Podcast: Tate Kelly — How To Spot, Interview, and Hire People With an Athlete Mindset

In this episode, we sit down with Tate Kelly, Senior Vice President of Partnerships at the United Soccer League (USL), to discuss the explosive growth of professional soccer in the US. Tate brings a wealth of sports business experience, having previously sold corporate partnerships for the Tennessee Titans in the NFL, driven revenue for Gonzaga Sports Properties at Learfield IMG College, and started his career with a unique role for Nike. Tate discusses his perspective on building a robust corporate partnership foundation for expansion clubs and the highly anticipated introduction of promotion and relegation to the USL. We explore how his background as a Division I runner translates into a relentless sales mentality, his core hiring philosophy centered on the "athlete mindset," and his favorite memories from college basketball.

Mar 25, 2026
# mins
Podcast: Tate Kelly — How To Spot, Interview, and Hire People With an Athlete Mindset

Podcast: Tate Kelly — How To Spot, Interview, and Hire People With an Athlete Mindset

In this episode, we sit down with Tate Kelly, Senior Vice President of Partnerships at the United Soccer League (USL), to discuss the explosive growth of professional soccer in the US. Tate brings a wealth of sports business experience, having previously sold corporate partnerships for the Tennessee Titans in the NFL, driven revenue for Gonzaga Sports Properties at Learfield IMG College, and started his career with a unique role for Nike. Tate discusses his perspective on building a robust corporate partnership foundation for expansion clubs and the highly anticipated introduction of promotion and relegation to the USL. We explore how his background as a Division I runner translates into a relentless sales mentality, his core hiring philosophy centered on the "athlete mindset," and his favorite memories from college basketball.

Podcast: Tate Kelly — How To Spot, Interview, and Hire People With an Athlete Mindset

Podcast: Tate Kelly — How To Spot, Interview, and Hire People With an Athlete Mindset

In this episode, we sit down with Tate Kelly, Senior Vice President of Partnerships at the United Soccer League (USL), to discuss the explosive growth of professional soccer in the US. Tate brings a wealth of sports business experience, having previously sold corporate partnerships for the Tennessee Titans in the NFL, driven revenue for Gonzaga Sports Properties at Learfield IMG College, and started his career with a unique role for Nike. Tate discusses his perspective on building a robust corporate partnership foundation for expansion clubs and the highly anticipated introduction of promotion and relegation to the USL. We explore how his background as a Division I runner translates into a relentless sales mentality, his core hiring philosophy centered on the "athlete mindset," and his favorite memories from college basketball.

Podcast: Tate Kelly — How To Spot, Interview, and Hire People With an Athlete Mindset
Love the hires you make

We manage the process to build your team. Your dedicated process manager will build you a sustainable team with great talent.

Get a Consultation

More about scaling your team

Podcast: Tim Rains — Balancing Urgency and Culture Fit

As Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer of ADT, Tim Rains brings a blend of urgency, discipline, and mission-driven leadership to the table. He and Oz discuss how a strong culture of accountability drives better hires, why structured interviews uncover top candidates, and how mentorship programs and cross-functional experience shape long-term success. Tim also shares lessons from his time at Microsoft, Amazon, and T-Mobile, including how mentorship circles and leadership principles helped shape his approach to team building and cybersecurity leadership.

Employee Experience

People-First Onboarding Best Practices For New Healthcare Employees

Discover essential healthcare new employee onboarding best practices with MSH. Elevate your hiring strategy for long term success.

Data Center

How To Recruit and Hire Data Center Talent When Everyone Else is Trying To Do the Same Thing

Struggling to hire data center technicians? Get proven strategies for sourcing, vetting, and retaining mission-critical facility talent.

Get A Consultation
Submit
Somebody will be in touch with you within the next 24 hours.
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.