Escalada Partners
Escalada Sports Partners invests in global sports clubs and their communities. We’re a collective of North American-based, globally-minded sports fans, who believe sport is a force for good. We are focused on partnering with teams that compete aggressively on the field and ownership groups that deliver economic and social value off it.
Michael Baffi
Founding Partner
Michael Baffi is a biotech investment professional and soccer enthusiast. A Staten Island native and avid supporter of youth soccer, Michael now enjoys watching his kids play in Oakland. Michael strives to foster community growth through soccer, connecting passionate investors, players, and fans to drive positive impact and sustainable development.
Brandon Belford
Co-Founder, Managing Partner
Brandon Belford is a strategy, operations, public policy, and finance executive with 20+ years of experience across roles on Wall Street, in Silicon Valley, and in the White House. He currently sits on the Board of Directors for two national nonprofit organizations and has been involved with several sports ventures including efforts to support the commercial operations of several NWSL clubs and to attract the FIFA World Cup to the Bay Area. He was a good, but not great, youth soccer player in Michigan, and has successfully converted his daughters into fans of the beautiful game.
Geoff Berman
Partner
Geoff Berman is Director of Public Policy and Government Affairs at Lyft. He has over 20 years of experience running election and public policy campaigns in both the commercial and non-profit sectors. He’s an avid golfer. He is also the former Executive Director of the New York State Democratic Party, and a graduate of University of Virginia Law School and UCLA. Originally from St. Louis (go Cardinals!) and having lived on both U.S. coasts and many places in between, he’s now a longtime resident of the NYC area with his wife Alex and their son, Jack.
Suncheth Bhat
Partner
Suncheth Bhat is Chief Commercial Officer of EV Realty, a heavy-duty electric truck charging infrastructure developer. He has over 20 years of experience in electric vehicle, renewable energy, and large scale infrastructure investments. He has served as board chair of Playworks, a national nonprofit that brings organized recess and play activities to underserved elementary schools and believes in the power of play to bring out the best in every kid. He also bleeds blaugrana… ¡Força Barça!
Jeremiah (Jeremy) Bird
Co-Founder, Managing Partner
Jeremy Bird is a technology executive, entrepreneur, political strategist, organizer and investor. Currently, he is an Executive Vice President at Lyft. Prior to Lyft, Bird founded a public engagement consulting and digital strategy firm, 270 Strategies, where he served as its CEO. Bird launched his career in politics, working on several campaigns, including President Obama's successful 2008 and 2012 presidential elections. He lives in Lafayette, CA, where he spends his weekends soaking up football, whether it is catching his beloved Arsenal or cheering on his four kids on the local pitches in the East Bay.
Paul Black
Partner
Paul Black is tri-lingual – fluent in the language(s) of government, the private and non-profit sectors. An Operating Partner at Atlas Holdings, founder of Fisherwick Collaborations, part-time professor of Politics, former senior campaign strategist and government policy ‘fixer’. He grew up as a second-rate fullback, and found his real passion on the pitch as a long-time soccer coach. He enjoys cheering both his Canadian and Northern Irish national sides on to victory.
Catherine Bracy
Founding Partner
Catherine Bracy is the Founder and CEO of TechEquity, an advocacy organization focused on issues at the intersection of tech and economic equity. She has led strategy for several community-focused startup ventures and ran the Obama campaign’s Tech Field Office in San Francisco in 2012. She is the author of World Eaters: How Venture Capital is Cannibalizing the Economy. She is, sadly for her, a die-hard Tottenham Hotspur supporter.
Stephen Brokaw
Founding Partner
Stephen Brokaw has spent almost 20 years across tech (Google and Salesforce), presidential politics (both of President Obama's campaigns and Sec. Pete Buttigieg's campaign), and law (Schiff Hardin LLP and General Counsel of 270 Strategies). His love of soccer began while playing, with terrific mediocrity, as a kid in Normal, Illinois.
Dominic Carr
Partner
Dominic Carr is a communications and corporate affairs executive with over 25 years of experience. He's currently Chief Corporate Affairs Officer for the Starbucks Coffee Company. Before Starbucks he worked at Ford, GE and Lyft and spent over 18 years at Microsoft including ten years leading the global public affairs team. Originally from the UK he splits his soccer loyalties between Chelsea and the Seattle Sounders.
