Report: Stanford to hire former Nike CEO John Donahoe as athletic director

Stanford is set to hire former Nike CEO John Donahoe as its next athletic director, ESPN’s Pete Thamel and Seth Wickersham reported. A Stanford MBA graduate and currently the chairman of PayPal, school officials view him as a “unicorn candidate.”

Donahoe started his career at Bain & Company, a global consulting firm in Boston. He spent 20 years there, starting out as an associate consultant before becoming president and CEO in 1999. He remained in the roles until 2005 when he took over as the president of eBay Marketplaces and later became CEO in 2008.

In 2017, Donahoe became the president and CEO of a software company ServiceNow and before eventually taking over as Nike’s CEO in January 2020. He was with the shoewear giant until 2024 when he announced his departure from his role. He remained with the company as a consultant until this past January.

Additionally, Donahoe served on the board of trustees at Dartmouth from 2003-12. Now, he’ll take over as Stanford’s athletics director after Bernard Muir announced his plans to step down.

During the search, the expectation was Stanford would have plenty of input from football general manager Andrew Luck, who made the decision to fire coach Troy Taylor this offseason and hire Frank Reich as the interim head coach for the 2024 season. A search for a full-time head coach will take place at a later date.

Luck previously reported to school president Jonathan Levin rather than the head football coach. ESPN reported the former No. 1 overall NFL Draft pick will now report to Donahoe and is excited about the hire.

Donahoe’s hire comes as the college sports world undergoes massive change following approval of the House v. NCAA settlement. The revenue-sharing era arrived this month as schools can now share up to $20.5 million directly with athletes.

That has also led to some outside-the-box hires around the landscape. North Carolina recently announced a succession plan with Bubba Cunningham set to retire from his role and RFK Racing president Steve Newmark expected to take over in 2026 following a transition. At Maryland, James E. Smith is taking over as AD after working in Major League Baseball with the Atlanta Braves.

In fact, the San Jose Mercury News’ Jon Wilner reported the hire would likely have Luck’s “stamp of approval,” not to mention revenue-generating experience. It appears Donahoe got the nod as Stanford went outside college sports for the hire.

John Donahoe graduated with his BA from Dartmouth in 1982 before getting his MBA from Stanford in 1986. The ties to the Cardinal, as well as his ties in the business world, are part of what made him a “unicorn candidate” for the athletics director job, ESPN reported.