Famous American Sports Administrators

Vincent Kennedy McMahon is a professional wrestling promoter, currently serving as WWE's chairman and CEO. Often regarded as the most influential person in the history of professional wrestling, McMahon is credited with popularizing WWE. Also a well-known philanthropist, McMahon donated more than $8 million in 2008, giving grants to the Sacred Heart University, Fishburne Military School, and East Carolina University.

Basketball player Jerry West, also known as Mr. Clutch, for his ability to snatch games in clutch situations, is known for his stint with the Los Angeles Lakers of the NBA. He was part of the US squads that won an Olympic gold in 1960 and a Pan American Games gold in 1959.

A former professional baseball player, Billy Beane went on to become a front office executive, a position which he has used to apply statistical analysis called sabermetrics to baseball. This has proved to be a game-changer as teams are now evaluating players based on this statistical analysis. His career inspired the film Moneyball where he was played by Brad Pitt.

Jerry Krause was a sports scout and executive. He served as the general manager of the Chicago Bulls in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for several years, from 1985 to 2003. He won the NBA Executive of the Year Award twice. He died in 2017 and was posthumously inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame later that year. 

Though born into the well-known political family, Roger Goodell, the son of senator Charles Goodell, avoided politics and stepped into sports instead. The current NFL commissioner, he was instrumental in bringing about significant changes to decrease on-field concussions of players, by introducing punishments for hitting defenseless players.

Tommy Lasorda was a popular baseball player who later also served as a manager of the MLB team LA Dodgers. His coaching career saw him win two World Series for the Dodgers. He also led the American baseball team to a gold medal win at the Sydney Games.

In his 28-year coaching career, Tom Coughlin had been the head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars and the New York Giants. In his school days, he excelled in both football and basketball, but completely focused on football during his Syracuse University days. His Jay Fund assists children with leukemia and other cancers.

Nancy Benoit first gained fame as a cover girl for Wrestling All Stars. She later appeared in matches, taking up numerous pseudonyms, such as Devil Angel, Woman, and Fallen Angel. She was later killed mercilessly along with her child, by her second husband, Canadian wrestler Chris Benoit, who then committed suicide.

Best remembered for his contributions to the National Basketball Association, David Stern began his stint with the NBA as an outside counsel before becoming its General Counsel, eventually the Commissioner, holding the post for thirty years. Credited with broadening the NBA's audience, he made the game popular both in and outside USA and helped to found Women's National Basketball Association.

Initially MLB’s chief baseball officer, Joe Torre has won 4 World Series championships for the New York Yankees, as a manager. He has authored books such as The Yankee Years. He and his wife have launched the Joe Torre Safe At Home Foundation, which helps prevent domestic violence.

Phil Jackson is a former professional basketball player who played 12 seasons in the National Basketball Association and won the NBA championships in 1970 and 1973 when he was with New York Knicks. Later, he coached the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers and led them both to numerous championships and league titles and is considered one of the greatest basketball coaches ever.

Known to his fans as The Mouth of the South, Jimmy Hart is a popular wrestling manage who works for WWE. As a teenager, he had joined the 60s’ band The Gentrys, which released the Billboard-charting track Keep on Dancing. He has also been the man behind many wrestlers’ entrance themes.

Miami University head football coach Bo Schembechler was once part of the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry, known as the Ten-Year War. He was also dragged into a controversy when it was reported that in spite of several Michigan students claiming they were sexually abused by a university doctor, he downplayed the incidents.

Also known as The Chief, Art Rooney not only founded the NFL team Pittsburgh Steelers but was also named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He won the Super Bowl four times as an owner and was a major force behind the NFL-AFL merger. He was also a track racing enthusiast.

Penny Chenery was introduced to the world of Thoroughbred racing world by her father, Christopher Chenery. Penny owned the famed Secretariat, the 1973 Triple Crown owner. She was also one of the rare few women at the Columbia Business School back in her time. She also inspired a Disney film.

