World Lacrosse today announced the extension of CEO Jim Scherr through the end of 2028.
Scherr was appointed as CEO of the organization in 2017, and his latest and longest extension will include the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles, where lacrosse will return to the Olympic stage for the first time in decades.
World Lacrosse President Sue Redfern said: “I am delighted for Jim to continue in his leadership role for World Lacrosse. He has helped our sport grow immeasurably within our global community and boosted our reputation as an International Federation, culminating with the realization of our Olympic vision. I know he will stay enthusiastically committed to the careful stewardship of our game.”
Since Scherr’s appointment to the then-Federation of International Lacrosse, Scherr has overseen the introduction of a new brand identity as World Lacrosse in 2019, the appointment of a full-time professional staff and unprecedented member growth, with an increase of more than 60 percent in membership to the current body of 92 organizations.
In Scherr’s time, World Lacrosse charted an expedited timeline from provisional IOC recognition as an International Federation in 2019 to inclusion in the 2028 Olympics, which was confirmed in the fall of 2023 by the IOC.
Scherr helped introduce the new discipline of sixes, an incredibly fast-paced, compact version of the sport, which will be contested in Los Angeles. Sixes has advanced global growth and increased accessibility and approachability for the sport. With the return of lacrosse to the world’s greatest global stage, lacrosse enters a new era that will exponentially expand its reach.
Scherr also guided World Lacrosse through the COVID-19 pandemic and the gradual return of a fully fledged world championship calendar, which includes eight championships on a quadrennial basis, equally awarded to men and women.
In recent years, World Lacrosse has secured wider distribution for the championships than ever before and staged the first WL Women’s Box Championship with 10 teams in 2024.
In the next three years, World Lacrosse will stage four world championships, including the first edition of the WL Sixes Championships for men and women in 2027, and see lacrosse competed in The World Games for the third time in 2025.
