Mr. Tilliss founded Inner Circle Sports in 2002 as a registered broker dealer. He has a 20+ year history as a leader in the sports advisory and finance community. Mr. Tilliss has led many high profile assignments both in the US and internationally including the sale or acquisition of numerous teams in the five US sports leagues and several leagues internationally. Mr. Tilliss also has extensive stadium/arena financing expertise and has performed valuation, consulting and other activities through his firm.
Prior to founding ICS, Mr. Tilliss spent 15 years at J.P. Morgan where he was Managing Director and Group Head of the Sports Advisory & Finance Group. Mr. Tilliss founded J.P. Morgan’s sports investment banking practice. In 2005, Mr. Tilliss worked with Fortress Investment Group to establish a presence in the area of sports facility finance and infrastructure.
Recognition: Mr. Tilliss was twice recognized by the Sports Business Journal as one of the “Industry’s 40 under 40”, and was recently recognized by Worth magazine as one of the “60 Most Powerful People in Sports.” Mr. Tilliss is a frequent guest on Bloomberg TV, and has previously been quoted in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Sports Business Journal, and Crain’s among numerous other publications.
Steve Horowitz brings 30 years of sports experience in marketing, media, technology and finance, having worked with a diverse group of organizations such as the USTA, NCAA, NFL, NBA, PGA Tour, NASCAR, MLB, MLS, EPL, EFL, Serie A and many others. In his current role, Mr. Horowitz has completed numerous transactions globally including Liverpool FC, FC Internazionale (Inter Milan), Portsmouth FC, Philadelphia Union, DC United, NY Cosmos, Atlanta Hawks, Philadelphia 76ers, Montreal Canadiens, Bloomberg Sports, Union Square Hospitality Group, Teamworks, Real Salt Lake, Dagenham & Redbridge FC and Wrexham AFC.
Mr. Horowitz joined ICS from the investment/advisory firm Triple Play Partners, where he was a partner. Prior to TPP, Mr. Horowitz served as a Vice President for Convera, the Intel/NBA technology venture, leading the company’s Sports & Entertainment business. Before Convera, Mr. Horowitz was the GM of the NFL Quarterback Club, where he ran the group licensing, television and marketing business for the NFL’s 40 marquee players before it was bought by the NFL. For the 15 years preceding, Mr. Horowitz was with ProServ Television (later SFX/Clear Channel Communications), one of the leading sports marketing and management firms in the world, advancing to Senior Vice President.
Education: Mr. Horowitz graduated from the University of California, Berkeley.
Kyle leads ICS's practice advising technology and services companies at the intersection of sports, media and entertainment. Kyle has led M&A transactions for companies across software, data, content and marketing services, including: Teall Capital’s sale of Riddle & Bloom to Wasserman, Synergy Sports Technology's sale to Atrium Sports, backed by Eldridge Industries and Elysian Park Ventures; KORE Software's sale to Serent Capital; and Golf Genius Software’s acquisitions of Operation 36 Golf and Twilight Golf Association.
In addition, Kyle has arranged multiple growth capital raises, including: Teamworks' Series A, B and C funding rounds led by Seaport Capital, General Catalyst and Delta-v Capital, respectively; PlayOn Sports' growth financing led by a group including BIP Capital, Vinik Sports Group and Teall Capital; and MSL Solutions’ investment from Taubman Capital.
Further, Kyle has advised institutional lenders on debt financings to the NHL's Arizona Coyotes, Ligue 1's FC Bordeaux and the Premier League’s Crystal Palace FC.
In 2021, Kyle was recognized by the Sports Business Journal as a recipient of its Forty Under 40 Award. Kyle has been a featured speaker at multiple industry events, including Sportico’s Invest in Sports, Soccerex USA, Euro Finance Week Frankfurt and Sports Business Journal's Dealmakers. Previously, Kyle was with Hamilton Lane, a private equity investor headquartered in Philadelphia. He was responsible for evaluating and executing new investment opportunities on behalf of a $600M fund.
Education: Kyle received an M.B.A. from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, and a B.B.A. in Finance from the University of Notre Dame, where he was a walk-on with the Irish football team.
Mr. DiBlasi is part of the firm’s sports facility advisory practice. Mr. DiBlasi brings 10 years of experience advising and lending to team owners, leagues, municipalities, and universities involved in the development of sports facilities across all sports in the United States and Europe. Mr. DiBlasi has advised on, arranged and led financings for nearly $10 billion in projects for teams including the New York Yankees, Brooklyn Nets, Sacramento Kings, Columbus Crew, Orlando City Soccer Club, Philadelphia Union, FC Barcelona, Tottenham Hotspur, Inter Milan, AS Roma, and many others. In addition to financing, Mr. DiBlasi advises on all aspects of project development including lease negotiations, insurance, design, construction delivery, business plan, and operations.
In addition to private sector projects, Mr. DiBlasi has served as underwriter for a number of public sector clients including the New York City Industrial Development Agency (Yankee Stadium), the Brooklyn Arena Local Development Corporation (Barclays Center), and the Atlanta and Fulton County Recreation Authority (State Farm Arena).
Mr. DiBlasi joined Inner Circle Sports from Goldman Sachs where he was responsible for leading sports facility advisory and lending projects as a Vice President in the Global Sports and Project Finance practice in the Investment Banking Division. Previously, Mr. DiBlasi was part of the Public Sector and Infrastructure Banking practice, where he served as underwriter on $15+ billion in financings for governmental and transportation issuers across the Unites States including the City of New York, Hudson Yards Infrastructure Corporation, the City of Atlanta, and the State of Wisconsin.
