Genius Sports names Tony Marlow CMO
Table of contents
- Genius Sports has appointed Tony Marlow as Chief Marketing Officer, effective April 9, 2026.
- Marlow joins from LG Ad Solutions, where he previously served as CMO, and has held senior marketing roles at Integral Ad Science, Data Axle, and Yahoo.
- The hire comes as Genius Sports faces investor scrutiny over its $1.2bn acquisition of Legend and looks to sharpen its global brand positioning.
Genius Sports (NYSE: GENI) has appointed Tony Marlow as Chief Marketing Officer, the company announced on April 9.
Marlow joins the New York-headquartered firm to lead global marketing, communications, and brand strategy as it expands across sports data, media, betting, and advertising.
Marlow’s background
His career spans the intersection of media technology and digital advertising. Marlow most recently served as CMO at LG Ad Solutions, and previously held the same role at Integral Ad Science, where he helped take the company public through its 2021 IPO. Before that, he was CMO at Data Axle and held a senior B2B marketing leadership role at Yahoo.
The appointment adds a seasoned ad-tech executive to a leadership bench that has seen several senior hires in recent years, including Group Chief Technology Officer Mark Kropf, who joined from Google, and Chief Financial Officer Bryan Castellani, who took over global finance operations in late 2025.
Mark Locke, Chief Executive Officer of Genius Sports, said:
“We are the operating system of sport, with the infrastructure to create value across every part of the ecosystem. As the industry converges across data, media, betting and advertising, our focus is on scaling that platform globally. Tony’s appointment strengthens our leadership team and our ability to execute against that vision and accelerate growth across the business.”
Tony Marlow, Chief Marketing Officer of Genius Sports, said:
“I’m thrilled to join as CMO at such an exciting juncture. The live moment economy is here, and the sports category can now deliver even more value to fans and brands by helping them engage during the moments that matter most. That creates value across the entire ecosystem, while delivering a better experience for fans. Genius has built the infrastructure to make that possible. Our opportunity now is to bring that to the market in highly visible ways.”
Marlow will lead go-to-market efforts targeting leagues and federations, broadcasters and streamers, betting operators, and advertisers.
The Legend backdrop
The CMO hire lands at a sensitive moment for Genius Sports. The company’s $1.2bn acquisition of digital gaming media network Legend, announced in February, was met with scepticism from sections of the investment community concerned about the new debt and strategic fit.
Genius Sports’ share price fell from $8.50 to as low as $6.04 in the days following the announcement — a drop of over 25% — with the stock remaining under pressure in the weeks that followed.
Some investors questioned the price and the rationale, given the mixed results of comparable acquisitions and growing doubts about the affiliate model in an AI-driven environment. The deal was also largely financed through a loan.
CEO Mark Locke moved to defend the deal in an open letter to shareholders, arguing the company had not purchased a simple affiliate business but rather “a participation layer built on two decades of technological investment that sits between official data infrastructure and the moment of transaction.” The share price rose over 10% following his intervention.
Genius Sports reported full-year 2025 revenue of $669.5m, up 31% year on year, with adjusted EBITDA of $136.2m, a 59% increase. The company has reaffirmed standalone 2026 revenue guidance of $810-820m.
With Marlow now in position, Genius Sports will look to sharpen its narrative across advertisers, operators, and rights holders as it integrates Legend and works to rebuild investor confidence.
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