The ROAR Podcast

Craig Sloan, CEO of PlayFly Sports, discusses the evolution of sports media, the impact of non-traditional providers, and the seismic changes in the industry. He shares insights on the journey in sports media, the evolution of local media, and the role of multimedia rights in college sports. The conversation delves into the innovation in college sports sponsorship and media rights, the challenges and opportunities in college sports, and the impact of NIL on college sports. It explores the dynamic nature of multimedia rights, the need for sustainable revenue growth, and the role of technology and data in enhancing fan engagement and game day experiences. Additionally, it discusses the complexities of working with student-athletes in the context of NIL and the influence of artificial intelligence on the sports industry.TakeawaysEvolution of MediaSeismic Changes in Sports Media Innovation in sponsorship and media rightsChallenges and opportunities in college sportsImpact of NIL on college sportsChapters00:00 Journey in Sports Media10:05 Impact of Non-Traditional Providers19:28 Multimedia Rights in College Sports26:00 Innovation in College Sports Sponsorship and Media Rights31:33 Challenges and Opportunities in College Sports40:26 Impact of NIL on College Sports

This episode marks a significant transformation for the podcast, as it evolves from "Revenue Above Replacement" to the "Roar Podcast." The hosts, Brice Clinton, Adam Grossman, and new co-host Caroline Valvardi, discuss the podcast's new direction, focusing on sports real estate, mixed-use developments, and community impact. They explore how these elements are reshaping cities and communities globally, emphasizing the importance of public-private partnerships and the role of AI and data analytics in sports business outcomes. Caroline brings her expertise in public affairs and community development to the table, highlighting the potential for sports to drive economic and social benefits. The episode also delves into the global perspective on sports development, the rise of sports tourism, and the creation of vibrant communities that extend beyond game days. The hosts express excitement about future episodes featuring diverse voices and perspectives, aiming to engage listeners with insightful conversations about the intersection of sports, real estate, technology, and community building.   00:00 - Introduction to the new "Roar Podcast" and its focus on sports, real estate, and community impact   02:02 - Host backgrounds and the podcast's transition to focus on innovative sports developments   05:14 - The intersection of AI, data, and sports business outcomes   08:01 - The evolution of sports districts beyond stadiums to vibrant communities   10:38 - Global perspectives on sports projects and the rise of sports tourism   14:00 - The importance of mixed-use developments as community and destination hubs   18:01 - Indianapolis as a case study of a city centered on sports and community building   21:52 - Future guest topics: public officials, athletes, and industry innovators   25:46 - The value of diverse perspectives and intersectional conversations   26:55 - Audience feedback, conversational style, and topic relevance   28:48 - The evolving career paths in sports, real estate, and technology   30:03 - Expansion of guest voices and global content opportunities   31:09 - Logistical details for ongoing weekly episodes and upcoming interviews

Jamie Litoff is the Executive Director of Partnership Marketing for the Chicago Bulls, where she leads the team responsible for bringing the organization's corporate partnerships to life. In her nearly five years with the Bulls, Jamie has grown from Senior Manager to Executive Director — building out a restructured activation team and helping shape the franchise's approach to global partnerships, sustainability initiatives, and authentic brand collaboration at one of the most recognized sports organizations in the world. Jamie's path to the Bulls spans nearly two decades of sports marketing experience across media, agency, and brand roles. She began her career at CBS Interactive and CBS Sports, where she managed digital sponsorship sales and some of the network's largest cross-platform programs. From there, she moved into the agency world at Intersport and later 160over90 — part of Endeavor — where she led sponsorship activation and content strategy for global brands including Audi, KPMG, Invesco, and National Car Rental across properties ranging from the PGA Tour to Major League Soccer. A stint on the brand side at Guaranteed Rate, managing the White Sox naming rights partnership, rounded out a career arc that gave her fluency in every seat at the table before she ever joined a team. Beyond her day-to-day role with the Bulls, Jamie spent five years leading the Chicago chapter of WISE — Women in Sports and Events — first as President and then as Chairwoman. Under her leadership, the chapter hosted sold-out events including a panel at NBA All-Star 2020 and continued to grow as a resource for women building careers in the sports and events industries. Jamie holds a degree from the University of Michigan and a Master's in Sports Administration from Northwestern University. She lives in the Chicago area with her family.

