glenn marzano
For the past 2½ years, Francesca Leiweke-Bodie might have considered Washington state her permanent residence. In her role at Oak View Group, she estimates that she has commuted roundtrip from Los Angeles to Seattle at least twice a month, if not weekly, as the development and facility management company won the bid for the KeyArena project and secured an NHL franchise for the Emerald City.
President of Business Development, Oak View Group
Age: 34
Born: Como, Italy
Education: Stanford University, B.A., international relations and economics
Family: Husband, Troy Bodie; children, Ace (4), Duke (4 months)
I get fired up … : When people tell us it’s impossible, can never be done, and never will be done. That usually means we are on to something big and we double down.
Profession I’d most like to attempt: Running an NHL or NBA team.
Causes supported: Los Angeles Police Department Foundation (True Blue), Anti-Defamation League, our local hospitals — St. John’s and CHLA. Youth Care in Seattle.
Person in the industry I’d most like to meet: Gregg Popovich.
Most unusual question asked while networking: Where do you store the ice for your arenas during the summer?
Sports industry needs to do a better job of … : Taking care of retired athletes.
Sports business leaders should be more mindful of … : Female leadership positions.
Ideal day off: Playing at the beach in Hawaii with my boys.
“Each milestone felt so massive,” Leiweke-Bodie said of NHL Seattle, where she was responsible for raising $950 million in private financing for the arena. “That really set OVG on a path where we now look at the arenas since that close and the amount of deal flow we have, it really sent us into a different stratosphere.”
Along with the NHL bid, Leiweke-Bodie, who’s previously worked at AEG and Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, has spearheaded five additional new arena developments totaling $4.5 billion in capital being deployed in areas such as Austin, Milan and Manchester.
Leiweke-Bodie said she and her OVG colleagues love to think outside the box and welcome all naysayers as they aim to become the most dominant facility manager and operator in the sports business.
“We love thinking about the things that people think are impossible,” added Leiweke-Bodie, who now works closely with her father and OVG co-founder, Tim Leiweke. “That means we’re onto something.”
