Stanford has hired former Nike CEO John Donahoe as its new athletic director, marking a shift from a more traditional hire to one with extensive business experience rather than just a typical sports administration background.
“My north star for 40 years has been servant leadership, and it is a tremendous honor to be able to come back to serve a university I love and to lead Stanford Athletics through a pivotal and tumultuous time in collegiate sports,” Donahoe said in a statement. “Stanford has enormous strengths and enormous potential in a changing environment, including being the model for achieving both academic and athletic excellence at the highest levels.
“I can’t wait to work in partnership with the Stanford team to build momentum for Stanford Athletics and ensure the best possible experiences for our student-athletes.”
Stanford sought a “non-traditional candidate” with extensive experience in business and corporate management rather than the typical sports administration background, according to ESPN. In the new revenue-sharing world of college athletics, Stanford hopes Donahoe’s background sets its athletic department — which is known for its success in Olympic sports — up for success.
Donahoe, a 65-year-old Stanford alumnus, brings a unique blend of business leadership and a deep connection to the university. He graduated from Dartmouth College with a degree in economics, later earned an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, and twice held a position on the business school’s advisory board. His professional career includes serving as CEO of Nike from for nearly five years. He came on to lead the global sportswear giant in January 2020 before stepping away from his role in October 2024 and staying on as an advisor until January of this year.
Before Nike, Donahoe was president and later the CEO of eBay, the board chair of PayPal and a longtime partner at Bain & Company, a top management consulting firm. He also was a member of Dartmouth’s board of trustees from 2003-12.
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Donahoe fills the vacancy left by Bernard Muir, who resigned at the end of the recent academic year after 13 years on the job. He announced his decision in February. The transition comes a year after Stanford joined the ACC following more than a century as a member of the Pac-12.
The Cardinal football team has endured four consecutive 3-9 records, including last year in its first season in the ACC, and then coach Troy Taylor was abruptly fired in March by general manager Andrew Luck amid multiple investigations into Taylor’s conduct. Stanford will play the 2025 season under interim coach Frank Reich before hiring a new full-time coach. The team’s season begins on Aug. 23 at Hawaii.
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