Awenate Cobbina
Founding Partner
Awenate Cobbina is the CEO of a to-be-announced hospitality joint venture. Until mid-2024, he was the CEO of Bedrock Manufacturing Company, the parent company of retail and consumer-facing companies, including Detroit-based Shinola and Seattle-based Filson. In 2020, Awenate was the COO/Director of Operations for the Biden-Harris Transition. Previously, Cobbina was the Vice President of Public and Business Affairs for Palace Sports Entertainment and the Detroit Pistons and the Executive Director of the Detroit Pistons Foundation.
Mackey Dykes
Partner
Mackey Dykes is the Executive Vice President of Financing Programs at the Connecticut Green Bank, where he develops innovative financing solutions to drive investment into addressing climate change. Previously, he worked at the US Department of Energy and several political campaigns, including President Obama's 2008 campaign. He can often be found cheering on his kids on the volleyball court or soccer field, or trying to balance the Arsenal vs Liverpool dynamics in his house.
Tara Corrigan
Partner
Tara Corrigan is COO of The Messina Group, a strategic consulting firm, where she manages day-to-day business and operations, including the firm's engagement with multiple sports-related clients. Previously, she worked for President Obama for seven years both at the White House and on his two presidential campaigns. She’s a member of the Toms River Athletic Hall of Fame, inducted after two New Jersey state soccer championships back in the early 2000s.
Michal Flejsierowicz
Partner
Michal (Mike) Flejsierowicz is a Polish-born finance professional with over 14 years of experience and a passion for soccer. Prior to ESP, Michal worked for several Fortune 500 companies such as American Express, HSBC, and Hilton, where he managed commercial and digital partnerships channels globally. He holds a B.S. in finance from the NYU Stern School of Business and an M.B.A. from Cornell University.
Zach Greenberger
Partner
Zach Greenbeger is the CEO of Nexar, an AI company organizing the physical world as digital information. Zach has spent much of his career at the intersection of mobility and economic empowerment, AI safety, Autonomous Vehicle Development, and Partnerships. Prior to becoming the CEO of Nexar, Zach was the Chief Business Officer of Lyft. Zach has a deep passion for sports and being part of a team. Having grown up an avid basketball and soccer player, he believes sport plays a role in helping align teammates, fans and communities to a common goal.
Adam Hage
Partner
Adam Hage is an industry leading insurance agent, owning four insurance agencies with his wife, Ashley Trennert. As a serial entrepreneur, he has ventures in several industries, including Project Escalada. Drawing from his experience as a college soccer athlete at Bradley University, Adam applies discipline, teamwork, and a healthy relationship with failure in his business strategies. Originally from central Illinois, he is passionate about helping others succeed.
John Kiernan
Partner
John Kiernan is the CFO and Chief Strategy Officer of Cox 2M, a leading provider of IoT (internet of things) solutions for tracking and protecting companies' most important assets. He has spent his career growing and advising technology companies ranging in size from pre-revenue startups to Google. He is a mediocre player and above-average fan of all things soccer and lives in Atlanta with his wife and two kids.
Samir Mayekar
Partner
Samir Mayekar is a tri-sector leader with executive experience in government (Obama White House, Chicago Deputy Mayor), business (Co-Founder and CEO of greentech company NanoGraf), and nonprofits (Managing Director of the Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation). During his service in city government he facilitated the construction of the Chicago Fire FC's new performance training center.
John Palfrey
Partner
John Palfrey works in philanthropy and teaches law. John is author or co-author of a dozen books, including Born Digital: How Children Grow Up in a Digital Age (with Urs Gasser). John loved soccer as a kid but wasn't especially good; he was co-captain of a national championship team in collegiate squash in 1994 which doesn't make up for it but at least speaks to his interest in sports. He is a Liverpool fan out of loyalty to his son.
Tyler Lohman
Partner
Tyler Lohman traded in his spikes for tortillas after college, co-founding Dos Toros, a NYC-based restaurant group. As a hospitality development professional, he currently serves as SVP at Health Hospitality Partners, a healthcare amenities company. Though a former college baseball player, he is coming to terms with the unsettling reality that his 4-year-old may already be the better athlete.
