Emcee Leigh Diffey, in the first reference to the trophy being heavy and of how many Henry supporters are here, said during the SBAs intro: “I think this half of the room is here for John Henry. He even brought Big Papi. David Ortiz is in the house. He will need Big Papi to carry this, to use his muscles, but we’ll get to that later.”
Before presenting the Breakthrough of the Year award, MS Now’s Jonathan Lemire, a lifelong Red Sox, joked that his rule in life is to always be in the same room as David Ortiz whenever possible. Big Papi later summoned Lemire over to his table to shake his hand and thank him for the kind words.
President and CEO Stan Kasten greeted John Henry and Tom Werner after Fenway Sports Group leadership walked the red carpet.
Rob Manfred chatted with former longtime MLB exec Tim Brosnan, who lost out to Manfred in the three-man competition to be MLB Commissioner in 2014. Manfred ultimately beat Tom Werner for the role. Manfred also warmly greeted and congratulated Fenway Sports Group’s John Henry on his SBJ Lifetime Achievement Award. It’s been a busy week for Manfred, who was spotted at Thursday’s Game Two of the Cavs-Knicks in Eastern Conference Finals at Madison Square Garden.
Baseball Hall of Famer David Ortiz told SBJ he wore Louis Vuitton cologne Wednesday night.
Fenway Sports Group CEO Sam Kennedy was joking about streaming the Red Sox game during the ceremony as the team, next to last place in the AL East, went for a sweep against the Royals. The Red Sox won 4-3, coming back from a 3-2 deficit with a two-run homer from LF Jarren Duran in the top of the seventh.
It was a homecoming of sorts for Mets President/Business Operations Lew Sherr. He was spotted catching up with former USTA colleagues Kirsten Corio, Patti Fallick, Nicole Kankam and Eric Butorac. Sherr was part of the group that came up with the idea for the U.S. Open Mixed Doubles Championship, one worthy of an SBA for Sports Breakthrough of the Year. He joined his former staff for a photo.
Playfly’s Dan Parise is well known for his eclectic hat collection, and Wednesday night, he sported a Tacoma Rainiers alternate hat from a Mexican celebration night. He has 200 hats and admitted, “I have a hat problem.” Other Playfly folks spotted included Craig Sloan, Christy Hedgpeth and Paul Ascencio.
LIV Golf’s Scott O’Neil gave a hug to Fenway Sports Group and Strategic Sports Group’s Sam Kennedy. O’Neil also was spotted hugging PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp. Also spotted: PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan with ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro just before the ceremony. Other notables from the PGA Tour included Andy Cohen, Joe Gorder and Andy Weitz.
Evan Cohen, Michelle Smallmon and Chris Canty of ESPN’s “Unsportsmanlike” seemed to enjoy their experience as they discussed the Sports Business Awards in leading their show on Thursday morning. Cohen noted the vibe around the event: “Owners of sports teams, executives with different networks, Big Papi was there. And shoutout to Unsportsmanlike fans. It was the coolest thing. We had so many people ... coming up to us and saying, ‘I wake up with you guys every day.’ That was awesome, that part of it. Sports Business Journal — we knew going in this was a big-time event. I didn’t know it was as big-time as it was. It was unbelievable.”
Dan Griffis and the OVG Global Partnerships team celebrated their Best in Property Consulting, Sales and Client Services win at Connolly’s on 45th St. Griffis: “For the record, 6.2 beers can fit in that thing.”
The NHL celebrated its League of the Year win at the Playwright Celtic Pub on 8th Ave., where they ran into the Soccer Without Borders crew (the Celebration of Service award-winners). NHL folks there learned Jennifer Tepper, SWB’s executive director, is a hockey fan and also plays in a rec league.
A number of TKO noteworthies were spotted as well: Mark Shapiro, Mike DiNuzzo, Natalie Geisler, Lou Koskovolis, Maura McGreevy, Riché McKnight and Grant Norris-Jones. The WWE was well-represented with Nick Khan, Steve Braband, Chris Legentil, Alex Varga and Scott Zanghellini.
NBC Sports’ Rick Cordella was spotted, along with NESN’s David Wisnia. Mike Perman and Jason Wormser were among the contingent from The CW. The duo was fresh off the recent ACC meetings and excited about to soon be drafting its slate of conference football games for the 2026 season.
Other people spotted in the room: 23XI Racing’s Steve Lauletta and Estee Portnoy of Michael Jordan’s Family Office; Legends’ Dan Levy, Chad Estis, Mike Ondrejko and Chris Hibbs; Aramark’s Allison Birdwill and Marc Bruno; CAA’s Paul Danforth; Excel Sports’ Emilio Collins and Tuck Burch; Mastercard’s Ali Giordano; Sarah Jamieson from MLS; Octagon’s Dan Cohen; Dan Reed and Jeff Price from the Heisman Trophy Trust; NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman; RedBird Capital Partners’ Rob Klein; Steve Greenberg from Allen and Co.; and the PLL’s Paul Rabil.
The Team’s Elizabeth Lindsey led a contingent that included Jason Ranne, Will Pleasants, Alan Palmer and Alanna Hernandez.
The Tampa area was well-represented with Lighting CEO and President Steve Griggs, Tampa Bay Sports Commission’s Claire Lessinger and Lanness Robinson and Tampa Sports Authority CEO and President Eric Hart.
After the awards, executives from Octagon gathered at Casa Tua for a private gathering to celebrate the agency’s win in the Agency of the Year: Brand Consulting category.
CAA’s Sports co-head Howie Nuchow and Vanderbilt AD Candice Storey Lee held their SBA trophies following their wins for Best in Talent Representation and Athletic Director of the Year. Both live in Nashville, and Nuchow’s two daughters play lacrosse at Vanderbilt.
