Specialist, Lifecycle Marketing (Email & SMS) at Chicago Fire

The Chicago Fire Football Club (Chicago Fire FC) is Chicago’s premier professional soccer club competing in Major League Soccer (MLS), the top U.S. domestic league. Founded on October 8, 1997, on the 126th anniversary of the Great Chicago Fire, the Club began play in 1998, becoming the first and only expansion team in North American sports to win a title in its first year of existence. Beside MLS Cup 1998, the Fire have won five other major domestic titles, including the 1998, 2000, 2003, and 2006 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cups, and the 2003 MLS Supporters’ Shield. The Club’s Football Operations department is guided by one vision: to build a world-class club that inspires greatness, helps unite Chicago, and wins championships. To that end, Owner and Chairman Joe Mansueto named former U.S. Men’s National Team head coach Gregg Berhalter as Director of Football and Head Coach ahead of the 2025 regular season, leading the Fire to the postseason for the first time since 2017 in only his first full season with the Club. Berhalter and his staff operate out of the Endeavor Health Performance Center, the $100M state-of-the-art training facility of Chicago Fire FC, its second team Chicago Fire II, and the Chicago Fire Academy. In addition, Mansueto announced his commitment in 2025 to build a $750M+ privately financed downtown stadium in Chicago in 2028. The stadium will anchor Chicago’s newest neighborhood, the 78, a 62-acre development and entertainment district located along the Chicago River just south of Roosevelt Road. For more information on our bold plans, visit DearChicago.com. At Chicago Fire FC, we are united by a mission to create a diverse, unified, and continually-improving Club that reflects the values of the City of Big Shoulders – upholding uncompromising integrity; showing respect for all, at all times; never settling for less; constantly innovating; and relentlessly maintaining accountability. Position Overview: Chicago Fire Football Club is seeking a Specialist, Lifecycle Marketing to join the Marketing team. This role will report to the Manager, Lifecycle Marketing and support the execution of CRM-driven campaigns across Email and SMS that engage, retain and grow the Club’s fanbase. In this role, the individual will serve as the primary executor for Email and SMS campaigns, helping bring lifecycle campaigns and automated journeys to life. They will support the development of personalized, data-driven communications that enhance the fan experience and drive measurable results. The ideal candidate is an analytically minded, detail-oriented marketer with strong written communication skills, eager to learn new systems, thrive in a fast-paced environment and passionate about sports — particularly soccer. Job Responsibilities: • Lifecycle Campaign Execution • Build, QA and deploy Email and SMS campaigns within Salesforce Marketing Cloud and related platforms (Attentive). • Support the execution of automated lifecycle journeys, including lead nurture, conversion and retention programs. • Assist in the implementation of multi-channel campaigns that align with Marketing, Ticketing, Corporate Partnerships and Soccer Business initiatives. • Maintain campaign calendars and ensure timely, accurate delivery of all communications. • Segmentation & List Management • Execute audience segmentation and targeting strategies based on fan data and behavioral triggers. • Own list pulls, suppression management and contact strategy execution to ensure campaign accuracy and efficiency. • Collaborate with internal teams to ensure data integrity and proper campaign setup. • Testing & Optimization • Assist in A/B testing across subject lines, creative messaging and send times. • Analyze campaign performance and identify optimization opportunities. • Translate performance insights into actionable recommendations to improve engagement and conversion rates. • Reporting & Insights • Track and report on core lifecycle KPIs including open rates, click-through rates, conversions and revenue performance. • Support weekly and monthly reporting processes with clear, concise performance summaries. • Partner with the Manager, Lifecycle Marketing to align campaigns with broader business objectives. • Completion of Other Duties as Assigned Required Qualifications: • At least 2-3 years of experience in lifecycle marketing, CRM, marketing automation platforms and/or related internships and education. • Ability to leverage a technical mindset with a creative and analytical approach to problem solving. • Ability to manage priorities and coordinate tasks to solve day-to-day challenges in a fast-paced environment. • Excellent written and verbal communication, organizational and project management skills. • Must display a strong work ethic and desire to build a career in professional sports. ...