Hannah Berregaard is the Director of League Operations at Chicago Fire FC, where she oversees the operations and growth of the Chicagoland Indoor Soccer League — a youth indoor league acquired by the Fire in 2025 that serves approximately 14,000 players across roughly 1,000 club teams in the greater Chicago area. In this role, Hannah is responsible for the day-to-day logistics of the league, expanding its footprint into new markets and facilities, and connecting the league to the broader Fire organization as the club builds toward its new purpose-built stadium opening in 2028. Hannah's path into professional sports is anything but conventional. After earning her undergraduate degree in General Studies and Spanish from the University of Northern Iowa, she spent several years in residential real estate in Iowa — consistently exceeding sales goals and developing the client relationship and business management skills that would later prove central to her work in sports operations. When COVID prompted a career pivot in 2020, Hannah enrolled in Northwestern University's Master of Sports Administration program, graduating in June 2022, while simultaneously returning to the game she grew up playing through a coaching role at a local youth soccer club. That coaching role opened the door to Chicago FC United, one of the largest youth soccer clubs on Chicago's North Shore, where Hannah joined as Assistant Girls Director. In under two years, she advanced to Director of Club Operations — overseeing all programs across the club's boys, girls, and academy levels — by developing operational, marketing, and organizational capabilities that distinguished her in a field dominated by coaching backgrounds. Her deep knowledge of the youth soccer ecosystem in Chicagoland became the foundation for her transition to the professional side of the sport. A passionate advocate for growing women's presence in soccer — both on and off the field — Hannah has made it a priority to increase the visibility of women coaches, directors, and players at every level of the game. She holds a Master of Arts in Sports Administration from Northwestern University and a Bachelor's degree from the University of Northern Iowa.

Joey Graziano is the Chief Business Officer of the Indiana Pacers and Indiana Fever, where he leads the organization's commercial strategy, mixed-use real estate development, data and analytics initiatives, and fan experience innovation. Under his leadership, the Pacers organization is developing one of the most ambitious sports entertainment districts in the country — a 60-acre mixed-use development surrounding Gainbridge Fieldhouse anchored by a Ritz-Carlton and a Live Nation music venue — with a vision to become a model for public-private sports development that can be replicated across American cities.   Before joining the Pacers, Joey spent six years at the NBA as Senior Vice President and Head of Global Event Strategy & Development, where he oversaw strategic planning, new asset creation, and business development for the league's marquee global events, including the NBA All-Star Game, NBA Finals, NBA Draft, and international games. He was one of the key architects of the 2020 NBA Bubble, spearheading the strategy and execution that allowed the league to safely resume its season at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World — a landmark operational achievement that provided a model for the broader sports industry.   Prior to the NBA, Joey served as Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel of The Headfirst Companies, where he helped grow a 15-person startup into an industry-leading immersive live event company with more than 1,500 employees operating across 20 states and four countries. At scale, Headfirst produced events for a third of Major League Baseball franchises, the English Premier League, and more than 150 colleges and universities.   Earlier in his career, Joey was an associate at international law firm Jones Day, where he focused on complex civil and criminal litigation. A Mitchell Scholar, he earned an LLM in Public Law from the National University of Ireland, Galway, and conducted bribery and corruption investigations through the World Bank's Office of Evaluation and Suspension. He received his B.A. and J.D. from Georgetown University summa cum laude, where he was a Rhodes Scholar finalist, played collegiate baseball, and was shaped by the university's storied fellowship programs. Joey is also the founder of a nonprofit in the Dominican Republic that uses baseball to promote literacy for children in the barrio of Consuelo, and he founded the Academy for Veterans to ensure governments honor their commitments to those who served.   A Queens native and son of a New York City firefighter, Joey brings a run-toward-the-fire mentality to everything he does — from reimagining how sports organizations create value in their communities, to building the next generation of sports business leaders.

