“Money Games: Profiting from the Convergence of Sports and ...
|Project Funding Partners |
|Today’s Funding Partners |
|Agenda |
| | |
|7:00-7:45 AM |Check-in & Breakfast |
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|7:45-8:15 AM |Welcome & Comments |
| | |
| |David Carter |
| |Executive Director, USC Marshall Sports Business Institute |
| | |
| |Bob Graziano |
| |Managing Partner, Family Advisory Services, Northern Trust |
| |Chairman, Los Angeles Sports & Entertainment Commission |
| |SBI Advisory Board Member |
| | |
| |Margo Beth Crouppen |
| |Acquisitions Editor, Organization Studies and Economics, Stanford University Press |
| | |
| |Bill Simon |
| |Sr. Client Partner, Global Media & Entertainment Practice, Korn Ferry Int. |
| |SBI Funding Partner |
|8:15-8:30 AM |Student Takeaways |
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| |Arturo Castro |
| |USC Marshall MBA, class of 2008 |
| |THQ |
| | |
| |Anne Meurs |
| |USC Marshall UG, class of 2009 |
| |Fox Sports |
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| |Antranig Balian |
| |USC Marshall MBA, class of 2010 |
|8:30-9:00 AM |The Research Process |
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| |Todd Jacobs |
| |USC Marshall MBA, class of 2008 |
| |Project Lead, 2007-08; Nike |
|9:00-9:10 AM |Break |
|Agenda |
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|Convergence Findings Presented by David Carter, Phil Wallace, and Courtney Brunious |
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|9:10-10:10 AM |At Home Convergence |
| |Topics: |
| |TV Content |
| |Video Gaming |
| |Athlete Branding |
|10:10-10:20 AM |Break |
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|10:20-11:20 AM |Away From Home Convergence |
| |Topics: |
| |The Internet |
| |Mobile Technology |
| |Gambling |
|11:20-11:30 AM |Break |
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|11:30-12:30 PM |At Venue Convergence |
| |Topics: |
| |Sports Anchored Development |
| |Venue Technology |
| |Corporate Marketing |
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|12:30-1:30 PM |Lunch |
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| |Ed Roski, Jr. |
| |Chairman, USC Board of Trustees |
| |Chairman & CEO, Majestic Realty |
| |SBI Advisory Board Member |
| | |
| |John Semcken |
| |Vice President, Majestic Realty |
|1:30-1:35 PM |Thank You and Closing Comments |
| |David Carter |
|1:35-5:30 PM |Golf or Spa |
|4:00-7:00 PM |Cocktail Reception |
|Project Contributors |
Raymond T. Baker
Partner, Gold Crown Management Company
Co-Founder/Director, Gold Crown Foundation
Mr. Baker, a resident of Jefferson County, native of Pueblo, Colorado and partner of Gold Crown Management Co. is active in the community and is currently serving, or has served, on the following:
Community:
Current Member, Colorado Economic Recovery and Accountability Board
Current Chairman and board member, Denver Metropolitan Major League Baseball Stadium District (Governors Romer, Owens and Ritter)
Current Chairman and board member, Metropolitan Football Stadium District (Governors Romer, Owens and Ritter)
Former Chairman, Colorado Commission on Higher Education Capital Development Committee
Member, Judi’s House Endowment Board (Brian Griese)
Former Lakewood High School Softball Coach
Coach of the Year, Lakewood High School Softball by the Denver Post, (1997-1998); Rocky Mountain News (1997-1998), and the Jefferson County School Athletic Directors for 1998
Past President, Colorado Apartment Association
Past President, Apartment Association-Metro Denver
Former member, Blue Ribbon Transportation Panel (Gov. Romer)
Former member and Chairman, Colorado Economic Development Commission
Former member and Commissioner, Colorado Commission of Higher Education
Former board member, Denver Zoological Foundation
Current member, Blue Ribbon Transportation Panel (Gov. Ritter)
Business:
Board member, Alpine Banks of Colorado
Board member, Land Title Guarantee Company
Co-founder and board member, Steele Street State Bank & Trust
Former board member, Omnibank
Former board member, Keybank
Former board member, Central Parking Corporation
Former board member, Asset Investors
Antranig Balian
Student Researcher, USC Marshall MBA, 2010
Antranig Balian is a 2nd-year MBA student and has been a member of Professor Carter's research team since October of 2008. Currently the EVP of the Marshall Sports Business Organization, Antranig has a passion for sports business and has interned with the USC Baseball Team, Universal Sports, and the Los Angeles Kings Hockey Club during his time at USC.
Antranig graduated from UCLA in 2001 with a major in political science before earning his J.D. at Loyola Law School in 2004. He then spent 3 years as a criminal prosecutor with the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office before enrolling at the Marshall School. A native Angeleno, Antranig lives in Hermosa Beach and enjoys Led Zeppelin, reading historical non-fiction, and any activity that incorporates the Hermosa/Manhattan Beach Strand.
Mike Bidwill
President, Arizona Cardinals
After practicing law for six years as a federal prosecutor, Michael Bidwill joined the organization in 1996 as Vice President/General Counsel and today serves as team President. In that time, no one has been more influential in steering the organization on its path towards an eventual NFC Championship.
In addition to guiding the Cardinals, Bidwill has also taken on an ever-increasing role in the National Football League and the greater Phoenix business community as well. In 2007, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell appointed Michael to the league’s Business Ventures Committee, one of the NFL’s most prominent. In September of 2008, he took over as Chair of the influential Greater Phoenix Economic Council (GPEC). He is also a member of Greater Phoenix Leadership (GPL), an organization composed of the region’s top business and civic leaders.
Within the league, Michael chairs the NFL Security Advisory Committee, a group of eight club executives that oversees and develops best security practices for NFL facilities. He additionally serves on Arizona’s Super Bowl Host Committee which successfully staged Super Bowl XLII at University of Phoenix Stadium last February and will seek to bring the game back to the state.
Among his most significant roles with the Cardinals has been the development of University of Phoenix Stadium, a project that he spearheaded from its inception. The venue has been a major factor in the transformation of the Cardinals and a catalyst for the team’s success. It has received worldwide acclaim for its distinctive architecture and cutting-edge design and even before it opened, it was selected by BusinessWeek as one of the 10 most impressive sports facilities in the world and has received numerous honors in its three full years of operation.
From 1990–96, Bidwill was a federal prosecutor in Phoenix where he specialized in homicide and other violent crime cases. He also directed three task forces, including the FBI’s gang task force on the Navajo Indian Reservation in northeast Arizona.
Bidwill earned a Bachelor of Science degree in finance from St. Louis University in 1987 and in 1990 earned a law degree from Catholic University in Washington, D.C.
George Bodenheimer
President, ESPN, Inc. and ABC Sports
Co-chairman, Disney Media Networks
An ESPN and cable industry pioneer, George Bodenheimer, 51, was named ESPN’s fifth President in 1998, and as the company’s longest-tenured top executive has led an unprecedented period of growth for ESPN. Bodenheimer’s path to leadership mirrors that of ESPN itself - with his sharp focus on creativity and cutting-edge innovation, his emphasis on always enhancing value for ESPN’s fans and business partners, and his conviction for teamwork. In 2003, he was also appointed President of ABC Sports, overseeing all the multimedia sports assets of The Walt Disney Company, and in 2004 he assumed the role of co-chairman, Disney Media Networks, encompassing strategic planning for Disney’s media assets.
As President of ESPN, Inc., Bodenheimer leads one of the world’s premier brands with over 50 business entities and counting - including six domestic television networks (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Classic, ESPNEWS, ESPN Deportes, ESPNU); 46 international television networks; ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNEWS and ESPNU HD (simulcast services in high-definition); ESPN 3D launching in June 2010; ESPN Regional Television; ; ESPN Radio; ESPN The Magazine and books; the ESPN Zones (sports-themed restaurants); and other growing new businesses including (broadband), ESPN Mobile (wireless), ESPN on Demand and ESPN Interactive.
Under Bodenheimer’s leadership, ESPN offers more leading platforms than any other media entity and has acquired a collection of rights unparalleled in scope. Recent major acquisitions including The Masters, the SEC, the BCS, Premier League, golf’s British Open and tennis’s US Open were added to the stable highlighted by Monday Night Football, NBA, MLB, college football and basketball, World Cup Soccer and Wimbledon. The number of recent agreements and the unprecedented length underscore Bodenheimer’s focus on ESPN’s mission to serve sports fans.
As President of ABC Sports, he oversees one of the broadcast industry’s most comprehensive sports programming schedules, which is now branded “ESPN on ABC.” Among the premier programming is the NBA Finals, NASCAR, college football including the Rose Bowl, college basketball, World Cup Soccer, the Belmont Stakes, Little League World Series, the Indy 500 and more.
Bodenheimer’s vision has led to numerous company and industry-leading innovations in integrated sales and marketing, original programming, rights and business acquisitions, and new technologies, highlighted by ESPN’s state-of-the-art Digital Center in Bristol, a West Coast production facility in Los Angeles, an Innovation Lab in Orlando and, in conjunction with Disney, a Media and Ad Lab in Austin. He established an organizational structure with leaders focusing on six areas: content across all media, technology, international, sales and marketing, finance and administration.
Bodenheimer joined the company after college in January 1981 as a driver in the mailroom. He rose through the ranks becoming Executive Vice President, Sales and Marketing in 1996. He graduated from Denison University in 1980 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics, and he is married with three children.
Robert A. Bowman
President and CEO, Major League Baseball Advanced Media LP
Bob Bowman joined Major League Baseball Advanced Media LP (MLBAM), the interactive media and Internet company of Major League Baseball, as President and Chief Executive Officer in November 2000 following 3 years of work in the Internet space. MLBAM was created in June 2000 when the owners of the 30 professional baseball teams voted to centralize all of Baseball’s Internet operations under one roof. MLBAM operates the official League site, , as well as each of the 30 individual team sites.
Prior to joining MLBAM, Mr. Bowman was President and Chief Operating Officer of ITT Corporation one of the world’s largest and pre-eminent conglomerates. He joined ITT in 1991 as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of ITT Sheraton, the Boston-based global hotel network. In 1992 he was named Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of the parent company before being named President and Chief Operating Officer in 1995. Following the trivestiture of the Company’s business divisions in 1995, Mr. Bowman successfully oversaw the growth and operations of the $8 billion conglomerate until it was acquired by Starwood Hotels and Resorts in 1998. During his tenure, Mr. Bowman and the senior management team at ITT created more than $25 billion of value for the company’s shareholders.
Before joining ITT he served as Treasurer for the State of Michigan from 1983 to 1991. The youngest State Treasurer in the nation at the time of his appointment, during his eight year term he grew the State’s pension system from $6 billion to $19 billion in asset value.
Prior to his appointment in Michigan, Mr. Bowman also worked as an investment banker with Goldman Sachs & Company, and from 1979 to 1981 he served in the US Department of the Treasury as Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary for Domestic Finance.
A native of Milwaukee, Mr. Bowman graduated from Harvard College in 1977, and received his M.B.A. from The Wharton School in 1979. He serves as President of the Michigan Education Trust and is a member of the Board of Directors of Blockbuster, Inc., Take-Two Interactive Corp. and Warnaco Corp.
A proven innovator in both the public and private sectors, Mr. Bowman is a frequent lecturer and has been a regular guest commentator on CNN, CNBC, MSNBC, Fox Business News, the CBS Evening News and the Newshour with Jim Lehrer and he has been the subject of personal features in Fortune, Newsweek, BusinessWeek, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, among others.
J.P. Brocket
Manager, Open Services and Infrastructure
Sprint
Courtney Brunious
Student Researcher, USC Marshall MBA, 2010
Courtney Brunious has been working with the USC Marshall Sports Business Institute and Professor David Carter since September of 2008. A graduating member of the USC Marshall MBA class of 2010, and current president of the Marshall Sports Business Organization, Courtney has also been project lead for Money Games throughout the 2009-1010 academic year.
Prior to enrolling at USC, Courtney worked in land acquisition for National Home Builder KB Home, dealing with acquisitions throughout San Bernardino County. A licensed attorney, Courtney has also worked in the legal field while residing in the city of Chicago. He graduated with a B.A. in political science from the University of Michigan in 2001 and a J.D. from the University of Southern California in 2004.
David Campbell
President & CEO, AEG Europe
David Campbell is President and CEO of AEG Europe, a role he undertook in March 2005. David has overseen the transformation of The O2, Europe’s state-of-the-art entertainment destination. In its opening season The O2 became the world’s most popular music arena and was crowned Venue of the Year at top industry awards - Music Week, Pollstar and the ILMC - within a year of opening.
Formerly Chief Executive of Visit London, Campbell has more than 25 years marketing and management experience at General Mills, Pepsi and Virgin, where he co-founded Virgin Radio.
In 1997 he set up Ginger Media Group with Chris Evans, which they sold for £225m in 2000. After that, he was Vice Chair of Ministry of Sound and Non-Exec Chair of Zenith Entertainment, before helping create Visit London in 2003. In 2004 tourism delivered an incremental £770m into the London economy, taking it to roughly 10% of London’s GDP. As CEO he oversaw 2 consecutive years of growth in London’s worldwide market share – the first increases for 10 years.
Campbell’s interests outside work are his family, home, live music and travelling - he was once a licensed helicopter pilot. He is married with four children and lives in West Sussex and London.
David M. Carter
Executive Director, USC Marshall Sports Business Institute
David M. Carter is the Executive Director of the University of Southern California’s Sports Business Institute and is a professor of sports business at USC’s Marshall School of Business.
Additionally, he founded the Sports Business Group in 1999 following more than ten years of consulting for the sports and entertainment industries.
As a sports business consultant specializing in strategic marketing, Mr. Carter has consulted for corporations, sports organizations, sports and entertainment venues, law firms, municipalities, and individual athletes.
Further, Mr. Carter regularly provides sports-business commentary to national media concerns.
He has also authored three books about the sports business industry.
Mr. Carter is a graduate of the University of Southern California where he obtained both a Bachelor of Science degree in marketing and a Masters in Business Administration with a concentration in finance.
Arturo Castro
Student Researcher, USC Marshall MBA 2009
Arturo Castro is a brand manager at THQ, a leading video game publisher in Agoura Hills, CA. Since beginning his tenure at THQ, Mr. Castro has managed a variety of projects and is currently leading the brand management for the UFC Undisputed franchise. Under Mr. Castro’s management, the UFC Undisputed franchise has established itself as a premier sports/fighting game with over 3.8 million unit sales in its first year of release in 2009.
Prior to working at THQ, Mr. Castro worked for 5 years as a research scientist for Pfizer Global Research and Development. During his time at Pfizer, Mr. Castro worked on a variety of drug development projects in the field of biochemistry for such diseases as glaucoma, cancer and diabetes.
After his time at Pfizer, Mr. Castro decided to change careers and follow his aspiration to work in sports and entertainment. He enrolled at USC Marshall School of Business in the Fall of 2006 and quickly began to work with Professor David Carter on a variety of projects for the USC Sports Business Institute (SBI). Mr. Castro eventually became the co-lead for the “Convergence of Sports and Entertainment project” with fellow classmate Todd Jacobs and in the Spring of 2008 participated in creating the foundation for the book, “Money Games: Profiting from the Convergence of Sports and Entertainment.” Mr. Castro’s work with the SBI led to his summer internship for Nike’s Global Basketball Brand in the summer of 2007 as well as short internship at Fox Home Entertainment in the Fall of 2007.
Arturo currently resides in Studio City, CA and is happily married to his beautiful wife Iliana Guzman Castro, who practices law at Dapeer, Rosenblit & Litvak, LLP.
