HIGHLY respected corporate executive Chris Dehring, recently appointed the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) marketing chief, says the sport’s “national importance” and the impact it has had on him personally made him duty-bound to volunteer his expertise.

“Football is Jamaica’s most popular sport, and given its national importance and the role it played in my own personal development I [would] always volunteer my time whenever I am asked to serve,” Dehring, who played football and cricket at the national Under-19 level, told the Jamaica Observer on Tuesday.

He confirmed his stint with the JFF began last November, and he is expected to remain as head of its marketing committee for approximately a year.

“I hope to contribute as much as I can to support the JFF executive and board of directors in the collective goal — that is, [to have] Jamaica’s football achieving and sustaining what we all know we are capable of in world football,” he said.

Though not providing detail, he said only weeks ago he met Concacaf President Victor Montagliani during the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

Dehring’s appointment comes on the heels of well-regarded senior financial executive and chartered accountant Dennis Chung taking over the job of JFF general secretary last October.

Many local football insiders view the latest developments with optimism against the backdrop of the JFF’s partnership with global sportswear giant Adidas, which is set to begin this month.

Dehring, who possesses decades of corporate leadership experience, is regarded as a shrewd marketer and entrepreneur. Along with Peter Bunting and Mark Golding, he founded the investment bank Dehring, Bunting and Golding (DB&G).

Dehring is the chief executive officer (CEO) of ReadyTV, a groundbreaking telecommunications company which provides subscription-based digital broadcast television.

He is a former West Indies cricket chief marketing executive and was CEO of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 which was staged in the Caribbean.

Dehring has over 30 years’ experience in the business of sports and has negotiated multimillion-dollar television and sports rights deals across the world, including the English Premier League, and regional and global cricket events.

In 2001 he conceptualised and launched SportsMax, the region’s first 24/7 sports channel, and was an integral founder of the famous ‘Mound’ party stand.

— Sanjay Myers