Veteran venue management executive Juan Rodriguez has been named the new Executive Vice President and General Manager of BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston, stadium officials announced today. He is expected to officially join the stadium operations team in June.
BBVA Compass Stadium is the home of Major League Soccer’s Houston Dynamo and the National Women’s Soccer League’s Houston Dash, and is operated by the Dynamo and Dash organization. Rodriguez spent the previous three years as the Senior Vice President of Arena Operations for the NBA’s Sacramento Kings.
In that role, he oversaw the construction and opening of the Golden One Center, the Kings’ new home arena in Downtown Sacramento hailed as the greenest and most technologically advanced sports venue in the world, and served as General Manager of the arena.
"We are extremely fortunate to be adding Juan to our organization. He is among the top venue managers in the United States,” Houston Dynamo President Chris Canetti said. “We're happy that he's coming home to Houston to help us in our continued growth of BBVA Compass Stadium."
The move brings Rodriguez back to Houston, where he previously spent more than 14 years with Reliant (now NRG) Park in a number of roles. During his tenure at Reliant Park, Rodriguez helped oversee the construction and opening of Reliant Stadium, home of the NFL’s Houston Texans, and major events such as Super Bowl XXXVIII, the 2011 NCAA Final Four, the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, and numerous major international soccer matches.
“Houston is home to many wonderful memories for my family and I,” Rodriguez said. “I’m excited to join the Dynamo and Dash and to create incredible stadium experiences, including special events, concerts and more for a vibrant and diverse community.”
Rodriguez brings nearly 25 years of sports and entertainment experience to this role, including experience in the NFL, NBA, NHL, NCAA in addition to a diverse entertainment background. He began his operations career with an Arena Football League team in his hometown before transitioning to venue management at Miami Arena in 1995.
