Statement of Purpose

At a time of increasing division in our nation, sports have the unique ability to unite us. ADL’s Sports Leadership Council (SLC) engages sports leaders to promote social justice and impact positive change. The SLC supports the sports community’s efforts to build bridges of understanding, unity and respect, and works directly with leagues, teams, owners, schools and communities to achieve meaningful progress on today’s biggest social issues.The Council’s mission is to use the unifying power of sports to promote and achieve positive social change; not just on the field and in the locker room, but also in broader communities around the country and the world.

ADL Sports Leadership Council Members

Council Co-chairs:

Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO and National Director, ADL

Derrick Johnson, President, NAACP

Larry Scott, Former Pac-12 Conference Commissioner


Council Members:

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, NBA Hall of Famer

Val Ackerman, Commissioner, Big East Conference

Stacey Allaster, Chief Executive of Professional Tennis, USTA

Marc Badain, President, Oak View Group – Las Vegas

Larry Baer, President and CEO of the San Francisco Giants

Dan Beckerman, President and CEO of AEG

Dr. Harry Edwards, Sociologist and Civil Rights Activist

Paul Ehrlich, General Counsel, adidas North America

Robert Epstein, Co-owner and Managing Partner of the Boston Celtics

Don Garber, Commissioner, Major League Soccer

Neil Glat, Co-President, Americas, SPORTFIVE

Roger Goodell, Commissioner, National Football League

Peter Guber, Co-owner of the Golden State Warriors

Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Olympic Gold Medalist

Billie Jean King, Professional Tennis Hall of Famer; Founder, Women’s Sports Foundation, and recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom

Richard Lapchick, Director of the Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport at the University of Central Florida

Marla Lerner-Tanenbaum, Principal Owner of the Washington Nationals

Danette Leighton, CEO of the Women’s Sports Foundation

Michael Levine, Co-Head of Sports at Creative Artists Agency

David Levy, Senior Advisor, The Raine Group

Ronnie Lott, NFL Hall of Famer

Rob Manfred, Commissioner, Major League Baseball

Jessica Mendoza, Olympic Gold Medalist and ESPN Baseball Analyst

Jay Monahan, Commissioner, PGA Tour

Kim Ng, Pioneering Baseball General Manager

Steve Phelps, President of NASCAR

Dave Roberts, Manager, Los Angeles Dodgers

Angela Ruggiero, Hockey Hall of Famer and Olympic Gold Medalist

Brad Ruskin, Senior Partner at Proskauer

Mike Sheetz, Partner at Cooley

Adam Silver, Commissioner, National Basketball Association

Dan Singer, Partner at McKinsey and Company

Ken Solomon, President of the Tennis Channel

Rick Welts, President and COO of the Golden State Warriors

Patrick Whitesell, Co-CEO of WME

Mark Wilf, Owner of the Minnesota Vikings

Venus Williams, Seven-Time Grand Slam winner

Statements and Releases