Media Buying Manager

A bit about us

Do you want to join one of the world’s fastest growing sports technology companies? 

Genius Sports is at the epicentre of the global network connecting sports, brands and fans through official live data. Our mission is simple. We champion a more sustainable sports data  that benefits all parties.

We’re looking for enthusiastic and ambitious people to join our talented team.

If you see yourself becoming part of a global family building the future of sports entertainment together, then come and grow with us. 

We put trust in our people to deliver the difference for our clients around the world. It’s why many of the world’s largest leagues & federations such as the NFL, English Premier League, FIBA and NCAA choose to work with Genius Sports.

Genius Sports is the leading provider of sports data, technology, and media solutions. We connect brands, advertisers, and rights holders with sports audiences through cutting-edge programmatic advertising, proprietary data, and real-time insights. As we continue to scale our media operations, we are seeking a dynamic Head of Media Buying to lead our programmatic trading function and drive growth in our media business.

Role Overview

The Media Buying Manager will oversee all programmatic trading across Genius Sports, managing the trading team and ensuring the company maximizes revenue opportunities through strategic and data-driven media buying. This role requires a deep understanding of the digital advertising ecosystem, programmatic platforms, and sports media, as well as the ability to optimize trading strategies, scale operations, and drive innovation. Due to the demands of the team there will be a player/ coach element to this role including hands on management of Tier 1 client accounts.

Additionally, this role will play a key part in the evolution of Genius Sports’ FANHub media buying platform, working closely with product and development teams to enhance capabilities, improve automation, and refine audience targeting.

Key Responsibilities

Programmatic Trading Leadership

• Lead and manage the programmatic trading team, setting strategic direction, performance benchmarks, and best practices.
• Oversee the execution of all programmatic media buying across DSPs, SSPs, and data platforms, ensuring efficiency and performance.
• Develop and refine trading strategies to maximize revenue, increase yield, and improve campaign outcomes.
• Establish rigorous optimization methodologies and ensure continuous performance improvements.

Strategic Growth & Business Development

• Develop and execute a roadmap for programmatic media buying to align with Genius Sports’ broader media strategy.
• Identify new revenue opportunities within programmatic trading, including new ad formats, inventory sources, and data partnerships.
• Work closely with commercial teams to develop advertiser and brand solutions that leverage Genius Sports’ unique data assets.
• Stay ahead of industry trends, emerging technologies, and changes in ad tech regulations to maintain a competitive edge.

FANHub Platform Development & Product Collaboration

• Work closely with the product and development teams to enhance Genius Sports’ FANHub media buying platform.
• Provide input on automation, audience segmentation, and trading optimization features to improve platform capabilities.
• Collaborate on testing new technologies, integrating data-driven insights, and ensuring seamless platform scalability.
• Help define requirements for new product features that enhance programmatic performance and efficiency.

Operational Excellence & Collaboration

• Own and optimize relationships with DSPs, SSPs, data providers, and ad exchanges to improve efficiency and scale.
• Collaborate with analytics and data science teams to refine audience segmentation, targeting, and attribution models.
• Implement robust tracking, reporting, and measurement frameworks to assess trading performance and inform strategic decisions.

Leadership & Team Development

• Build, mentor, and develop a high-performing programmatic trading team.
• Foster a culture of innovation, agility, and continuous improvement within the team.
• Provide training and development opportunities to enhance expertise across programmatic trading functions.

Qualifications & Experience

• 7+ years of experience in programmatic media buying, digital advertising, or ad tech, with a strong track record in trading leadership roles.
• Deep expertise in DSPs, SSPs, ad exchanges, DMPs, and data-driven trading strategies.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret complex data sets and make data-driven decisions.
• Experience working closely with product and development teams to evolve media buying platforms or automation tools.
• Understanding of sports media, gaming, betting, or related industries is a plus.
• Strong stakeholder management skills, with experience collaborating across commercial, product, and engineering teams.
• Proficiency in ad tech tools, trading platforms, and analytics solutions.

What’s in it for you? 

The salary for this role is based on an annualized salary of up to $135000 to $150000 per annum depending on relevant experience. This role will also be eligible to take part in Genius Sports Group's benefits plan. 

 As well as a competitive salary and annual leave allowance, our benefits include health insurance, skills training and much more, depending on the location. We also offer a host of softer benefits, including many social events throughout the year such as summer and winter holiday parties, monthly team building events, sports tournaments, charity days and wellbeing activities. 

How we work

We have adapted a forward-thinking ‘Ways of Working’ framework, which sets out (amongst other things) the opportunities for Geniuses to work flexibly, remotely and on working holidays. It affects different teams and locations differently, so please ask for further information in how it would work with this role.

Our employees are empowered to stretch the boundaries of what’s achievable, always reaching further and pushing the edges to see what gives. We collaborate, we innovate, and we celebrate. We will continue to grow as an organisation and continue to invest in our highly talented and diverse team of Geniuses. 

Genius Sports Group is proud to be an equal opportunities employer. We recognize and celebrate the benefits that a diverse and inclusive workforce bring to our business, our customers and our staff. We welcome and will consider all applications regardless of age, different abilities or disability, gender re-assignment, marriage, pregnancy, maternity, race or nationality, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation (and any other applicable status). Please let us know when you apply if you need any assistance during the recruiting process due to a disability.