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Ryan Smith (businessman)

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Ryan Smith
Smith in 2023
Born (1978-06-28) June 28, 1978 (age 46)
Eugene, Oregon, U.S.
Alma materBrigham Young University (BS)
TitleExecutive chairman, Qualtrics
SpouseAshley Smith
Children5

S. Ryan Smith (born June 28, 1978) is an American billionaire businessman and chairman of Smith Entertainment Group. He is the executive chairman and co-founder of Qualtrics, an experience management company based in Provo, Utah.[1][2][3] Smith is also owner of the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA), the Utah Hockey Club of the National Hockey League (NHL) in Salt Lake City, and co-owner of Real Salt Lake of Major League Soccer (MLS) with sports investor David Blitzer.

Early life and education

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Smith was born on June 28, 1978, in Eugene, Oregon.[2][4] His father, Scott Smith, worked as a university professor and his mother, Nancy Smith Hill, holds a PhD in information systems.[5][6] While he was attending Brigham Young University's Marriott School of Business, he founded Qualtrics with his father, and his brother, Jared. During his junior year he dropped out of school to spend more time working on Qualtrics, though he returned to school and finished his degree in 2016.[2]

Sports team ownership

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Utah Jazz

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On October 28, 2020, Smith bought a majority stake in the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from Gail Miller. The sale also included Delta Center, the Salt Lake City Stars of the NBA G League, and management of the Salt Lake Bees.[7][8][9] The sale was unanimously approved by the NBA on December 18, 2020.[10]

Real Salt Lake

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In January 2022, Smith and investor David Blitzer purchased Real Salt Lake of Major League Soccer (MLS) and America First Field, which included affiliate Real Monarchs and Zions Bank Stadium, from Dell Loy Hansen.[11][12] The pair also reestablished the Utah Royals of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) in 2023, with the original team becoming the Kansas City Current in 2020.[13]

Utah Hockey Club

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As early as 2022, Smith and his Smith Entertainment Group (SEG) discussed moving a National Hockey League (NHL) team to Salt Lake City, either via expansion or relocation.[14][15] In January 2024, SEG issued a formal request for the NHL to open an expansion process, stating they were "ready to welcome the NHL" to Salt Lake City.[16] SEG officials also said that the team could play immediately at the Delta Center, and perhaps later in a new to-be-constructed arena in the Salt Lake City area.[17]

On April 18, 2024, Smith purchased the Arizona Coyotes assets (personnel, draft picks, roster) from Alex Meruelo for $1.2 billion. Meruelo retained the Coyotes brand, allowing Smith to establish a new franchise in Salt Lake City.[15]

Personal life

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Smith lives in Provo, Utah, and is married with five children.[6] He is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and spent two years in Mexico as a missionary.[6][18] In 2016, he was included in Fortune's "40 Under 40."[19] As of September 2021, Forbes estimated Smith's net worth at $1.6 billion.[20]

References

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  1. ^ Levy, Ari (January 28, 2021). "Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith made $153 million in Qualtrics IPO a day after his NBA team snagged first place". CNBC. Archived from the original on January 28, 2021. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  2. ^ a b c Semerad, Tony; Larsen, Andy (October 28, 2020). "What you need to know about Ryan Smith, the new owner of the Utah Jazz". The Salt Lake Tribune. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
  3. ^ Konrad, Alex (October 19, 2018). "Utah Cloud Unicorn Qualtrics Files To Raise Up To $200M In IPO". Forbes. Archived from the original on June 11, 2019. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
  4. ^ Schoenfeld, Bruce (June 7, 2021). "Ryan Smith: Utah's Jazzmaster". Sports Business Journal. Retrieved August 2, 2023.
  5. ^ Raymond, Art (February 2, 2018). "Qualtrics co-founder Ryan Smith honored as Entrepreneur of the Year". Deseret News. Archived from the original on October 31, 2020. Retrieved October 31, 2020.
  6. ^ a b c Lev-Ram, Michal. "A Unicorn Founder's Big Life Hack". Fortune. Archived from the original on October 14, 2020. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
  7. ^ "Gail Miller and Family Announce Agreement to Sell a Majority Interest in the Utah Jazz to Qualtrics Founder Ryan Smith". UtahJazz.com (Press release). NBA Media Ventures, LLC. October 28, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  8. ^ Wojnarowski, Adrian (October 28, 2020). "Sources: Jazz being sold in $1.66B agreement". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on October 28, 2020. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
  9. ^ Stein, Marc (October 28, 2020). "Utah Jazz to Sell Majority Stake to Tech Entrepreneur". The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 29, 2020. Retrieved October 31, 2020.
  10. ^ "NBA approves sale of Jazz to Utah technology entrepreneur". AP NEWS. December 18, 2020. Archived from the original on January 28, 2021. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  11. ^ "David Blitzer & Smith Entertainment Group to Purchase Real Salt Lake". rsl.com. January 5, 2022. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
  12. ^ McDonald, Ryan (January 6, 2022). "How the deal for Ryan Smith, David Blitzer to buy Real Salt Lake came together". Deseret News. Retrieved March 2, 2022.
  13. ^ Gonzalez, Roger (March 12, 2023). "Utah Royals FC to return to NWSL under David Blitzer and Ryan Smith as owners; club will begin playing in 2024". CBS Sports. Retrieved July 30, 2023.
  14. ^ Fox, Derick (January 24, 2024). "Utah sports mogul Ryan Smith submits bid to bring NHL to Salt Lake City". ABC4. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
  15. ^ a b Kaplan, Emily (April 18, 2024). "NHL approves Coyotes sale, relocation to Salt Lake City". ESPN. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  16. ^ The Canadian Press (January 24, 2024). "Jazz's parent company initiates NHL expansion process". TSN.
  17. ^ Rosen, Dan (January 24, 2024). "Salt Lake City group formally requests NHL to initiate expansion process". NHL.com.
  18. ^ Watson, Carlos (November 29, 2014). "Mormon Mad Men: Hold the Whiskey + Cigarettes". OZY. Archived from the original on May 17, 2021. Retrieved May 30, 2021.
  19. ^ "Ryan Smith". Fortune. Archived from the original on April 25, 2017. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
  20. ^ "Ryan Smith Profile". Forbes. Archived from the original on August 18, 2021. Retrieved September 11, 2021.
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