Eric Nicoli appointed Senior Independent Director of the European Tour

The European Tour is delighted to announce the appointment of Eric Nicoli CBE, a seasoned chairman and manager of global businesses, as a Senior Independent Director effective Monday March 25.

Born in England to Italian parents, Eric Nicoli has extensive experience of building boards and management teams, in addition to dealing with acquisitions, mergers and disposals, private to public and public to private transactions. He is also skilled in dealing with governments, regulatory authorities and all constituencies in the adviser community.

After gaining a First Class (Honours) degree in physics from King’s College, London, Mr Nicoli entered industry in 1972 and spent the early part of his career in marketing and strategic planning roles within the food industry. He then moved into general management, heading a number of divisions of United Biscuits plc, a leading food manufacturer, before being appointed Group Chief Executive in 1991. In 1999, he moved to EMI Group plc, one of the world’s leading music companies, to become Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Since departing EMI in 2007 on the sale of the company, he has been non-executive Chairman of a number of private equity owned companies, start-ups and early stage businesses in the leisure, entertainment, social media, technology and financial services sectors.

His non-executive experience includes being Chairman of The Tussauds Group Ltd (Leisure attractions), Vue Entertainment Ltd (Cinemas) and Ulysses Enterprises Ltd (uSwitch) as well as Senior Independent Director of Greencore Group plc. He is currently Chairman of YS Topco Ltd (Yo! Sushi) and of Centtrip Holdings Ltd.

Mr Nicoli is also a freelance coach and mentor to senior executives in a range of businesses and a regular public speaker, both after dinner and at business conferences. Throughout his career, he has also been actively involved with a wide range of community and charitable organisations. Married with four children, he is a sports, music and food enthusiast.

His appointment further strengthens his link with the European Tour as a whole, where he has been part of a three-man Business Advisory Board to the Staysure Tour for the past three years, a spell which has coincided with significant growth in terms of prizemoney and playing opportunities for the Tour’s over-50s circuit.

Eric Nicoli said: “I am delighted and honoured to be invited to join the Board of the European Tour. Under David Williams' Chairmanship and the leadership of CEO Keith Pelley, the Tour has made impressive progress in many areas in recent years.

“I very much look forward to working with my new colleagues at such an important time in the development of golf across the world. I’m excited at the opportunity to participate in the Board’s deliberations as we strive to lead the transformation of the sport globally.”

David Williams said: “I am delighted to welcome Eric to the Board of the European Tour. We have an excellent balance on the Board, built over several years, between professionals elected by the Tournament Committee and business leaders.

“Eric’s background in international business, combined with his wide ranging Board experience, will prove to be of immense value to us as we continue to grow the European Tour on the global stage.”