Jason Sinnarajah joined the Royals in August 2023 as the Sr. Vice President, Chief Operating Officer. In this role, Jason oversees the business analytics, ticket operations, technology and stadium operations departments as well as the team’s relationship with its food and beverage and retail partners at Kauffman Stadium. In 2024, Jason led the revitalization of our concession experience on the Plaza level, the implementation of new local food offerings and an improved GoEntry fan experience to reduce wait times for entering Kauffman Stadium.    Prior to joining the Royals, Jason was Senior Vice President of Business Administration for the Buffalo Bills from 2020-23 where he oversaw ticket and premium sales, marketing, community relations, stadium operations and strategy and analytics. In that time, he led stadium operations during a period of COVID-19 fan protocols with New York State, managed the concessionaire partnership at Highmark Stadium, created a strategy and analytics teams to support the Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres, grew the team’s marketing app audience to Top 5 in the NFL across engagement and registered users and increased overall revenue by 40%. Jason also helped lead efforts to secure a new stadium for the Bills through the building of economic business cases to ownership and local/state government officials for a new stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y. Jason had prior sports experience with the Cleveland Guardians Strategy and Analytics team from 2012-15.    During his tenure, he negotiated a new partnership for their food and beverage business, acquired capital to renovate Progressive Field, set and managed revenue and sales compensation goals across premium seating, ticket sales and corporate partnerships and led efforts to bring an All-Star Game to Cleveland. Outside of sports, Jason spent five years in media and corporate development at Ziff Davis and the Weather Company. At the Weather Company he led business development partnerships with large global media platforms such as Apple, Meta, X and Google, and negotiated media deals with international media companies. At Ziff Davis, Jason led data and e-commerce focused business units and was involved in several M&A transactions to expand the company’s presence in e-commerce and media.    Jason also spent five years at Google where he was responsible for an internal consulting team across the Asia-Pacific region and lived in Tokyo and Sydney. He also held a role leading Google’s partnership across global media and sports and helped build out Google’s early entrance into sports-related content through partnerships with ESPN, and sports leagues such as MLB, NFL, NBA and the NHL. A native of Toronto, Canada, Jason earned his MBA from the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business and a bachelor’s degree in finance and marketing from Boston College.

In this episode of the Revenue Above Replacement podcast, Brice and Adam dig into one of the most timely topics in sports business right now: prediction markets, and what Giannis Antetokounmpo’s recent equity stake in Kalshi might signal about where this space is headed. They start by breaking down what prediction markets actually are and how they differ from traditional sports betting. Instead of wagering against a sportsbook like FanDuel or DraftKings, prediction markets operate through event contracts that trade on binary outcomes — essentially “yes or no” questions. The price of a contract reflects the market’s implied probability of an outcome occurring, which makes the experience feel closer to a financial market than a typical betting product. From there, they discuss why that structural difference matters, especially as these platforms evolve and expand into sports-focused contracts that look and feel a lot like wagering. The conversation then shifts to regulation and why prediction markets have become controversial. Because they’re structured as event contracts, platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket fall under the oversight of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) rather than the state-by-state regulatory systems that govern sports betting. Brice and Adam talk through the growing debate about whether that’s appropriate, what it means for the future of the category, and why the answer could shape how leagues, teams, and athletes choose to engage with these markets. They also take a step back to the origins of prediction markets, including their history in academic and political forecasting, and the “wisdom of crowds” idea: when lots of people make independent decisions with real stakes, markets can aggregate information in a way that produces surprisingly accurate predictions. But they’re clear that sports isn’t just about “better forecasts,” and the episode explores the tradeoffs that come with financial incentives in sports contexts. They dig into concerns around manipulation risk, low-liquidity markets, insider information, and where leagues should draw the line on participation by athletes, coaches, and team personnel in any market connected to on-field outcomes. From there, they zoom back in on the Giannis-Kalshi relationship and what Adam’s research suggests so far. Adam explains the framework behind his article, using data to evaluate brand sentiment, audience behavior, and partnership fit. While Giannis’ fanbase does over-index on interest in sports betting compared to the general public, it appears less aligned than broader NBA fandom, and early online sentiment around the partnership is mixed. That leads to a broader conversation about what “success” looks like for these partnerships: short-term sentiment versus long-term awareness, whether “all press is good press,” and how athlete investments in emerging categories can create value even if the immediate reaction is complicated. They close by widening the lens again to the bigger trajectory of sports wagering and prediction markets. They discuss how leagues are experimenting with relationships in this space, why new categories often trigger a fresh wave of sponsorship and marketing dollars, and how prediction markets might ultimately evolve beyond entertainment into legitimate hedging tools for sports organizations. The episode ends with an open question that sits at the heart of the conversation: are we moving toward a world where you can trade a market on anything in life, and if so, should we? Overall, Brice and Adam frame prediction markets as a fast-moving, still-early industry that’s blurring the line between finance and sports gambling. And as regulation, league strategy, and consumer adoption continue to develop, they make the case that understanding how these markets work — and what risks and opportunities they create — is quickly becoming essential for anyone in the sports business ecosystem.

