American investor and sports team owner (born 1969)
This article is about the investor and sports team owner. For the economist, see
David M. Blitzer .
David Scott Blitzer (born September 7, 1969) is an American
investor and sports team owner. He is a senior executive at the
private equity firm
Blackstone and co-managing partner of the NBA's
Philadelphia 76ers and NHL's
New Jersey Devils . Blitzer also manages several
association football clubs under Global Football Holdings, owns 25% of the MLB's
Cleveland Guardians , and is a limited partner of the NFL's
Washington Commanders , making him the first person to own team equity in the five
major sports leagues of North America .
Blitzer graduated from Penn's
Wharton School and joined Blackstone in 1991, where he serves as the firm's head of tactical opportunities. He and
Apollo Global Management co-founder
Josh Harris are frequent partners, with the pair entering
sports business in 2011 and establishing
Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment in 2017. Blitzer's
net worth is estimated to be $2 billion.
Career
Early life and Blackstone
Blitzer was born on September 7, 1969, in
Scotch Plains, New Jersey . He graduated from
Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School in 1987 and graduated
magna cum laude from the
Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1991.
[1] Blitzer joined the private equity firm
Blackstone shortly after graduation and worked out of
London from 2001 to 2011 to oversee the company's interests in Europe.
[2] He is a member of their management committee and heads their global Tactical Opportunities group.
[3]
[4]
Sports management
Blitzer began contemplating investing in sports after meeting
Apollo Global Management co-founder
Josh Harris in 2008 at
The Punchbowl , a pub in London.
[5] By 2011, those talks led to the pair forming an investment group that purchased the
Philadelphia 76ers of the
National Basketball Association (NBA) for $280 million.
[6]
[7] Other initial members of the group included
Art Wrubel ,
Jason Levien ,
Adam Aron ,
Martin Geller ,
David Heller ,
James Lassiter ,
Marc Leder ,
Michael Rubin ,
Will Smith ,
Jada Pinkett Smith , and
Erick Thohir .
[8]
[9] In August 2013, Blitzer and Harris purchased the
New Jersey Devils of the
National Hockey League (NHL) and their arena, the
Prudential Center , for $320 million.
[10] Blitzer and investor David Abrams headed a group that owned 50% of the
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders , the
Triple-A affiliate of the
New York Yankees , from 2014 until selling to
Diamond Baseball Holdings in 2021.
[11]
[12]
Blitzer co-founded
Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment with Harris in 2017. In addition to the 76ers and Devils, the company also owns the
NBA G League 's
Delaware Blue Coats , the
American Hockey League 's
Utica Comets , esports team
Dignitas of New Meta Entertainment,
[13]
[14] HBSE Real Estate, sports tech venture capital firm HBSE Ventures,
[15] and marketing, hospitality, and event ticketing company Elevate Sports Ventures.
[16] In January 2022, Blitzer and
Qualtrics co-founder
Ryan Smith purchased
Real Salt Lake of
Major League Soccer (MLS) and
America First Field , which included the affiliated
Real Monarchs and
Zions Bank Stadium .
[17]
[18] The pair also reestablished the
Utah Royals of the
National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), which had gone defunct in 2020 and became the
Kansas City Current .
[19] He purchased a 25 percent stake in the MLB's
Cleveland Guardians in June 2022, with an option to acquire controlling interest in 2028.
[20]
[21] Blitzer is the first person to hold team equity in the five
major sports leagues of North America : the NBA, NHL, NFL, MLS, and MLB.
[22]
Blitzer purchased an 18% stake in the English football club
Crystal Palace in 2015.
[23]
[24] He later formed Global Football Holdings, which has invested in
G.D. Estoril Praia (Portugal),
[25]
AD Alcorcón (Spain),
[26]
S.K. Beveren (Belgium),
[27]
FC Augsburg (Germany),
[28]
ADO Den Haag (Netherlands),
[25] and
Brøndby IF (Denmark).
[29] In 2020, Blitzer and Harris bought a $140 million stake in the
Pittsburgh Steelers of the
National Football League (NFL).
[30] In 2023, he was a part of another group led by Harris that purchased the NFL's
Washington Commanders for $6.05 billion, the highest price ever for a sports team.
[31]
[32] The same year, Blitzer invested in the return of
SlamBall , a basketball league combining elements of other sports,
[33] and bought a minority stake in
Joe Gibbs Racing by way of HBSE in 2023.
