The Wharton Sports Business Summit
November 3, 2023
The Wharton School
Jon M. Huntsman Hall
3730 Walnut Street
Philadelphia PA, 19104
The 2023 Wharton Sports Business Summit took place on November 3 in Philadelphia, at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Industry leaders explored a range of compelling panel themes, including discussions on the MLB Collective Bargaining Agreement, Emerging Leagues, Investment in Sports, the Future of the Fan, Penn Alums Under 30, Women in Sports Business, Business Analytics in Sports, Sports Analytics, and the ever-evolving Landscape of College Sports.
Check out the Summit’s two keynote sessions with Zack Weiner, President & Co-Founder of Overtime, and Val Ackerman, Commissioner of the NCAA’s Big East Conference, below.
Building a Sports Brand for the Modern Age
Zack Weiner
President & Co-Founder, Overtime
The Past, Present, and Future of College Sports
Val Ackerman
Commissioner, Big East Conference
2023 Keynote Speakers
Val Ackerman, BIG EAST Conference Commissioner
Val Ackerman was named the fifth Commissioner of the BIG EAST Conference on June 26, 2013. She was the founding President of the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) and is a past President of USA Basketball, which oversees the U.S. men’s and women’s Olympic basketball program.
She has had a long and accomplished career in the sports industry and is one of the few executives in sports who has held leadership positions in both men’s and women’s sports at the collegiate, professional, national team and international levels. She is an inductee of the Naismith Memorial Basketball of Fame (2021), the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame (2011) and the New Jersey Hall of Fame (2021).
Zach Weiner, Co-founder and President of Overtime
Zack Weiner is the Co-founder and President of Overtime with over 85 million social media fans, driving an average of over 2.5 billion video views each month. He also co-created OTE (Overtime Elite), a professional basketball league featuring top 17-20-year-old domestic and international players. He currently serves on the board of directors of OTE and Overtime.
Prior to founding Overtime, Weiner was the CEO and Founder of The Sports Quotient which he started at the University of Pennsylvania. He was also a 3x Ivy League Chess Champion. Weiner graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a bachelor’s degree in economics and mathematics.
Meet Our Speakers
Ian Anderson, Director of Hockey Strategy & Analytics at Philadelphia Flyers
Mason Ashe, Lecturer, Legal Studies and Business Ethics, The Wharton School
Tyler Beadlescomb, Pacers Sports & Entertainment, Head of Digital Strategy
Seth Berger, Managing Partner, Potential Capital VC
Melissa Brenner, Executive Vice President, National Basketball Association (NBA)
Lamar Cardinez, Principal, Blue Owl Capital
Kori Carter, Strategy Intern, Nike; Current Wharton MBA, Former Professional Track Athlete
Amy Coffey, Director of the Penn Athletics Wharton Leadership Academy (PAWLA)
Lloyd Danzig, Managing Partner, Sharp Alpha Investors
Rob DiGisi, Lecturer, Legal Studies and Business Ethics, The Wharton School
Kristen Dozier, Club Strategy & Operations, League One Volleyball (LOVB)
Nick Elam, Originator, Elam Ending; Consultant, The Basketball Tournament
Stephen Garrell, Director, Business Strategy & Analytics, Philadelphia Flyers/Comcast Spectator
Brian Graziano, Vice President, Shamrock Capital Advisors
Erika Gunerman, VP, Channel Partnerships, OpenDorse
Olga Harvey, Chief Strategy & Impact Officer, Women Sport’s Foundation
Derek Horne, Executive Senior Associate AD/Strategic Initiatives and Sports, Temple University
Ty Jackson, Director of Strategy & Corporate Development, Playfly
Cole Jacobson, CFB Game Analyst, Championship Analytics, Inc.
Haiya Kofler, In-Stadium Emcee
Emily Leitner, Producer, NFL Films
Bruce Meyer, Deputy Executive Director, MLBPA
Carson Miller, PM & Managing Consultant, IBM iX Sports and Entertainment
Brandon Nutting, VP, Data Science and Innovation, MVPindex
Katie O’Reilly, Chief Revenue Officer, Philadelphia 76ers
Andrea Pascual, Associate, The Raine Group
Tian Pei, Head of Sports Partnerships, Roblox
Amelia Probst, Data Scientist, Pro Football Focus
Hig Roberts, Sports Agent at Wasserman
Maggie Robinson, Broadcast Associate, NFL
Paul Sabin, Senior Fellow, Wharton Sports Analytics and Business Initiative
Sam Schwartz, Vice President of Corporate Development, Comcast
Michael Schwimer, President & CEO, Big League Advantage
Kenneth L. Shropshire, David W. Hauck Professor Emeritus of Legal Studies and Business Ethics; Professor Emeritus of Africana Studies; Senior Advisor to the Dean for the Coalition for Equity & Opportunity
Russ Simons, Chief Listening Officer & Managing Partner, Venue Solutions Group
Andrew Sinnenberg, COO, Premier Lacrosse League
Issac Spear, Coordinator, Game Statistics, NFL
Megan Wallach, Principal, Shamrock Capital Advisors
Genevieve Weikert, Strategy & Analytics, Baltimore Ravens
Adi Wyner, Professor of Statistics and Data Science; Director of Undergraduate Program in Statistics and Data Science; Faculty Co-Director, Wharton Sports Analytics and Business Initiative
About the Summit
Founded in 2017, the Wharton Sports Business Summit is organized by the Wharton Undergraduate Sports Business Club (WUSBC) with the support of the Wharton Sports Analytics and Business Initiative (WSABI).
An annual event hosted at Jon M. Huntsman Hall on the University of Pennsylvania’s campus, the summit features keynote presentations, enlightening lunch-and-learn discussions, and valuable networking opportunities with experts in the sports business realm. The event draws a diverse audience including students, academics, industry experts, and professionals, all eager to partake in a diverse range of captivating speaker sessions.
Past speakers include Kristin Connelly, Interim Head of CPG and VP, Global Brand Marketing, Activision Blizzard; Michael Rubin, Chairman of Fanatics; Kiki Vandeweghe, EVP of Basketball Operations, NBA; Andrew Brandt, Executive Director, Moorad Center for Sports Law at Villanova University; Annie Duke, former professional poker player; Josh Harris, Managing Partner of the Philadelphia 76ers, among others.
The Wharton Undergraduate Sports Business Club (WUSBC) aims to educate students on the world of sports business, build awareness of career & internship opportunities in the industry, and help students to reach those positions. On one of the most competitive campuses in the nation, we strive to be the inclusive and welcoming club, offering a great sense of community.