland Athletics have hired Tonya Antonucci as Vice President of Marketing, the Club announced today. In this role, Antonucci will oversee brand management, customer acquisition, ballpark entertainment, broadcasting, digital content, and special events. Her first day with the Club will be Nov. 7. 

“As an organization, we are focused on honoring the rich tradition and history of our Club while also driving the brand forward by being innovative, dynamic, and inclusive,” said Oakland A’s President Dave Kaval. “Tonya brings an incredible level of knowledge, leadership, and experience to this role. Her involvement leading marketing efforts for sports startups, nonprofits, and globally established brands is a tremendous addition to our team.” 

Antonucci has more than 20 years of experience in bringing to market and scaling entertainment and sports verticals, properties, global events, and social ventures. Most recently, she was the Chief Marketing Officer for Playworks, a national nonprofit based in Oakland that focuses on youth physical activity. In this role, she oversaw the organization’s brand profile and marketing campaigns, as well as their 23 regional offices’ brand management. 

In 2004, Antonucci helped found Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS), a national women’s professional soccer league featuring the world’s top Olympic athletes. She served as Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer until 2010. In addition to helping create the league, she developed and oversaw the brand, marketing and business operations, and grew the startup to 400 employees. 

While at Yahoo!, Antonucci launched Yahoo! Sports and Yahoo! Fantasy Sports, moving up through the organization to become General Manager of Yahoo! Sports, Media and Entertainment, a business unit of startups focused on multi-language global sports media event sites and subscription video offerings. For nearly a decade, she has also managed a consulting firm where she advises consumer tech, sports, and entertainment organizations on strategy, growth, and product development. 

A resident of the East Bay, Antonucci holds a BA in Political Science and Economics from Stanford and has completed MBA coursework at Santa Clara University. She was a member of the Stanford’s Women’s Soccer team during her tenure at Stanford and also served as an assistant coach after graduation at both Stanford and Santa Clara.