[34] He was named to the NHL's Executive Committee in October 2023, which is responsible for vetting new ownership applications, collective bargaining, and league expansion.
[35] Blitzer and professional golfer
Tiger Woods are owners of the
Jupiter Links Golf Club of the
virtual golf league
TGL , founded in 2023.
[36] In 2024, he sold his stake in the Steelers to
Art Rooney II and
Thomas Tull .
[37] Blitzer is a member of College Sports Tomorrow, a group formed in 2024 consisting of 20 pro team owners, league executives, and college administrators proposing an overhaul to
college football , including abolishing
conferences and reorganizing
Power Five schools in seven divisions of ten each with a system of
promotion and relegation for the rest, in addition to changes to
NIL deals and the
transfer portal .
[38]
Blitzer and Harris have also invested in youth sports brands, forming Unrivaled Sports as a parent company in March 2024 with capital from
The Chernin Group .
[39]
[40]
Properties
Personal life
Blitzer is
Jewish .
[41] He is married to Allison (née Ross) Blitzer; they have five children.
[42] His
net worth was estimated by
Forbes in November 2023 to be $2.2 billion.
[43] Blitzer's father-in-law, Stuart Ross, who once owned the North American rights to
The Smurfs franchise, was convicted of extortion in 2010 and sentenced to five years of probation after trying to extort $11 million from Blitzer.
[44]
[45]
Blitzer founded the Blitzer Family Foundation in 2014.
[1] He is on the board of trustees of
Mount Sinai Health System and
Wharton School and is a donor to
Hillel International , an organization helping Jewish students.
[46] He participated in
sports business panels hosted by the Wharton School in 2019 and
Sportico in 2022.
[47]
[48]
References
^
a
b Mooney, John (December 9, 2018).
"NJ Devils Co-Owner David Blitzer Will Return to Scotch Plains-Fanwood High School for Hall of Fame Induction" .
TAPinto Springfield.
Archived from the original on August 11, 2019. Retrieved August 11, 2019 .
^ Stonebrook, Ian (January 30, 2022).
"How David Blitzer Built it" . boardroom.tv .
Archived from the original on May 7, 2023. Retrieved May 7, 2023 .
^
Blackstone Group: Our People - David Blitzer
Archived March 21, 2021, at the
Wayback Machine retrieved January 11, 2023
^ Smagalla, David (December 27, 2017).
"In Their Own Words With Blackstone Group's David Blitzer" .
The Wall Street Journal .
Archived from the original on August 12, 2019. Retrieved August 12, 2019 .
^
Shelburne, Ramona (September 26, 2023).
"Why the Commanders' $6 billion bidding war was one Josh Harris had to win" .
ESPN .
Archived from the original on September 29, 2023. Retrieved September 30, 2023 .
^
"Sale of 76ers to Joshua Harris finished" . ESPN.com . July 13, 2011.
Archived from the original on June 1, 2016. Retrieved March 28, 2023 .
^
"76ers officially sold to new owners" .
ABC13 . October 18, 2011.
Archived from the original on March 28, 2023. Retrieved March 28, 2023 .
^ Fagan, Kate (August 2, 2011).
"Those who know him say Joshua Harris, soon-to-be Sixers owner, lives for competition and success" . Inquirer.com .
Archived from the original on March 25, 2023. Retrieved March 25, 2023 .
^
"Group led by Joshua Harris completes purchase of Sixers - 10/18/2011" . NBA.com . October 18, 2011. Archived from
the original on October 18, 2013. Retrieved March 28, 2023 .
^
"Devils announce sale of team to billionaire Josh Harris" .
The Star-Ledger . August 15, 2013.
Archived from the original on February 6, 2019. Retrieved August 22, 2013 .
^
"RailRiders Unveil Members of Local Ownership" .
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders . February 25, 2015.
Archived from the original on August 11, 2019. Retrieved August 11, 2019 .
^
"RailRiders Join Newly Formed Organization Diamond Baseball Holdings" . milb.com .
Archived from the original on June 19, 2023. Retrieved June 19, 2023 .
^
"David Abrams Named Head of Investments at Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment" . www.sporttechie.com . February 25, 2020.
Archived from the original on July 6, 2020. Retrieved July 6, 2020 .
^
"HBSE flexing its financial muscle thanks to appointment of head of investments" . SportBusiness . February 25, 2020.
Archived from the original on June 27, 2020. Retrieved July 6, 2020 .