Fred Claire
MLB Analyst
Fred Claire was a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ front office for 30 years, advancing from publicity director of the team to the position of Executive Vice President with responsibility for player personnel decisions and baseball operations.
In a distinguished career with the Dodgers, Claire served the team as a publicity director; vice president of public relations, promotions and marketing; Executive Vice President in charge of day-to-day operations; and Executive Vice President and General Manager in charge of player personnel.
Claire joined the Dodgers in 1969 and he proved to be an award-winning executive at every stage of his career. Claire was directing the team’s marketing efforts when the Dodgers first hit the three-million mark in attendance and established a period of record-setting attendance figures.
In April of 1987, Claire was named general manager of the Dodgers and when the team won the World Series in 1988 he was selected Major League Baseball’s “Executive of the Year” by The Sporting News. Claire became the fifth Dodger executive in the team’s history to win the award, following Larry MacPhail (1939), Branch Rickey (1947), Walter O’Malley (1955) and Buzzie Bavasi (1959).
Since his departure from the Dodgers in June of 1998, Claire has maintained an active schedule as a columnist and analyst for . He was the host to the weekly radio show “The GM Corner” on radio for two years and served as the host of the show “The Scouts Section.”
He also has served as an instructor at the University of Southern California and as a consultant to companies involved in sports while maintaining an active schedule in civic involvement.
A book on Claire’s career with the Dodgers (“Fred Claire: My 30 Years in Dodger Blue”) was released in March of 2004 by Sports Publishing LLC. The book was co-authored by Claire and Steve Springer of the Los Angeles Times and it was recognized on the Los Angeles Times’ “Bestsellers” list.
During the spring semesters of 1999 through 2001 Claire served as an instructor at USC in the presentation of a class titled “Sports, Business and the Media in Today’s Society.” He continues to lecture on the business of sports at USC and is a member of the advisory board for both the USC Sports Business Institute and the student Sports Business Assn. Claire also serves on the advisory board for the Sports Management graduate program at California State University, Long Beach.
Claire is a partner in the venture , offering analytical programs to Major League Baseball teams and media companies.
Claire is a member of the board of directors of the Rose Bowl Operating Company and his civic involvement also includes board of director positions for the Special Olympics of Southern California; the Los Angeles Sports Council; and Life Skills FORE Pasadena Youth, Inc.
During the time Claire headed the Dodgers’ public relations and marketing efforts, the team received the Diogenes Award for ethics in marketing by the Sales and Marketing Executives of Los Angeles and the Dodgers were saluted for achievements in marketing by both Major League Baseball and the Advertising Club of Los Angeles. In 1986 Claire received the Robert O. Fishel Award, an award presented annually to an industry executive who excels in promoting the game. Claire received the “Good Guy” award from the Southern California Sports Broadcasters in the Spring of 2000.
Claire served Major League baseball in a number of capacities, including a role as a member of the Board of Directors for MLB Properties, as a member of the Broadcast Advisory Group and as a member of the Baseball Operations Committee. In 1990, Claire received the Award of Honor from the American Baseball Coaches Assn. He has served as a member of the Board of Directors for the RBI program (Reviving Baseball in Inner-cities).
Prior to joining the Dodgers, Claire spent 12 years in the newspaper field as a sports editor, columnist and baseball writer for the Long Beach Press-Telegram, the Pomona Progress-Bulletin and the Whittier Daily News. During the time Claire was the sports editor of the Progress-Bulletin the newspaper was saluted for its sports section by the California Newspaper Publishers Assn.
Claire was graduated from San Jose State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism. He holds an Associate of Arts degree from Mt. San Antonio College and has been honored by the college as an outstanding alumnus. Claire also attended El Camino College and was selected as the college’s first Alumnus of the Year. In March of 2000, Claire was inducted into the California Community College Sports Hall of Fame.
During Claire’s tenure as the Executive VP in charge of baseball operations, the Dodger teams had a record of 917-867, the third best winning percentage (.519) in Major League Baseball during this period.
In Claire’s final four full seasons with the Dodgers—1994 through 1997—the team reached the post-season twice (1995 and 1996) and was leading its division when the strike halted play in 1994.
Margo Beth Crouppen
Acquisitions Editor, Organizational Studies and Economics, Stanford University Press
Margo Beth Crouppen is the Acquisitions Editor in Organizational Studies and Economics at Stanford University Press. Since 2006, she has overseen the publication of all SUP titles in Business and Economics, and has managed the strategic development of the press’ book programs in these areas. Prior to joining Stanford University Press, Ms. Crouppen was a member of the acquisitions team at SAGE Publication, Inc. She has worked on over 175 book projects.
Gary Cypres
Founder and CEO, Sports Museum of Los Angeles
Mr. Cypres is the founder and Chairman of the Board and President of Banner Holding Company and Hispanic Express Inc. Both companies serve the Hispanic population in the United States and are engaged in the finance and travel businesses. Mr. Cypres founded these companies in the 1990’s. Prior to that, Mr. Cypres was the General Partner of SC Partners, a private investment banking and consulting firm. From 1983 to 1985, Mr. Cypres was the Chief Financial Officer of The Signal Companies and from 1975 to 1983 was Vice President of Finance for Wheelbrator-Frye Inc, which was acquired by Signal in 1982. Prior to joining Wheelbrator, Mr. Cypres was an audit manager with Arthur Andersen & Company.
Mr. Cypres has been a member of the Board of Trustees and faculty member of the Amos Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College. Mr. Cypres is currently a member of the Board of Trustees of Hofstra University his Alma Marta, and founder of the Sports Museum of Los Angeles, which contains Mr. Cypres’ collection of sports memorabilia which is considered to be the largest private collection of such items in the United States.
Anita L. DeFrantz
President/ Board Member, LA84 Foundation
Anita L. DeFrantz, an attorney and member of the International Olympic Committee and 1976 and 1980 Olympic teams, is the president and member of the Board of Directors of the LA84 Foundation, which is managing Southern California's endowment from the 1984 Olympic Games.
Born in Philadelphia, PA, DeFrantz grew up in Indianapolis, IN and began her formal involvement with sports at the age of 18 when she was introduced to rowing at Connecticut College. After graduating from Connecticut College with honors in 1974, she studied for her law degree at the University of Pennsylvania Law School while training at the prestigious Vesper Boat Club. She was admitted to the Pennsylvania State Bar in 1977. She competed on every national team from 1975 to 1980. During that period, DeFrantz served as a director of the Vesper Boat Club and as a member of the Board of Directors of the U.S. Olympic Committee and U.S. Rowing Association. She was a trustee of Connecticut College from 1974 to 1988 and from 1990 to 2000. She now serves as trustee emeritus of the College.
DeFrantz was elected to the IOC on October 17, 1986. On September 4, 1997, she became the first woman in the 103-year history of the IOC to be elected vice president. She was first elected to the IOC's Executive Board on July 23, 1992 and re-elected to a full four-year term in September 1993. DeFrantz is the chair of the IOC’s Women and Sport Commission and the IOC Athletes’ Commission Election Committee. She is a member of the IOC's Juridical Commission, the Finance Commission, the Coordination Commission for London 2012 Olympic Games and the Sport and Law Commission.
Since 1993, she has served as a vice president of the Fédération Internationale des Sociétés d’Aviron (FISA), the international rowing federation. In April 2002, DeFrantz was appointed as arbitrator at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
In addition to her Olympic bronze medal performance in the 1976 Games, DeFrantz won a silver medal in the 1978 World Championships in rowing, was a finalist in the World Championships four times and won six National Championships. The IOC awarded her the Bronze Medal of the Olympic Order for her leadership role in fighting the U.S. government-led boycott of the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow.
As a vice president for the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee (LAOOC), she organized and managed the Olympic Village at the University of Southern California.
DeFrantz is a member of the U.S. Olympic Committee Board of Directors. She is president and member of the Board of Directors of Kids In Sports, Los Angeles. She has served as president of Southern California Olympians.
DeFrantz is a member of The Knight Foundation Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics, steward of the Women's Sports Foundation and serves on the Board of Directors for the Juvenile Law Center, Institute for International Sport, Santa Monica College Foundation, OBN Holdings, Los Angeles Sports Council and Western Asset Trust. She is a member of the NCAA Leadership Advisory Board, the Advisory Board Sports Business Institute and the U.S. Rowing Task Force on Access, Affordability and Diversity.
DeFrantz has received numerous honors and awards. She was inducted into the National Rowing Hall of Fame on March 20, 2010 and the Consortium for Academics and Sports Hall of Fame on October 27, 2009. She was honored by the Indiana Historical Society as one of the 2009 Living Legends on July 17, 2009 and inducted into the John McLendon Minority Athletics Administrators Hall of Fame on June 19, 2009. She was awarded the Africa Civic Responsibility Award by the African Diplomatic Corps in California and the editorial board of The African Times-USA on May 22, 2009. She received the 2008 Abby J. Leibman Pursuit of Justice Award on November 13, 2008 presented by the California Women’s Law Center. She was inducted into the International Women’s Forum Hall of Fame on October 17, 2008 and honored as Distinguished Woman of Los Angeles by Soroptimist International of Los Angeles in April 2008. She was inducted into the Indianapolis Public Schools Hall of Fame in October 2007 and the National Association for Sports and Physical Education Hall of Fame in March 2007. Maria Shriver, the First Lady of California, honored her with the Minerva Award in October 2005. In September 2005, she received the Bradley Unsung Hero Award from the Friends, the Foundation of the California African American Museum. The Law Alumni Society of the University of Pennsylvania Law School recognized her with The Alumni Award of Merit in 2002. She received the “Fair Play Gaio Cilnio Mecenate” in June 2001 presented by the Comitato Premio Internazionale, Arezzo, Italy. In 1998, she was awarded the prestigious Guirlande d’Honneur from the Federation Internationale Cinema Television Sportifs. In 1997, she became the 16th recipient of the Olympic Torch Award, the highest recognition the United States Olympic Committee bestows for service to the USOC. She also received the William May Garland Award from the Southern California Committee for the Olympic Games. In June 1995, DeFrantz was honored with the Medal of Honor from the International Softball Federation. In April 1994, she was awarded the prestigious Kiphuth Fellowship in memory of former Yale University swimming coach and Athletic Director Robert J.H. Kiphuth.
She is the recipient of an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Mills College (May 1998), Mount Holyoke College (May 1998), Haverford College (May 1997), California State University, Dominguez Hills (May 1996), Pomona College (May 1995) and the University of Rhode Island (May 1989). She received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Mt. St. Mary’s College (May 2008), The College of Wooster (May 2006), Connecticut College (May 2004) and Illinois Wesleyan University (September 1996) and an honorary Doctor of Philanthropy degree from Pepperdine University (January 1992).
In November 2009, SportsPro Magazine named DeFrantz one of “The 20 Most Powerful Women in Sport.” In October 2007, the Institute for International Sport named her one of “The 100 Most Influential Sports Educators in America.” In March 2006, the NCAA named her one of the “NCAA’s 100 Most Influential Student-Athletes.” She was named one of “L.A.’s Most Powerful Sports Executives” in April 2005 by the Los Angeles Business Journal and Sports Illustrated named her one of the “101 Most Influential Minorities in Sports” in May 2003. She has been named one of the “100 Most Powerful People in Sports” by The Sporting News nine times (1991-1999), one of “The 100 Most Powerful Women In The World” by The Australian Magazine, one of the “Top 25 Female Sports Executives” by Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Journal and one of the “Top 10 African-American Leaders In Sports” by Savoy magazine. She is the recipient of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund's Black Woman of Achievement Award, the NAACP Jackie Robinson Sports Achievement Award, the Essence magazine Award for Sports, the Trumpet Award from Turner Broadcasting System, the Sports Lawyers Association Award of Excellence and the Indiana Pathfinder Award.
In 1991, DeFrantz became the first non-French woman and second American (Avery Brundage was the first) to be elected an associate member of the Academie des Sports in France and was honored by the USOC with the IOC's "Woman of the Year" Award. Also in 1991, she was presented with the U.S. Rowing's Jack Kelly Award for superior achievements in rowing and service to amateur athletics. DeFrantz was inducted into the International Scholar-Athlete Hall of Fame in 1999 and is a charter member of the Connecticut College Hall of Fame.
Terry Denson
Vice President, Content Strategy & Acquisition
Verizon Communications
Terry Denson is vice president of content strategy & acquisition, a position he has held since February 2006. He is responsible for content strategy and video-content acquisition and partnership management for FiOS TV, FiOS Internet and Verizon Wireless.
Denson previously was vice president of programming and marketing, a position he was named to in August 2004 when he joined Verizon. In that position, he oversaw the creation and implementation of the company's video product packaging, pricing and marketing strategies and video content acquisitions. He also was responsible for customer acquisition, retention and education, and planning.
Prior to joining Verizon, Denson served as vice president of programming for Insight Communications where he led the acquisition of programming, in addition to the development of analog, digital, video-on-demand, high definition TV, broadband and interactive content strategies.
Previously, as director of business development for the affiliate sales and marketing department of MTV Networks, a division of Viacom International, he negotiated affiliation agreements, managed the sales and distribution of multiple video services, and directed analyses of trends in the market.
As general attorney for ABC, he managed numerous content rights and distribution issues.
A graduate of Harvard University, Denson holds a J.D. degree from Georgetown University.
John M. Dorger
CEO, Tournament of Roses (Retired)
John M. “Mitch” Dorger retired as CEO for The Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association on February 1, 2010. During his 10 years with the organization, Dorger was responsible for leading the Tournament’s 25-member professional staff and supporting the 935 volunteer members who plan and stage the world-renowned Rose Parade and Rose Bowl Game as well as numerous smaller events.
Dorger has more than 25 years of leadership experience in both the private and public sectors. From 1994 to 2000, Dorger was the chief operating officer at the Claremont University Center, where he was responsible for a 350-person, 30 million dollar organization which provided support services to the seven colleges in the Claremont Colleges consortium.
Prior to his position at Claremont, Dorger served as chief of staff and later vice commander at the United States Air Force Academy; base commander at the Keesler Technical Training Center and deputy assistant to the Under Secretary of the Air Force.
Dorger graduated from the United States Air Force Academy in 1968 with a bachelor’s degree in political science. He earned his master’s degree in international relations from Tufts University and an Executive MBA degree from Claremont Graduate University. He was also a research fellow at Harvard University.
James G. Ellis
Dean, USC Marshall School of Business
James G. Ellis was appointed dean of the USC Marshall School of Business and holder of the Robert R. Dockson Dean’s Chair in Business Administration in April 2007. He also has held a full-time appointment as a professor in the Department of Marketing since 1997, and continues to teach the school’s freshman leadership colloquium class.
Prior to being appointed dean, Ellis was USC’s vice provost for globalization, responsible for building the USC name worldwide. At the USC Marshall School, he previously served as vice dean for external relations and as associate dean for undergraduate programs. From 1998 to 2003, he directed the Family Business Program, running seminars for families in business.
Ellis worked in the corporate world from 1970 to 1997. He was president and CEO of Porsche Design from 1985 to 1990. From 1990 to 1997, he was chairman and CEO of Port O’Call Pasadena, an upscale home accessory retailer, as well as an owner/partner in six other companies.
Ellis was a member of the Young Presidents Organization for 14 years, during which time he served two terms as chairman of the San Gabriel Valley Chapter and one term as regional vice president, and for six years was a member of the International Board of Directors. He is also a past chairman of the Pasadena Chamber of Commerce.
Ellis sits on numerous corporate and non-profit boards and has addressed organizations around the world on business topics.
