The Man Behind the NFL’s Media Empire Is Now Running the PGA Tour
After two decades building the NFL’s media machine, Brian Rolapp is stepping into golf’s leadership role—armed with $1.5 billion and a mandate to fix the PGA Tour’s fractured relationship with LIV.
Brian Rolapp is one of the few people in sports who rarely speak to the media but is widely recognized by everyone. If you search his name on Getty Images, only two photos show up from a conference he attended in 2013. The same thing happens on Google and YouTube; before last week, there were a few articles and podcasts, but I would be surprised if Rolapp did more than a dozen interviews over the last decade.
This was by design. “I don’t spend a lot of time self-promoting,” Rolapp told Fortune in 2015. Long considered the NFL’s heir apparent to commissioner Roger Goodell, Rolapp has built a reputation for seeing around corners. He created the Thursday Night Football package we see today, and he was the main architect of the NFL’s media strategy during a time in which it signed more than $150 billion in deals.
Now, with Goodell expected to sign another extension that will lengthen his tenure as commissioner until at least 2030, Rolapp is embracing the spotlight. After a 22-year stint with the NFL that saw him rise from a finance and strategy role at the NFL Network to become the league’s Chief Media and Business Officer, Rolapp has been named the PGA Tour’s first-ever CEO, overseeing both the PGA Tour and its new for-profit business.
This is a fantastic hire for the PGA Tour. When I first heard whispers that Rolapp was interested in the role a few months ago, I was stunned that the PGA Tour didn’t get him to sign on the dotted line immediately. These deals take time, especially when you’re convincing someone to leave the NFL, but there is no better hire than Rolapp.
Many people seem to be confused about the PGA Tour’s organizational hierarchy, but it’s really quite simple. Commissioner Jay Monahan is planning to step down after his contract expires in 2026. The PGA Tour will eventually name a new commissioner, but that commissioner will likely be a former player, focusing on competition, rules, and relations with players. As the first-ever CEO of the PGA Tour, the new commissioner will report to Rolapp. There will still be a board of directors to oversee everyone, but Rolapp will now serve as the final decision-maker on all PGA Tour matters, including everything from new media rights deals to resolving the 3-year conflict with LIV Golf.
Today, we’ll discuss what Rolapp was able to accomplish at the NFL, why he chose to leave the world’s most profitable sports league for one currently going through a civil war, how the PGA Tour’s recent $3 billion fundraise impacted this announcement, what his biggest priorities will be on day one, and much more. Let’s get into it.