Sponsorship & Advertising Sales Executive, American Football League Europe

About the league

The American Football League Europe (AFLE) is Europe's new professional American football league. Eight franchises across seven countries - the Wroclaw Panthers, Rhein Fire Düsseldorf, Berlin Thunder, Vienna Vikings, London Warriors, Paris Lights, Firenze Red Lions and Alpine Rams kicked off the league's inaugural season in May 2026, with plans to grow by at least two clubs per year. The Warsaw Eagles have already been announced as a new franchise for the 2027 season. Games are carried free-to-air in home markets and worldwide on the league's streaming platform, reaching a fanbase of 63 million+ American football fans across AFLE markets. American football is the second most watched sport in Germany. The league is financially backed for the long term and is building its commercial organization now. This is a chance to get in at the ground floor of a professional sports property and build a partnership portfolio from scratch.

The role

Commission-based engagement on an independent contractor basis, with a guaranteed recoverable draw of EUR 2,500 per month paid from day one. Commission on sponsorship and advertising sales per the AFLE Sales Compensation Plan, uncapped, with full details shared during the interview process. Remote within Germany, preferred location Hamburg with access to the League's Hamburg headquarters office. Languages: German and English.

This is an individual contributor role, not a management position. You will find, pitch, and close advertising and sponsorship partnerships for the league across a structured partnership framework covering travel and hospitality, sports performance and equipment, matchday and lifestyle brands, consumer services and fintech, and corporate partners. Deal structures range from barter and activation deals to multi-year commercial programs, including performance-based models such as revenue shares that the league already runs with live partners today. This is a hunting role. You will build your own pipeline, get meetings with marketing decisionmakers at brands across Europe, and close deals. You will report to the Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) of the AFLE, and work directly with league leadership, with real ownership of revenue targets.

What you will do

• Build and manage a pipeline of sponsorship and advertising prospects across DACH (Germany, Austria, Switzerland), Poland, France, the UK, Italy and pan-European brands.

• Run the full sales cycle: prospecting, outreach, meetings, proposal, negotiation, close.

• Sell league-level partnership packages, broadcast advertising inventory, and digital advertising inventory, working within the league's established partnership framework and deal design process.

• Grow partnerships over time, from a first barter or activation deal into multi-year commercial programs.

• Work with league leadership to shape packages and pricing based on market feedback.

• Represent the league at games, industry events, and partner meetings.

• Report pipeline and revenue progress weekly.

What we require

• Minimum 5 years of B2B sales experience with a demonstrable record of closing. You will be asked for specifics: deal sizes, quota attainment, names of deals you closed.

• Professional fluency in English and German, written and spoken. You will sell primarily to English- and German-speaking decisionmakers and work internally in English. Polish is a plus, since we now have two franchises there.

• Experience selling sponsorships, media, advertising, or marketing services strongly preferred. Sports industry experience is a plus but not required. What is required is proof you can hunt and close.

• Self-starter who can build pipeline from zero without handholding. This is not an account management role. There is no existing book of business.

• Based in Germany with the ability to travel within Europe for meetings and game days if necessary.

• Able to work on a B2B contract basis, invoicing as an independent contractor.

Compensation

A monthly draw of EUR 2,000 gross to give you income while you build pipeline, offset against your commission as you close and never clawed back if you fall short, plus uncapped commission on the partnerships you win. Earnings are uncapped: a strong performer closing EUR 1 Mio+ of partnership revenue can earn EUR 100,000+. Commission is paid on cash deals and on in-kind (barter) partnerships, and you keep earning on the accounts you own and renew year over year. The engagement is a B2B contract, an initial three months auto-renewing for a further three on performance, with a six-week paid probation at the start. Full plan details are shared during the interview process.

How to apply

Apply with your CV in English. In place of a cover letter, answer these three questions in your application, in English, short answers and bullet points fine: 1) What is the largest deal you have personally closed, what was it, and what was your role in closing it? 2) Describe your English and German fluency honestly: where did you learn it and in what context have you sold in English and German? 3) Why does selling for a new sports league appeal to you? Applications without these answers will not be reviewed.