Adam Zimmerman is Senior Vice President of Marketing and Content of the Atlanta Braves and reports directly to the team’s President/CEO.   Over his tenure with the Braves, he has managed the team’s Business Intelligence, Marketing, Communications, Diversity Marketing, Digital, Community Relations, Creative, Alumni Affairs, Fan Experience and Growing the Game departments. He is responsible for strategizing and driving the team’s growing efforts to develop and monetize various content opportunities, including broadcast, video, audio, podcasts, NFT’s, and the emerging Web 3.0./ Metaverse business environment.     Prior to the Braves, Zimmerman was President of Atlanta based agency CSE (now part of Cooper Holdings) where he led award winning work for several Fortune 500 company agency clients and also oversaw the athlete/coach/broadcaster practice. While at CSE, Zimmerman crafted a partnership with MIT and created CSE Evolve, an in-house lab designed to embrace the latest technologies.   He plays active roles on MLB’s Strategy and Web 3.0/Metaverse working groups/committees and is published and referenced in high impact trade journals and media as an expert in identifying emerging trends in sports marketing/business models. He is a frequent speaker, presenter and facilitator and sports marketing conferences, seminars, summits and corporate events and has been an instructor for undergraduate/graduate sports marketing classes at University of South Florida, University of Florida, Georgia Tech and University of Georgia. Zimmerman completed the inaugural session of the Business of Sports and Entertainment Executive Education program at Harvard University.   Zimmerman resides in Atlanta, Georgia and sits on the board of the Highlands/Cashiers Land Trust, an organization dedicated to limiting commercial development and preserving open space, natural areas, waterways, and/or productive farms and forests.   He is a graduate of the University of Florida and was inducted into the College of Health and Human Performance Distinguished Alumni Hall of Fame.

Matt Powell is the CEO of Moroch, a Dallas-based full-service marketing and communications agency known for helping multi-location brands grow by blending data, insights, technology, and creativity at scale. Matt is an evangelist for new platforms and emerging technologies and someone who got his start in media and built his career by weaving paid, owned, and earned media into integrated strategies that drive real business outcomes. Across more than two decades with Moroch, he has led the agency through seismic shifts in the industry  from traditional broadcast media buying to data-driven, programmatic advertising and AI-informed creative strategies. Under his leadership, the company has embraced relentless curiosity and collaboration as core values, constantly evolving to meet the needs of today’s brands while fostering a culture where innovation thrives.   Matt’s deep understanding of client challenges paired with his ability to spot opportunities on the horizon makes him a sought-after voice on the future of marketing, media, and the convergence of technology and cultural trends. And if he’s not thinking about strategy, you might find him quoting 80s sitcoms with as much confidence as he talks about media platforms.

A.J. Edds is the Big Ten Conference's Vice President, football operations, moving into that position in July 2022, after previously serving as the conference’s assistant director (and later associate director), sports administration since arriving at the conference in October 2017. In his present capacity, Edds oversees the day-to-day operations associated with Big Ten football, as well as coordinating relationships with the conference's numerous bowl partners. During his initial tenure at the Big Ten in the sports administration department, Edds served as a sport liaison, oversees the Olympic sport officiating program and was also a liaison to the Big Ten Sports Management Committee. Prior to joining the Big Ten, Edds worked as a regional manager at Rocksolid, LLC, in Chicago. A former Big Ten student-athlete, Edds was a three-year starter at linebacker for the Iowa Hawkeyes and earned Academic All-Big Ten honors on three occasions. As a senior in 2009, Edds was named second-team All-Big Ten and served as a team captain on a Hawkeyes team that finished the year No. 7 overall in the Associated Press poll and earned a trip to the Orange Bowl. Following his collegiate playing career, Edds was selected by the Miami Dolphins in the fourth round of the 2010 NFL Draft. He went on to play in the NFL from 2010-15, spending time with the Dolphins, Indianapolis Colts, New England Patriots, New York Jets and Jacksonville Jaguars. Edds graduated from the University of Iowa in 2010 with a degree in management and organizations. In 2019, he earned a master’s degree in sports administration from Northwestern University. Edds is the son of Anne and David.

