Fubo has named former Disney Plus President Alisa Bowen as its new Chief Executive Officer, succeeding co-founder David Gandler as the sports-focused streaming television provider enters its next phase following its combination with Hulu with Live TV.
Bowen’s appointment takes effect July 10. Subject to shareholder approval at Fubo’s annual meeting on July 28, she is also expected to join the company’s board of directors.
Under the terms of his employment agreement, Gandler has resigned from the company’s board and will not stand for re-election at the upcoming annual meeting, according to a press release issued on Thursday.
The leadership transition comes less than a year after Fubo combined with Hulu with Live TV, a deal that significantly expanded the company’s scale while strengthening its ties to Disney’s streaming business.
Board Chairman Andy Bird said Bowen’s appointment followed a search led by the company’s independent directors and positions Fubo to build on its evolving strategy.
“Following the combination with Hulu with Live TV last year, Fubo has reached a pivotal moment in its strategic evolution, with a compelling Pay TV platform, strong content portfolio and unique integration in the Disney ecosystem,” Bird said in a statement.
He cited Bowen’s nearly 30 years of experience in digital media, product development and operations, including her leadership roles across Disney Plus, Hulu and ESPN Plus, as well as her record of driving subscriber growth and profitability.
Bowen spent nearly a decade at Disney, most recently serving as President of Disney Plus. She was also a founding member of Disney’s streaming leadership team, helping develop the global strategy and operational rollout of Disney Plus while supporting the growth of Hulu and ESPN Plus. Before joining Disney, she held senior leadership positions at News Corporation, Dow Jones and Thomson Reuters in New York, Los Angeles, London and Sydney.
In a statement, Bowen said she intends to sharpen Fubo’s strategy across sports, news and entertainment while accelerating growth and improving profitability.
“I am excited to lead Fubo in its next phase as we sharpen its strategy across sports, news and entertainment, accelerate growth and drive profitability, while delivering even greater value to Fubo and Hulu + Live subscribers, our advertisers and our content partners,” she said.
Gandler, who co-founded Fubo in 2015 and has led the company since its inception, is stepping down as chief executive after overseeing its evolution from a soccer-focused streaming service into one of the country’s largest virtual multichannel video programming distributors.
During his tenure, Fubo expanded its live sports offerings, added entertainment and news programming, completed its initial public offering and ultimately combined with Hulu + Live TV.
“It has been an honor to lead Fubo since co-founding the Company, and I am incredibly proud of everything our team has accomplished over the past 11 years,” Gandler said. “Today, Fubo has best-in-class programming partnerships, innovative service offerings and preeminent live sports and entertainment content and is well positioned for the future.”
