David Blitzer
Founder,
Harris Blitzer Sports and Entertainment
David S. Blitzer is the Founder and Managing Partner of Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment (HBSE), which includes in its portfolio the New Jersey Devils (National Hockey League), top-5 world ranked venue Prudential Center in Newark, NJ, the Philadelphia 76ers (National Basketball Association), and the Penn Medicine 76ers Training Complex in Camden, NJ. He was recently named to the NHL’s Executive Committee, which is led by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and handles the review of League business including vetting new ownership applications, collective bargaining, league expansion, and more.
Under HBSE’s umbrella, properties have grown to include Wollman Rink in New York City, an investment in five-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Joe Gibbs Racing, the Delaware Blue Coats (NBA G League), the Utica Comets (American Hockey League), the Dignitas e-sports franchise, White Eagle Hall in Jersey City, NJ, the Sixers Innovation Lab and HBSEv, a venture fund.
Additionally, David is a member of the Josh Harris-led group that purchased the Washington Commanders in July 2023. On June 27, 2022, he purchased a minority stake in the Cleveland Guardians (Major League Baseball). Blitzer is the controlling manager of Real Salt Lake (Major League Soccer) and owns stakes in Crystal Palace of the Premier League and FC Augsburg of the Bundesliga amongst other international soccer properties. He became the first person to hold team equity in the five major sports leagues of North America: the NBA, NHL, NFL, MLS, and MLB.
David is the Global Head of Blackstone’s Tactical Opportunities group (Tac Opps), and a member of the firm’s Management and Operating Committees. He also leads the Tac Opps Investment Committee. Tac Opps is Blackstone’s opportunistic investment business which invests globally across asset classes and industries to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns in any market environment. Prior to launching Tac Opps, Blitzer had been involved in the execution of Blackstone investments across a variety of asset classes, including establishing and leading Blackstone’s European private equity business. He joined the firm in 1991.
David and his wife Allison reside in New York City with their five children. Through their involvement with the Devils Youth Foundation and the Sixers Youth Foundation, they invest in organizations that positively impact community and youth development through education, athletics, exposure to music and the arts, fighting food insecurity, health, and wellness. They also established the Blitzer Family Foundation which further supports those foundation goals and other philanthropic organizations.
David graduated magna cum laude from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He currently serves on the Boards of Dream, a youth development organizing servicing more than 2,200 inner city children, the Riverdale Country School, the Advisory Board of the Mount Sinai Surgical Department, the Board of Overseers at the Wharton School, the Board of Trustees at University of Pennsylvania, and the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Foundation.