At USC in 2003, Ellis was honored with both the Teaching Has No Boundaries Award, co-sponsored by the university’s Center for Excellence in Teaching, and the Golden Apple Award, given by USC Marshall School students. In 2004, he received the USC Parents’ Association’s Outstanding Teaching and Mentoring Award.
Ellis holds an M.B.A. from the Harvard Business School and a B.B.A. from the University of New Mexico.
Frank J. Fahrenkopf, Jr.
President and CEO, American Gaming Association
Frank J. Fahrenkopf, Jr., is president and CEO of the American Gaming Association (AGA). In his role as the chief executive of the AGA, Fahrenkopf is the national advocate for the commercial casino industry and is responsible for positioning the association to address regulatory, political and educational issues affecting the industry.
A lawyer by profession, Fahrenkopf gained national prominence during the 1980s when he served as chairman of the Republican Party for six of President Ronald Reagan’s eight years in the White House.
Fahrenkopf continues to serve in a variety of political capacities. He presently is co-chairman of the Commission on Presidential Debates, which conducts the general election presidential and vice presidential debates in presidential election years. He co-founded the commission in 1986 with Democratic National Committee chairman Paul Kirk.
Prior to becoming the AGA’s first chief executive in 1995, Fahrenkopf was a partner in the Washington, D.C., office of Hogan & Hartson, where he chaired the International Trade Practice Group.
He has been a frequent commentator on political and gaming issues on such network television programs as Crossfire, Inside Politics, Meet The Press, Hardball, Face the Nation, The Today Show, This Week and Good Morning America.
Brian Farrell
President, Chairman and CEO, THQ Inc.
Brian Farrell is president and CEO of THQ Inc., one of the fastest growing interactive entertainment software publishers in the world, with annual revenues exceeding $800 million. Farrell has grown THQ’s global marketing and sales force to directly serve more than 75 countries worldwide with offices located throughout North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. His tenure at THQ also includes the expansion of the Company’s internal development network to approximately 1,000 people at 11 studios, both from organic growth and several strategic studio acquisitions. Farrell has guided THQ to market leadership in the popular mass-market gaming genres with some of the industry’s best-known franchises, including UFC, Disney-Pixar, Nickelodeon, and World Wrestling Entertainment™, and many more of the entertainment industry’s biggest brands. The Company is growing its portfolio of owned intellectual properties such as Company of Heroes™, MX vs ATV, and Saints Row™.
Farrell has served as chairman of the Entertainment Software Association, the industry’s trade association. He has also served as co-chairman of the industry’s charitable foundation, which has raised over $10 million for children’s charities in its first ten years. Farrell served as chairman of the Price Center for Entrepreneurial studies at the Anderson School of Management at UCLA. Farrell holds a bachelor’s degree from Stanford University and an MBA from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Frank J. Fertitta III
Chairman and CEO, Station Casinos, Inc.
Frank J. Fertitta III is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Station Casinos, Inc., one of the largest gaming companies in the United States and the premier provider of gaming and entertainment to residents of Southern Nevada.
Fertitta’s career has been devoted to growing what started as a small family business founded in 1976 by his father, Frank Fertitta Jr., who is credited as the creator of the Las Vegas locals gaming market. Fertitta III learned the business from his father, gaining hands-on experience across virtually all departments of the Bingo Palace, the predecessor to the Palace Station Hotel & Casino.
After graduating from USC in 1984, Fertitta began working full time in various management positions at Palace Station. He assumed his current position of chairman and chief executive officer in May 1993 when he led Station Casinos in becoming a publicly traded company. In late-2007 Fertitta, together with his brother Lorenzo and financing partner Colony Capital took Station Casinos private.
Headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada, Station Casinos is the leading provider of gaming and entertainment to Las Vegas area residents. Station Casinos’ properties are regional entertainment destinations that feature various amenities including restaurants, entertainment venues, movie theaters, bowling and convention/banquet space, as well as traditional casino gaming offerings such as video poker, slot machines, table games, bingo and race and sports book wagering. The Company owns and operates 18 properties in Southern Nevada including: Red Rock Casino, Resort & Spa, Palace Station Hotel & Casino, Boulder Station Hotel & Casino, Santa Fe Station Hotel & Casino, Wildfire Casino- Rancho and Wild Wild West Gambling Hall & Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada, Texas Station Gambling Hall & Hotel and Fiesta Rancho Casino Hotel in North Las Vegas, Nevada, and Sunset Station Hotel & Casino, Fiesta Henderson Casino Hotel, Wildfire Casino-Boulder, Lake Mead Lounge, Gold Rush Casino and The Greens in Henderson, Nevada.
The Company also owns a 50% interest in Aliante Station Casino & Hotel, Barley's Casino & Brewing Company, Green Valley Ranch resort and Wildfire Casino & Lanes in Henderson, Nevada and a 6.7% interest in the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada. Additionally, Station Casinos manages the Thunder Valley Casino near Sacramento, California on behalf of the United Auburn Indian Community.
Station Casinos employs more than 13,000 team members and has been honored by FORTUNE Magazine four years in a row (2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008) among the “100 Best Companies To Work For.” Fertitta and his brother Lorenzo were named “Casino Executives of Year” in 2007 by Casino Journal magazine and were also named in 2007 and 2008 by FORBES magazine among the “400 Richest People in America”.
Fertitta is also the principal owner of Zuffa, LLC, the company that owns and operates the Ultimate Fighting Championship, the United States’ premier mixed martial arts association.
Fertitta, 48, is involved in numerous charitable activities in Southern Nevada, including Catholic Charities, and the Las Vegas Chapter of the I Have a Dream Foundation. Fertitta is a life-long resident of Las Vegas where he and his wife Jill, raise their three children.
Lorenzo Fertitta
Chairman and CEO, Zufa, LLC
Lorenzo J. Fertitta is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Zuffa, LLC, which owns the premier mixed martial arts (MMA) organization the Ultimate Fighting Championship® (UFC®). As Chairman and CEO, Lorenzo oversees all company operations including marketing, production, legal and finance and also directs planning and operations for the ongoing global expansion of the UFC brand.
Lorenzo, along with his brother Frank Fertitta III and friend Dana White, Jr. formed Zuffa, LLC and acquired the assets relating to the UFC brand in January 2001. Since then, Lorenzo has been actively involved in company leadership, development and success.
Zuffa is widely credited with building the sport of mixed martial arts and several derivative niche industries.
Over the past eight years, Zuffa has led the regulatory effort for mixed martial arts, which is now sanctioned by the most prestigious regulatory bodies in the world including, the California, Nevada, New Jersey, and Illinois State Athletic Commissions. In 2005, the company launched the hit reality television series The Ultimate Fighter®, now in its eighth successful season on Spike TV. Anheuser-Busch, Inc. and Harley-Davidson Motor Company have forged core sponsorships of UFC events, which have a viewership base of millions. UFC can be seen on some form of television in over 120 countries and territories. UFC is the largest pay-per-view content provider in the world and is considered one of the fastest-growing sports in history.
From June 2000 to 2008, Lorenzo served as President of Station Casinos, Inc. one of the largest gaming companies in the United States. Station Casinos employs more than 12,000 team members and is the leading provider of gaming and entertainment to Las Vegas area residents. Station Casinos’ properties are regional entertainment destinations that feature various amenities including restaurants, entertainment venues, movie theaters, bowling and convention/banquet space, as well as traditional casino gaming offerings such as video poker, slot machines, table games, bingo and race and sports book wagering.
Before becoming President of Station in June 2000, Lorenzo was President and Chief Executive Officer of Fertitta Enterprises, Inc., a private investment firm that owns and manages securities, real estate and other business ventures. In 1995, he acquired controlling interest in the Gordon Biersch Brewing Company, Inc., and, in 1997, became its President and Chief Executive Officer.
From 1996 until July 2000, Lorenzo was a member of the Nevada State Athletic Commission, the sanctioning body responsible for the management and control of all combative sporting events held within the State of Nevada. In 1999, he was appointed Vice-Chair, becoming the youngest person in the Commission's history to hold this title.
Lorenzo retains his position as Vice Chairman of Station Casinos, Inc. with Frank Fertitta III operating as President. He is also a principal owner and member of the Board of Directors of Gordon Biersch Brewing Company, Inc. He earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of San Diego and a Masters of Business Administration degree from the Leonard N. Stern School of Business at New York University. Lorenzo is 41 and is a life-long resident of Las Vegas.
Dick Glover
President and CEO, “Funny or Die”
Dick Glover is President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Funny or Die.
, launched in April of 2007, is an award-winning website that has become one of the top destinations for comedy on the web. The site averages over 7 million unique video views per month and over 22 million video views per month. With hundreds of exclusive celebrity videos and a steady stream of huge viral hits, Funny or Die has become the “place to be seen” for comedic celebrities, and the obvious destination for a daily comedy fix. Funny or Die’s founders are Will Ferrell, Adam McKay and Chris Henchy. Judd Apatow is also a principal partner in Funny or Die.
New on Funny or Die’s slate this year include the upcoming HBO series “Funny or Die Presents,” and Funny or Die’s first digital feature film is currently in pre-production.
Prior to Funny or Die, Glover was Vice President of Broadcasting and New Media for the National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) and for NASCAR Digital Entertainment. At NASCAR, Glover ran the Los Angeles office overseeing all television, new media businesses, entertainment programming and promotion on behalf of the sport. A 20-year veteran of broadcasting and media, Glover was previously an Executive at the Walt Disney Company in various Senior Management roles in their ABC and Internet Groups. Glover also spent seven years with ESPN, most recently as Executive Vice President, Programming where he was responsible for all aspects of ESPN, Inc.’s domestic programming efforts, which included ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNEWS, ESPN Classic and . He was the executive in charge of the planning, development and launch of in 1994 and was instrumental in the site’s impressive growth to its current position as an industry leader.
Ed Goren
President, FOX Sports
Ed Goren, a 46-time Emmy Award winner and Executive Producer of FOX Sports since 1994, was named President, FOX Sports in April 2000. Goren and David Hill are responsible for the look, sound, editorial content and superior quality of FOX Sports’ studio and game broadcasts and continue to serve as Executive Producers of all FOX Sports productions.
Goren also oversees all aspects of FOX Sports’ television investments and partnerships. In addition, Goren spearheads the division’s strategy of pursuing major event programming to insure FOX Sports’ position as a premier network sports broadcaster.
Goren had been Senior Producer at CBS Sports since 1991, where he worked on nearly every sport the network broadcast. During his tenure as Senior Producer, CBS Sports broadcasted such major events as the World Series, the NCAA Basketball Tournament, The Masters and Super Bowl XXVI.
Goren produced CBS Sports’ Major League Baseball studio program in 1990. He also produced The College Football Report and the annual Heisman Trophy Award presentation (1986-89). As producer of The College Football Report, he revamped the series, integrating information including scores, highlights, live interviews and special news segments into a program less than 15 minutes long. Other credits at CBS Sports include serving as producer of NFL, NBA and NCAA basketball broadcasts.
He joined CBS in 1966, as a copy boy in the news division and one year later became a news writer, producer and occasional on-air reporter at the then-CBS affiliate in Miami. Late in 1969, Goren moved back to CBS News as a producer for Newsnet, the daily news feeds to CBS affiliates. He joined CBS Sports in 1975 as a coordinating producer for CBS Sports Spectacular, the network’s sports anthology series.
Goren’s sports roots run deep, as his late father, Herb Goren, was a long-time baseball columnist for the New York Sun and public relations director for the New York Rangers hockey club.
Goren graduated from Syracuse University in 1966 with degrees in journalism and political science. In 2005, Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University honored Goren at its 40th anniversary as one of its most distinguished alumni.
Born June 15, 1944, in Greensboro, N.C., he lives in Los Angeles with his wife Patty. He has one son.
Bob Graziano
Managing Partner, Wealth Advisory Services
Northern Trust, NA
Bob Graziano is Managing Partner of the Family Advisory Services Group at Northern Trust. The Family Advisory Services Group provides investment management, financial consulting services, and family office services to successful individuals and coordinates their overall financial services needs.
Prior to joining Northern, Bob spent 18 years with the Los Angeles Dodgers, serving for his final six years there as the Club’s President & Chief Operating Officer. He was named to that post on March 19, 1998, becoming only the 11th President in franchise history. He started with the Dodger organization in 1986 as Director, Financial Projects and was promoted to Chief Financial Officer in 1987 and Executive Vice President in 1997.
After earning summa cum laude honors and a Business Administration degree, with an emphasis in accounting, from the University of Southern California in 1980, Bob joined Ernst & Young as a certified public accountant. During his four years with the accounting firm, he serviced audit clients, including the Los Angeles Dodgers. In 1984, he took a leave of absence from Ernst & Young to work for the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee in ticket operations. In 1985, Bob joined WTC Airfreight, an international freight forwarding firm, as Manager, Financial Services.
Bob has built a strong reputation in Southern California due to his community involvement and civic leadership. Bob is Chair of the Los Angeles Sports and Entertainment Commission. He also serves as a board member of LA’s BEST - a Los Angeles-based after-school educational program, the LA84 Foundation, USC Associates, and as an advisory board member of the Jackie Robinson Foundation, the USC Leventhal School of Accounting, and the USC Sports Business Institute. He is also a member of the Bel Air Chapter of Young Presidents Organization and the Los Angeles Chapter of World Presidents Organization.
David Hill
Chairman & CEO, FOX Sports Television Group
David Hill has been Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, FOX Sports Television Group, the entity that oversees the nation’s top-rated network for sports, including and FOX’s global presence in sports media, since 1999. In addition to leading all of FOX’s total sports media operations internally, Hill also oversees FSN’s 19 regional sports networks, Fox Soccer Channel, SPEED, Fox Sports en Espanol and FUEL TV as well as the company’s joint venture sports businesses STATS, LLC. and Big Ten Network. Hill and colleague Ed Goren, the President of FOX Sports, also serve as FOX Sports’ Executive Producers.
In April 2009, moved from Fox Interactive Media to FOX Sports, with Hill in charge of the site’s look, functionality, content and programming. Under Hill’s direction, established FOX Sports Digital Entertainment; a unit commissioned to create internet-only programming and introduced a series of mid-day programs under the umbrella “Lunch with Benefits” in September 2009.
While simultaneously maintaining his FOX Sports responsibilities, Hill served as President of DIRECTV’s entertainment division from April 2005 to March 2007. There he was responsible for the integration of new technologies and the development of programming services. During his tenure, NFL Sunday Ticket SuperFan and NASCAR HotPass enhanced viewing experiences were launched and are among DIRECTV’s most popular subscriptions.
Prior to being named FOX Sports Chairman, Hill was Chairman and CEO, FOX Broadcasting Company from September 1997 to June 1999, while retaining the positions of President and Executive Producer, FOX Sports and President and CEO, Fox Sports Net. His responsibilities as Chairman and CEO of FOX Broadcasting encompassed all programming, marketing, advertising sales and business affairs at the combined entities. Under Hill’s stewardship, FOX Broadcasting witnessed its best 18-49 ratings since becoming a seven night a week network.
In 1996, working with News Corporation executive Chase Carey, Hill set up what is now FSN, an unwired coalition of regional sports networks. Through its 19 owned-and-operated regional networks, FSN serves as the TV home to more than half of all MLB, NHL and NBA teams based in the United States.
