Dave Kaval


David A. Kaval is the seventh and current president of the Oakland Athletics of Major League Baseball. He previously served as president of Major League Soccer club San Jose Earthquakes and founded the Golden Baseball League.

Early life and education

Kaval was born on October 28, 1975, to Jim and Paula Kaval. Jim, a member of the Peace Corps and real estate entrepreneur, and Paula, a realtor and school teacher, raised Kaval in Cleveland, Ohio. Kaval attended Stanford University and received a Bachelor of Arts in international relations in 1998.

Career

Early career and the Golden Baseball League

Following Stanford graduation, on June 20, 1998, Kaval and a former classmate began their trip to visit all 30 Major League Baseball ballparks in 38 days. The trip ultimately led to the publication of The Summer that Saved Baseball which chronicled their journey.
Kaval founded the independent Golden Baseball League in 2003. Memorable GBL alumni include Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson, Jose Canseco, Daniel Nava, Jose Lima, and Mark Prior. Kaval has also spent time in the Office of the President of the United States in Washington, D.C., where he worked on the National Security budget as part of the Office of Management and Budget.

San Jose Earthquakes

Kaval previously served as the He oversaw the business and soccer sides of the franchise and represented the club on the Major League Soccer Board of Governors. He continues to serve as a Board Member of the San Jose Earthquakes.
During his time with the Earthquakes, the team won the 2012 Supporters’ Shield, which is awarded to the MLS team with the best regular season record. His success with the team culminated in the opening of Avaya Stadium - the Quakes’ $100M privately financed soccer stadium - on March 22, 2015. Kaval developed the innovative $20M naming rights partnership with Avaya, which helped create the first cloud-enabled stadium. Since opening its gates, Avaya Stadium has held numerous events including the 2016 MLS All-Star Game and World Cup Qualifiers. The 18,000-seat venue also houses the largest outdoor bar in North America.

Oakland Athletics

On November 17, 2016, David Kaval was named the seventh president in Oakland Athletics history. As one of the most dynamic leaders currently in sports, Kaval has led a complete transformation of the organization. He has repositioned the internal and external perception of the Club and has driven a number of innovative initiatives to propel the business forward. As President of the Athletics, one of Kaval's first moves was to aggressively increase the amount of marketing the Athletics were doing, particularly in San Francisco. Kaval also announced office hours due to his beliefs in community involvement in sports. He also is committed to upgrades to their home stadium, the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum., including the addition of a number of club and premium seating areas, renovating Shibe Park Tavern, and introducing three new fan areas: Championship Plaza, The Treehouse and the A's Stomping Ground.
Kaval is also leading the Club's efforts to build a new ballpark in Oakland, highlighted by the launch of their Rooted In Oakland campaign. On , the Athletics announced the team's desire to build its privately financed 34,000-seat ballpark at the Howard Terminal site at the Port of Oakland. The Athletics .

Ballpark at Howard Terminal

Kaval is leading the Club's efforts to open a new ballpark in Oakland. On Nov. 28, 2018, the organization at the Howard Terminal site at the Port of Oakland. The ballpark design is led by , Copenhagen, New York, and London based groups of architects and designers. BIG's architecture emerges from a careful analysis of how contemporary life constantly evolves and changes and creates architecture by mixing conventional ingredients such as living, leisure, working, parking, and shopping. The ballpark is designed to be the most intimate in Major League Baseball, and it will feature an elevated park that wraps and frames the bowl, and it will anchor a new, vibrant waterfront district in Jack London Square that features a mix of housing, including affordable housing, offices, restaurants, retail, parks, and public gathering spaces.
The A's and the Port of Oakland Board of Commissioners entered into an Exclusive Negotiation Agreement in April 2018. On May 13, 2019, the board commissioners voted 7–0 to approve and authorize the Executive Director to execute the initial term sheet.
Kaval has worked collaboratively with State officials to develop and pass legislation related to the waterfront ballpark project. Since 2018, Kaval has worked closely with legislators to craft and support AB 734, which provides expedited judicial review in exchange for the highest environmental standards of any ballpark project; AB 1191, to simplify the regulatory approval process for the ballpark, as well as housing, retail, and mixed-use development at the waterfront site; and SB 293, which helps the City of Oakland finance infrastructure and transportation projects for a new ballpark.

Community Engagement

Kaval has made it a priority to engage the community to ensure the ballpark project is bigger than baseball. The A's have hosted hundreds of community meetings and workshops since 2018, giving residents a voice to share their perspectives and insights on how the ballpark can benefit and provide opportunities in Oakland. In addition to community engagement meetings, Kaval has implemented a number of initiatives to connect with fans and community stakeholders, including hosting weekly office hours, participating in town hall meetings, posting blog and Facebook Live updates, and communicating via Twitter and Instagram at .
He is also leading the A's plans to redevelop the current Coliseum site. Preliminary plans include a large park surrounded by substantial new housing, including affordable housing, a skills center, community gathering spaces, office and retail space, and restaurants. The A's and the Alameda County Board of Supervisors entered into an Exclusive Negotiation Agreement in April 2018. On April 23, 2019, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors voted 5-0 to approve the term sheet for the possible purchase by the A's of the County's 50% interest in the Oakland Alameda County Coliseum Complex for $85 million.

Coliseum Experience Improvements

In his three seasons as president, Kaval has enhanced the fan experience by making upgrades to the Oakland Coliseum, introduced a forward thinking season ticket program called “A’s Access,” hosted MLB's first completely free game, and the largest game in Oakland Coliseum history when 56,310 fans attended the game versus the San Francisco Giants on July 21, 2018.
In addition to delivering the best baseball experience for the Club's fans, Kaval is committed to increasing the organization's community impact. In 2018, the Club donated more than $2.6M back to the community, distributed more than 100,000 game tickets free of charge to fans, and engaged more than 35,000 students in education initiatives, and provided 10,000 youth baseball and softball players opportunities to play the game.

Personal life

Kaval is married to Maria Fredricsson, whom he met his first day at Stanford. Kaval is a resident of Menlo Park, California, where the couple have raised their two daughters.
He serves on a number of boards, including the Bay Area Council and Rocketship Education, in addition to the National Governing Board of the Positive Coaching Alliance and the Young Presidents' Organization. He is also a lecturer in management at the Stanford Graduate School of Business where he teaches sports management.