Recognized as one of the most progressive, forward-thinking leaders in sports today, ROBB HEINEMAN is the co-owner of Sporting KC, the parent organization of Sporting Kansas City, and one of the club’s five principal owners. Heineman also serves as co-founder of FanThreeSixty, a technology company focused on innovation in sports and entertainment.
After taking over as the organization's CEO in 2006, Heineman worked with several local municipalities around the Kansas City metropolitan area to get a soccer-specific stadium built for Sporting Kansas City.
In January of 2010 the Kansas Board of Commissioners unanimously approved the plan for the 18,467-seat Sporting Park, an 18-24 field youth soccer complex and new offices for Cerner Corporation. The project drew nationwide acclaim, and was ranked the 8
th-largest economic development deal in North America for 2010 by corporate real estate magazine, Site Selection.
Since then, Heineman has been instrumental in creating partnerships with worldwide leaders in a wide range of sectors. The spring of 2011 saw Sporting Club announce historical partnerships with the likes of Panasonic, Sprint, Cisco and Google, enabling Sporting Park to serve as a living lab for sports and entertainment technology.
Heineman has been at the forefront of the creation of Sporting Club’s groundbreaking membership model, a revolutionary concept that has changed the way fans interact with professional sports organizations in this country. Known for his openness and accessibility to fans, Heineman has put a special emphasis on the power of social media, frequently making use of his Twitter handle--@RobbHeineman--to communicate with the club’s supporters.
In recognition of Heineman’s work with Sporting Club, Robb was honored as Executive of the Year by the Kansas City Sports Commission in 2013. In 2012, Heineman was selected for the Sports Business Journal's Forty Under 40 list and won TheStadiumBusiness Awards Executive of the Year in 2012. The American Marketing Association presented Heineman with the Distinguished Marketing Executive Award also in 2012. In 2011, he was honored with the Special Achievement Award for Professional Sports from SportKC in 2011. Heineman was also selected to be a keynote speaker at the 2011 Conference for the Association of Luxury Suite Directors and was recognized as a 2010 Home Run Deal award winner by the Certified Commerical Investment Members of Kansas City for his work to help complete the agreement for the construction of Sporting Park. Prior to that, Heineman was named a 2007 honoree in Ingram’s 40 under 40 list, highlighting the best young leaders and businesspeople in the Kansas City metropolitan area.
Born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and a graduate of The University of Notre Dame, Heineman has been involved in sports ownership since 1992 as an owner/operator of the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA Developmental League. He has a wife, Amber, and two children, Katherine and Charlie. The Heinemans work with many charitable organizations in the Kansas City area.