Wharton School

Sports Business Initiative Established at Wharton School

Feb. 28, 2005 — The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania has announced the establishment of the Wharton Sports Business Initiative (WSBI). The initiative will form a partnership among top level business leaders, faculty and students to generate and disseminate knowledge about the sports industry through educational programs, strategic corporate partnerships, student consulting assignments, global forums, and research. From internships to executive education, this initiative will serve as the center for all sports business related activities associated with the Wharton School.

“We are extremely pleased to launch the Wharton Sports Business Initiative,” said Wharton Dean Patrick Harker. “The WSBI will enhance the School’s curriculum, providing research and training future leaders to shape the business of sports.”

“This is an exciting new initiative,” said Kenneth Shropshire, who is director of the WSBI, David W. Hauck Professor, and chair of Wharton’s Legal Studies Department. “A key part of our mission is to be a premier player in the sports business industry by attracting and educating students who will develop and demonstrate advanced business skills and a rich understanding of industry dynamics, leading them to provide sports business employers’ career value commensurate with MBAs in other fields. This will occur not by adding coursework, but by focusing on industry and student interaction. We also are working with our executive education division to develop innovative educational programs for industry executives as well as current and former athletes,” he said.

There are various elements of the initiative, all of which further the interaction between sports business leaders, Wharton faculty and students. The WSBI will include: executive education programs, a sports consulting practicum, company visits, independent study projects, mentoring, a speaker series geared toward executives and students, conferences, forums, and networking opportunities.

The WSBI’s first conference will be held April 28-29 at the Wharton School’s Philadelphia campus. The theme will be, “Turning Pro Young? The Business of Early Entry into Professional Sports.” The WSBI also will continue the Wharton tradition of bringing executives to both the School’s Philadelphia and San Francisco locations to speak with students. Recent executive visits have included Brian Roberts, CEO of Comcast, Donald Blair, CFO of NIKE , Rich Nichols, agent for multiple Olympic gold medalist Marion Jones, and David Cornwell, president of DNK Cornwell. Cornwell has served as the primary counsel for Leigh Steinberg, Jeff Moorad, Eugene Parker, Dan Fegan and Michael Gillis - agents who represent players and coaches in the National Football League, Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League.

In addition to Shropshire who will serve as director, other Wharton faculty will be involved with the initiative such as Marketing Professor David Reibstein, Legal Studies Professor Georgette Poindexter, lecturers and alumni Mori Taheripour and Rob DiGisi, lecturer Scott Rosner, and senior fellows Charles Grantham and Jason Wingard.

For more information, please visit the Wharton Sports Business Initiative website.