Staff Directory
Kurt Svoboda
- Title:
- Deputy Athletic Director for External Relations
- Email:
Kurt Svoboda joined the University of Washington athletic department as Deputy Athletic Director for External Relations on June 7, 2024.Â
Svoboda is responsible for external oversight in the areas of multimedia rights, corporate partnerships, NIL strategy, trademarks and licensing, marketing, branding, creative, digital and social media, broadcast operations, and strategic communications. Svoboda is also the sport administrator for baseball and collaborates with a sport administration team for football and basketball.Â
Â
An accomplished athletics administrator with experience on the West Coast and also in the Big Ten Conference, Svoboda came to UW from the University of Michigan, where he spent more than nine years as associate athletic director of external communications and public relations. Before that, he spent two years as senior assistant athletic director for public relations and strategic communications at Stanford.
In 2026, Svoboda was named to Silver Waves Media's Top-100 Rising Athletic Directors/ Future ADs and he is a graduate of the prestigious NCAA Pathways Program, which identifies and elevates senior-level administrators in preparation for positions in athletic leadership. Â
  Â
During his time in Ann Arbor, Svoboda oversaw Michigan's communications, digital and creative staff, and digital marketing efforts. He also launched the Wolverines' NIL platform, the Victors Local Exchange. He also served as the department's primary liaison to the Big Ten Network and various campus groups while working directly with U-M's rights holder, Learfield, across digital and creative initiatives.
Â
While at Stanford (2013-15), he served as the chief public affairs and departmental spokesperson, the Cardinal's primary football contact for media relations, and was the program's main contact for the Pac-12 Network.
Â
Before his time at Stanford, Svoboda served in several roles, including as the assistant athletic director for public relations at Harvard from 2005 to 2013. He was the chief public affairs and media relations executive and department spokesperson for the Crimson, serving as the primary contact for multiple programs, including football, men's basketball, and baseball. Svoboda also launched Harvard's multimedia and production unit which continues to be recognized today among the nation's best.Â
Â
A graduate of Colby-Sawyer College (N.H.), Svoboda was a four-year letterwinner on the baseball team, twice earning academic all-conference honors en route to a Hall of Fame induction as a member of the program's all-time winningest team. Following graduation, Svoboda spent time as a baseball coach while also working in administration at Saint Anselm College, Franklin Pierce University and the New England Collegiate Baseball League.
Â
Svoboda earned a B.S. in exercise & sports sciences and sport management from Colby-Sawyer, and a master's degree in finance and control from Harvard. In 2014, he was honored as a Colby-Sawyer Distinguished Alumnus.
Â
He and his wife, Joanna, are the parents of a son, Jaxon.
Svoboda is responsible for external oversight in the areas of multimedia rights, corporate partnerships, NIL strategy, trademarks and licensing, marketing, branding, creative, digital and social media, broadcast operations, and strategic communications. Svoboda is also the sport administrator for baseball and collaborates with a sport administration team for football and basketball.Â
Â
An accomplished athletics administrator with experience on the West Coast and also in the Big Ten Conference, Svoboda came to UW from the University of Michigan, where he spent more than nine years as associate athletic director of external communications and public relations. Before that, he spent two years as senior assistant athletic director for public relations and strategic communications at Stanford.
In 2026, Svoboda was named to Silver Waves Media's Top-100 Rising Athletic Directors/ Future ADs and he is a graduate of the prestigious NCAA Pathways Program, which identifies and elevates senior-level administrators in preparation for positions in athletic leadership. Â
  Â
During his time in Ann Arbor, Svoboda oversaw Michigan's communications, digital and creative staff, and digital marketing efforts. He also launched the Wolverines' NIL platform, the Victors Local Exchange. He also served as the department's primary liaison to the Big Ten Network and various campus groups while working directly with U-M's rights holder, Learfield, across digital and creative initiatives.
Â
While at Stanford (2013-15), he served as the chief public affairs and departmental spokesperson, the Cardinal's primary football contact for media relations, and was the program's main contact for the Pac-12 Network.
Â
Before his time at Stanford, Svoboda served in several roles, including as the assistant athletic director for public relations at Harvard from 2005 to 2013. He was the chief public affairs and media relations executive and department spokesperson for the Crimson, serving as the primary contact for multiple programs, including football, men's basketball, and baseball. Svoboda also launched Harvard's multimedia and production unit which continues to be recognized today among the nation's best.Â
Â
A graduate of Colby-Sawyer College (N.H.), Svoboda was a four-year letterwinner on the baseball team, twice earning academic all-conference honors en route to a Hall of Fame induction as a member of the program's all-time winningest team. Following graduation, Svoboda spent time as a baseball coach while also working in administration at Saint Anselm College, Franklin Pierce University and the New England Collegiate Baseball League.
Â
Svoboda earned a B.S. in exercise & sports sciences and sport management from Colby-Sawyer, and a master's degree in finance and control from Harvard. In 2014, he was honored as a Colby-Sawyer Distinguished Alumnus.
Â
He and his wife, Joanna, are the parents of a son, Jaxon.
Tuesday, August 11
Tuesday, August 11
Tuesday, August 11
Tuesday, August 11
