SBJ Behind the Scenes: Celebrating the sports industry’s biggest night

NEW YORK — With a thousand sports power brokers in attendance, the 19th annual Sports Business Awards once again turned the Marriott Marquis Times Square’s sixth-floor ballroom into the most influential room in the industry.

And there were some recurring motifs among those ascending the stairs to accept awards, with ESPN claiming two of the heavy glass trophies and the Dodgers being a part of three. They won Team of the Year; owner Mark Walter was Executive of the Year; and they won the World Series that netted Sports Event of the Year.

A closer look at the résumés of the SBA winners showed that these weren’t honors for industry heavyweights finding success while conducting business as usual but, instead, for innovating or even reinventing, SBJ’s Joe Lemire writes.

NBC Sports’ Leigh Diffey deftly hosted, interjecting humor while keeping a pace of play — the show flew by at 1 hour, 58 minutes! — that likely gained MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred’s approval at Table 12. The acceptance speeches featured a few poignant moments, with Vanderbilt AD Candice Storey Lee calling for college programs to continue emphasizing academics alongside athletics and Fenway Sports Group owner John Henry, the Lifetime Achievement Award winner, calling for cooler heads to prevail and for the sides to listen to each other in the upcoming baseball CBA negotiations. ESPN EVP Dave Roberts accepted the Best in Sports Media honor as a tribute to his upcoming retirement.

And no one brought more style to the evening than Baseball Hall of Famer David Ortiz and his Louis Vitton accessories and megawatt smile while walking the red carpet and introducing Henry. Ortiz said the FSG owner cares more about the team and the fans than anyone on the outside would ever know, asking Henry to take the stage as Big Papi called him “my guy, my boss, my man, my dawg.”

Congratulations to everyone who won at this year’s Sports Business Awards. Read more about the winners here.

SBJ Executive Editor and Publisher Abe Madkour’s Sunday Forum newsletter will feature more color and insight from the Sports Business Awards, including the decisions on some of the most closely contested categories.

Next year will mark the 20th year of the Sports Business Awards, which will be May 19, 2027, back at the Marriott Marquis Times Square. We hope to see you there.

John Henry had a tough act to follow in accepting SBJ’s Lifetime Achievement Award. He was introduced by Red Sox legend David Ortiz, who was his ever-energetic self, walking out to The Notorious B.I.G.’s “Big Poppa” and slinging good-natured jabs to Yankee fans in the audience. “New York is a city I have much love and respect for,” he said. “Any Yankee fans out there? Unfortunately, it’s about Boston Nation tonight — so, beat it.”

The biggest laughs of Henry’s intro, though, came at the top of a five-minute congratulatory video from his colleagues over the years, from Tom Werner to Theo Epstein to Rory McIlroy.

Werner, Henry’s co-founder at Fenway Sports Group, needed three “takes” to get through his segment. In the first, he congratulated Henry on his induction into SBJ’s “Seventy Over 70” club, and in the second, cheekily thanked SBJ for co-awarding him and Henry for their lifetime achievements. But he closed with an earnest kudos before kicking it over to Red Sox President and CEO Sam Kennedy.

“I just want to say how much everybody at FSG not only admires you, but loves you,” Werner said. “We laughed a lot. We won a lot. We’ve lost a lot. But through it all, you were my closest friend, and I want to congratulate you.”

In accepting his SBJ Lifetime Achievement Award, John Henry reminisced on decades of epic quests, from building the global powerhouse that is Fenway Sports Group to his ongoing work to restructure the PGA Tour.

There were moments of emotion, self-deprecating humor and wisdom from Henry, who reflected on his relationship with the late Larry Lucchino, joked that he hopes to finish with more Red Sox World Series rings than the four he won with the Yankees (as a limited partner), and he implored MLB players and executives to “work together to find common ground to move the game forward,” with a potential labor battle ahead.

During his address, Henry acknowledged many people who have helped him along the way. But he took special time for FSG by calling for an applause for his more than a dozen FSG colleagues in attendance, and personally acknowledging Tom Werner, Mike Gordon and Sam Kennedy along with his wife, Linda.

