World Esports Association appoint former Showtime boss as Chairman

The World Esports Association (WESA) have announced Ken Hershman as the organization’s new Executive Chairman and Commissioner.

Hershman will take the reins from Pietro Fringuelli, who served as Interim Commissioner since the introduction of WESA this past May.

Hershman was also named Chief Executive Officer of the WESA Agency, the media arm of the organization. 

Hershman spent nearly 30 years in the television sports world, where he helped spearhead some of the industry’s most innovative television programming for both Home Box Office (HBO) and Showtime.

 During his tenure as president of HBO Sports, Hershman piloted a variety of renowned boxing franchises, as well as award-winning original programming.

“Now is the perfect time for WESA to introduce a dynamic and seasoned Commissioner and we’re confident Ken is the right leader to take our organization and sport to new heights,” said Ralf Reichert,WESA Board Director and Co-Founder and Managing Director, ESL. “Ken is a true visionary whose expertise in strategy, creative and execution is precisely what WESA needs to move at digital speed to fulfill our vision to build a world-class esports association.”

WESA was founded in May 2016 by eight of the world’s most popular esports teams (Fnatic, Natus Vincere, EnVyUS, Virtus.Pro, Gamers2, Faze, mouse sports, Ninjas in Pyjamas) and ESL, the world’s largest esports company, who shared a collective vision to further professionalize the sport by introducing elements of player representation, standardized regulations and revenue sharing for teams.