Hill joined FOX Broadcasting Company in December 1993 as President, FOX Sports, responsible for the creation of FOX’s sports division. Under his direction, FOX Sports grew from an idea to a fully functional network sports division in just eight months, utilizing state-of-the-art studio and on-site broadcasting facilities. Since those early days with just one sport (NFL), FOX Sports developed into a fully functioning sports division which today is the exclusive national over-the-air television rights holder of Major League Baseball, including the All-Star Game, alternating League Championship Series and World Series; the National Football League’s NFC package, including the NFC Championship Game and alternating Super Bowls and NASCAR’s SPRINT Cup racing from February through May, including the Daytona 500. FOX Sports has been America’s top-rated network for sports for 13 consecutive years (1997-2009).
Hill’s vision led to such innovations as the FOXTrax computer enhanced hockey puck; the FOXBox, the network’s critically acclaimed, and now universally accepted, constant-score-and-clock graphic; the in-base microphone, “Diamond Cam” and "Catcher-Cam" used during MLB on FOX coverage and NASCAR on FOX’s “Crank It Up”, “Gopher Cam” and “The Adventures of Digger & Friends” carton series and merchandise. As part of the NASCAR contract which brought America’s fastest growing sport to FOX, Hill created SPEED Channel, which grew from 27 million homes under its original title of Speedvision to 78 million homes today.
He began his career with News Corporation in Great Britain in 1988, when he helped launch Sky Television, Britain’s first satellite TV station, and also introduced Eurosport, a pan-European, multilingual, dedicated sports channel that was a joint venture of Sky Television and the European Broadcast Union. When Sky Television merged with British Sky Broadcasting in 1990, he took charge of BSkyB Sports Channel and created Sky Sports in April 1991 and made it the fastest-growing subscription channel in television history.
Hill relocated to Great Britain from Australia, where he had been Vice President, Sports, with the Nine Network since 1977. Under his direction the station won an unprecedented number of awards for excellence in sports production. His career began as a 17-year-old copy boy at the Sydney Daily Telegraph (Australia). He worked as a reporter on that newspaper, before switching to television at age 19.
Hill lives in Los Angeles with his wife Joan and their family.
Jack W. Hill
General Manager, Cowboys Stadium
Mr. Hill has 30 years experience in the development industry, and specifically the last 19 years in the capacity as owner’s representative. He has extensive experience in public/private ventures and specializes in pre-development programming, cost analysis and execution of complex fast track projects.
Relevant Project Experience
Cowboys Stadium L.P. 2008 – Present Dual role as Owner’s representative for completion of construction and Stadium General Manager managing on-going daily operations of the stadium. Developed budget format and reporting system for operations. Reviewed and assisted in negotiations for booked events. Initiated performance measures with all operations departments to track staffing levels and per event costs. Liaison between Dallas Cowboys Football Club and the NFL on facility operational matters. Liaison between Dallas Cowboys Football Club and the City of Arlington with regards to on-going operations.
Blue Star Development / Dallas Cowboys Football Club 2005 – 2009 Owner’s representative with respect to on-going activities necessary to develop a $1.20 billion multi-purpose stadium. Developed cost accounting system and code of accounts for budgeting controls. Negotiated contracts for design and construction activities. Directly managed over $100 million of design and construction contracts outside of construction manager’s contract. Contracts include furniture, fixtures and equipment, on-site and off-site utilities, infra-structure road and bridge improvements and concession equipment. Review and approve monthly construction and design pay applications.
Dallas Independent School District 2002 – 2005 Principal manager of oversight responsibility for over $1.367 billion of development associated with the 2002 Bond Program, including over $600 million of new construction and $400 million in extensive renovation. Liaison between the District and the program management team. Full budget responsibility including negotiation of all professional service contracts, construction change orders and design team contracts. Developed budget format and cost reporting correspondence with the District, the program management staff and the Board of Trustees. Reviews and approves monthly contractor draws and professional services pay applications. Provides expertise with respect to site acquisition and site utilization. Provides expertise with delivery methods. Conducts public meetings and provides monthly reports to the Board of Trustees.
American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas 1998 – 2002 Worked for Hillwood Development Corporation as the principal manager of oversight responsibility for over $300 Million of construction, including American Airlines Center and two garages. Provided pre-development services including detailed and conceptual estimates, cost analysis of systems and strategic initiatives to maximize revenue. Provided management expertise with respect to programming and optimization of design to enhance revenue. Liaison between team owners and the construction team. Full budget responsibility including negotiation of all professional services agreements, construction change orders and design team contracts. Developed budget format and cost reporting correspondence with team owners, City of Dallas, financial partners, and Center Operating Company. Reviewed and approved monthly contractor draws and pay professional services applications.
Miller Park, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 1995 – 1998 Performed pre-construction management services for the State of Wisconsin with respect to budgeting and scheduling of a $350 Million major league baseball facility. Reviewed drawings at various stages of completion and directed the design team. Liaison between the State of Wisconsin’s Department of Facilities Development and the Milwaukee Brewers Baseball Club.
The Ballpark in Arlington, Arlington, Texas 1991 – 1995. Worked directly for the Texas Rangers Baseball Club as principal manager of development of the $191 Million project. Project included simultaneous construction of the major league ballpark, children’s learning center, Dr. Pepper Youth Ballpark, Sports Hall of Fame and 140,000 SF office building. Liaison between the team and the Arlington Sports Facilities Development Authority (ASFDA). Liaison between the team, the design team and the general contractor. Developed budget format and reporting procedures between the team, the lenders and the ASFDA. Conducted public meetings and reported monthly to the ASFDA.
Education: Texas A&M University, Bachelor’s Degree in Building Construction 1979
Robert Hollander
President, Amalfi Ventures
Robert Hollander has held numerous high-level business development positions related to all types of unique and state-of-the-art products during his successful career. He was the Vice President of Sales and Marketing for the 1996 Olympic Games where he was responsible for record-breaking worldwide sales of Olympic products which exceeded $1.5 Billion USD. As well, he has engineered a number of successful start-up companies.
As co-founder of Brand Sense Partners, a global intellectual property licensing and merchandising company, he launched new product categories for companies like Chrysler, Elizabeth Arden, Clorox, as well as for a number of celebrities such as Sheryl Crow, Halle Berry, and Britney Spears.
He has extensive experience in the watch and outdoor industries. He holds a B.S. from Georgia Tech.
"I'm an entrepreneur with a passion for the environment. We must protect it for our children and grandchildren. Every day is an adventure - and I'm grateful to have had some amazing experiences."
Shawn Hunter
President, CEO, and Investor-Operator, Chivas USA
Shawn Hunter was named President, CEO and Investor-Operator of Chivas USA Enterprises, LLC, the parent company of Club Deportivo Chivas USA of Major League Soccer, on Sept. 11, 2007. One of the most experienced and innovative sports marketing minds in the United States, with an accomplished 20-year track record in sports marketing, ticket sales and corporate partnerships, Hunter oversees the day-to-day operation of MLS’s Mexican-owned, Los Angeles-based club.
In just one full season under Hunter’s direction, Chivas USA made important strides. The club’s sales force has been expanded, leading to attendance growth and an increase in the team’s season ticket base. Chivas USA’s marketing and broadcast platforms have been expanded in both Spanish and English, while the club has maintained its position as one of MLS’s top-sponsored teams. Hunter has also introduced a number of innovative community and fan development initiatives such as the Jerseys Off Our Backs program; the Kick-it at the Park youth clinics with the City of Los Angeles; the return of the popular ChivaTown fan zone; and Chivas USA’s Practice in the Community Series.
Hunter joined Chivas USA from AEG, one of the world’s leading sports and entertainment presenters, where for five years he held the dual titles of Chief Marketing Officer and President, AEG Sports. In the latter role, Hunter oversaw AEG’s marquee sports events and eleven sports teams worldwide, as well as the company’s marketing partnership with Chivas USA.
Prior to joining AEG, Hunter was for six years the President of the NHL’s Phoenix Coyotes. Under his leadership, in the Coyotes' first four seasons, the club played to a 94-percent capacity (including 69 sellouts) and transformed Phoenix into a hockey hotbed. Hunter developed and launched the popular Coyotes logo and uniform, secured strategic television and radio broadcast partnerships for the team and created cutting edge marketing and ticketing campaigns, laying the groundwork to position the Coyotes as a premier sports franchise in Arizona.
Hunter joined the Coyotes from the Colorado Avalanche in 1996. As the club’s executive vice president, Hunter's first achievement was reaching a cap of 12,000 season ticket sales in just under six weeks – before the team even had a name. He was instrumental in creating and implementing the Avalanche team colors and logo as well as the logo for the Denver Nuggets. His creative initiatives and team merchandising efforts resulted in a Top 10 placement among NBA teams on an international level for licensed apparel sales.
Since joining AEG in 2002, Hunter has also been influential in a number of major business developments in Major League Soccer. As one of AEG’s representatives on MLS’s Board of Directors, Hunter played a role in the formulation of the Designated Player Rule, which opened the doors for the arrival of such international stars, during the 2007 MLS season, as the New York Red Bulls’ Juan Pablo Ángel, the Chicago Fire’s Cuauhtémoc Blanco and the LA Galaxy’s David Beckham. On behalf of AEG, Hunter also secured the Galaxy’s multimillion dollar jersey-front sponsorship following Beckham’s signing.
For the past five years Hunter has chaired the MLS Business Development Committee, which has recently approved such important initiatives as the sponsorship of MLS jersey fronts and the guaranteed distribution of every single MLS game via local television.
A native of Lawrence, Kansas, Hunter began his career in professional sports as a corporate account executive with the NBA's Minnesota Timberwolves during the team's inaugural season in 1988-89. During his tenure with the Timberwolves, the franchise set a new single-season attendance record for the NBA, as more than 1.1 million fans passed through the turnstiles. He received both his undergraduate degree in business administration (1986) and his master's degree in finance (1988) from the University of Kansas. Shawn and his wife Deidre have two sons, Dillon and Daulton.
Todd Jacobs
Student Researcher, USC Marshall MBA, 2008
Nike
Todd Jacobs is currently Senior Strategic Planning Analyst for Nike Inc. Based at Nike’s World Headquarters in Beaverton OR, Todd joined Nike in 2008 and works in Nike’s Global Direct to Consumer Retail organization.
Todd received his MBA from the USC Marshall School of Business in 2008. During his time at Marshall, Todd was the President of the Marshall Sports Business Organization and also served as the Sport Business Institute’s Student Project Lead for Professor Carter’s Convergence project.
Prior to attending business school, Todd was a consultant for Accenture focused primarily on CRM and sales force optimization within the pharmaceutical industry. Before he joined Accenture, Todd began his professional career in the sports industry as a sales intern with IMG in 2003.
A native of Wayne, Pennsylvania, Todd graduated from Bucknell University in 2003 with a degree in Business Administration. At Bucknell, Todd was a 4-year member of the Bucknell Men’s Tennis Team, and served as team captain during his junior & senior years.
Terry Jicinsky
Senior Vice President of Operations, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority
Terry Jicinsky currently serves as senior vice president of operations for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) with responsibility for the day-to-day operations of the Las Vegas Convention Center and Cashman Center. The 3.2 million square foot Las Vegas Convention Center is the third largest center in North America and has been ranked the #1 tradeshow destination by Tradeshow 200 for over one and a half decades. Cashman Center serves as the home stadium for the AAA Baseball team, the Las Vegas 51s.
Previous to his current position, Jicinsky held various positions with the LVCVA marketing department, including senior vice president of marketing, where he directed the destination’s advertising, marketing and sales efforts, including the world-renowned branding campaign, What Happens Here Stays HereTM. With over 25 years’ experience in the travel and tourism industry, his career path has covered aspects ranging from consumer travel research, internet marketing, database marketing and hotel management. Before joining the LVCVA in 1992, his work experience included hospitality industry consulting positions with the national accounting firms of Laventhol & Horwath and Coopers & Lybrand, as well as management positions with Marriott hotels.
Jicinsky has served on numerous industry boards including the board of directors for the Destination Marketing Association International, the U.S. Travel Association Policy and Research Committee, the International Association of Convention and Visitors Bureau Foundation, the International Travel and Tourism Research Association and the Las Vegas American Marketing Association. Jicinsky has been a Certified Destination Management Executive since 2004. In 2006, he received the coveted recognition of Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International’s (HSMAI) Top 25 Most Extraordinary Minds in Sales & Marketing Award.
A 20-year resident of Las Vegas, Jicinsky is a graduate of the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce Leadership Program and holds a Business Administration degree from the University of Wisconsin, Stout as well as a Master’s Degree in Hospitality Administration from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
About the LVCVA
The LVCVA is charged with marketing Southern Nevada as a tourism and convention destination worldwide, and also with operating the Las Vegas Convention Center and Cashman Center. With approximately 149,000 hotel rooms in Las Vegas alone and more than 10 million square feet of meeting and exhibit space citywide, the LVCVA’s mission centers on attracting ever-increasing numbers of leisure and business visitors to the area.
Perrin Kaplan
Founder, Zebra Partners
As former Vice President of Marketing and Corporate Affairs for Nintendo of America Inc., Perrin oversaw many aspects of internationally recognized marketing and public relations programs. She oversaw all public relations, public and government affairs, investor relations, internal communications, international communications and community relations for the global company. She is a well-known spokesperson and has brought great personality to many of her interviews. Before joining Nintendo, Kaplan served as Vice President for The Rockey Company, a nationally recognized Seattle-based public relations and public affairs firm. Prior to that, Kaplan was in journalism with KING Broadcasting, Seattle's NBC affiliate, and managed political communications for the state capitol and several White House campaigns.
Kaplan craves the constant change of new media and creating 'firsts' on how to meld it with traditional marketing.
Kaplan is deeply involved in numerous non-profit and advocacy activities, including animal rescue, and cancer education. She is a jokester, loves to cook and only exercises because she has to.
Will Kassoy
SVP, Head of Publishing, Guitar Hero
Will Kassoy currently serves as Senior Vice President, Head of Publishing at Guitar Hero. In this role, Mr. Kassoy oversees all global brand management activities and contributes to the company’s slate development. Prior to this, Mr. Kassoy has held a variety of leadership positions in global brand management. Most recently, he served as Senior Vice President, Global Brand Management for Activision Publishing, leading Activision’s marketing organization inclusive of global brand management, research, marketing communications and business development.
Before joining Activision, Mr. Kassoy was employed by The Walt Disney Company – Disney Consumer Products where he held leadership positions in various business units including Disney Interactive, Disney Publishing, Finance and Brand Management. Before joining Disney, Mr. Kassoy worked in Paris, France as a consultant for a firm specializing in artificial intelligence and expert systems. Mr. Kassoy began his career at Capitol Records/EMI in Hollywood, CA.
Mr. Kassoy holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics/Business from the University of California Los Angeles.
Blake Krikorian
Chief Executive Officer, id8 Group Holdings
Blake Krikorian serves as Chief Executive Officer of id8 Group Holdings. Mr. Krikorian co-founded Sling Media, Inc., in 2004 and served as its Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board until January 2009. Mr. Krikorian founded and served as Chief Executive Officer of id8 Group Holdings, where he advised companies such as Microsoft, AT&T, Toshiba and Time Warner on product strategy and invested in new product creation. He started his career at General Magic, which ... created the Magic Cap operating system for mobile intelligent communicators and Telescript, an agent-based network programming language for the emerging electronic marketplace (pre-Internet). At General Magic, Mr. Krikorian assisted industry-leading telecom and consumer electronics companies, including NTT, Sony, Mitsubishi Electric, Sanyo, OKI, and Matshusita/Panasonic, in creating and defining new products, and partnerships. In 1994, Mr. Krikorian co-founded the Philips Mobile Computing Group, which was founded by Philips Electronics. As group Product Manager, he built and co-led the team that defined, created, delivered, and marketed the award-winning Velo 1 Windows CE Handheld PC and its associated product line. Mr. Krikorian then left Philips Mobile Computing Group and served as Senior Vice President at Metis Associates, an information technology consulting firm and incubator of core technology companies. He led the creation of Metis' first incubated company, Mainbrace Corporation, which developed and licensed software technologies and manufacture-able device platforms to system OEMs, service providers, and semiconductor vendors. He served as Sling Media, Inc.'s President for the first two years of its operation. He has been a Director of BitGravity, Inc. since August 2008. He serves as a Director of Clicker Media Inc. He serves as Member of Board of Industry Leaders at Consumer Electronics Association (CEA). He served as a Director of Sling Media, Inc. until January 2009. He received the Technology Leadership award by Broadcasting & Cable, was named one of the 25 most influential people in mobile technology (Laptop Magazine), was recognized as an innovator who has changed the face of travel in the 21st Century (Travel & Leisure) and named to Business 2.0's "50 Who Matter Now" and Forbes' "E-Gang" lists. Mr. Krikorian holds a Bachelor's Degree in Mechanical Engineering from UCLA.
