George Chayka- Senior Vice President, Business
A fixture with the BC Lions for over three decades, George has made his mark on a variety of different Football and Business Operations within the organization. During his tenure with the Leos, George has been Director of Marketing and Vice President of both Football and Business Operations involved in all aspects of the club’s day to day operations. Since 1997, George has directed his focus towards the business development side of the Lions organization which has him overseeing partnerships and new revenue opportunities.
Prior to the Lions, George attended SFU where he received his Bachelor of Business Administration Degree. While with the Clansmen, George played defensive back and running back from 1977-1980 before moving on to coach as a graduate assistant in 1981,coaching running backs and special teams. After SFU, George worked as a player agent and represented more than 40 CFL players from 1982-1992..
2024 marks the sixth time during his tenure with the Leos that George has been a member of a Grey Cup Organizing Committee for Grey Cup Games played at BC Place. The Lions’ 2011 Grey Cup win marked the second time he was part of a championship win at home (the other coming in 1994) and the fourth time that he has been part of a championship season with the Leos: 1994, 2000, 2006 and 2011.
In 2003, George worked alongside President and CEO Bob Ackles to help bring together the founding members of the Waterboys, a BC Lions Ambassador Group to help re-connect the BC Lions and Vancouver Business Community. In 2005, George was a recipient of the CFL Commissioners Award, along with the other founding members of the Waterboys, for their work in promoting the BC Lions and 2005 Grey Cup Festival and Game played in Vancouver.
In October of 2017, George was inducted into the BC Football Hall of Fame as the recipient of the CFL Bob Ackles Award, presented to an individual for recognizing their outstanding contribution to Canadian Football. In 2018, George was inducted into the Sardis Secondary School Hall of Fame for his work in chairing and creating the Sardis Secondary Football Alumni Association, which raised funds to help resurrect the Sardis Football Program after a thirty-five year hiatus. .
A member of the CFL Partnerships Committee, George is also a Trustee for the BC Football Hall of Fame and a Member at Large of the Simon Fraser University Football Alumni Society. In 2023, George was recognized for his long-standing support of SFU Football and Alumni at the Rick Klassen Memorial Golf Tournament.. George and Rick were best friends who played Football and Basketball together at Sardis Secondary, before earning scholarships to play Football at SFU.
George has three children, daughters Nikki, Katie and son Michael, and was recently blessed with his first grandchild, Gunner Chayka. George and his fiancée Velvet reside in Burnaby, BC.