The N.F.L. has hired Tod Leiweke as its new chief operating officer, a position that has been vacant since Commissioner Roger Goodell was promoted to the league’s top spot.
Leiweke was the chief executive of the Tampa Bay Lightning, where he helped spearhead the development of the neighborhood surrounding the team’s arena. Before that, he was the chief executive of the Seattle Seahawks, where he sometimes represented the team at owners’ meetings.
After Goodell, who was previously the league’s C.O.O., took over as commissioner in 2006, he did not fill the chief operating officer spot, instead relying on other executives to handle the work.