Timothy J. Leiweke
President & CEO, AEG
Timothy J. Leiweke serves as President & CEO of AEG, a collection of companies owned or operated by the organization considered to be one of the world’s leading presenters of sports and entertainment programming.
Recently selected by the Los Angeles Times as one of the 100 most influential people in southern California, and by Sports Business Journal as their Executive of the Year, Leiweke has acquired or merged more than 50 divisions and companies whose alliances create a global live entertainment organization capable of developing, producing, promoting, marketing and managing sports and entertainment programming in both facilities owned and operated by AEG such as STAPLES Center (Los Angeles, CA), O2 World Arena (Berlin) and The O2 (London) as well as numerous other affiliated venues.
AEG Sports owns and operates numerous franchises worldwide including the Los Angeles Kings (NHL), Los Angeles Galaxy and Houston Dynamo (MLS) in addition to managing events such as the Amgen Tour of California cycling road race and ING Bay to Breakers annual foot race in San Francisco. AEG LIVE, the company’s live entertainment division, is one of the world’s leading concert promotions and touring organizations.
Under Leiweke’s direction, AEG Development is currently focused on the creation of several multi-faceted sports and entertainment districts worldwide including the newly opened L.A. LIVE, a four million square foot / $2.5 billion sports and entertainment district adjacent to STAPLES Center and encompassing six city blocks, featuring NOKIA Theatre L.A. LIVE, Club Nokia, broadcast facilities for ESPN along with residential housing, entertainment, office space and (coming in first quarter 2010), a 54-story, 1001-room convention “headquarters” destination (featuring The Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott hotels and 224 luxury condominiums – The Residences at The Ritz Carlton – all in a single tower) and a 14-screen Regal Cineplex.
Anne Meurs
Student Researcher, USC Marshall, 2009
Fox Sports
Anne Meurs earned her undergraduate degree from USC Marshall School of Business in May 2009. She is originally from Fallbrook, CA. During her time at USC, she worked on two projects with the Sports Business Institute, as well as interned with various organizations such as Caruso Affiliated, Nike, and the Los Angeles Dodgers. She currently works at Fox Sports in advertising sales and lives in Manhattan Beach, CA.
Sandy Montag
Senior Corporate Vice President, IMG Sports and Entertainment/Managing Director of Clients
Chief Operating Officer, Ari Fleischer Sports Communications
Sandy Montag is Senior Corporate Vice President of IMG Sports and Entertainment responsible for the operations of the Clients group. This unit includes Broadcasting, Speakers, Literary, Coaching, and Talent Marketing. IMG represents some of the most popular athletes, broadcasters, coaches, speakers and personalities including John Madden, Bob Costas, James Brown, Jim Nantz, Peyton Manning, Pat Conroy, Cesar Millan, Ming Tsai, Eli Manning, Bob Knight, Tom Coughlin and Justin Timberlake.
Mr. Montag also acts as Chief Operation Officer of Ari Fleischer Sports Communications, a media training and crisis management company in the world of sports and entertainment.
Mr. Montag has spent his entire professional career at IMG, joining the company in 1985. He started as an assistant to John Madden, traveling the country with Mr. Madden by train and on the first “Madden Cruiser.” Mr. Montag became a Vice President in 1991 and a Senior Vice President responsible for the day-to day operations of the Broadcasting Division in 1995. He was promoted to his current position in 2005.
In his free time, Mr. Montag enjoys coaching AYSO Soccer and attending his children’s sporting events. He is also active in several charities, serving as President of the Irwin and Judith Montag Memorial Fund which raises money for research on Amyloidosis and Heart Disease. In addition, he serves on the advisory boards for Madden Charities, Tom Coughlin’s “Jay Fund Foundation” and the Alan T. Brown Foundation.
Mr. Montag resides in Westchester, NY with his wife and two children.
Jeff Moorad
Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, San Diego Padres
One of the most recognizable names in professional sports, Jeff Moorad brings more than 25 years of sports industry experience to San Diego. In February 2009, Moorad and a California-based group reached an agreement to purchase 100% ownership of the Padres over a five-year span. Moorad was named Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, roles which he fills today.
When Moorad was named a member of the executive team of the Arizona Diamondbacks, he brought a wealth of experience in Major League Baseball on the player side of the table. While with Arizona, Moorad was a General Partner, Chief Executive Officer, the spokesman for the D-backs’ ownership group, and oversaw, along with Ken Kendrick, the day-to-day operations of the franchise.
The founder of Moorad Sports Management, he began specializing in athlete representation in 1983, with his main focus on Major League Baseball. Moorad’s reputation as a knowledgeable and respected negotiator has earned him a spot on The Sporting News’ 100 Most Powerful People in Sports on eight occasions, as he helped revolutionize player representation.
Moorad’s client base took off in 1984 when he was retained by Will Clark and four other members of the U.S. Olympic baseball team, each of whom were Top 10 draft choices. He then joined forces with Leigh Steinberg in 1985 to form one of the most dynamic twosomes in the history of sports representation, covering both Major League Baseball and the National Football League. The successful duo negotiated more than $3 billion in athlete contracts throughout their 18 years together, including representing Pro Football Hall of Famers Steve Young, Troy Aikman, Warren Moon and Thurman Thomas. Moorad was the negotiator on a number of landmark contracts for a baseball client base that included Manny Ramirez, Eric Karros, Ivan Rodriguez, Mo Vaughn, Shawn Green and Raul Mondesi.
Moorad represented more than 40 first-round selections from baseball’s annual First Year Player Draft in his practice, highlighted by breakthrough deals for No. 1 overall selections Darin Erstad (1995) and Pat Burrell (1998), both draft records at the time.
While sports representation occupied the majority of Moorad’s professional time, it also led to work in the entertainment field as he has consulted and appeared in major motion picture projects involving sports. He was the baseball technical consultant for the Universal motion picture “For Love of the Game” and had a cameo appearance in the movie, and then he and former partner Steinberg both appeared in and served as technical consultants to director Cameron Crowe in the 1996 Oscar-winning picture “Jerry Maguire.”
The former President and CEO of Moorad Sports Management, his firm did not stop at athlete representation as Moorad guided it into a variety of sports technology ventures, publishing projects and charitable community projects. Consistent with his civic commitment, Moorad helped his clients understand the responsibility of serving as role models in the community, encouraging them to contribute millions of dollars to community programs, including their own non-profit foundations and alma maters. Leading by example, Moorad endowed a $100,000 scholarship to his alma mater UCLA.
He and his wife, Jan, were also the honorary chairpersons for Childhelp USA’s Childhelp Drive the Dream Gala. He has also been very active in the California Coast and Arizona Chapters of the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO), a worldwide peer network that creates better Presidents and CEOs through education and idea exchange.
Moorad is also active in helping to raise funds to find a cure for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, more commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, through Augie’s Quest. The foundation is named after his good friend Augie Nieto, who was diagnosed with ALS in 2005 after he became one of the most successful innovators in the U.S. fitness industry as the founder, Chairman and CEO of Life Fitness. Moorad helped link Augie’s Quest to the Muscular Dystrophy Association as well as assist in fast-track research funding at Phoenix-based Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), where scientists have already made significant research breakthroughs in less than four years.
Moorad currently serves on the Board of Directors for Citizen Sports Network, a sports entertainment company committed to reshaping the way people think about sports through social networking and its unique virtual sports stock market. He also is on the Board of Directors for TGen and is a Vice President for MDA. He formerly served on the Board of Oakley until the sale of the company to Italian manufacturer, Luxottica.
Moorad ventured into the sport of NASCAR, purchasing controlling interest in Hall of Fame Racing from Roger Staubach and Troy Aikman.
A native of Modesto, Moorad earned an Associate in Arts degree from Modesto Junior College in 1976, where he served as Student Body President, a degree in Political Science (B.A.) in 1978 from UCLA, then received his law degree from Villanova University School of Law (J.D.) in 1981. Jeff and his wife have three sons.
Peter Moore
President, EA Sports
Electronic Arts
One of Sports Business Journal‘s Most Influential People in Sports in 2007 and 2008, Peter Moore, 54, has more than 25 years of leadership experience in gaming, entertainment and consumer products. Since taking over as President of EA SPORTS in September of 2007, Mr. Moore has revitalized one of the most recognized brands in sports and entertainment. He is responsible for strategic leadership of the brand, from product development and global product management to marketing and planning for all packaged goods and online offerings within the EA SPORTS brand. Mr. Moore’s global operation of EA SPORTS is anchored by headquarters in Redwood Shores, California, and development studios in Vancouver, B.C. (EA Canada) and in Orlando, Florida (EA Tiburon).
Mr. Moore has driven innovation in the EA SPORTS core games business, with FIFA 10 and NHL 10 netting the highest critical acclaim of any sports products in the current console generation. FIFA 10 has received more than 50 international awards and honors. The EA SPORTS portfolio has also expanded under Mr. Moore’s leadership to captivate a broader audience of sports fans, with EA SPORTS Active having launched in May 2009. It is the most critically acclaimed interactive fitness product available.
In addition, Mr. Moore has lead new strategic initiatives to expand the reach of the EA SPORTS brand throughout the fabric of sports. Mr. Moore was instrumental in the formation of a strategic licensing partnership with IMG, as well as the development of breakthrough technologies such as EA SPORTS Virtual Playbook, an “augmented reality” that integrates EA SPORTS industry-leading video game graphics into real-world television broadcasts on ESPN. EA SPORTS Virtual Playbook was awarded a Sports Emmy Award in 2009 for technical achievement.
Prior to joining EA, Mr. Moore was Corporate Vice President of the Interactive Entertainment Business of Microsoft Corp., where he was responsible for leading both the Xbox® and Games for Windows® businesses, driving games development at Microsoft® Game Studios, as well as cultivating relationships with third-party game publishers and developers around the world. Before joining Microsoft, Mr. Moore was president and COO of SEGA of America, where he was responsible for overseeing SEGA’s videogame business in North America. Prior to his role at SEGA, Moore was senior vice president of marketing at Reebok International Ltd.
Mr. Moore holds a bachelor’s degree from Keele University, United Kingdom, and a Master’s Degree from California State University, Long Beach. Mr. Moore also maintains an executive blog for EA SPORTS fans and followers at .
Career Timeline:
1982-92 - Patrick USA
1992-99 – Reebok
1999-2003 – Sega
2003-2007 – Microsoft
2007-present - EA
Arturo “Arte” Moreno
Owner, Angels Baseball
Arte Moreno was introduced as the third owner in Angels' franchise history in May 2003. As owner of the Angels, Moreno's impact has been immediate. He has guided the Angels with a large market approach which led to four West Division championships and six consecutive seasons drawing over three million fans, resulting in a combined home attendance of over 20 million. In just four years, his support of the Baseball Operations Department has culminated in the key free-agent signings of 2004 A.L. MVP Vladimir Guerrero, 2005 Cy Young Award winner Bartolo Colon, eight time Gold Glove outfielder Torii Hunter, Kelvim Escobar, Orlando Cabrera and Gary Matthews Jr.
Following the 2005 season, Moreno was honored by the Los Angeles Sports Council as Los Angeles Sports Executive of the Year. And earlier that year Time Magazine named him as one of the 25 Most Influential Hispanics in America.
During Moreno's tenure, the Angels have been among the industry's best in the areas of Player Development and Scouting. The Angels minor league affiliates have reached the playoffs 21 times while capturing 14 division titles and four league titles. The Angels' farm system posted winning records in five of the six seasons (2003-05-06-07-08) and was named "Minor League Organization of the Year" in 2003 by The Sporting News and 2007 Farm System of the Year by the Minor League News.
Moreno advanced the establishment of the Angels Baseball Foundation in June 2003. The Foundation focuses on initiatives aimed to create and improve education, health care, arts and sciences, and community-related youth programs throughout the region, in addition to providing children the opportunity to experience baseball and its positive attributes.
In addition to his responsibilities with the Angels and various committees within Major League Baseball, Moreno is also a member of the Little League Foundation Board of Trustees, which assists Little Leagues in all 50 U.S. states and more than 70 other countries with more than 2.7 million participants.
In the mid-80s, Moreno was among a group who owned the former single-A Salt Lake Trappers of the Pioneer League. Under his group's ownership, the Trappers went on to win three championships. He was later an original investor in the Arizona Diamondbacks, and a former part owner of the NBA's Phoenix Suns.
A native of Tucson, Ariz., Moreno served his country in Viet Nam as a member of the U.S. Army. After his tour of duty, he attended the University of Arizona, graduating with a Bachelors of Science degree in Marketing. Moreno and wife Carole are active in their own philanthropic efforts. They established the Moreno Family Foundation, which supports non-profit organizations focusing on youth and education. They are the parents of three children.
Dave Morgan
Executive Editor, Yahoo! North American Audience
Dave Morgan is the executive editor of Yahoo! North American Audience, overseeing content across the leading news and information sites on the web (Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Finance, Yahoo! Sports, omg!, Yahoo! Movies, Yahoo! TV, and Yahoo! Music). Morgan is charged with expanding original content at Yahoo! along with developing its overall programming of editorial, video, audio and user-generated content. He has also created a 24/7 news team to support all the properties for programming and development of breaking news.
In his first three years, Yahoo! Sports grew into the industry-leading destination and built a reputation for breaking news and a strong original voice. Yahoo! Sports has had the largest audience in the sports category since February 2008, far more than ESPN, the TV network sites and league sites. The site boasts the industry-leading Fantasy Sports audience as well as Rivals, a network of 150 college and high school sites that provide local touch-points to complement Yahoo!’s vast national reach. In March 2010, Yahoo! announced the acquisition of Citizen Sports, adding the industry leader in social media to its portfolio.
Yahoo!’s emergence as a media power was highlighted by its coverage of the Beijing Olympics, drawing millions more users than broadcast-rights holder NBC. As a BusinessWeek profile noted: “Even with no rights to show video from this summer's Olympics competition, Yahoo! pulled off a medal-worthy stunner in Beijing. Thanks to staff-produced stories and commentary from 15 people on-site, including former Olympians Dominique Dawes and Janet Evans, Yahoo Sports' Olympics Web site upset official broadcaster NBC on the Internet. The upstart drew 31.8 million unique visitors over the three weeks of the Games, vs. 's 22.9 million, according to comScore Media Metrix.”
Yahoo! repeated the feat at the Vancouver Olympics, almost doubling NBC’s digital audience and setting a sports website record with more than 40 million unique visitors in February, according to comScore..
BusinessWeek named Morgan one of the 100 Most Influential People in Sports for 2008, a list comprised of commissioners from all the major sports leagues, influential professional team owners, and broadcast and digital network executives.
