Officers, Directors, & Staff

The Sports Council is made up of individual and corporate members and is guided by a Board of Directors under the direction of Chair Dave Klewan and President David Siegel.

The Sports Council itself was an outgrowth of the success of the 1984 Olympic Games, where Simon served as a Vice President and Sports Council Founding Chairman John C. Argue as a member of the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee.

Argue became chairman and Simon was named president when the Sports Council was incorporated in 1988, and Argue continued as chairman until his death in 2002. He was then replaced by Alan Rothenberg. Scott London succeeded Rothenberg.

Karen Brodkin, who became the first woman to hold the position, served from 2013-17 and Tony Sciarrino succeeded from 2017-19. Current chair Dave Klewan was elected in February 2020.

Current Officers:

 
DaveKlewan-Riviera_13.jpg

Chair: Dave Klewan

General Manager, The Genesis Invitational, TGR Foundation

In February 2019, Dave Klewan was elected Chairman of the Sports Council, succeeding Tony Sciarrino (2018-2019) and becoming only the sixth person to hold the title of Chair since the inception of the Sports Council in 1988.”

Klewan previously served as a Vice-Chair on the Sports Council’s 78-member Board.

Klewan serves as General Manager of The Genesis Invitational, one of the premier events on the PGA TOUR and held at the iconic Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles. The tournament has a long and storied history having originated as the Los Angeles Open in 1926. It’s an annual fixture on Southern California’s sports calendar and has been operated by Tiger Woods’ TGR Foundation since 2016.

Under Klewan’s leadership, The Genesis Invitational has achieved record-setting growth in revenue, community impact and attendance as it has transformed into a “can’t miss” event.  Additionally, the tournament consistently ranks among the most spectator-friendly sporting events in Southern California and is one of the favorite PGA TOUR stops among golfers.

Klewan previously served as a Vice-Chair on the Sports Council’s Executive Board and has spent nearly 20 years in leadership roles across the Greater Los Angeles sports landscape. Prior to joining TGR Foundation and The Genesis Invitational, he served as the general manager of the World Series of Beach Volleyball & Management Plus Enterprises. In that position, Klewan oversaw operational and sponsorship needs for the international event that welcomed more than 60,000 attendees and 25 million viewers worldwide annually.  Since relocating to California in 2003, Klewan has also served in Los Angeles-based leadership roles with the Los Angeles Marathon and the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball Tour.   

He resides in Redondo Beach with his wife Cindy and their two sons.

VICE-CHAIR & TREASURER:

Daniel M. Hartman, Chief Executive Officer, Hartman Media Consultants

VICE-CHAIRS:

Robert D. Thun, Chief Content Officer, AT&T Entertainment Group

PAST CHAIRS:

Tony Sciarrino, Pacific Segment Head, Middle Market Banking & Specialized Industries, JP Morgan Chase

Alan I. Rothenberg, Chairman, 1st Century Bank

Karen Brodkin, EVP, Content Strategy & Development Endeavor

CORPORATE SECRETARY:

Daniel Finnerty, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Spectrum Sports Networks

HONORARY MEMBER:

Anita L. DeFrantz, Vice President and Executive Board Member, International Olympic Committee

 
 
edit-2019-6455.jpg

PRESIDENT & CEO: David Siegel

David joined the Los Angeles Sports Council and Southern California Committee for the Olympic Games as President and Chief Executive Officer of both organizations in December 2018 after a 22-year career in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization. With the Dodgers, he worked in every revenue producing department, most recently as Vice President of Global Partnerships, after spending 10 years as the Vice President of Ticket Sales. Under his leadership, the Dodgers achieved the highest attendance in Major League Baseball for five consecutive seasons.

David is a leading expert in sports marketing, ticket policy, pricing and promotion, as well the development of unique product offerings. He frequently shares his expertise, delivering presentations and lectures at industry events and meetings, in addition to university undergraduate and graduate sports business programs.

David also serves as a Director for Team Prime Time, a non-profit program for at-risk children from low-income areas of Los Angeles. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication from the University of California, San Diego, where he played on the school’s nationally ranked baseball team.

 
 
david_simon.jpg

Senior Advisor: David Simon

David Simon served as the Founding President of the Sports Council from 1988 until his retirement in 2018, Under his leadership the organization attracted events to Southern California with an economic impact of more than $1 billion, launched the annual LA Sports Awards show (now in its 14th year) and created programs which provided thousands of underprivileged local youngsters with the opportunity to attend college and professional sporting events.

He continues to support the Sports Council on a project basis. He also holds the positions of Vice President of the World Union of Olympic Cities and Co-Chair of CityAccord at the annual SportAccord Convention.

 
 

Directors:

Sports Council directors are elected for a period of two years and are selected from the business and sports community in Southern California. Sports Council directors also serve on the Sports Council Foundation.

