This year, we received more than 350 nominations from across the industry, making this the single most competitive of the three years that the award has been given out.
Before we get to this year’s winners, we’d like to point out that J’Ron Erby, one of the members of the Class of 2019, lost his job yesterday when the AAF decided to suspend operations.
If you are looking to hire a talented social/marketing person, he would be one to consider.
Now, for the announcement of the rest of the Class of 2019.
Travis Case
Manager of Business Development & Strategy, LA Kings
Glenn Hyams
Senior Coordinator, Club Business Development, NFL
Melissa Darusz
Account Manager, Event Sales, Miami Dolphins/Hard Rock Stadium
Dori Atkins
Manager, Partnership Management – National Sales, Learfield IMG College
J’Ron Erby
Content Marketing Coordinator, Alliance of American Football
Andrew DiMario
Manager of Sales, Austin FC
Daniel Everett
Senior Manager, Rights Acquisition Operations, FloSports
Zoe White
Manager, Marketing Integration & Operations, Atlanta Hawks
Josh Keiles
Vice President of Business Development, National Sports Forum
Samantha Timmons
Diversity Marketing Coordinator, Atlanta Braves
Ryan Olli
Licensing Coordinator, NFLPA
Paige Hegedus
Manager, Special Events & Affiliate Programming, MiLB
Olivia Witherite
Social & Digital Director, MASN
Nick Carey
Account Coordinator, Bespoke Sports & Entertainment
Adam Johnson
Digital Content Manager, ISM Raceway
Miles Cahill
Coordinator, Partnership Marketing, LA Clippers
Madeline Down
Manager of Production, Seattle Seahawks
Kimberly Ostiller
Global Partnerships Coordinator, Legends
Kaitlin Brennan
Assistant Director, Marketing, Stanford Athletics
Justin Warden
CEO, Ader
Jack Kelly
Sports Property Sales Assistant, CAA
George Michael Steinbrenner IV
Owner, Harding Steinbrenner Racing
Benjamin Gallagher
Head of Social, The Checkdown (NFL)
Austin Cox
Elites Sales Representative, Hudl
Andre Robinson
Producer, LA Clippers
None of this would be possible without the 10 industry judges who devoted their time to help select the 25 individuals you see here today.
A huge word of thanks to the following individuals:
Nick Kelly
Head of US Sports Marketing, AB InBev
Patty Hubbard
Managing Director & Co-Founder, BFWD
Drew Boe
Director, Managers on a Mission
Dee Kundra
Head of PR and Comms, FC Bayern – Americas
Jim Cavale
CEO, INFLCR
Katrina Palanca
Director of Sponsorship Operations, Twitch
Kyle Bunch
Managing Director, Partnerships & Strategy, R/GA
Sarah Flynn
GM, Thirty Five Ventures
TJ Adeshola
Head of US Sports Partnerships, Twitter
Emily Jaenson
General Manager, Reno Aces
Finally, we couldn’t do all of this without the generous support of AB InBev. Thanks to their support, we are able to deliver a lifetime opportunity to all of the winners.
Be sure to stay on the lookout for plenty of content to come over the course of the next few days as the Class of 2019 is treated to the first-ever Rising 25 Summit, a one-day immersive learning experience that will give Class of 2019 the chance to hear from Nick Kelly, David Picioski, Heather Breen, Anna Rogers, Alissa Gordon Heinerscheid, Chelsea Phillips and Shawn Morrissey, and participate in hands-on projects with the AB InBev team.
On Friday, the first-ever Rising 25 Gala will be held at Marquee NYC and will see 200+ industry professionals and family members come together to celebrate the next generation of rising stars. The night will be highlighted by a keynote given by Uzma Rawn, Vice President of Sponsorship Sales for Major League Baseball.
For those interested in the Class of 2017 and Class of 2018, they can be found here and here respectively.