^
"76ers owners appoint investment chief for esports and other ventures" . VentureBeat . February 25, 2020.
Archived from the original on July 6, 2020. Retrieved July 6, 2020 .
^
"San Francisco 49ers, HBSE and CAA team up to create Elevate Sports Ventures - SportsPro Media" . www.sportspromedia.com . January 25, 2018.
Archived from the original on July 7, 2020. Retrieved July 6, 2020 .
^
"David Blitzer & Smith Entertainment Group to Purchase Real Salt Lake" . rsl.com . January 5, 2022.
Archived from the original on February 3, 2022. Retrieved February 1, 2022 .
^ McDonald, Ryan (January 6, 2022).
"How the deal for Ryan Smith, David Blitzer to buy Real Salt Lake came together" . Deseret News .
Archived from the original on March 3, 2022. Retrieved March 2, 2022 .
^ Gonzalez, Roger (March 12, 2023).
"Utah Royals FC to return to NWSL under David Blitzer and Ryan Smith as owners; club will begin playing in 2024" . CBS Sports .
Archived from the original on July 30, 2023. Retrieved July 30, 2023 .
^
"Blitzer purchases 25% stake in Guardians" . MLB.com .
Archived from the original on June 27, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2022 .
^ Noga, Joe (June 27, 2022).
"Cleveland Guardians reach agreement with David Blitzer-led investment group for minority stake in club" . Cleveland.com .
Archived from the original on June 27, 2022. Retrieved June 27, 2022 .
^ Novy-Williams, Eben (June 16, 2022).
"David Blitzer Nears U.S. Sports Milestone as MLB OKs Guardians Deal" . Yahoo Sports .
Archived from the original on May 7, 2023. Retrieved May 7, 2023 .
^
"Sixers owner Josh Harris buys into Crystal Palace soccer club" . NBC Sports Philadelphia . December 19, 2015.
Archived from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved June 28, 2020 .
^
"Crystal Palace: Deal agreed with US investors Harris and Blitzer" . BBC Sport . December 18, 2015.
Archived from the original on June 24, 2020. Retrieved June 28, 2020 .
^
a
b Novy-Williams, Eben (June 16, 2022).
"David Blitzer Nears U.S. Sports Milestone as MLB OKs Guardians Deal" . Sportico .
Archived from the original on February 22, 2023. Retrieved December 3, 2023 .
^
"David Blitzer-Led Group Acquires Spanish Soccer Club Alcorcón" . Sports Business Journal . June 11, 2019.
Archived from the original on May 7, 2023. Retrieved May 7, 2023 .
^ Kunti, Samindra (September 14, 2020).
"US investors Bolt, take leap into Belgian football with Waasland-Beveren buy" . Inside World Football .
Archived from the original on May 7, 2023. Retrieved May 7, 2023 .
^ Veth, Manuel.
"Ricardo Pepi And Real Salt Lake: David Blitzer Is Making Headlines As A Soccer Investor" . Forbes .
Archived from the original on May 7, 2023. Retrieved May 7, 2023 .
^ Hackett, Tom (November 15, 2022).
"David Blitzer Adds Danish Club To European Portfolio" . kslsports.com .
Archived from the original on May 7, 2023. Retrieved May 7, 2023 .
^ Kostroun, Bill (June 15, 2020).
"Sixers owners Josh Harris and David Blitzer purchase stake in Pittsburgh Steelers" .
The Philadelphia Inquirer .
Archived from the original on April 4, 2023. Retrieved April 4, 2023 .
^ Maske, Mark; Jhabvala, Nicki (July 20, 2023).
"NFL owners approve sale of Commanders from Daniel Snyder to Josh Harris" .
The Washington Post .
Archived from the original on July 20, 2023. Retrieved July 21, 2023 .
^ Jhabvala, Nicki (July 20, 2023).
"The Commanders sale was so complicated, it was 'like 20 deals in one' " .
The Washington Post .
Archived from the original on September 9, 2023. Retrieved July 23, 2023 .
^ Rizzo, Lillian (March 21, 2023).
"SlamBall, which combines basketball and football with trampolines, snags big investors" . CNBC .
Archived from the original on April 20, 2023. Retrieved May 21, 2023 .
^ Stern, Adam (June 20, 2023).
"Joe Gibbs Racing sells minority stake to Josh Harris, HBSE" .
Sports Business Journal .