In his new role, Morgan is applying Yahoo! Sports’ best editorial practices across the remaining Yahoo! media properties in an effort to further engage those audiences. He is credited with building the Yahoo! Sports brand through developing the sites unique voice by hiring award winning reporters and editors, many of whom worked at major networks (CBS, NBC, Fox, ABC), ESPN, Sports Illustrated, and large newspapers such as the Los Angeles Times, Boston Globe, Dallas Morning News, Miami Herald, and the Detroit Free Press.
Another key component of his content strategy includes the creation of a blog network headed by Jamie Mottram, the architect of AOL’s blog platforms who joined Yahoo! in 2007. Yahoo!’s network has editors across all the major properties (News, Entertainment, Sports) with a vast contributor network that curates the voice of the internet. The network produces hundreds of content posts a day, keeping Yahoo!’s programming fresh with unique and timely content.
Morgan joined Yahoo! in January 2006 after more than 20 years at the Los Angeles Times, the last six as deputy sports editor running day-to-day operations for the largest sports section in the nation. Morgan was raised in the San Francisco Bay Area and graduated from Pepperdine University.
David Neal
Executive Producer, NBC Sports
Executive Vice President, NBC Olympics
David Neal has a storied reputation as one of sports television’s leading producers and executives. Over the course of his 30-year career with NBC Sports and Olympics, Neal’s innovation and creativity have been recognized with 30 Emmy Awards and a Peabody Award.
Hired as a Production Assistant in 1978, Neal rose rapidly, producing NBC’s NFL studio show in 1981 at the age of 25. Since then, he has been involved with nearly every NBC Sports property – encompassing live events, studio shows, documentaries, and anthology programs. In his three decades at NBC, Neal has produced nine Olympics, four NBA Finals, two World Series, and a Super Bowl pregame show.
In 2001, Neal was named Executive Vice President of NBC Olympics, and is responsible for the production, programming, and technical engineering departments of NBC’s Olympic division.
In July 2005, Neal added the role of Executive Producer of NBC Sports, giving him additional responsibility for all NBC Sports productions
Most recently, Neal produced the Primetime show and the Opening Ceremony during NBC’s coverage of the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Winter Games, generating an audience of 190 million viewers. The Opening Ceremony drew an audience of 67.5 million, making it the most-watched non-U.S. Opening Ceremony in American television history.
Prior to Vancouver, Neal produced the Primetime show and Opening Ceremony for NBC’s historic (215 million viewers, most-watched event in U.S. television history) coverage of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, as he has since the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. NBC’s coverage of the Beijing Olympics was honored with four Sports Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Live Event Turnaround.
Neal led NBC’s record-breaking coverage (35.7 million viewers) of the spectacular Opening Ceremony, following two years of detailed planning and meetings with the legendary Chinese film director Zhang Yimou. NBC’s coverage of Yimou’s Beijing Opening Ceremony was recognized with a prestigious Peabody Award, which described the broadcast as “an exponential magnification of what once was known as a television spectacular”. The Opening Ceremony also earned Primetime Emmy Awards in three categories, including Outstanding Special Class Program.
In addition to the Opening Ceremony, Neal produced NBC’s Primetime coverage of the Beijing Olympics – and was the chief architect of the strategy to move host Bob Costas out of the studio to broadcast from iconic locations around Beijing – including a historic live broadcast from Tiananmen Square.
In 2006, Neal captured his first Primetime Emmy Award for producing NBC’s coverage of the Opening Ceremony of the 2006 Torino Olympic Winter Games, along with 6 Emmy awards for the 2004 Athens Olympic Games. Those honors followed a record total of 11 Emmy Awards for NBC’s coverage of the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Games. Neal has won 20 individual Olympic Emmys in total.
Beyond the Olympics, Neal has produced many other memorable NBC Sports live telecasts, including Game Six of the 1998 NBA Finals – Michael Jordan’s dramatic final game with the Chicago Bulls, and the thrilling extra-innings win by the Florida Marlins in Game Seven of the 1997 World Series.
In 2001, Neal combined entertainment with sports, producing live appearances by U2 and Destiny’s Child featuring Beyonce’ at halftime of the NBA Finals match-up between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Philadelphia 76ers.
Neal’s first Emmy Award was for producing and writing the acclaimed documentary retrospective “February 25, 1964: The Championship,” celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the first heavyweight championship fight between Cassius Clay and Sonny Liston. He also won an Emmy Award for his edited show opening to NBC’s coverage of the 1988 World Series, in which he intertwined Kirk Gibson’s game winning home run in Game One with the climactic scene in the motion picture “The Natural”. In addition, Neal was honored with a National Headliner award for Sports Journalism for his production of “The Great Communicators of Sports” documentary in 1986.
A leader in the drive to incorporate new technology into NBC’s Olympic coverage, Neal received an Emmy Award for his role in the development of the innovative “Dive-Cam” underwater camera, which debuted on NBC’s coverage of diving at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. Neal has expanded the use of virtual graphics – beginning with the creation of virtual names and flags superimposed in swimming lanes at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. Speaking at the 2007 HD World Conference in New York City, Neal predicted that the Beijing Olympics would be “a signature moment for the adoption of high-definition as a mainstream delivery medium for consumers”.
In September 2008, Neal was ranked #13 in the Mediaweek 50 recognizing “the overall impact executives have on their industries, in terms of setting new industry standards or best practices”.
Neal graduated from the University of Southern California in 1978 with a degree in Broadcast Journalism. Neal’s father – the late Roy Neal – was a much honored and respected NBC News correspondent, producer and executive from 1948-86. Neal was born in Newport News, Va., and raised in Woodland Hills, Calif. He now resides with his wife Jen in Manhattan.
John Nendick
Global Media & Entertainment Industry Leader, Ernst & Young LLP
John Nendick is Ernst & Young’s Global Media & Entertainment Industry Leader. He is responsible for directing and coordinating the firm's services to clients in the media and entertainment industry. Nendick is a client-serving partner as well as a resource for Ernst & Young professionals.
With over 30 years experience, Nendick advises some of the largest media and entertainment conglomerates in the world, overseeing a team of more than 2,000 professionals working in over 100 countries across the globe. Nendick has significant experience in film and television production and distribution, music, broadcast, cable and satellite, new media and the convergence of media and entertainment with software and technology. He has an in-depth background working with large multinational public companies across many industries, and advising during transactions including mergers and acquisitions and initial public offerings.
Considered one of the foremost authorities on trends, issues and challenges facing the media and entertainment industry, Nendick is a frequent speaker at industry events and is often quoted in industry and business publications.
Born and educated in England, Nendick is a graduate of Durham University, UK with a Bachelor of Arts in economics. He is a U.S. certified public accountant and a UK chartered accountant. Nendick is a Past Chairman of the California Society of CPA’s Entertainment and Sports Committee.
Jeffrey N. Pollack
Former President and Commissioner, WSOP
Jeffrey Pollack, a two-time Emmy® Award winner, is known for helping industries, companies and brands successfully and rapidly innovate. Most recently, Jeffrey was the President and Commissioner of the World Series of Poker. Under Jeffrey’s leadership, the WSOP was fundamentally reinvented as a business, transformed into a worldwide sports and entertainment phenomenon, and crossed the $1 billion mark in total prize money awarded.
The World Series of Poker Europe, the “November Nine” television format, record-breaking increases in tournament participation, the WSOP Code of Player Conduct, the WSOP Players Advisory Council, Ante Up for Africa at the WSOP, and a historic 12-year broadcast partnership with ESPN, are just some of the many headlines from Jeffrey’s tenure. After he stepped away from the WSOP at the end of 2009, said: “Pollack's reign as commissioner and steward of the WSOP may be unmatched. He joins an elite circle of men who are forever revered by the core group of players around whom this sport has been built”.
Jeffrey’s reputation as an innovator in the sports industry is well established. In 1994, he shrugged off research results, conventional wisdom and predictions of failure when he created and launched The Sports Business Daily – the first daily trade publication for the sports industry and one of the first purely digital trade publications for any industry. Under Jeffrey’s leadership as the founding President and Publisher, The Sports Business Daily quickly became a must-read for decision-makers in sports, entertainment and television, and gave rise to a new industry for sports business information. 2010 is 16th consecutive year of publication for The Sports Business Daily.
Prior to joining the WSOP, Jeffrey was Managing Director of Broadcasting and New Media for NASCAR Digital Entertainment. He led NASCAR’s use of digital media and new technologies to increase fan accessibility and loyalty, and directed all business development related to the Internet, interactive television, VOD, digital cinema, satellite radio, mobile communications, and other digital platforms. His work at NASCAR earned him two Emmy® Awards as Executive Producer of NASCAR IN CAR – a ground breaking, multi-channel interactive television show.
Before joining NASCAR, Jeffrey served as Vice President of Marketing and Corporate Communications for the National Basketball Association, where he was responsible for creating a new department for the NBA and helping manage the league’s global branding, marketing and promotional strategies. He also served as the NBA’s Strategic Communications Consultant during collective bargaining in 1998 and 1999, reporting directly to the Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner.
Jeffrey started his career in political campaign management and crisis communications, serving as Vice President of Winner + Associates – a leading public affairs and strategic communications firm based in Los Angeles. While at Winner + Associates, Jeffrey specialized in energy and environmental issues and was responsible for providing crisis management and political counsel to industry-leading corporations throughout the United States.
Through the affiliated firm of Winner + Mandabach Campaigns, Jeffrey also helped manage state wide ballot measure campaigns in Massachusetts, South Dakota, Oregon and Arizona. Jeffrey produced and directed more than 100 television commercials at Winner + Mandabach Campaigns, including those for the successful 1992 ballot measure campaign supporting passage of Arizona’s holiday honoring Dr. Marking Luther King, Jr.
In addition to receiving one of the very first Primetime Emmy® Awards ever presented for Outstanding Achievement in Interactive Television Programming, and a Sports Emmy® for Outstanding Innovative Technical Achievement, Jeffrey received the first-ever Billboard Digital Entertainment Award for Best Interactive Television Programming. He has appeared twice on The Sporting News list of 100, and was named by the Sports Business Journal to the inaugural list of “Forty Under Forty.” In January 2010, Pollack was named one of “The Decade’s 25 Most Influential People in Poker.”
Jeffrey has been interviewed and profiled by ABC, CBS, NBC, and FOX News; CNBC; Bloomberg; ESPN; the BBC; The Wall Street Journal; The New York Times; USA Today; The Economist; Business Week; Forbes; Brandweek; and scores of other leading media outlets.
Jeffrey serves on the Board of Advisors of the Los Angeles Sports and Entertainment Commission. He is a member of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.
In 2008, Jeffrey completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School. He has a master’s degree in sports management from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst; a master’s degree from The Graduate School of Political Management; and a bachelor’s degree from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.
Ken Potrock
Senior Vice President, Disney Sports Enterprises for Walt Disney Parks & Resorts
Ken Potrock leads Disney Sports Enterprises, responsible for Walt Disney Parks & Resorts involvement in all sports efforts globally – including line of business leadership of the newly “re-imagined” ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida, the synergistic relationship with ESPN, ongoing/developing relationships with leagues and organizations [e.g., NBA, NFL, MLB, AAU] and the development of sports business models [events, facility expansion, travel packages, PR] globally.
Prior to joining the Sports Enterprises team, Ken led Global Alliance Marketing, for the $12 billion Parks and Resorts division, which encompasses the five Disney Resorts around the world, Disney Cruise Line, Disney Vacation Club, and the Adventures by Disney travel business. Specific responsibilities included Alliances, Promotions, Broadcast Marketing, Talent Relations, Media & New Media Promotions, PR Support, Special Events and Walt Disney Company Synergy.
Ken began his Disney career in 1996 as Vice President of Marketing for Disney Cruise Line, where he developed many of the initial marketing strategies and communication plans in preparation for Disney’s launch into this new and incredibly successful, family vacation category. Prior to that, Ken was a Senior Partner for Ryan Partnership, a marketing consulting and promotion agency, where his responsibilities included the strategic planning, concept development, creative execution and overall account management for a cadre of top entertainment and sports-oriented clients.
Ken is a member of the Walt Disney World Steering Committee and the Domestic Operating Committee. He is also known as the creative catalyst for many of Walt Disney Parks & Resorts largest consumer marketing initiatives. Ken is an avid sports participant and enthusiast with an extensive background in sports marketing.
Originally from “da Bronx,” Ken earned his undergraduate degree at Washington University in St. Louis and an MBA from the Kellogg School at Northwestern University. He lives in Winter Park, Florida, with his wife, Susanne, sons, Griffin and Cole, and Labradors, Snickers and Cooper.
Ron Ricci
Vice-President Corporate Positioning, Cisco Systems
Ron Ricci is vice-president, corporate positioning, at Cisco, reporting to Chairman and CEO John Chambers. Ron and his team are responsible for developing and driving the executive collaboration processes used by Cisco’s Councils and Boards; and using communications to shape the vision, strategy, culture and process priorities of the company.
Ron leads a number of key Cisco events, including the Strategic Leadership Offsite for Cisco’s top 3,000 managers. His book, Momentum: How Companies Become Unstoppable Market Forces, was published by Harvard Business School Press in November 2002, and is ranked as a “Top 100” book for marketing and business strategy.
Ron’s area of expertise is in positioning technology companies for market leadership with customers. Before joining Cisco, he was a brand positioning consultant and principal at Cunningham Communication, working with companies like Adobe, HP, IBM, Kodak, and Motorola.
Cisco is the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet. Cisco services and solutions allow individuals, companies, and countries to increase productivity, improve customer satisfaction and strengthen competitive advantage. At Cisco, our vision is to change the way the world works, lives, plays and learns. Headquartered in San Jose, California, Cisco has 279 sales and support offices in 74 countries, and 63,000 employees.
Edward P. Roski, Jr.
Chairman and CEO, Majestic Realty Co.
Edward P. Roski, Jr. is chairman and chief executive officer of one of the oldest and largest privately held real estate companies in the United States. Rated as the No. 1 Real Estate Developer in Los Angeles for over fifteen years, Majestic owns manages and leases in excess of 70,000,000-sq. ft. of property for clients across the nation.
As co-owner of the Los Angeles Kings and Lakers, Mr. Roski’s expertise in real estate development played a key role in the development of the team’s new arena. From its inception, Majestic led the L.A. Arena Company’s efforts to create the STAPLES Center- now a landmark in Downtown Los Angeles. Mr. Roski also owns The Silverton Hotel and Casinos in Las Vegas, as well as Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World.
Perhaps even more impressive than his accomplishments in business, are Ed Roski’s relentless efforts on behalf of the community. In 2002 he initiated the Majestic Realty Foundation, whose charitable giving and community outreach focuses on youth, family, education, health, and violence prevention. But his generosity goes far beyond philanthropy. Mr. Roski gives his time and energy to countless civic organizations.
Ed Roski takes an active role in the city’s cultural and educational development, serving on the boards of LACMA, the Bowers Museum, The California Science Center, the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, and the Los Angeles Sports & Entertainment Commission. Mr. Roski also serves as Chairman of the Board of Trustees at the University of Southern California. In addition, he serves on the Board of Trustees of the National Geographic Society, one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational organizations in the world.
For his service to the community, Roski has received numerous awards and civic honors, including: Project Restore’s Los Angeles Heritage Award, for his commitment to the restoration of downtown Los Angeles, and the Spirit of Los Angeles Award (Eddy Award) from the Los Angeles Headquarters Association for his civic involvement and dedication; The City of Hope awarded him their prestigious “The Spirit of Life” Award. He was honored with the Oxford cup from the General Fraternity of Beta Theta Pi for distinguished service and achievement, and the University of Southern California awarded Mr. Roski the Asa V. Call Award, which recognizes alumni who have demonstrated exceptional commitment to the University and the community by giving generously of their time, energy and leadership. In 2006, he received the Woodrow Wilson Award for Public Service, and he was recognized by the Los Angeles Business Journal as the 2007 Businessman of the Year.
