Jessi Miley-Dyer Named World Surf League Commissioner

Jessi Miley-Dyer has been named the new commissioner of World Surf League (WSL).

The former pro surfer announced the news during Sportico and SheMedia’s “Winning: Women & Sports” event on Thursday afternoon. Miley-Dyer will be the league’s first woman commissioner and receives the promotion after previously serving as chief of sport for the duel-gender league, which she hopes will continue to push equity boundaries.

“We were the very first North American sports league to have equal prize money, which is a good thing for us,” Miley-Dyer said. “As an ex-professional athlete, that’s really important.”

Miley-Dyer, the first WSL junior world champ, spoke about the recent wave of investment and the business proposition not only for her league but women’s sports overall.

“Women’s sports are definitely not a charity,” she said. “I think for a period of time people have perceived it as such, but we’ve also shown that if the investment is there, returns will come. Don’t be here if you’re looking at them as a 501(c)(3). That’s not what women’s sports are.”

Miley-Dyer’s removal of “chief of sport” from her Instagram page recently had surfing fans revving up the rumor mill about her whereabouts. But the hearsay can be quashed now as the Sydney, Australia, native becomes the first person with the WSL commissioner title since pro surfer Kieren Perrow stepped down from the role in 2019.

Miley-Dyer, who has held various titles since joining the WSL in 2012, also aims to use creative storytelling and captivating content to promote the league in the wake of a new media rights deal with ESPN earlier this year. The deal calls for ESPN+ to stream the men’s and women’s championship tour competitions.

The news of Miley-Dyer’s appointment comes as WSL undergoes other leadership changes. Former Riot Games president of publishing Ryan Crosby recently became CEO of the league to replace Erik Logan, who abruptly left the organization last summer.