In this episode, Adam Grossman sits down with Max Mitchell, a Northwestern MSA graduate student and teaching assistant, to unpack the findings from Max’s thesis research (and accompanying article) on NIL, the transfer portal, and player movement in college football. Using a novel, data-driven approach, Max challenges the popular narrative that NIL and transfers are chaotic and unsystematic. Instead, the data suggests something far more familiar: athletes are making rational, incentive-based decisions that closely resemble traditional labor market behavior. Max walks through how his research journey began with a simple observation during a Clemson–Florida State game—and evolved into a multi-year project involving tens of thousands of recruits, thousands of transfers, and hundreds of hours of data cleaning, matching, and modeling. Along the way, he explains how structural barriers before college shape player outcomes, why transfer behavior changed so dramatically after 2018 and 2021, and how NIL fundamentally altered the incentives facing college athletes. The conversation dives deep into what motivates players to transfer, why “upward” and “downward” transfers optimize for different outcomes, and how athletes balance short-term playing time with long-term professional upside. Perhaps most notably, Max shares a striking finding: NIL valuations are now a stronger predictor of NFL participation than high school star ratings—suggesting that dynamic, market-based signals may outperform static recruiting metrics when it comes to forecasting success. The episode also explores what this means for programs, conferences, and the future of college football. From NIL spend correlating with wins, to roster mobility increasing as financial incentives grow, the discussion reframes NIL not as chaos—but as a market finding its structure in real time. Whether you’re a student of sports analytics, a college athletics administrator, or just trying to understand how NIL is reshaping the game, this episode offers a rare, data-backed look at what’s really happening beneath the headlines.

Brandon Crone's career in sports spans nearly every level of the game, shaped by deep Indiana basketball roots and a people-first approach to leadership. A Butler University graduate, Brandon was a four-year scholarship basketball player for the Bulldogs before continuing his playing career professionally overseas. During three seasons in Europe, he competed in countries including France, Sweden, Poland, Germany, and Hungary—experiences that not only sharpened his understanding of the game, but also broadened his perspective on culture, independence, and leadership. After returning to the U.S., Brandon transitioned into college coaching, spending more than a decade on Division I basketball staffs in a variety of roles, including operations and assistant coaching. His time in college athletics gave him a front-row seat to the business of sports—recruiting, budgets, television deals, and, more recently, the evolution of NIL. He later served as Executive Director of All Good Dawgs, Butler’s nonprofit NIL collective, where he helped connect student-athletes with community service initiatives across Indianapolis while navigating the rapidly changing NIL landscape. Today, Brandon serves as the Athletic Director of the Carmel Dads’ Club, one of the largest and most respected youth sports organizations in the country. Under his leadership, the organization supports more than 15,000 participants annually across 13 sports, powered by thousands of volunteers and a strong community-first mission. In this role, Brandon oversees everything from facilities and scheduling to program development and parent engagement, applying lessons learned from high-level basketball to grassroots sports. A former player, coach, administrator, and now parent-coach, Brandon brings a unique perspective on how sports shape people at every stage—from youth leagues to professional arenas. His work today focuses on creating accessible, well-run, and values-driven sports experiences that emphasize development, discipline, and community over shortcuts and hype.

Ben Jaeger returned to Northwestern University in October 2025 as Director of Olympic Sports Performance, bringing with him a broad, high-level background in building and leading performance systems across collegiate athletics. Jaeger rejoined the Wildcats after previously serving on Northwestern’s sports performance staff from 2021 to 2023. Prior to his initial time in Evanston, he spent three years at Texas A&M University as an Assistant Sports Performance Coach, where he led annual training plans for swimming and diving and men’s tennis, while also providing temporary oversight for women’s soccer, women’s tennis, and men’s golf. Before his tenure at Texas A&M, Jaeger spent four years at Boise State University as Associate Director of Olympic Sports Performance, playing a key role in the development and execution of comprehensive training programs for a wide range of Olympic sports. His career also includes stops at Southern Illinois University, Oral Roberts University, and Oregon State University, with experience supporting football, basketball, baseball, softball, tennis, golf, swimming and diving, gymnastics, volleyball, soccer, and track and field. Jaeger holds a Master of Science in Education with a concentration in Kinesiology from Southern Illinois University and a Bachelor of Science in Health and Wellness from the University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point. He is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) through the National Strength and Conditioning Association and is also certified by USA Weightlifting.

