AWSM Welcomed Hannah Biondi to Speak About her Role as Senior Director of Branded Content at Omaha Productions

By Melanie Thalhimer 

Penn State’s chapter of the Association for Women in Sports Media was excited to host alumni Hannah Biondi at its April 1st meeting. Biondi is the Senior Director for Brand Content of Omaha Productions.

During her time at Penn State, Biondi worked for Penn State football in its recruiting department under former head coach Joe Paterno. Biondi worked for the team during the Sandusky scandal and navigated the recruiting process as the news broke to the world. 

“I worked in the recruiting department, which means I was on the team of people who handled all recruiting visits, but also did stats and research trying to understand what type of player they were before they came to campus,” said Biondi. “Football was my school.” 

Biondi appreciates her time working for Penn State Football as it also taught her so much about how the real world runs and, more importantly, how to work in a sports environment. 

“Penn State taught me how to have communication skills and keep strong relationships even during times of turmoil, and I still use those skills to my advantage every single day,” Biondi said. 

After graduating from Penn State with a degree in Advertising & Integrative Arts in 2014, Biondi briefly worked at Octagon Sports Marketing, then moved to New York City as an executive assistant to the head of sports programming for Show 10 Sports. 

“I used Showtime Sports to really get my foot in the door and learn about the business of sports media and sports content,” said Biondi. “I met a lot of great sports media minds, agents, athletes and I learned how to work with all different types of people.”

During this role, Biondi realized her love for marketing, so she moved up in Showtime to their marketing department. This role allowed her to work on Mayweather vs. Pacquiao and Mayweather vs. McGregor. By getting into the boxing world, Biondi transitioned her way to a company called DAZN, previously marketed as the “Netflix for sports,” primarily running marketing and content creation for boxing.

“I worked on our behind the scenes shows with celebrity executive producers to produce content that promotes our biggest fights. I worked with fighters and their teams to create great content ,” Biondi said. 

Biondi eventually moved on to work for Dwyane “Rock” Johnson’s tequila company, Termana, as director of social media. 

Eventually, Biondi transitioned to Omaha Productions, a production company founded by Peyton Manning. She has been working there since September of 2023 as their Senior Director of Branded Content. At Omaha, Biondi manages all of their brand clients for commercial, digital and social media work.

Biondi’s biggest piece of advice to women who want to work in the sports industry is, “your network is your net worth.” Biondi reiterates over and over the importance of making connections, asking questions, and overall being an advocate for yourself in each of your roles. All in all, Biondi expresses she would not be in the role she is today without her time and experiences at Penn State.