Outside his social and professional endeavors, Ed Roski’s great love is travel.
His passion for adventure has entitled him to be a member of the famed Explorers Club. He has climbed to Base Camp at Mt. Everest, K2, and Mt. Kilimanjaro, rode his bike across Mongolia, Russia, and Burma, and has made several deep water dives throughout New Guinea.
Mr. Roski was born in Oklahoma and raised in Southern California where he graduated from the University of Southern California in 1962 with a Bachelor of Science degree in finance and real estate. He served as an officer in the United States Marines from 1962 to 1966 where he was decorated for bravery with two purple hearts. He now resides in Los Angeles with his wife Gayle Garner Roski, with whom he has three children and five grandchildren.
Matthew Rossetti, AIA, LEED AP
President, Rossetti
As President of Rossetti Architects, Matt leads the firm’s strategic initiatives for creating innovative design and value for clients. Since assuming the role of president in 1999, Matt has grown the 40-year-old business into an internationally-recognized design firm with a portfolio of award winning sports, entertainment and mixed use projects. Matt also has a thorough understanding of the crucial role that sports facilities play as a driver for economic growth.
Among Rossetti’s groundbreaking sports projects are the USTA National Tennis Center, home of the U.S. Open (the world's largest tennis tournament); the recently-completed Rio Tinto MLS stadium in Salt Lake City; Scotiabank Place NHL arena in Ottawa, Canada; and the Palace of Auburn Hills, home of the NBA’s Detroit Pistons. Twenty years later, the Palace is still cited as one of the most innovative and top grossing arenas in the industry, and Matt and the Rossetti design team have continually worked to help the Palace reinvent itself through additions and renovations that enhance revenue opportunities. The firm’s Ford Field, home of the NFL’s Detroit Lions, also helped to define the next generation of football stadiums by cost effectively incorporating an adjacent historic warehouse for use as suites, creating superb sightlines for all seats in the stadium and preserving a bit of area history.
Matt’s pursuit of innovative design also has married the firm’s sports design expertise with another of its strengths: mixed-use master planning. He has been able to tie together the principles of urban development and the draw of sports facilities by creating integrated entertainment districts, a reverse in approach from the traditional freestanding sports facility built in the middle of a parking lot. Rossetti’s sports/mixed use projects range from an international soccer stadium and mixed use complex in Korea, to the downtown Detroit Ford Field to Van Andel Arena, a civic sports and entertainment arena located in the heart of downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan, In addition, stakeholders at Scotiabank Place and another confidential Major League Sports client have both recently hired Matt and his team to develop master plans for entertainment districts surrounding their venues.
Additionally, Matt has led many workshops with communities and public and private stakeholders across the nation, helping them to see ways in which urban developments woven with sports and entertainment venues can impact the local economy by attracting visitors year round while serving as catalysts for surrounding commercial and residential development. Recent workshops also include those with universities, where the growth of the campus and the desire to attract and retain the best students is critical to the strategic growth of the school, and where sports and entertainment venues have typically been in disconnect from the rest of the campus. At those workshops, Rossetti worked hand in hand with university stakeholders to show how an effective campus master plan and architectural design can become the infrastructure on which successful growth is built.
Rossetti’s other notable sports and entertainment facilities include Home Depot Center MLS Stadium in Los Angeles; Toyota Park MLS Stadium in Chicago; and Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario, California; as well as collegiate sports projects on campuses including Cornell University, University of Michigan, Old Dominion University, Bowling Green State University and Michigan State University.
Over the course of Matt’s professional career, he has also been given many opportunities to speak on the topics of sports and urban design and redevelopment through lectures for the Urban Land Institute, the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation and the American Institute of Architects.
Matt is a member of the American Institute of Architects, Urban Land Institute, and is a LEED-Accredited Professional. He received both his Bachelor of Science and Masters of Architecture degrees from the University of Michigan.
Alan I. Rothenberg
Chairman, 1st Century Bank, N.A.
One of the most respected individuals in the sports and legal industries, Alan I. Rothenberg has more than 40 years of executive-level sports experience and is a renowned expert in the field of sports business and law. Rothenberg, who spearheaded soccer’s rise in the United States during the 1990’s as Chairman & CEO of the 1994 World Cup Organizing Committee, Chairman of the 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup Games, President of the U.S. Soccer Federation and Founder of Major League Soccer, serves as the Chairman of Premier Partnerships, a sports and entertainment marketing and consulting firm.
A former President of the State Bar of California, Rothenberg practiced law in California for more than 35 years. However, he is best known for his success in revitalizing soccer in the United States and for his involvement with the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association. His love for sports and, in particular, for soccer has led him to serve as the chief executive for many diverse organizations.
Rothenberg, who served as President of U.S. Soccer from 1990-98, was CEO of World Cup USA 1994, the most successful event in FIFA history. The tournament averaged more than a still record 64,000 fans per game and had an operating surplus of more than $60 million. In addition to the World Cup USA 1994, he was the Chairman of the breakthrough 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup and Soccer Commissioner for the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee. His other soccer interests include ownership of the Los Angeles Aztecs of the North American Soccer League from 1977-80 and his position as General Manager and General Counselor of the Los Angeles Wolves soccer club in the late 1960’s. For his accomplishments, FIFA has bestowed upon him its coveted Order of Merit.
Rothenberg also was known as one of the top executives in the National Basketball Association during the 1970s and 1980s. While serving as Vice President and General Counsel for Jack Kent Cooke, Inc. and California Sports, Inc., he represented the Los Angeles Lakers on the NBA’s Board of Governors from 1971-79. Rothenberg also was a member of the NBA’s Board of Governors during his tenure as President of the San Diego/Los Angeles Clippers from 1982-90.
Rothenberg, who appeared regularly on the ESPN sports talk program “Sportslook” as a commentator on the field of sports law, has been an instructor of Sports Law at the University of Southern California. He is the former Chairman of the American Bar Association’s Committee on Sports Law. He spent 10 years as a partner at Latham & Watkins and was a name partner at Manatt, Phelps, Rothenberg & Phillips for more than 20 years prior to joining Latham & Watkins in 1990. Marked by diversity, his law practice involved matters drawn from the banking, business, sports and entertainment fields.
Prominent in both civic and business realms, Rothenberg has served on several public company boards, including Arden Realty (NYSE), CPK, Inc. (NASDAQ), and Zenith National (NYSE)). He is Chairman of 1st Century Bank. He is President of The Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners. He was also President of the Music Center’s Fraternity of Friends and a member of the Board of Trustees of the California Museum of Science and industry. He is on the board and is past President of the Constitutional Rights Foundation, was Chairman of the Los Angeles Convention and Visitors Bureau, is Chairman of the Los Angeles Sports Council, and is a member of the board of the Los Angeles Sports and Entertainment Commission and the Southern California Committee for the Olympics.
A long time resident of Southern California, Rothenberg received a Bachelor of Arts Degree and a Law Degree from the University of Michigan
Kathryn S. Schloessman
President, LA Sports & Entertainment Commission
LASEC was founded in 1995 by Mayor Richard Riordan and other civic leaders to provide a single point of contact for the City of Los Angeles for sports and entertainment executives and for events. These events positively impact the local economy by attracting visitors to the city, giving them a reason to stay longer and return more frequently.
As president of the LA Sports & Entertainment Commission (LASEC), Schloessman oversees and manages the day-to-day operations of the Commission, which acts as the official organization for the City of Los Angeles to seek, host, promote and retain special sports and entertainment events such as Super Bowls, Grammy Awards and All-Star games.
Some of the events Los Angeles will be hosting over the next year include the GRAMMY Awards and the ESPN X Games, in addition to annual events, like the City of Los Angeles Marathon and the Tournament of Roses Parade and Rose Bowl game. Over the past years, LASEC was actively involved in hosting the NBA All-Star Weekend and the BCS National Championship week. LASEC continues to work diligently to bring several other high-profile events to Los Angeles.
Prior to joining the Commission, Schloessman was a 13-year veteran of CB Commercial (now CB Richard Ellis), the largest commercial real estate company in the United States. She held the position of managing officer of CB Commercial’s downtown Los Angeles office, where she was responsible for business development, operations and management of the Los Angeles region’s office professionals and oversaw CB Commercial’s community relations efforts.
Previously, Schloessman served as marketing director for CB Commercial’s Western Division. She also has more than 10 years experience as lead broker for major lease transactions in the downtown Los Angeles market.
Schloessman serves on the Advisory Board of the USC Sports Business Institute, Moag & Compan and Fremont College. She is also an active member in the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO).
Schloessman graduated in 1983 with a B.S. degree in business from the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.
The LA Sports & Entertainment Commission actively works to maintain Los Angeles as the sports and entertainment capital of the world. LASEC is a private non-profit organization and a division of LA INC. The Convention and Visitors Bureau.
John H. Semcken, III
Vice President, Majestic Realty Co.
John Semcken joined Majestic Realty Co. in February 1996 as Vice President and was responsible for the development of the $400 million Staples Center for the Los Angeles Lakers, Kings, Clippers, Sparks and Avengers. He negotiated and was responsible for land acquisition, eminent domain, city ground leases, entitlements and design for the arena and surrounding land which will eventually include a convention Hotel, retail and high rise residential uses.
He is a co-owner and senior development partner for the $60 million redevelopment and renovation of the Pacific Palms Conference Resort. The project entailed renovation of 45,000 square feet of meeting space, renovation of all public spaces, 292 guest rooms, two restaurant outlets, golf club house and two 18 hole golf courses and driving range. In addition, he added a full service spa, fitness facility and repositioned the facility as a state-of-the-art resort.
John is the senior development partner for a 310 acre industrial development totalling greater than 6 million square feet in Riverside, California. The project consists of 26 buildings ranging in size from 25,000 square feet to 1.2 million square feet. John negotiated with the County of Riverside to refinance a severely defaulted bond district, completed an Environmental Impact Report and Specific Plan and will oversee all approvals and construction of the buildings.
John is currently the Senior Development partner responsible for the development of a 600 acre property for a new National Football League Stadium in Los Angeles and an NFL themed entertainment mixed use development containing nearly 2.9 million square feet of team facilities, medical, retail and office uses.
He is also active in identifying new opportunities for Majestic's vast commercial real estate portfolio. He is currently working towards developing Industrial, Retail, and Hospitality projects in Los Angeles, Redlands, San Bernardino, Riverside and Houston, Texas. Overall Semcken’s projects, total more than 15 million square feet.
Prior to Majestic, John's real estate experience centered on office development and leasing with the prominent Los Angeles and National real estate firms Smith & Hricik Urban Development, Inc., Gerald Hines Interest and the Charles Dunn Company. He was responsible for leasing the 950,000 square foot, 52 story Sanwa Bank Plaza for Gerald Hines.
Mr. Semcken is a 1978 graduate of the United States Naval Academy where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering. After graduation from the Academy he attended Naval Flight training and was selected to fly fighters at Miramar Naval Air Station in San Diego, California. He was selected to attend and graduated from the prestigious Navy Fighter Weapons School "TOPGUN" in June, 1983.
His military career included eight years as a Navy Fighter Pilot, completing more than 250 carrier landings and 1,130 flight hours in the F-14 TOMCAT and other military aircraft. He was selected by the Navy to act as the technical advisor and Navy liaison for the motion picture "Top Gun".
Mr. Semcken is extremely active in community and charitable organizations. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce where he also serves on its Executive Committee, the Los Angeles Sports and Entertainment Commission, the Los Angeles Metropolitan YMCA, the Executive Committee of the Los Angeles Area Council Boy Scouts of America, the Civic Alliance, and the US Naval Academy Foundation Board of Trustees. He is also the Co-Founder of The Land of the Free Foundation.
John, his wife Mee Hae, and his two sons, Reed and Jack, reside in San Marino, California.
Michael Sepso
Co-founder and Chairman, Major League Gaming
Mike co-founded MLG with Sundance DiGiovanni in 2002 with a vision to create a new sport around competitive video gaming. As chairman of Major League Gaming, Mike’s focus is on strategic media deals and cementing MLG’s position as the largest professional video game league in the world. MLG is now one of the fastest growing youth sports in the world and a pioneer in online broadcasting and global online video game competitions. Prior to co-founding MLG, Mike was co-founder and co-CEO of Gotham Broadband, an early innovator in the broadband content and delivery industry. He managed the broadband strategy for several key clients and media partners including Sprint, Hughes Electronics, DirecTV, Cablevision, and AOL Time Warner in the U.S., and British Telecom, UPC Chello, and KNRW (Deutsche Telekom) in Europe. Before Gotham Broadband, he was a media and entertainment consultant for companies like Pearson Television, Miramax Films, and Apple Computer. Mike has a B.S. in management from Babson College.
Jeff Shell
President, Comcast Programming Group
Jeff Shell serves as President of Comcast Programming Group, where he oversees the Company’s interests and investments in its national content networks. Comcast Programming Group is composed of nineteen networks that draw upon Comcast’s unique multiplatform expertise to deliver cable television programming and non-linear content appealing to the passionate viewer looking for the best in entertainment, sports, lifestyle and children's programming.
Comcast’s programming assets include the Comcast Entertainment Group, comprised of E! Entertainment Network, Style Network, G4, and FEARnet; Golf Channel, PBS KIDS Sprout, VERSUS, TV One, International Channel networks, and Comcast Sports Group who operates ten regional sports networks. Under Mr. Shell’s leadership, Comcast's networks have grown in viewership and distribution and have successfully struck programming deals with national partners including The National Hockey League, Tour de France, The PGA, College Football, The Wiggles and Ryan Seacrest Productions.
Prior to joining Comcast, Mr. Shell was CEO of Gemstar TV Guide International where he successfully navigated Gemstar through a number of legal and operational challenges. Before joining Gemstar, Shell held a number of positions within News Corporation including President of the FOX Cable Networks Group, where he oversaw the operations of FOX’s entertainment and sports cable programming businesses including FOX Sports Net, FX and the National Geographic Channel. Shell also worked in the Strategic Planning Group at the Walt Disney Company and at Salomon Brothers Inc.
Shell received his Bachelor of Science degrees in Economics and Applied Mathematics from the University of California, Berkeley and his MBA from Harvard University. He currently serves on the Board of several non-profit organizations, including Green Dot and Big Picture Philadelphia.
Mr. Shell, his wife Laura, and their daughter Anna live in the Philadelphia area.
Bill Shumard
President & CEO, Special Olympics Southern California
Bill Shumard has served as President & CEO of Special Olympics Southern California since June 2005. Prior to taking over this position, he served as a volunteer for five years as a member of SOSC’s Board of Directors.
Shumard’s vision for the organization is to radically grow the number of athletes served, and he has instituted an aggressive Strategic Plan and accompanying business model to help achieve that goal. SOSC’s original base of 10,000 athletes grew by approximately 30% over the first three years of Shumard’s tenure, with much of that growth credited to new partnerships with school districts within SOSC’s footprint. Revenue generation has also been key to the organization’s recent growth. During the first three years of Shumard’s tenure, revenues increased from $6 million to $8 million annually as SOSC moved to strategically grow and strengthen its revenue streams including a strong emphasis on major and planned gifts, and internet fundraising.
