The Arena Group announced the appointment of Chris Pirrone as Senior Vice President and General Manager of Sports. Pirrone brings over two decades of digital media experience to the newly-created role at the Company. As General Manager of Sports, Pirrone will oversee the growth of The Arena Group's portfolio of sports sites, known as Sports Illustrated Media Group, anchored by Sports Illustrated.

At USA TODAY Sports Media Group, Pirrone launched over 75 sports vertical sites and led a significant expansion of the publisher's digital advertising business across digital, social and mobile as General Manager. He also grew audiences from 10 million to 60 million monthly Comscore unique viewers and increased revenue to over $100 million annually. Pirrone will start in June and report to Barrett.

He previously held positions as General Manager of ad network Traffic Marketplace and General Counsel at Traffic Marketplace and ValueClick Inc. Pirrone has a bachelor's degree in economics from St. Lawrence University and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Akron School of Law.