Education: Mr. DiBlasi has a Bachelor of Arts in History and Classical Studies from the Morrissey College of Arts & Sciences at Boston College.
Tyler is responsible for originating and executing M&A advisory, capital raising and valuation transactions in the global sports, media and technology industries. Tyler currently leads the firms’ sports betting and iGaming advisory efforts, including arranging and leading Sports IQ’s growth capital raise led by Harlo Equity Partners, with participation from The Kraft Group, Velo Partners, Michael Gordon, Theo Epstein, Sam Kennedy and Mitch Garber. Tyler has also advised on a number of transactions across the top five leagues in North America, including the Kansas City Royals, Atlanta Falcons, Memphis Grizzlies and New York Mets. In addition, Tyler has executed transactions in the sports technology space, including KORE Software's sale to Serent Capital and Teamworks' Series C funding round led by Delta-v Capital.
Prior to joining ICS, Tyler worked in the Financial Advisory Services group at Houlihan Lokey, specializing in fairness and solvency opinions for leveraged buyouts, mergers and acquisitions, and recapitalizations. In addition, Tyler focused on valuing illiquid assets and other complex securities for private equity firms, hedge funds, and other investment managers across multiple industries.
Education: Tyler graduated cum laude from Columbia University where he received a B.A. with double major in Economics and History.
Mr. Mosley is responsible for executing M&A advisory, capital raising, and restructuring transactions in the global sports industry. Mr. Mosley joined the firm in the spring of 2018.
Prior to joining ICS, Mr. Mosley worked in the Global Consumer Investment Banking Group at Deutsche Bank. During his time at Deutsche Bank, Mr. Mosley worked on various mergers and acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, and debt and equity capital raises across the food and beverage, retail, restaurant and business services sectors.
Education: Mr. Mosley graduated from Boston College with a B.S. in Finance and B.A. in German.
Mr. Burke is responsible for executing M&A advisory, capital raising and valuation transactions in the global sports industry. Mr. Burke joined the firm in the spring of 2020. Prior to joining ICS, Mr. Burke worked in the Technology, Media and Telecommunications investment banking group at UBS and was promoted from Analyst to Associate. During his time at UBS, James worked on various mergers and acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, and debt and equity transactions across the TMT sector, including entertainment, software and sports.
Education: James graduated summa cum laude from Middlebury College where he received a B.A. in Mathematics and Economics and was a member of the football team.
Ms. Winslow is responsible for executing M&A advisory, capital raising, and valuations transactions in the global sports industry. Ms. Winslow joined the firm in the spring of 2021. Prior to joining ICS, Ms. Winslow was an Analyst at Jefferies in their Technology group, where she focused on providing merger and acquisition advice and private placements to software companies.
Prior to her role at Jefferies, Ms. Winslow was employed at AGC Partners, a boutique investment bank focused exclusively on technology companies.
Education: Ms. Winslow graduated magna cum laude from Middlebury College where she received a B.A. in Economics and was a member of the women’s hockey team.
Mr. Abrams has over three decades of experience as a lead investment banker and advisor for numerous public and private assembly facilities including the financing of stadiums, arenas, and other sports venues. He has advised on the funding for 5 NFL stadium projects in Atlanta, Houston, Miami, Tampa, and Jacksonville. Mr. Abrams has had a role in funding numerous other sports facility projects including several arenas, major and minor league baseball stadiums, motorsports parks, tennis centers, and golf courses. He has represented many municipal and private sector clients in the funding or negotiations of over $4.5 billion of sports facilities. Recent private and public sector clients include Little Caesars Arena, the City of Seattle, the City of Las Vegas.
He joined ICS from advisory firm Strategic Advisory Group where he was a Principal. Prior to SAG, Mr. Abrams was a Managing Director in Fixed Income at Jefferies LLC and has held senior investment banking positions with Bank of America/Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, A.G. Edwards and Bear, Stearns & Co. Inc. Mr. Abrams is a frequent speaker at sports facility financing symposiums and he is a Clinical Associate Professor of Sports Management at NYU's Tisch Institute for Sports Management, Media and Business.
Education: Mr. Abrams has a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and a Master of Business Administration from Northeastern University in Boston.
Mary Ann Sookdeo is the Executive Assistant for Inner Circle Sports. She joined ICS in Fall of 2021 and oversees all day to day operations to ensure an exemplary experience for all ICS Stakeholders. She brings over 6 years of managerial experience in multiple industries such as healthcare, retail and education.
Education: Graduated with honors from Pace University in Downtown, New York City with her B.S. in Criminal Justice with a double minor. Currently pursuing her Masters in Management at Fordham University’s Gabelli School of Business.
Mr. Le is responsible for executing M&A advisory, capital raising and valuation transactions in global sports, media and entertainment industry. Mr. Le joined the firm in the spring of 2022. Directly prior to joining ICS, Mr. Le was a Financial Planning & Analysis Analyst at Virta Health, a late-stage digital health company, as well as a part-time Analyst at Soccerlytics, a data-driven consulting and analytics firm. Prior to those roles, Mr. Le spent two years at UBS in their global healthcare investment banking group, where he worked on various mergers and acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, and debt and equity transactions across the medical technologies, healthcare services, and biotechnology sectors.
Education: Mr. Le graduated from Yale University where he received a B.A. in Economics and was a member of the varsity soccer team.