Bobby Goldwater

One of the most respected and innovative executives in the sports, entertainment and venue management industry, Mr. Goldwater has had a distinguished career in New York City, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. Mr. Goldwater was President and Executive Director of the D.C. Sports and Entertainment Commission with the primary responsibility of leading the District of Columbia’s efforts to bring Major League Baseball back to the Nation’s Capital, a project that was successfully completed with the announcement in September 2004 of the relocation of the Montreal Expos, now the Washington Nationals.

Prior to coming to Washington, Mr. Goldwater established a record of achievement at two of the most prestigious addresses in the business. He served 24 years at Madison Square Garden in New York City in a number of executive positions before leaving in 1998 for STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, first as Senior Vice President and General Manager and later as Senior Vice President, New Business.

Mr. Goldwater’s unparalleled combination of industry experience started at The World’s Most Famous Arena where he had management responsibilities with the NBA Knicks, NHL Rangers, MSG Entertainment, MSG Facilities and virtually every type of event and every facet of the Garden’s sports, entertainment, facility management and communications businesses. Mr. Goldwater’s many accomplishments included having a senior position on the supervisory team overseeing the $240 million, 30-month Madison Square Garden Renovation that was completed in 1991; numerous innovations in the marketing, promotion and presentation of sports, entertainment and special events which were adopted by other professional teams and venues; and his supervision of diverse operations for major events including three Democratic National Conventions and the 1994 NHL and 1998 NBA All-Star Games.

In Los Angeles, Mr. Goldwater was one of the key executives in creating and successfully opening the $400 million, state-of-the-art STAPLES Center. Mr. Goldwater participated in designing the new arena and its services, was responsible for the hiring of the venue’s staff and oversaw marketing, communications and other business activities. He had a principal role in bringing to the arena such events as the Grammy Awards and the 2000 Democratic National Convention; inaugural season concerts by Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band and the Eagles; and the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, NHL All-Star Weekend and PAC-10 Men’s Basketball Tournament for 2002. He also handled the unprecedented scheduling of four major league teams in one arena in a single season with the Lakers and Clippers of the NBA, the NHL Kings and the Arena Football League’s Avengers. In addition, his conceptual vision and business initiatives directly contributed to the development of the LA Live entertainment district adjacent to STAPLES Center and to the Home Depot Center sports complex in Carson, CA, and to the creation of what became the major global company, AEG.

While leading the District’s baseball effort, Mr. Goldwater’s responsibilities with the Sports and Entertainment Commission included the management of two of the country’s most venerable venues, Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium and the D.C. Armory. He initiated and directed a multi-million dollar physical and operational rejuvenation of the Commission’s facilities. During his three years as the Commission’s chief executive, Mr. Goldwater was the originator of the concept of the acclaimed “United We Stand” benefit concert at RFK Stadium following the tragedies of September 11, 2001, and brought many major events to the District including the Cadillac Grand Prix of Washington, D.C., the 2002 Major League Soccer All-Star Game and the 2003 FIFA Women’s World Cup soccer tournament. He also worked on multiple projects on behalf of the District including the Anacostia Waterfront Initiative, a number of city economic development programs and many activities benefiting young people.

Shortly after the District’s successful result with baseball, Mr. Goldwater was in demand to provide his range of experience to several ventures which led to launching a sports and entertainment industry consulting company in 2005. The Goldwater Group has been widely acknowledged for its notable results with projects and clients across the country and as far away as Dubai with assignments including venue management, sports facility operations and assessments, event development and production, business and strategic planning, marketing, branding and communications/public relations.

In January 2014, Mr. Goldwater began an 18-month term as Interim Associate Dean of Georgetown’s Sports Industry Management program in which he has been a member of the faculty since its inception in 2008. During his first time leading the program, he initiated its online curriculum and directed the development and implementation of a sports management education program in association with the Josoor Institute in Doha, Qatar.  He was recognized as the School of Continuing Studies’ Outstanding Faculty Member in 2010 and with the Dean’s Service Award in 2009. Among his SIM courses have been Sports Leadership and Management, Event Planning & Facility Management, Capstone, The Business of Sports Media, Applied Ethics, Internship, externships with the Citi Open tennis tournament, the 2018 MLB All-Star Game Week, and The Business and Operations of the NCAA Basketball Tournament.

He is the co-author with veteran industry executive Frank Supovitz of a comprehensive textbook, The Sports Event Management and Marketing Playbook, and its third edition will be published in fall 2024. In 2016, Mr. Goldwater was named a Wiley Faculty Fellow, becoming one of the distinguished faculty from the national network of Wiley Education Services partner institutions who catalyze innovation in teaching and learning on their respective campuses.

Mr. Goldwater has been active in professional associations and community service organizations throughout his career. Among his current affiliations is his long-standing membership in the International Association of Venue Managers (IAVM). He began a two-year term on IAVM's board of directors in 2020, and is presently the association’s Academic Advisor. He served as the chair of the Academic Committee for six years and has been a contributor to an array of other committees and projects. His multi-faceted service and leadership were recognized with the 2022 Chair’s Citation to cap his year on the association’s Executive Committee and he was a 2024 recipient of an IAVM Outstanding Volunteer Service Award. In 2019, he joined an elite group of colleagues as a Certified Venue Executive, recognizing professional achievement and accomplishments in the management of public assembly venues.

Also in 2019, Mr. Goldwater became the co-chair of the Smart Venue Leadership Board, a diverse group of industry executives brought together by the Sports Innovation Lab to chart the future of venue technology and the fan experience.

Among his other activities, Mr. Goldwater is the chairman of the Washington DC Sports Hall of Fame.

Mr. Goldwater has been accorded numerous other accolades acknowledging his professional, personal and academic achievements. These have included the Event and Venue Marketing Conference presenting him with the prestigious GIGI Award of Excellence in 2008 in recognition of his significant contributions to professionalize and educate event marketers within the live entertainment industry and inducting him into the organization’s hall of fame. He has received multiple honors at his alma mater, Miami University in Ohio, as a student and an alumnus. A member of the Omicron Delta Kappa national leadership honor society, he was Miami's first Alumni-in-Residence for the Sport Leadership and Management major during the 2012-13 academic year and is currently the chair of the Men's Glee Club's alumni advisory board. He also has been honored as a distinguished alumnus of Scarsdale (NY) High School.

Miami University - B.A. - American Studies