Archived from the original on June 21, 2023. Retrieved June 21, 2023 .
^ Nichols, James (October 5, 2023).
"Report: Devils Owner Joins NHL's Executive Committee" . Yardbarker .
Archived from the original on October 6, 2023. Retrieved October 7, 2023 .
^ Zak, Sean (November 7, 2023).
"Tiger Woods now has his own TGL team. Here's what we know" . Golf.com .
Archived from the original on November 11, 2023. Retrieved November 11, 2023 .
^ Tan, Gillian (February 27, 2024).
"Harris and Blitzer Near Steelers Stake Sale to Art Rooney, Tull" .
Bloomberg News . Retrieved May 23, 2024 .
^ Libit, Daniel; Novy-Williams, Eben (April 16, 2024).
"College Football 'Super League' Pitch Deck Details Breakaway Plan" . Sportico . Retrieved April 17, 2024 .
^ Badenhausen, Kurt (March 27, 2024).
"Harris, Blitzer Launch Youth Sports Firm Unrivaled as TCG Invests" . Sportico .
Archived from the original on March 27, 2024. Retrieved March 27, 2024 .
^ Jackson, Eric (December 29, 2023).
"Harris, Blitzer Take $10M HOF Village Stake in Youth Sports Push" .
Sportico .
Archived from the original on January 8, 2024. Retrieved January 8, 2024 .
^ Keene, Louis (May 10, 2023).
"Why the yeshiva world is rooting against the Philadelphia 76ers this week" . Forward .
Archived from the original on July 29, 2023. Retrieved September 9, 2023 .
^
"Meet Our Speakers: Josh Harris and David Blitzer" . Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia . June 14, 2017. Archived from
the original on May 8, 2021. Retrieved July 1, 2021 .
^
"David Blitzer - Forbes" . Forbes .
Archived from the original on April 15, 2023. Retrieved November 11, 2023 .
^ Rothfield, Michael.
Wall Street Journal: "New Tack in Extortion Case - Blackstone Executive Now Being Sued by His Father-in-Law's Former Attorney"
Archived March 8, 2017, at the
Wayback Machine ,
The Wall Street Journal , September 3, 2011
^
Bloomberg: "Father-in-Law of Blackstone Director Blitzer Faces July 26 Extortion Trial" By Karen Freifeld
Archived July 6, 2014, at the
Wayback Machine June 7, 2010
^ Wilkinson, Julia (June 20, 2022).
"Billionaire David Blitzer Set a Major Sports Milestone" . Entrepreneur.com .
Archived from the original on July 8, 2023. Retrieved July 8, 2023 .
^ Skibeli, Isa (November 3, 2019).
"Wharton Sports Business Summit to feature speakers, panels, and a case competition" .
The Daily Pennsylvanian .
Archived from the original on February 7, 2023. Retrieved July 9, 2023 .
^
Sportico (November 9, 2022).
"The media rights themselves will just continue to grow." - David Blitzer, Michele Kang, Angie Long (video) .
YouTube .
Archived from the original on July 9, 2023. Retrieved July 9, 2023 .
External links
Year of acquisition listed; equity stake included if known
Teams
Majority stake Minority stake / other Former stake
Venues Companies
Founders Notable executives
Subsidiaries
Investment holdings
Business services Consumer/retail IT services Financial services Healthcare Industrial Media/telecom Travel & leisure Real estate
Teams
Franchise Arenas Personnel G League affiliate Retired numbers NBA championships Rivalries Culture and lore
Franchise History Personnel Arenas Rivalries Affiliates Media Culture and lore
History Owners Grounds Rivalries Subsidiary teams
Franchise Stadiums Affiliated clubs Culture / supporters Rivalries Key personnel Seasons
Franchise Stadiums Affiliated clubs Key personnel
Teams Home stadium Matches Seasons
Personnel Home stadium Seasons Other teams
Personnel
Owner: Global Football Holdnings (50.1%), Jan Bech Andersen (10%)
Manager:
Jesper Sørensen
History Home stadium Rivalries
Formerly the Boston Braves (1932), Boston Redskins (1933–1936), Washington Redskins (1937–2019), and Washington Football Team (2020–2021)
Based in
Landover, Maryland
Headquartered in
Ashburn, Virginia
Franchise Stadiums Key personnel Culture Rivalries Division championships (15) Conference championships (5) League championships (2) Super Bowl championships (3) Hall of Famers Affiliations