Our Principals
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Carl S. Hirsh
Managing Partner
Carl S. Hirsh is Managing Partner of Stafford Sports, LLC, one of the nation’s leading advisory firms for the development, planning and operations of sports and entertainment facilities and properties. For more than 35 years, Hirsh has served both the private and the public sectors.
At Stafford Sports, Hirsh is currently responsible for all phases of development for a variety of high profile facility projects including:
- Iowa River Landing Fieldhouse (Amateur and Scholastic Sports, Sports Tourism)
- Iowa River Landing Arena (University of Iowa)
- University of Texas New Arena
- Seattle New NHL/NBA Arena
Hirsh has led all aspects of the facility development process including financing strategies, business plans, operational planning and design, project budget oversight, contract negotiations, organizational and operating structures and overall project management. Under Hirsh’s guidance, the staff at Stafford Sports counsels clients in the areas of strategic planning for new multipurpose facility projects including facility operations, revenue growth initiatives and short and long-term growth strategies.
Stafford Sports has served as Advisor for other major facility development projects including:
- BB&T Center for Broward County, FL
- Iowa Event Center Complex for Polk County, IA
- Amway Center for the City of Orlando, FL
- AT&T Center for the NBA San Antonio Spurs
- Wells Fargo Center for the Philadelphia Flyers and 76ers
- Transformation of Madison Square Garden
Hirsh was the former President of Spectacor Development in Philadelphia. In that capacity, he served as the Owner’s Representative for all aspects of the development of the First Union Center (now Wells Fargo Center), where he gained considerable acclaim as the key negotiator on behalf of Comcast-Spectacor, a privately held, Philadelphia-based sports and entertainment conglomerate. Hirsh negotiated a comprehensive development agreement with the City of Philadelphia and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania that allowed Comcast to build and finance the new state-of-the-art arena and to secure development rights for the mixed-use entertainment complex, Xfinity Live. While guiding the new project, Hirsh also served as President and CEO of The Spectrum in Philadelphia, guiding the operational, administrative and day-to-day activities of the legendary 18,000-seat facility.
Formerly Executive Vice President of Operations for SMG, Hirsh was responsible for the dramatic growth of the company’s accounts. Under his supervision, SMG grew from five accounts to more than 30 privately managed convention centers, arenas and stadiums.