Prior to coming to SOSC, Shumard enjoyed a long and successful career in sports management at both the professional and collegiate levels, enjoying associations with teams and programs that enjoyed both competitive and financial success. After receiving his Bachelor’s degree in journalism from California State University, Long Beach in 1972, Shumard was named as CSULB’s Sports Information Director. One year later, he moved to CSU Los Angeles to assume the same position for two years.
Shumard joined the Los Angeles Dodgers organization in 1975 and was part of the organization’s unparalleled business success for the next 12 years. During that span, the Dodgers won a World Championship and participated in three World Series; hosted the 1980 All-Star Game and the 1984 Olympic Baseball competition. The franchise drew a record-setting three million fans in six different seasons—a mark no other club had achieved up to that point. As Director of Community Services & Special Events, Shumard coordinated the Dodgers’ many successful community outreach programs and a host of the franchise’s most popular promotions, including Opening Day, Oldtimer’s Day and Hollywood Stars Night.
In 1988, Shumard left the Dodger organization to become the Executive Director of USC’s Athletic Centennial, later becoming an assistant athletic director. During his tenure at USC, the Trojans participated in three Rose Bowls and he was part of a development staff that raised more than $7 million annually to support the program.
Shumard was named Director of Athletics at Cal State Fullerton in 1991, a position he held until 1994. He then moved to his alma mater, CSULB, where he served as Executive Director of Athletics until coming to SOSC in 2005. Shumard was the second-longest tenured AD in CSULB history. During his tenure, the department tripled the graduation rate of its student-athletes and raised more than $7 million for capital projects which included the naming of The Pyramid by Mike and Arline Walter, and the building of new student-athlete academic and fitness centers. CSULB was also a perennial mid-major power, finishing in the top 100 five times in the annual Director’s Cup competition. Several teams were nationally ranked each year, and CSULB alumni in the professional ranks include Misty May, Bobby Crosby, Troy Tulowitzky, Evan Longoria and Jered Weaver. Shumard hired two coaches -- Rick Azevedo (Men's Water Polo) and Alan Knipe (Men's Volleyball) -- who went on to become head coaches of USA Olympic teams. During his tenure, Long Beach State hosted a number of NCAA regional and national championship competitions, brining valuable exposure and additional revenue to the City.
Shumard serves as Chair of CSULB’s Graduate Program in Sport Management’s Advisory Board; Chair-Elect of the Ukleja Center for Ethical Leadership’s Governing Council in the CSULB College of Business; a member of the Los Angeles, San Diego and Long Beach Sports Councils; the Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors; and the Advisory Board of USC’s Sports Business Council.
Shumard and his wife, Kim, reside in Brea. They have three grown children and six grandchildren.
Adam Silver
Deputy Commissioner and COO, National Basketball Association
Through his business and leadership skills, Adam Silver has helped to establish the NBA as one of the world’s preeminent sports leagues, as a model for global sports marketing organizations, and as one of the largest providers of sports programming in the world.
Silver became NBA Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer in July 2006 after his appointment was unanimously approved by the NBA Board of Governors. He assumed his role as the league’s second-in-command following more than eight years as President and COO, NBA Entertainment.
Silver has been instrumental in many league accomplishments, including playing a key role in the negotiations of the league’s last two television agreements, the last three collective bargaining agreements with the NBA Players Association, the development of the WNBA and NBA Development League, the partnership with Turner Broadcasting to jointly manage the NBA’s digital assets, the formation of iHoops – a partnership with the NCAA on a wide-ranging initiative aimed at enhancing youth basketball programs in the U.S., and the creation of NBA China as a separately incorporated operating entity.
During Silver's tenure, the NBA has seen rapid expansion of its digital activities as NBA Entertainment launched NBA TV – the league’s 24-hour television channel – and developed the network, which consists of more than 60 unique Web sites, including , , , team sites for the three leagues, and ten international sections of . Silver also oversees the NBA’s and WNBA’s game telecasts, which are carried in 215 countries in 41 languages.
NBA Entertainment’s Global Merchandising Group – responsible for the product development, merchandising, licensing, sales development, e-commerce, retail, and direct-to-consumer initiatives of the NBA and WNBA – has seen record growth during Silver’s tenure, and sales of NBA and WNBA merchandise exceeded $3 billion at retail last year. Also under Silver’s supervision are the Global Media Properties and Marketing Partnerships divisions, as well as the advertising sales of the league’s extensive media inventory.
Silver has consistently been named one of the 100 Most Influential People in Sports by BusinessWeek, the Sporting News and the SportsBusiness Journal. He has also been recognized by Time Magazine and CNN on their list of Global Business Influentials, which features 20 of the world’s leading corporate executives.
Silver joined the NBA in 1992 and previously served under Commissioner Stern as Special Assistant to the Commissioner; NBA Chief of Staff; Senior Vice President and COO, NBA Entertainment; and President and COO, NBA Entertainment.
Prior to joining the NBA, Silver was a litigation associate at the New York law firm of Cravath, Swaine & Moore, where he concentrated on media and antitrust cases. He also served as a law clerk to Federal District Court Judge Kimba Wood in New York City.
In addition to serving on the boards of NBA China, iHoops, the Partnership for a Drug-Free America, and the Duke University Library, Mr. Silver was appointed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg to the New York City Sports Development Corporation. He is also a member of the University of Chicago Law School Visiting Committee.
Silver graduated from Duke University and the University of Chicago Law School. He resides in New York City.
David Simon
President, Los Angeles Sports Council
David Simon, President of the Los Angeles Sports Council, has played a significant role in virtually every major sporting event that has been brought to the Los Angeles area in the last 20 years. In lists published in the Los Angeles Times and Los Angeles Business Journal, he has been recognized as one of the area’s “top 20” most influential sports executives.
Under his leadership, the Sports Council has been the area's driving force behind successful bids for events which have generated more than $1 billion in local economic impact, including the Super Bowl, the Breeders' Cup and the finals of both the World Cup and Women’s World Cup in soccer.
The Council is a recipient of the prestigious Sport Summit Award presented annually to the foremost organization of its kind in the United States. The Council's Board of Directors is chaired by noted attorney Alan I. Rothenberg and consists of a cross-section of local sports and business community leaders.
Mr. Simon has been active in international sports since 1977 when he became involved in Los Angeles' bid to host the 1984 Olympic Games. As Vice President of the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee (LAOOC) he worked for over five years as one of Peter Ueberroth's right hands in staging those Games. He became the founding President of the Sports Council in 1988.
His civic involvement includes serving on the Board of Governors for Southern California Special Olympics. From 1989 to 1999, he served as Chair or Co-Chair of the International Relations Committee for the United States Olympic Committee. He also serves on the boards of USA Badminton, the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce and is President of the Southern California Committee for the Olympic Games.
A native of Los Angeles, he is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of UCLA and the UCLA School of Law. He is a member of the bar both in California and in Washington, D.C. He and his wife, Cheryl, reside in West Los Angeles with their daughter, Lisa.
William D. Simon
Senior Client Partner, Korn/Ferry International
William D. Simon is a Senior Client Partner in Korn/Ferry International’s Los Angeles office and Managing Director of the Media, Entertainment and Convergence sector.
Mr. Simon brings to the Firm an extensive background as an entertainment executive with a keen understanding of a wide variety of areas of the industry. The Media, Entertainment and Convergence sector that he oversees encompasses all aspects of traditional entertainment – film, television, home entertainment, music and publishing – and all digital content and platforms for broadband, games, wireless and mobile devices. Mr. Simon handles the full range of senior operating positions from CEO and COO through senior level creative and content positions.
Mr. Simon is recognized in Nancy Garrison-Jenn’s survey of the top 200 global executive recruiters and ranked among the top 35 in CableFax Magazine’s most influential in cable. Mr. Simon has served as the chairman of Korn/Ferry’s shareholder’s committee and on the Firm’s worldwide board of directors.
Before joining Korn/Ferry in 1988, Mr. Simon established the entertainment division at the investment banking and brokerage firm, Communications Equity Associates. He was involved in transactions that included music, home video, theatrical exhibitions and television programming. Earlier in his career, Mr. Simon served as vice president at Heron Communications, Inc., where he was involved in the development of new business for its home video company, Media Home Entertainment, as well as general corporate management.
Mr. Simon also served as the deputy staff secretary to President Jimmy Carter and he has held other government and political jobs.
Mr. Simon earned a bachelor’s in political science from the University of California at Berkeley.
John Skipper
Executive Vice President, Content ESPN
John Skipper, who in more than 12 years with ESPN has played key roles at ESPN The Magazine, , advertising sales and ESPN Enterprises (brand extensions) was named to the newly created position of ESPN’s executive vice president, content, in October 2005. Skipper is responsible for the creation, programming – including acquisitions and scheduling – and production of ESPN content across all media platforms, including television, radio, internet, broadband, wireless publishing, interactive games and home entertainment. He had been executive vice president, advertising sales & ESPN Enterprises, since August 2004.
Skipper also oversees the group charged with developing and producing new sports-driven content for all ESPN media platforms, ESPN Content Development (formally ESPN Original Entertainment). The unit launched the ESPN Films division in March 2008 to present quality scripted and documentary film projects for television and theatrical release, including the critically acclaimed “30 for 30” documentaries reviewing 30 topics from the 30 years in sports corresponding to ESPN’s 30th anniversary in 2009.
In 2008, under Skipper’s guidance, ESPN launched a high school content initiative, ESPN RISE, a multimedia brand dedicated to growing ESPN’s 12- to 17-year-old audience, while providing compelling high school sports content across all of ESPN’s platforms.
Skipper joined ESPN in June 1997 as senior vice president and general manager of ESPN The Magazine. He oversaw one of the most successful magazine launches of the 1990s. During its inaugural year, the magazine earned more than 20 awards, including "Best New Magazine" honors from both Advertising Age and AdWeek magazines, as well as a 1999 National Magazine Award for design. In January 2000, he added the same title for and in January 2003 was promoted to executive vice president.
Both and ESPN The Magazine have continued to receive accolades over the years, reflecting Skipper’s impact on the respective industries during his tenure. In 2003 and 2006, ESPN The Magazine was awarded the National Magazine Award for General Excellence – its third overall nomination for the same award. The Magazine was also named to Adweek’s Top 10 Hot List of magazines five consecutive years (2001-2005), the only men’s magazine to do so in the 25-year history of the list. has twice won Sports Emmy Awards for broadband content, having received four nominations. The site has taken home two prestigious Online Journalism Awards, two Editor & Publisher EPpy Awards, multiple Webby Awards from the Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, and was named to the AdWeek Web Site Hot List (2007), the Time magazine 25 Sites We Can't Live Without (2006).
In the Sporting News’ 2004 Power 100, Skipper was named No. 1 in the Media Executives category, up from No. 3 in 2003. In 2008, BusinessWeek’s “The Power 100” ranking of the 100 most powerful people in sports for 2008 had him at No. 30, up from 36 in 2007. He also was listed in Sports Business Journal’s list of the 50 Most Influential People in Sports for a third straight year, at #26, up from #36.
Before joining ESPN The Magazine, Skipper served two years as senior vice president of The Disney Publishing Group where he was in charge of all Disney's magazine, book and licensed publishing operations in the United States. Since 1990, Skipper was vice president of Disney Magazine publishing, overseeing Disney Adventures, Discover, FamilyFun and Family PC.
Prior to joining The Disney Publishing Group, Skipper held the title of president and publishing director at Spin magazine. Earlier he spent 10 years with Straight Arrow Publishing including eight years with Rolling Stone. At Straight Arrow, he rose to publisher of US magazine.
Skipper holds bachelor's and master's degrees in English Literature from the University of North Carolina and Columbia University, respectively.
Michael Tchao
VP Product Marketing, Apple Inc.
Former GM, Nike+
Apple Inc. Hired Michael as VP Product Marketing in September 2009. Michael was the former General Manager of Nike Techlab, a sports technology innovation group within Nike chartered with developing new digital products and services for Nike's sport and fitness consumers.
As part of this role, Michael's group also managed technology partnerships including the partnership between Nike and Apple which led to the award-winning Nike+iPod system announced in May of 2006.
Prior to joining Nike, Michael spent 6 years in technology and marketing strategy consulting for technology companies including HP, IBM, Microsoft, Sony, Kodak GM OnStar and Disney.
Before consulting, Michael spent 10 years at Apple in Product Development, Product Marketing and Strategic Alliances, helping to define, develop and launch scores of hardware and software products. Michael helped found Apple’s first Multimedia Products group and headed up Product Marketing for Apple's first foray into consumer electronics, the Newton PDA.
Malcolm Thorpe
Consultant, Blenheim Chalcot
Malcolm Thorpe is an experienced sports business and marketing professional with specific expertise in Asia and the Middle East.
A qualified lawyer, Malcolm worked for IMG, the world’s largest sports and entertainment marketing company, between 1992 and 2005. Having worked on a wide range of projects with the company’s legal department in London, Malcolm spent 3 years in India helping to establish IMG’s business in that country and then followed that with 8 years as Director of Football, Asia, based in Hong Kong and working across the entire Asia region.
From 2005 to 2009 Malcolm was Marketing Director, Sports Business at Dubai Sports City. He was responsible for the overall marketing and communications programme for the ground-breaking sports and real estate development as well as for the management, implementation and commercial exploitation of all sports related activities within the project.
In January 2010 Malcolm started working with Blenheim Chalcot, a UK-based investment company with significant interests in India, including the Rajasthan Royals IPL cricket team and a joint venture with online gaming company Betfair.
Thorpe, 45, is originally from England and is married with three children.
Phil Wallace
Student Researcher, USC Marshall MBA, 2009
Phil Wallace was project lead for Money Games during the 2008-09 academic year. He received his MBA from the Marshall School of Business in 2009. Prior to enrolling at USC, Wallace was a special projects analyst for the Tampa Bay Rays baseball club, leading many of the team's marketing and branding initiatives. Wallace came to Tampa Bay in 2005 after serving as an international relations analyst for New York's 2012 Olympic Bid. He graduated with a BA in Political Science from Columbia University in 2004.
A native of Southern California, Wallace currently consults for pro sports teams in the marketing/branding area with Chivas USA being one of his clients. Additionally, he runs an internet startup , and is a contributor on "The Filter with Fred Roggin" and .
Larry Witherspoon
Chief Executive Officer,
As chief executive officer of , Larry Witherspoon is responsible for the execution of the company's overall direction and strategic plan, including global technology development, sales and marketing, and the operation of the business.
He joined in 2005 as chief information officer, overseeing information technology, product development, architecture, and operations.
Mr. Witherspoon has more than a decade of sports entertainment experience, along with an extensive engineering background. Prior to joining , Mr. Witherspoon served as vice president of technology services for the Seattle Mariners, where he was responsible for all aspects of the Mariners' technology services department, including information services, audio/video, ticketing operations and concession services. Previous to his position with the Mariners, Mr. Witherspoon was co-founder and chief technology officer of AccessOne Internet Services.
Mr. Witherspoon started his career at Science Applications International and has held various positions with AT&T Wireless and McCaw Cellular. He received an MBA in Technology Management from the University of Washington Business School and attended Central Texas College.
David Yu
CEO, Betfair
David Yu, formerly CTO and then COO, is Betfair's Chief Executive. David was previously Vice President, Engineering for Alta Vista's e-Commerce and International divisions. He has spent over 10 years working for internet-based businesses, and holds an MS Computer Science from Stanford University and a BS Computer Science and Electrical Engineering from the University of California at Berkeley. He has been a Director since January 2006.
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“Money Games: Profiting from the Convergence of Sports and Entertainment”
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Thursday, April 29, 2010
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Gary Cypres
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Gary Cypres
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