Brice Clinton is the Director of Solutions Engineering for CSG, a global interactive media company. He is responsible for international business development, technical evangelism, and translating technical capabilities into tangible business outcomes. In addition, Brice serves as the primary media liaison through writing and speaking. Since joining CSG International he has been responsible for client engagements across media, sports, and retail in North American, Europe, Asia, India, and Australia.  Along with his work at CSG Brice is the Faculty Director of the Masters in Sports Administration program at Northwestern university where he teaches graduate level courses in The Technology of Sports and the programs practicum. Along with Adam Grossman he is the host of the Revenue Above Replacement podcast.  Brice received a bachelor of the arts in Organizational Communication from Purdue University, and a master’s degree in Sports Administration from Northwestern University.

In a quarter century of design work, Bruce has earned the trust and respect of countless clients, colleagues and industry peers. Along the way, he’s amassed a portfolio of high-impact sports projects across the United States including the likes of Twin City icons Target Field and Allianz Field. He’s a sought-after source on stadium design, having guest lectured at New York University and been interviewed by national and industry media alike. Recruited to Populous upon his graduation from the University of Cincinnati with a degree in architecture, Bruce’s dedication to the firm has spanned the entirety of his career to date. Early in that journey, Sports Business Journal named him among the best young talent in sports business. His ability to manage complex projects showed in endeavors like Target Field, a beloved ballpark sitting on one of the smallest and most complex urban sites in baseball. More recently, he led the design of Minnesota United FC’s Allianz Field, a stunning soccer-specific stadium that raised the bar of the Major League Soccer match day experience. Throughout his work as an architect, Bruce has shown a keen ability to motivate staff to excellence, both as a mentor to others and as a member of Populous’ regional and global leadership teams. He’s an active member of the American Institute of Architects and is a LEED Accredited Professional.

Sports and Entertainment Real Estate Global Holdings (Seregh – pronounced “surge”) has acquired data and analytics firm Revenue Over And Above Replacement (ROAR), and in this episode we break down what that means for the future of sports-anchored mixed-use development. Our guest, Adam Grossman, and cohost of this podcast — President of ROAR, A Seregh Company and newly appointed Chief Analytics Officer at Seregh — joins us to discuss the launch of Smart Districts as a Service (SmartDaaS), a new platform that uses AI, machine learning, and a customer data platform to help teams, developers, capital partners, and cities better plan, finance, and commercialize Sports and Entertainment-Anchored Districts (SEADs). Adam, a leading voice in sports strategy, commercialization, and analytics, draws on his experience as founder of Block Six Analytics, his work with Excel Sports Management, and his role as a lecturer in Northwestern’s Master’s in Sports Administration program to explain how SmartDaaS can shape decisions around partnerships, leasing, fan engagement, and foot traffic. If you’re interested in how data is transforming the way sports districts are conceived and monetized, this conversation is a roadmap to what comes next.

Noah Henderson is the Director of the Sport Management Program and a Clinical Instructor at Loyola University Chicago’s Quinlan School of Business. A widely recognized voice in sport management, his work explores the intersection of law, economics, and the social consequences of college athletics –– with a focus on name, image, and likeness (NIL), athlete labor rights, and sports gambling. Through his teaching, Henderson prepares students to lead in a dynamic era where college sports are rapidly professionalizing. Henderson was at the forefront of NIL implementation. He helped amend Illinois’ NIL legislation and played a direct role in establishing early frameworks that facilitated the legal payment of college athletes. He continues to advise athletic departments, brands, and sports agents nationwide on NIL policy, legal compliance, and best practices. He has also provided written analysis that has been entered into the public record, contributing to national discourse on antitrust, roster structures, and athlete access in college athletics. He contributed extensively to Sports Illustrated’s NIL Daily, where his reporting and commentary helped shape public understanding of the evolving business of college athletics. His insights have been featured by ESPN, NPR, CNN, PBS, Sportico, the Chicago Tribune, and others. He regularly speaks at accredited seminars and national symposiums, offering expertise on athlete rights and the future of college athletics. He holds a Juris Doctor from the University of Illinois College of Law and a degree in Economics from Saint Joseph’s University, where he was a four-year letter winner on the golf team.

