Monday, June 4th, 2018 -- After an extensive search and interview process the Arizona Soccer Association (ASA) is proud to announce the appointment of Rick Kelsey as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of ASA.
Rick comes to ASA from American Express where he held numerous leadership positions in MIS, Operations, Compliance, and Process Improvement. In his most recent role, Rick was responsible for the manufacturing and distribution of all payment devices for American Express in North American, South America, and Central America.
Prior to his time at American Express, Rick was a Training Officer responsible for developing and delivering the training curriculum for the State of Arizona General Accounting Office (GAO). There, Rick trained employees from all State of Arizona agencies on the correct process for managing and reporting operational financial controls.
Rick served eight years in the US Navy that included deployments to Al Jubail, Saudia Arabia, Rota, Spain, Guam, and Mogadishu, Somalia while serving the US Navy Seabees. Along with his assigned duties while deployed, Rick was responsible for the educational support of over 600 Seabees as well as handling all aspects of pay and personnel matters both at home and while deployed.
One thing that stood out during the interview process is Rick’s extensive involvement in all aspects of soccer over the years. His previous roles and past accomplishments include:
--Board Member, Arizona Soccer Association (President 2015 – Present; Vice President D&R (2012 – 2014)
--Club Board Member, Arizona Fury (2005 – 2007), Banat Soccer Club (2007 – 2014)
--Club Coach (National ‘D’ License 2005 - 2014)
--High School Coach, Girls Sandra Day O’Connor HS (2001 – 2013)
--Referee (State Referee (Grade 5), Assignor, Instructor, and Assessor)
--General Manager, Arizona Heatwave (USL W-League 2001 – 2004) – USL Executive of the Year in 2001
“After an extensive interview process the Arizona Soccer Association Board of Directors (BOD) is excited to have Rick as the next CEO of ASA”, said Doug Sandstedt, Chairman of the CEO Search Committee. “There was a lot of national interest in the position and throughout the process Rick stood out, not only for his experience but also his passion and excitement for Arizona soccer.”
“I can’t express the excitement and passion I have for Arizona soccer," Rick said. "The opportunity to lead the continued growth of soccer in Arizona while working with such a great staff is humbling.”
We are excited to have Rick join our team at ASA and the BOD is confident that he will be a strong leader and relationship-builder who will bring experience to the role to help support and grow the membership as well as offer solutions to all Clubs and leagues in Arizona.