How Ryan Smith Is Building the Future of Sports in Utah

Ryan Smith is building one of the most expansive sports portfolios in the country, from the Utah Jazz and Utah Mammoth to real estate, entertainment and technology. On Portfolio Players, presented by @etrade_frommorganstanley, Front Office Sports sits down with Smith to discuss why he got into sports after selling Qualtrics, how his tech background shapes the way he runs his teams, and why he sees the Jazz as a 30-year play. The Jazz owner also gets into NBA expansion, MLB's potential future in Salt Lake City, the rapid growth of hockey in Utah, the changing economics of college sports and NIL at BYU, and his vision for using sports as an anchor for real estate and downtown development. Plus, Smith explains Halo Fund's strategy at the intersection of sports and technology and why he believes live experiences are becoming even more valuable in an increasingly digital world. Watch the full conversation with Ryan Smith. Chapters: 00:00 Intro & Why Ryan Smith Entered Sports 01:50 The Rise of Sports Valuations 03:41 Running Sports Teams Like a Tech Company 05:40 Why Owning the Jazz Is Different 09:04 Ryan Smith on BYU and NIL 10:59 The New Era of College Sports 12:47 Ryan Smith on the Clippers Investigation 14:24 The Future of NBA Expansion 16:36 Utah's Rivalry With Las Vegas 17:07 Does the NBA Need Two More U.S. Teams? 17:54 Could MLB Come to Salt Lake City? 18:53 What Ryan Smith Wants to Own Next 22:04 Sports as an Anchor Tenant 22:30 The Future of Sports-Driven Real Estate 25:14 Could Ryan Smith Buy Another U.S. Team? 26:00 Building the Utah Mammoth 28:18 Why Hockey Is a Live-Event "Gateway Drug" 30:19 The Rise of Sports Betting 33:55 Ryan Smith's Halo Fund 34:10 Investing at the Intersection of Sports and Tech 37:30 Why Sports Is "AI-Proof" 38:20 The Future of Live Entertainment