Fife’s R&A appoint rugby boss Mark Darbon as new chief executive

​The 45-year-old is scheduled to take over that role from Martin Slumbers in November and he’ll also act as secretary for the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews.

Darbon, formerly a senior member of the team that led the London organising committee’s winning bid to host 2012’s Olympic Games and Paralympics, is currently chief executive officer of English Premiership rugby club Northampton Saints.

Since taking on that job in 2017, he’s helped lead the Northamptonshire club to their first Premiership title since 2014 last month, as well as running up record revenues in consecutive seasons.

“I am thrilled and honoured to be taking up these positions with the R&A and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews and to be moving into golf, a sport I have always loved,” he said.

“The R&A is a globally-renowned organisation and does so much to ensure that golf prospers from grass-roots through to the professional game.

“I am looking forward to working with a hugely talented team of staff, the club membership and such an impressive array of partner organisations to achieve even more success in the years to come.”

Welcoming Darbon to Fife, R&A chairman Niall Farquharson said: “We were greatly impressed with Mark’s knowledge and experience of the global sport industry and his ability to develop successful teams and deliver fantastic events.

“We believe he will be an excellent leader for the R&A and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews and will play a key role in helping us to achieve our goal of ensuring a prosperous and sustainable future for golf.”

Darbon, a geography graduate of Oxford University’s Worcester College, started his business career as a management consultant at London’s Marakon Associates, going on to join multinational booze firm Diageo.

He switched to sporting events organisation in 2009, helping bring the Olympics to the UK, and was latterly head of Olympic Park operations in London.

Following London 2012, he took on jobs as US-based senior vice-president of Tough Mudder and CEO of Madison Sports Group, moving on to his current role at Northampton Saints seven years ago.

Besides being a keen golfer, playing to a handicap index of 3.1 as a member of Northamptonshire County Golf Club and Devon’s Saunton Golf Club, Darbon, married with two children, is a former under-21 England hockey international and a full blue for hockey at Oxford University.

He is a non-executive director of England Hockey and Women’s Premiership Rugby and will remain on Saints’ board as a non-executive director too, saying: “Leaving Northampton Saints has been an incredibly difficult decision for me to make.

“Over the last seven years, my family and I have loved our time in Northampton and developed a passion and attachment for Saints which will stay with us for ever.

“My family and I will remain very close to the club as fans, and I’m delighted to be staying on in some capacity by remaining on the board as a non-executive director.

“I’m looking forward to seeing where our players, coaches and staff – particularly those that we have developed here at the club – can take Northampton Saints in the years ahead.”

Darbon says he’s planning to move to Fife ahead of taking over from Slumbers, 64.