After graduating from SHS, Michael attended the University of Notre Dame earning his BBA in Accounting, subsequently receiving an MBA in marketing from Cornell University Johnson Graduate School of Management.
In his early career, Michael became a CPA, consulted for Timex Corporation and produced events for Radio City Music Hall Productions, but his career was destined to be defined in the Sports World at ProServ Inc. and Visa Inc. where he early on managed professional atheletes and brokered deals including making Visa a sponsor of the U.S. Open Tennis Championship and where he would manage Visa’s marketing for the Olympic Games, FIFA World Cup, the NFL, NASCAR, horse racings’s Triple Crown and others. He also negotiated major deals for superstars such as Arthur Ashe and Michael Jordan, convincing General Mils to put Jordan on the Wheaties box.
As a result of Michael seeking out Olympic athletes to represent the brand, the company has sponsored U.S. Olympic athletes for more than 20 years, from decathletes to skiers, and now has agreements with 15 U.S. athletes in sports such as track and field, skiing/snowboarding, gymnastics and swimming (one of which is Michael Phelps).
Currently head of Visa’s Global Sponsorship Management, Michael has led that program to the pinnacle of the industry, overseeing a truly world-class portfolio of sponsorship properties. He has been responsible for developing and leading highly successful programs in support of three of Visa’s highest profile sponsorships-the Olympic Games, FIFA World Cup and the National Football League (NFL) - while managing business-building relationships with the Kentucky Derby and Broadway, among others.
According to America Magazine "He travels the globe putting sponsorship deals together and whether it’s the soccer World Cup in Africa, the Olympic Games in Beijing, Vancouver, London, Russia and Brazil. or the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs Visa’s Michael Lynch will be there." Michael has been recognized by Sporting News Magazine as one of the "100 Most Powerful People in Sports," "and he has helped Visa become the gold standard in sponsorship marketing - Visa was recognized this year by Sports Business as the industry’s best sponsor."
Michael serves as a volunteer on the Board of Athletes for Hope, an organization that unites athletes and charities, and is on the Advisory Board of IMG World Congress of Sports, which works with professional sports teams, leagues, and corporations giving back in charitable work. In addition, Mike has supported the SCSAA’s Sports Hall of Fame by donating signed merchandise for auction.
Mike, son of Wall of Fame inductee and former SCS Supervisor, Howard Lynch, lives in California with his wife and children.