Initially an Emmy-nominated NFL analyst, Mike Mayock is now the third general manager of the NFL team Las Vegas Raiders. He has also previously played for teams such as the Pittsburgh Steelers and the New York Giants. He had also worked in the commercial real estate market for 18 years.

Apart from owning NFL's Houston Texans, Bob McNair also gained fame as a self-made billionaire, who made it to the Forbes 400 in 2018. After a streak of failures in business, he finally managed to succeed with Cogen Technologies. He also headed the real-estate firm The McNair Group.

The son of a professor, A. Bartlett Giamatti grew up to follow in his father’s footsteps and be a professor of English and the president of Yale. However, his love for baseball also made him an MLB Commissioner. As the president of the National League, he removed Pete Rose for shoving an umpire.

Best known for his role as Jacob Aguilar in the teen drama East Los High, Gabriel Chavarria had his first audition as a stroke of luck while visiting a park. The son of Honduran immigrants, he was once part of the Honduran soccer team and now runs the West Coast Elite soccer club.

The current MLB Commissioner Emeritus of Baseball, Bud Selig had initially served the army and also worked as a car dealer. Named to the Baseball Hall of Fame, he has also been criticized for his failure to curb the use of performance-enhancing drugs in baseball. He previously also owned the Milwaukee Brewers.

Wellington Mara co-owned the NFL team New York Giants, as he inherited the team from his father and the team’s founder, Tim Mara. The Giants players named him The Duke, as it was believed he was named after the Duke of Wellington. He died of lymphoma at age 89.

Apart from being a successful real-estate magnate, Alex Spanos also owned a majority stake in the NFL team San Diego Chargers, later Los Angeles Chargers. The owner of reality major AG Spanos, he battled dementia in his later years and even penned a letter about his struggle, which was later published.

Apart from being the first American manager of a Premier League club, Bob Bradley now serves as the head coach of the MLS team Los Angeles FC. He is the father of Toronto FC soccer player Michael Bradley. The Princeton graduate had also worked with Procter & Gamble before stepping into sports.

Baseball player and manager Bobby Valentine, better known as Bobby V, has many accomplishments, such as leading the New York Mets to the 2000 World Series as a manager. He has also had stints with teams such as the Mets and the Los Angeles Dodgers as a player.

Former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue was initially a lawyer who had worked with Covington & Burling. He is also part of the board of directors of Georgetown University and the Latin American retailer Netshoes. Apart from investing in business and higher education, he also participates in global public policy discussions.

Avery Brundage was an American track and field athlete who took part in the 1912 Summer Olympics, competing in the decathlon and pentathlon events. He went on to become an influential figure in the Olympic movement and served as the president of the IOC for two decades. Avery Brundage is remembered for his involvement with Berlin 1936 and Munich 1972. 

Known for his 14-year stint with the NFL team Los Angeles Rams, football defensive end Jack Youngblood was named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The seven-time Pro Bowl is also a five-time consensus All-Pro. He is also a known name in broadcasting and has penned a memoir, too.

Brad Childress had a career of over 4 decades, coaching various NFL and college teams. His best stint was as the Minnesota Vikings head coach, where he mentored star players Adrian Peterson and Percy Harvin. He has also coached teams such as Illinois, Wisconsin, and the Philadelphia Eagles.

Dominican baseball player and coach Julio Franco made headlines as one of the oldest players of the MLB, playing even in his late 40s. While he began his career with the Philadelphia Phillies, he later also represented teams such as the New York Mets and the Texas Rangers.

Jim Ryun is an American former track and field athlete who won a silver medal at the 1968 Summer Olympics. At the peak of his career, Ryun was considered one of the top middle-distance runners in the world. He later became a politician and served in the US House of Representatives. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2020.

Known for his 20-year stint with the MLB team Detroit Tigers, baseball player Alan Trammell was a 6-time All Star, apart from being a World Series champion and MVP. Named to the Baseball Hall of Fame, he has also coached teams such as the Detroit Tigers.