Gillian O’Connell
Partner
Gillian O'Connell is a brand and digital marketing executive, with global experience spanning global tech and travel brands, as well as creative agencies. She most recently led brand and campaigns for Microsoft's commercial business, having previously worked at Amazon and Expedia Group, where she managed the activation of their UEFA Champions League partnership. Originally from Ireland, she now lives in Seattle. Her favorite soccer team is the one her teenage son plays on, but she can also be seen waving a scarf for the Seattle Sounders.
Michael Ritz
Partner
Michael Ritz is a landman/attorney juggling various land projects in Eastern Ohio. He swears this is the year he'll get his golf handicap down into the 7s. His first child was born in the summer of 2024. He is excited to teach her poker, piano, and that it’s ok to pick your club based on a favorite color as long as you stick with it.
Chad Rogers
Partner
Chad Rogers is a strategist, lobbyist and founder. He is a Partner at Canada’s largest integrated public affairs agency, Crestview Strategy and a General Partner at Trout River Ventures. The Hill Times magazine has named Chad one of the ‘Top 100 Lobbyists’ in Canada for more than a decade. Chad has advised leaders in Armenia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Cayman Islands, Croatia, Georgia, Iraq, Jordan, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Macedonia, Moldova, Pakistan, Serbia, Trinidad & Tobago and Ukraine. Originally from Prince Edward Island, Chad resides in Toronto with his husband Mark.
Elspeth Rollert
Partner
Elspeth Rollert is an innovative, tech-centric executive who has spent her career at the intersection of technology and marketing with IBM, Microsoft and Uber. Currently, she is the CEO of Stagwell Marketing Cloud, an Executive-In-Residence at NYU Stern School of Business, and startup advisor. She grew up on a farm in Michigan playing all the sports and now can be found playing all the sports in parks across Brooklyn with her son and husband.
John Paul Rollert
Partner
John Paul Rollert has taught classes in leadership, ethics, and politics at Harvard and the University of Chicago Booth School of Business for nearly two decades. He has advised several start-ups, and his writing has appeared in Fortune, The Atlantic, and The New York Times. Escalada is his redemption for shanking a game winning overtime shootout goal in the 1995 Michigan Class B Boys Soccer Regional Finals.
Michael Simon
Partner
Michael Simon is a 2x startup founder, with a multi-decade track record of innovation in politics, government and business. Born in suburban Detroit, he is a die-hard Michigan Wolverine, and is doing his best to raise his son in Brooklyn, NY with the same level of loyalty and pain as a sport fan as he had growing up. Being a part of Escalada Partners is an exciting opportunity to cultivate that resilience and a love of the game.
Sarav Subramani
Partner
Sarav Subramani is an hands-on technology product executive with over 20+ years of building and commercializing products across advertising, e-commerce, and insurance markets. As a parent of a collegiate athlete, Saravhas witnessed firsthand the power of sports in fostering community. Alas, his only regret is being a die-hard Chicago Bulls Fan.
Nick Schmuck
Partner
Nick Schmuck earned a neuroscience degree before taking a complete 180 - much to his parents’ dismay - and diving into the world of fine dining. After years working in some of the country’s top kitchens, he launched a hospitality company in Chicago specializing in events. About a decade ago, Nick randomly chose Liverpool as his team just to antagonize his Man U-supporting friend - a decision that, in hindsight, ranks among his best.
Sam Smith
Partner
Sam Smith leads the Technology Sector at Russell Reynolds, a leadership advisory and executive search firm, helping companies navigate executive leadership and tech transformation across the world. With a background spanning law, management consulting, and technology, he works with global market leaders and fast-growing, private equity-backed firms facing rapid change. Sam is based in Chicago with his wife and two dogs—who, despite their best efforts, have yet to improve his golf game. A lifelong athlete and competitor, he’s finally accepted that while his peak performance may be behind him, his skills as a dedicated fan are only getting better.
Chris Wyant
Partner
An organizer at heart, Chris Wyant has spent his career building and managing teams on campaigns, in government, and at nonprofits. He is continuing this work as an independent consultant focused on helping others build high-impact teams and campaigns. Chris remains active on courts, fields, and in races, and is forever loyal to his hometown teams (Go Reds, FC Cincinnati, and Buckeyes!).