A group of veteran sports executives, including former NFL executive Steve Bornstein and “Body by Jake’s” Jake Steinfeld, are launching a national youth lacrosse tournament that is patterned after the Little League World Series.
The Warrior World Series of Youth Lacrosse presented by The Coca-Cola Company will be a 13-and-under tournament played at Denver’s Sports Authority Field at Mile High July 2-4. ESPN2 has committed to carry the final live as part of a revenue-sharing deal, Steinfeld said.
Steinfeld said he got the idea for the tournament while watching ESPN’s coverage of the Little League World Series.
“I was enamored by the pureness of the game,” he said. “It just seems fun. A light bulb went off in my head.”
Steinfeld reached out to people who he thought could help him launch a similar tournament around youth lacrosse. He started with Bornstein, who spent decades running ESPN and NFL Media. Steinfeld and Bornstein are partners in a production company.
He then called Major League Lacrosse co-founder Dave Morrow, and they brought on fellow MLL colleague Ray Schulmeyer to run the tournament. Schulmeyer is a co-founder of the MLL Baltimore Breakers.
Four national sponsors have signed on to the event, each signing three-year deals. Coca-Cola came on as presenting sponsor, while Warrior Lacrosse bought title sponsorship. Other sponsors include Wheels Up, Met-Rx, Body by Jake, Edge Sports & Entertainment and the Denver Outlaws.
The commitment by ESPN fits with the network’s other lacrosse programming, including the NCAA lacrosse tournament every spring and MLL games.
World Series of Youth Lacrosse is selling the sponsorship inventory, with Steinfeld and Bornstein taking the lead on sales. Schulmeyer and one of his business partners, Chris Hutchins, will operate the event.
