Item 5.02. Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.
As previously disclosed on the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on August 23, 2024, as part of the transition of various general and administrative services provided by Liberty Media Corporation (“Liberty Media”) to Atlanta Braves Holdings, Inc. (the “Company”) under the Services Agreement, dated as of July 18, 2023, by and between Liberty Media and the Company, all current officers of the Company (with limited exceptions) will step down from their officer positions, effective August 31, 2024. On August 26, 2024, the board of directors of the Company approved the following management changes effective as of September 1, 2024.
Appointment of President and Chief Executive Officer
Terence F. McGuirk, age 73, has been appointed to the role of President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company. Mr. McGuirk has been a director of the Company since July 2023 and has been Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Braves Holdings, LLC (“Braves Holdings”), the parent company of the Atlanta Braves (the “Braves”) and wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, and Chairman of Braves Development Company, LLC (“BDC”), an indirect subsidiary of the Company, since 2014. Prior to that time, Mr. McGuirk was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. (“TBS”) from 1996 until 2001, and has held various positions at TBS and TBS-owned Atlanta sports teams. Mr. McGuirk is ex officio member of the MLB Executive Council, Chairman of the MLB Committee on Economic Reform and member of MLB’s Ownership Committee and Finance and Compensation Committee. There was no increase in Mr. McGuirk’s annual base salary, bonuses or awards in connection with the appointment to President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company.
There are no arrangements or understandings between Mr. McGuirk and any other person pursuant to which Mr. McGuirk was appointed as President and Chief Executive Officer and there are no family relationships between Mr. McGuirk and any director or executive officer of the Company.
The Company has engaged in the following transactions with Mr. McGuirk, which have been disclosed pursuant to Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K:
In September 2014, Atlanta National League Baseball Club, LLC (“ANLBC”), a subsidiary of Braves Holdings, entered into an aircraft time sharing agreement with St. Simons, a company owned by Mr. McGuirk. Under the agreement, St. Simons leases an aircraft to ANLBC and provides a fully qualified flight crew for all operations on a periodic, non-exclusive time sharing basis. Payments under the agreement were approximately $237,800 during 2023 and $240,900 through July 31, 2024. The agreement may be terminated by either party upon written notice.
Mr. McGuirk’s son, Terry McGuirk III, is employed by a real estate development advisory firm (the “Advisory Firm”) that performs work for BDC. Mr. McGuirk III is a senior vice president and partner in the sports group of the Advisory Firm, but does not work directly on BDC matters on behalf of the Advisory Firm. Mr. McGuirk III, as a partner in the sports group of the Advisory Firm, receives commissions on office leasing deals by the Advisory Firm on behalf of BDC. Since January 1, 2022, the Advisory Firm has been involved in four office leasing transactions in connection with BDC that resulted in commissions to the Advisory Firm of approximately $4,495,200. Mr. McGuirk III received a share of the commissions from those transactions of approximately $262,600.
Appointment of Chief Financial Officer
Jill Robinson, age 54, has been appointed Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of the Company. Ms. Robinson has been Chief Financial Officer of Braves Holdings since April 2018. Ms. Robinson held various positions at McKesson Corporation from 2001 until joining Braves Holdings in 2018, including chief financial officer and senior vice president of McKesson Technology Solutions from February 2013 to April 2018. There was no increase in Ms. Robinson’s annual base salary, bonuses or awards in connection with the appointment to Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of the Company.