Stanford named former Nike CEO John Donahoe MBA ’86 as its next Jaquish & Kenninger Director of Athletics, the University announced on Thursday. Best known for holding top positions at Nike, Bain & Company and PayPal, Donahoe will officially take over on Sept. 8, stepping into the role at a time of seismic change for both Stanford athletics and the broader collegiate sports landscape.
Donahoe is not a traditional athletic director hire. A Dartmouth graduate with an MBA from Stanford, he began his career at Bain & Company, rising from consultant to CEO, before leading several high-profile companies in the tech, commerce and sportswear industries. Most recently, he served as CEO of Nike but also serves as the chairman of PayPal and is on the board of directors at the Bridgespan Group. His hire signals a pivot toward more executive-style leadership in college sports — likely a response to the era of name, image and likeness (NIL) deals, conference realignments and looming conversations around revenue-sharing.
Still, this isn’t uncharted territory for Donahoe. Throughout the years, he’s been a long-standing supporter of the University and its athletic mission.
“We needed a distinctive leader – someone with the vision, judgment, and strategic acumen for a new era of college athletics, and with a deep appreciation for Stanford’s model of scholar-athlete excellence,” University president Jonathan Levin ’94 wrote in the school’s announcement of the hire. “John embodies these characteristics.”
He will take the reins from Bernard Muir, who led the department for 12 years, guiding Stanford through dozens of NCAA championships and, more recently, the high-stakes move to the ACC. Stanford has continued to excel in Olympic sports but has struggled in its two highest-profile programs: football and basketball. The football team just wrapped its fourth straight 3–9 season amid the departure of head coach Troy Taylor due to bullying allegations. On the basketball court, the women’s team missed the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 36 years, while the men’s program has not made a March Madness appearance since 2014.
Donahoe’s arrival signals a long-term vision that prizes both academic and athletic excellence. With 36 varsity programs, a passionate donor base and a rapidly evolving national landscape, he steps into a role that is becoming increasingly complex and consequential.