Former gridiron football player Turner Gill now serves as the University of Arkansas Student-Athlete and Staff Development executive director. Initially a quarterback for Nebraska, he later coached the team, along with other teams such as Buffalo, Kansas, and Liberty. His football career ended due to frequent injuries.

Former basketball player Swin Cash is known for 15-season stint with the Women's National Basketball Association. Now the VP of New Orleans Pelicans, the 3-time WNBA champion is also a self-proclaimed Boy Mom to her two sons. She is the first Black woman to hold a basketball operation executive position.

Initially a disc jockey, Ernie Roth stepped into wrestling management later and turned out to be one of the most outrageous managers of all time. Known for his fancy turban, his mismatched attire, and his wraparound glares, he refrained from becoming a wrestler due to his short 5’7” stature.

An American League co-founder Charles Comiskey, better known by his nickname Commy, was one of the early members of the St. Louis Brown Stockings. Though part of the Baseball Hall of Fame, the Chicago White Sox owner was dragged into a controversy when his team was involved in the Black Sox Scandal.

One of the prominent forces behind making basketball being represented in the Olympics, legendary basketball coach Phog Allen initially played basketball under the inventor of the game himself, James Naismith. Equipped with a degree in osteopathic medicine, he also treated sports injuries. He also once worked as a baseball umpire.

Remembered as the owner of the American League baseball team Boston Red Sox, Tom Yawkey was a bright Yale alumnus who inherited his uncle’s wealth at age 16. He turned into a seasoned industrialist later but retained his passion for baseball. His foundation also donated to cancer research.

Best known for managing the WWE team Deuce 'n Domino, Cherry was the quintessential blonde American beauty. Known for her signature style of chewing bubble gum, wearing skirts, and roller-skating into the arena, she later got into a public feud with Maryse, her replacement chosen by Deuce 'n Domino.

Currently the Chairman of the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee, Casey Wasserman is also the Chairman and CEO of Wasserman Media Group, a leading entertainment, sports and lifestyle marketing and management agency founded in 1998. Known for successfully heading the Los Angeles bid to host the 2028 Summer Olympics, he was also the owner of now defunct Los Angeles Avengers.

MLB manager Joe McCarthy is best known for his stint with the New York Yankees. He was also part of the minor league for 15 years. He tied with Casey Stengel to win nine league titles and seven World Series tournaments. He also set the 10 Commandments for Success in the Majors.

Once the executive director of the MLB Players Association, Marvin Miller was also an economist employed by the US government during World War II. Named to the Baseball Hall of Fame, he had also been part of the negotiating team for the association’s collective bargaining agreement.

A woman of many firsts, Katrina Adams is possibly best known as the first African-American and also the first former tennis player to serve as the President and CEO of the United States Tennis Association.  A double specialist, she competed on the WTA Tour for 12 years, winning twenty career double titles, reaching a career-high doubles ranking of no. 8.

Football player and coach Frank Leahy is best remembered for his stint as a coach at the University of Notre Dame and Boston College. He led Notre Dame to four national championship wins. Named to the College Football Hall of Fame, he also served as a sports columnist and a TV commentator.

Apart from being a baseball player, A. G. Spalding was also sports goods manufacturer who co-owned A.G. Spalding and Brothers. Named to the Baseball Hall of Fame, he also penned the annual Spalding’s Official Baseball Guide and the history of baseball named America’s National Game.

Apart from competing in the NASCAR Cup Series, B.J. McLeod also owns Live Fast Motorsports and B. J. McLeod Motorsports. He was once the youngest driver in his circuit. The son of business owners, he was determined to own a business by age 5 but later stepped into racing.

Former basketball player and Golden State Warriors TV analyst Jim Barnett began his NBA career with the Boston Celtics. He has also had a successful broadcasting career, with his co-hosting stint on Warriors Live pre-game shows. He has also been part of the Warriors Basketball Camp and is a public speaker, too.

Presidential Medal of Freedom-winning football player and coach Earl Blaik was the son of a blacksmith. He led the Army football teams to three consecutive national championships and was a strong supporter of two-platoon football. In 1951, almost his entire team was punished for breaking the honor code.