Former Disney+ President Joins Fubo as New CEO

Alisa Bowen, who has served as President of Disney+ since 2022, has become CEO of Fubo, the sports streaming service that is majority owned by The Walt Disney Company.

Fubo announced that its board of directors had nominated Alisa as next CEO, succeeding David Gandler, the co-founder of FuboTV, who led the streaming service for more than a decade. Fubo also announced that David would be leaving both his role as head executive and as a director of the company board.

The CEO reshuffle follows Disney’s recent acquisition of Fubo, which saw the merging of Hulu and live TV operations with the sports streaming service. Disney now owns a 70% stake in the company.

Discussing her transition, Alisa says: “I am excited to lead Fubo in its next phase as we sharpen its strategy across sports, news and entertainment, accelerate growth and drive profitability, while delivering even greater value to Fubo and Hulu + Live subscribers, our advertisers and our content partners.”

Disney is yet to announce a replacement for Alisa at Disney+.

A decade of leadership tenure at Disney

The media giant now operates a unified streaming business, led by Joe Early and Adam Smith as co-presidents of Disney’s direct-to-consumer business, sharing responsibility for strategy and financial performance across Disney+ and Hulu.

Alisa has held leadership positions at Disney for almost 10 years. Prior to her role as President of Disney+, she was a founding member of Disney’s streaming leadership team, where she played a key role in driving company strategy and the buildout and scaling of Disney+.

Before she joined Disney, she held positions at News Corp, Dow Jones and Thomson Reuters.

Discussing Alisa’s appointment, Andy Bird, Chairman of Fubo’s board, says: “Alisa’s appointment is the culmination of a thoughtful process led by the independent directors of the Board to find the next leader to advance Fubo’s strategy and performance. 

“Alisa is a proven operator who brings nearly 30 years of product, digital and operational experience, including leadership across Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+. 

“She has an established track record of driving global subscriber growth and profitability, and we look forward to benefiting from her experience and expertise as Fubo enters its next chapter.” 

Alisa’s CEO salary and bonus awards

Alisa is also expected to join Fubo’s board, subject to approval following the company’s annual meeting of stockholders on 28 July.

According to an SEC filing by Fubo, Alisa’s annual base salary will be US$1.58m and she will be eligible to receive an annual performance bonus, with her target bonus being 120% of her base salary.

Additionally, her employment agreement also stipulates that Alisa will be granted an award of company restricted stock units, valued at US$3.5m, upon the commencement of her employment.

She will also be granted an annual equity award for 2026 valued at US$8m and a one-time bonus of US$1.1m if she remains employed with the company through 31 December 2026.

Alisa goes on to discuss her optimism as Fubo’s head executive: “I look forward to working closely alongside this talented leadership team to strengthen Fubo as an industry leader and create significant value for all of our shareholders.”