Are there any potential exit opps from an IB analyst to a role in the sports world? Always been fascinated by the management/ business side of the sports industry. Is this possible, and are there any recent precedents of this happening? Would appreciate any info on this subject.
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Know a guy who went from banking to working in ops for one of the NBA teams.
Why not look for an IB group dedicated to professional sports? I don't know many of them, but you can start your own search around the one I know of: http://www.gspcap.com/
That might at least get your foot in the door with team management (assuming you're not staffed behind the doors, working only on PPTs).
FWIW, I know a guy who did generalist M&A group then PE then sports focused bank so there is certainly a path to more of a "sports" focus within finance. As far as transitioning to an actual team, I don't have any experience / anecdotes.
BAML (now BofA Securities?) has a big time sports investment banking practice. See the pitch book below for their advisory work on the $2B sale of the LA Clippers to Steve Ballmer. Obviously there's more work than just selling the occasional sports franchise every 5 years, including broadcast rights (TV & radio) for pro sports leagues, conferences (SEC, B1G), tournaments (March Madness), and possibly stadium finance as well, although that could housed in muni finance. Like every group there is both sell-side and buy-side advisory work. Since there's a lot of overlap sports IB could sit in the Media vertical, but like anything it would depend on the bank.
https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2014-07-24/bank-of-america-k…
My understanding is since it's a niche it can be tough to get into sports IB without some experience first and then lateraling in after a year or two. As far as moving into the sports business world post banking, sports IB would help you build the network to make that happen better than any other group.
You can work for a team but the pay is very low. Recruiting is mostly heavy networking and also attending MIT sports analytics conference religiously
A lot of these jobs you need to either play the sport or know the right people
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Friedman
Andrew Friedman is the best example I've come across: 2 years IB (Bear Stearns) -> 2 years PE -> Director of Baseball Development for the Tampa Bay Rays -> eventually GM and now President of Baseball Operations for the Dodgers.
Seen a potential networking contact (who I was just about to send email to) move from UBS IBD (HK Analyst) to Business Development Manager at NBA in China.
Brad Stevens quit a Pharma job to volunteer at Butler basketball, now he's head coach for the C's. If he can do that by quitting then volunteering, surely you can figure this out. Just gotta put your nuts on the table.
The MIT conference is important if you want to be part of the front office putting the team together. If you want to coach then yeah, you've gotta quit your job and start coaching. If you want to work in marketing or finance or biz dev you should realize those are essentially the sports equivalent of back office roles at a bank.
The people making money are the talent and the decision makers: the players, the team management, the coaches, and (of course) the owners. Selling season tickets or lining up a $1M sponsorship deal with the local fitness club to flash their logo on the video screens around the area is cool and everything, but still.
Think about what role you want and realize that networking is gonna be the most important thing, no matter what role you want to pursue.
Would doing two years in IB at a top BB allow for the transition to a sports management role be much easier, or since they are two completely separate industries would it not provide much of a leg up? Also interested if there are any PE, or funds who specialize in the sports industry. How much of a pay drop off would you have to take to transition?
How the fuck does plugging numbers in to excel and making powerpoints look pretty give you any sort of leverage in sports management?
Run as fast as you can to grab me a coffee
Google this. site:linkedin.com "investment banking" nfl
Rinse and repeat for the other pro leagues...you can also mix it up and replace "IB" with consulting firms to get more data points. You should be able to find a few job postings in addition to individuals who have made the switch.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Luhnow</a">Jeff Luhnow (Astros GM) is a great example of someone who made a similar switch--joined the Cardinals after time at McKinsey and a few startups.
Look at Ed Woodward. Chief Executive at Manchester United after working at JPM M&A before moving to 'financial planning' at MU. Made the switch after advising the Glazers on their takeover, guess you have to be lucky and work on something sports related / know the right people.
(Article from 2013 https://www.fnlondon.com/articles/edward-woodward-ex-jp-morgan-banker-m…)
A little late but I know Daryl Morey (owner of the Houston Rockets and founder of MIT Sports Conference) loves analytics and believes the best experience to break into analytics for a team is an IB Analyst. From there moving up I'm sure is the typical CF hierarchy.
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