While Wharton may be better known for its “quant jocks” than its athletes, the School’s reach extends throughout the sports world, from the front office to the field (or court, or rink, or track). From the pathbreaking Wharton Sports Business Initiative to game-changing faculty research to the 2010 World Series alumni showdown, read on to discover how it’s a wide Wharton world of sports.
70
professional and collegiate sports teams partnering with StubHub, “the world’s largest ticket marketplace,” co-founded by alum Jeffrey Fluhr, W’96, ENG’96.
18,060 & 45,479
number of NBA and NCAA basketball games, respectively, analyzed by professors Devin Pope and Jonah Berger for a 2009 project that showed teams slightly behind at halftime stand a better-than-expected chance of winning.
1
Wharton Sports Business Initiative (WSBI), a research- and education-focused “think tank” that generates and disseminates knowledge about the sports industry.
502
NFL players who have participated in the NFL Business Management and Entrepreneurial Program at Wharton and other elite business schools since 2005. Thirty-seven players participated at Wharton in 2010.
77
Members of the Wharton Sports Business Initiative Alumni Advisory Committee, with 10 sports—including tennis, basketball, baseball, football, soccer, hockey, golf, ice skating, rugby, and horse racing—represented among them.
3
Games for the Philadelphia Phillies (and owner David Montgomery, WG’70) to clinch the National League Division Championship over the Cincinnati Reds (and owner Robert Castellini, WG’67) in October 2010