In a quarter century of design work, Bruce has earned the trust and respect of countless clients, colleagues and industry peers. Along the way, he’s amassed a portfolio of high-impact sports projects across the United States including the likes of Twin City icons Target Field and Allianz Field. He’s a sought-after source on stadium design, having guest lectured at New York University and been interviewed by national and industry media alike. Recruited to Populous upon his graduation from the University of Cincinnati with a degree in architecture, Bruce’s dedication to the firm has spanned the entirety of his career to date. Early in that journey, Sports Business Journal named him among the best young talent in sports business. His ability to manage complex projects showed in endeavors like Target Field, a beloved ballpark sitting on one of the smallest and most complex urban sites in baseball. More recently, he led the design of Minnesota United FC’s Allianz Field, a stunning soccer-specific stadium that raised the bar of the Major League Soccer match day experience. Throughout his work as an architect, Bruce has shown a keen ability to motivate staff to excellence, both as a mentor to others and as a member of Populous’ regional and global leadership teams. He’s an active member of the American Institute of Architects and is a LEED Accredited Professional.

Jon Fascitelli is the Founder and Chairman of Seregh and the former Chief Executive Officer of Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment Real Estate. He led the Philadelphia 76ers' new $1.5 bn arena development as well as significant projects for the New Jersey Devils. This included rejuvenating the Loew’s Theatre in Jersey City and fostering growth in the vicinity of Newark's Prudential Center. Jonathan is deeply committed to enhancing neighborhoods, aiming for positive social change through economic growth and job creation. At HBSE, he built and managed his team and related consultants to over 100 people. In addition to his role at HBSE, Fascitelli worked closely with HRS Management and BOLT Ventures, the family offices of Josh Harris and David Blitzer. On behalf of HRS Management he was an active board member at Mosaic Development Partners, a black-owned developer with a strong community focus. He played a lead role in the acquisition of the Washington Commanders. In New York, he oversaw the operations of Central Park's Wollman Rink, partnering with Related and Equinox. He also advised on behalf of Bolt Ventures, Vessel Technologies, a firm that is looking at innovative approaches to affordable housing and works closely with the Cleveland Guardians. Early in his career he held positions at Colony Capital and UBS. On the academic side, Jonathan is a graduate of Brown University and holds an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Jason Sinnarajah joined the Royals in August 2023 as the Sr. Vice President, Chief Operating Officer. In this role, Jason oversees the business analytics, ticket operations, technology and stadium operations departments as well as the team’s relationship with its food and beverage and retail partners at Kauffman Stadium. In 2024, Jason led the revitalization of our concession experience on the Plaza level, the implementation of new local food offerings and an improved GoEntry fan experience to reduce wait times for entering Kauffman Stadium. Prior to joining the Royals, Jason was Senior Vice President of Business Administration for the Buffalo Bills from 2020-23 where he oversaw ticket and premium sales, marketing, community relations, stadium operations and strategy and analytics. In that time, he led stadium operations during a period of COVID-19 fan protocols with New York State, managed the concessionaire partnership at Highmark Stadium, created a strategy and analytics teams to support the Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres, grew the team’s marketing app audience to Top 5 in the NFL across engagement and registered users and increased overall revenue by 40%. Jason also helped lead efforts to secure a new stadium for the Bills through the building of economic business cases to ownership and local/state government officials for a new stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y. Jason had prior sports experience with the Cleveland Guardians Strategy and Analytics team from 2012-15. During his tenure, he negotiated a new partnership for their food and beverage business, acquired capital to renovate Progressive Field, set and managed revenue and sales compensation goals across premium seating, ticket sales and corporate partnerships and led efforts to bring an All-Star Game to Cleveland. Outside of sports, Jason spent five years in media and corporate development at Ziff Davis and the Weather Company. At the Weather Company he led business development partnerships with large global media platforms such as Apple, Meta, X and Google, and negotiated media deals with international media companies. At Ziff Davis, Jason led data and e-commerce focused business units and was involved in several M&A transactions to expand the company’s presence in e-commerce and media. Jason also spent five years at Google where he was responsible for an internal consulting team across the Asia-Pacific region and lived in Tokyo and Sydney. He also held a role leading Google’s partnership across global media and sports and helped build out Google’s early entrance into sports-related content through partnerships with ESPN, and sports leagues such as MLB, NFL, NBA and the NHL. A native of Toronto, Canada, Jason earned his MBA from the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business and a bachelor’s degree in finance and marketing from Boston College.