“This has been our achievement, to work together, passionate about what we do — and it’s been epic,” Henry said. “At Fenway Sports Group we’ve always been fortunate to always be in the middle of epic quests.”

The Red Sox later released a video recapping Henry’s evening on their website.

The acceptance speeches from CAA Sports co-head Howie Nuchow and Vanderbilt AD Candice Storey Lee resonated with Sports Business Awards attendees, combining a pitch for supporting women in sports with a reminder that education remains an important aspect of college athletics.

In accepting Best in Talent Representation, Nuchow noted the growth of the agency, including the number of women leaders at CAA: “We first won this award in 2009, and it was our third year when we were a startup, and I think it’s important to acknowledge what’s changed in all those years. We had 36 employees, and I think only 11 or 12 were women. I think it’s really important for us to look at the difference — that today, as we receive this award, we have over 500 women employees globally and over 51% of our workforce in the U.S.” He closed by saying. “This is the golden age of sports, and we’re all very lucky to be a part of it. ... It’s going to be a lot of fun.”

In accepting AD of the Year, Lee said she was proud that “in the midst of having arguably the most competitive year in our history, we also had the best academic year in our history.” She noted that each of the school’s teams earned over a 3.1 GPA, and they finished with the cumulative GPA of nearly 3.5 at Vanderbilt. She closed by sharing the vision and philosophy at Vanderbilt: “You can be student and athlete. You can be innovative and values-driven. You can be confident, but you can also be coachable, and you can be serious about your work. But you can also do it with joy.”

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.

As Sports Business Award attendees took their turns on the Red Carpet on Wednesday night, SBJ’s social media team asked them a few fun questions about the sports industry.

Who is on your “Mount Rushmore” of sports business?

• Paul Rabil, PLL: Roger Goodell, Mark Cuban, Rob Manfred and Adam Silver
• Dave Nugent, Next League: Gary Bettman, Adam Silver, Sarah Hirschland, Roger Goodell
• Tim Shaw, Dude Wipes: Michael Rubin, Dave Portnoy, Kevin Warren

Which athlete would you draft first overall to be your business partner?

• John Henry, Fenway Sports Group: Lakers’ LeBron James
• Nugent: Hockey Hall of Famer Clark Gillies
• Shaw: Bears QB Caleb Williams
• David Ortiz: Pro Basketball Hall of Famer Michael Jordan or LeBron James

Several execs and properties took to social media to fete the winners from Wednesday night.

The NHL noted its win for Sport League of the Year.

The Padres posted about Pecto Park winning Sports Facility of the Year.

Vanderbilt Athletics acknowledged Candice Storey Lee’s win for Athletic Director of the Year.

The PGA Tour gave a shoutout to John Henry for receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award.

Western Michigan AD Dan Bartholomae, who was nominated for AD of the Year, gave a congrats to the winners and other nominees.

Prodigy Search execs were thrilled to be at the ceremony.

ESPN’s “Unsportsmanlike” posted a photo of hosts Evan Cohen, Michelle Smallmon and Chris Canty on the red carpet.

SBJ invited 45 outside judges to study, debate and vote on the winners for this year’s awards. SBJ Publisher & Executive Editor Abe Madkour wrote about the history of how the awards evolved over the years and the decisions faced by both SBJ staff and judges.

A sincere thank you to all the judges who helped us get to Wednesday’s ceremony.

SBJ would like to express our sincere gratitude to each of our sponsors, nominees, guests, judges and winners for their participation in and support of SBJ’s 2026 Sports Business Awards.

Also: SBJ will celebrate the 20th edition of the Sports Business Awards on May 19, 2027, returning again to NYC and the Marriott Marquis Time Square.

With the SBAs behind us, the countdown begins for SBJ’s next event: the Brand Innovation Summit, taking place June 9-10 at the Chicago Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile. To register or learn more, see here.

Also: See our event slate for 2026.