  • Dave Allen, President, Auto Club Speedway

  • Lindsay Amstutz, Senior Vice President & General Manager, FOX Sports San Diego | Prime Ticket

  • Joshua E. Anderson, Partner, Sidley Austin LLP

  • Dan Beckerman, President & CEO, AEG

  • Ty Bland, Vice President, State & Local Government Relations, Herbalife

  • John F. Boyle, President & CEO, Automobile Club of Southern California

  • Rich L. Brand, Managing Partner, San Francisco, Arent Fox LLP

  • Jeanie Buss, President, Business Operations, Los Angeles Lakers

  • Ryan Choura,  Founder & CEO, Choura Events

  • Fred Claire, Board of Directors, Rose Bowl Operating Company

  • Dale Coleman, Vice President, Fairplex

  • Judi M. Cordray, Vice President & General Manager, ESPN

  • Richard Corgel, Managing Member, Cross-Current Consulting, LLC

  • Ed DeFraine, Vice President Food Service and On-Premise, Reyes Coca-Cola Bottling

  • Kevin Demoff, Chief Operating Officer & Executive Vice President of Football Operations, Los Angeles Rams

  • Michelle DeMott, Southwest/LA Regional Marketing Manager, CLIF Bar & Company

  • *Ann Meyers Drysdale, Broadcaster, ESPN

  • James L. Easton, Honorary Member of the IOC

  • *Janet Evans-Wilson, LA 2028

  • Dennis A. Farrell, Commissioner, Big West Conference

  • *Lisa Fernandez, Assistant Softball Coach, UCLA

  • Robert French, Director-Regional Sales, United Airlines

  • Daniel G. Guerrero, Director of Athletics, UCLA

  • Russell A. Hagey, Partner & Managing Director, Bain & Company, Inc.

  • Michael Hatch  Senior Vice President, Wealth Management, UBS

  • Jeffrey M. Hill, Senior Partner & Managing Director, The Boston Consulting Group

  • Curt Himebauch, Director, Ernst & Young LLP

  • Paul Hourigan, Chief Executive Officer, Global Rugby Ventures

  • Danita Johnson, President & Chief Operating Officer, Los Angeles Sparks

    *Rafer Johnson, Founding Chair, Special Olympics Southern California

  • Heather Brooks Karatz,  former President,  Los Angeles Wildcats (XFL)

  • Andrew W. Knox, Managing Director, Chelsea Partners

  • Dennis Kuhl, Chairman, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

  • Craig Levra, Chief Operating Officer, Goodwill Southern California

  • Erik Logan, CEO, World Surf League

  • Seth Makowsky, CEO of Makowsky Group / CEO of Poison Pawn

  • Myra Marayag,  Vice President of Partnerships, Los Angeles Times

  • Jeffrey Marks, CEO, Innovative Partnerships Group

  • Patrick McClenahan, President & CEO, Goodwill of Southern California

  • Tre Menzel, Director of Sales Southern California, Google Cloud Enterprises

  • Marla Messing, CEO, USTA Southern California/Los Angeles Tennis Center Southern California Tennis Association

  • Jim Michaelian, President & Chief Executive Officer, Grand Prix Association of Los Angeles

  • *John Moffet, President, Southern California Olympians & Paralympians Assn.

  • Robert F. Murray, Executive Vice President & General Manager, Anaheim Ducks

  • *John Naber, Naber & Associates

  • Thomas G. Nussbaum, Audit Partner, KPMG LLP

  • *Apolo Anton Ohno

  • Bryan Palbaum, President & COO, Trader Joe’s Company

  • Gerald S. Papazian, Managing Director, Fountainhead Associates, Inc.

  • Joan A. Payden, President & CEO, Payden & Rygel

  • Tom Penn, Founder, Co.Protect

  • Richard B. Perelman, President, Perelman, Pioneer & Co.

  • David Pump Co-Founder/Partner, The Pump Group, The Harold & Carole Pump Foundation

    Paul Rabil, Co-Founder & CEO,  Premier Lacrosse League

  • Bruce Ramer, Partner, Gang, Tyre, Ramer, Brown & Passman, Inc.

  • Murphy Reinschreiber, Chief Operating Officer, The McCourt Foundation

  • Rick Rosas, Tax Partner, Entertainment Media, Pricewaterhouse Coopers LLP

  • Lon Rosen, Executive Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer, Los Angeles Dodgers

  • Maria S. Salinas, President & CEO, Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce

  • J. Eugene Salomon, Jr., Partner, Gang, Tyre, Ramer, Brown & Passman, Inc.

  • Frank M. Sanchez, Owner/Operator, McDonald's Restaurants

  • Barry A. Sanders, Immediate Past Chair, Southern California Committee for the Olympic Games

  • Jay Sanders, President, Private & Specialty Banking, Banc of California

  • Eric W. Schreiner, Executive Vice President, AECOM HUNT/AECOM TISHMAN

  • Bill Shumard, President & CEO, Special Olympics Southern California

  • Renata Simril, President & CEO, LA84 Foundation

  • A.G Spanos, President of Business Operations, Los Angeles Chargers

  • Amy K. Stanton, Founder & CEO, Stanton & Company, LLC

  • Daniel R. Stimmler, Chief Operating Officer, L.A. Memorial Coliseum

  • William E. Thomson, Jr., Rose Bowl Aquatics Center

  • Dave Tucker, Account Director, Eiger Marketing Group, LPGA Los Angeles Open

  • Ronald F. Turner, Principal, Director of Sports, Gensler

  • Julie Uhrman Founder & President, Angel City

    David C. Ulich, President, Foundation for Global Sports Development

  • * = Olympian

Emeritus Member:

  • Robert S. Rollo, Heidrick & Struggles (Ret.)

Ex-officio members of the Board include:

  • Gene D. Block, Chancellor, UCLA

  • Richard J. Foster, Past President, U.S. Aquatic Sports

  • Franklin R. Johnson, Board Member, International Tennis Federation

 

Staff:

  • David Siegel, President & CEO

  • David Simon, Senior Advisor

  • Jocelyn Papciak, Director of Business Operations & Events