“Success comes from knowing that I did my best to become the best that I’m capable of becoming.”
“Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships. ”
Team of former college and professional athletes
taking pride in their ability to negotiate and facilitate closings of win-win transactions
Brent Lawrence
Brent Lawrence
Founder & CEO
Mr. Lawrence is our lead negotiator and directs the partnership development efforts for Accelerate Sports. In his career, Mr. Lawrence has utilized his highly competitive nature to work successfully with a growing list of nationally prominent businesses / entrepreneurs in dynamic, fast-moving transactions including Sacramento Kings (NBA), Arizona Coyotes (NHL), San Diego MLS, New Mexico United, Atletico Madrid (Ottawa) – Canadian Premier League, rEvolution, Sports MEDIA Technology, Sacramento Republic FC, Mohamed Mansour, Sycuan Indian Tribe, Steve Kaplan, Adrian Hanauer, Jerry Colangelo, Hayes Barnard, Sam Belzberg, Guthy-Renker, and many others.
Mr. Lawrence served as an M&A and Corporate Securities Attorney for nearly 20 years prior to founding Accelerate Sports.
Memberships/Affiliations (Past & Present):
Positive Coaching Alliance – Sacramento Chairman of Board
Sports Lawyers Association
Olympic Club, San Francisco
Entrepreneurs Organization
FINRA Series 79 and 63 securities licenses
Education:
MBA – Finance, U.C. Davis Graduate School of Management, cum laude
J.D., University of San Diego College of Law
B.S., U.C. Riverside, Business Administration, cum laude
Personal/Sports:
Originally from San Diego, Mr. Lawrence played basketball at U.C. Riverside where his team made the Division II Final Four.
Mr. Lawrence coached boys varsity basketball at Christian Brothers HS where his team won the Sacramento Section Championship.
Lifelong Duke Basketball fan
Connor Hallisey
Connor Hallisey
Senior Vice President
Mr. Hallisey specializes in market analysis, partnership development, client relationships and deal execution for Accelerate Sports.
Prior to joining Accelerate Sports, Mr. Hallisey was the 10th overall pick in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft by Sporting Kansas City. During his two year MLS career, he won a U.S. Open Cup Championship and appeared in over 30 games. While attending the University of California, Berkeley, Mr. Hallisey earned 1st Team All PAC-12 Honors, was a Division I All-American and a Herman Trophy Semi-Finalist.
Mr. Hallisey graduated from the University of California, Berkeley Haas School of Business. During his time at Berkeley, he gained experience through internships in the private equity and investment banking industry.
Memberships/Affiliations:
Cal Alumni Association
Haas Alumni Network
Community Help for Autism Spectrum Disorder
FINRA Series 79 and 63 securities licenses
Education:
B.S. – U.C. Berkeley, Business Administration, Haas School of Business
Personal/Sports:
Mr. Hallisey played in the MLS for Sporting Kansas City for 2 seasons.
At Granite Bay HS, he was a member of the U-18 U.S. Men’s National team and garnered two caps against Germany and France in Israel.
At CAL, he was a All-Academic PAC-12 Award Winner and Division I All-American while simultaneously graduating from Haas School of Business.
Mr. Hallisey is a youth soccer coach.
David Aufhauser
David Aufhauser
Executive in Residence
da@acceleratesportsbusiness.com
David is a trusted advisor bringing partnership development, client relationships, and deal execution to Accelerate Sports. For over 25 years, David has been as a leader, entrepreneur, and investor at the nexus of sports, media and technology helping create some of the world's most iconic fan and athlete experiences across fantasy sports, streaming, metaverse, women's sports, data tech, and more. He has extensive experience working with Olympic Games, NFL, NBA, MLB, La Liga, and Premier league.
David built and led global businesses at Intel Sports, Pac-12 Networks, Twitch, Yahoo, Evite, Netscape, McCann, and the NBC Olympic Games. He serves as a board director, advisor and investor to various growth companies including Uru Sports, Just Women’s Sports, Quintar, NeuroTrainer, and CreatorPlus.
Memberships/Affiliations (Past & Present):
Founder, Lifetime Cardinal, Stanford’s NIL Collective
Positive Coaching Alliance – National Advisory Board
Women’s Coaching Alliance – Volunteer
Sala Series – Founding Member
Education:
MBA, Northwestern Kellogg School of Management
BA, Stanford University
Attended University of Barcelona
Personal/Sports:
A San Francisco Native, David played water polo at Stanford.
Gold Medalist representing United States’ Masters basketball at multiple Maccabi Games.
Member of the Olympic Club Masters Basketball Team
Raising two female athletes and spending his time at many youth volleyball and soccer games.
Zuzana Bednarova
Zuzana Bednarova
CFO / COO
zb@acceleratesportsbusiness.com
Ms. Bednarova specializes in financial due diligence, virtual data room management, business development, client relations, marketing and operations for Accelerate Sports.
In her career, Ms. Bednarova has worked on numerous high pressured M&A transactions. Prior to joining Accelerate Sports, Ms. Bednarova worked at KPMG as a Senior Auditor. At KPMG, Ms. Bednarova examined and attested to financial statements of SEC clients from industries such as banking and real estate in conformity with GAAP and non-SEC clients from industries such as construction and NFP. Ms. Bednarova reviewed companies’ business and information system processes as well as their internal control structures and operations, identified and documented internal controls deficiencies in conformity with Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Ms. Bednarova audited financial statements, annual reports, and quarterly reports mainly for Wells Fargo.
Memberships/Affiliations:
Certified Public Accountant – State of California
KPMG Alumni Network
USF Alumni Network
National Society of Collegiate Scholars
National Physique Committee (NPC) Fitness Competitor
Education:
B.S., Finance, University of San Francisco, cum laude
B.S., Accounting, University of San Francisco, cum laude
Certified Public Accountant
Personal/Sports:
Originally from Slovakia, Ms. Bednarova played Division I Volleyball at University of San Francisco, where her team made the NCAA tournament in her senior year.
Ms. Bednarova received the Scholar Athlete award all four years and the WCC All-Academic award.
Ms. Bednarova enjoys beach volleyball, running, fitness, and yoga.
Jack Stafford
Jack Stafford
Vice President
js@acceleratesportsbusiness.com
Mr. Stafford performs multiple functions for Accelerate Sports, including research, financial modeling, and preparation of marketing materials. He also focuses on business development efforts for Accelerate Sports.
Prior to joining Accelerate Sports, Mr. Stafford worked for Sacramento Republic FC as a Corporate Partner Intern where he set up corporate partner activation locations at home events for United Soccer League team, developed collaborative relationships with representatives from UC Davis Health and Papa Murphy’s and organized logistics for community engagement activities. Mr. Stafford also worked as a Business Development Intern for Penji College Tutoring. Mr. Stafford holds a bachelor’s degree in Managerial Economics from University of California, Davis.
Memberships/Affiliations:
U.C. Davis Alumni Network
Olympic Club of San Francisco
Education:
B.S. – Managerial Economics, U.C. Davis
Personal/Sports:
Played NCAA Division I Water Polo at U.C. Davis.
Recipient of the Brian Ohleyer Scholarship Award by the Olympic Club of San Francisco, recognizing excellence in scholarship, leadership, service and athletics.
Generated local awareness of poverty and clean water challenges in India and assisted with project implementation in Varagur Village, India.
Kale Catchings
Kale Catchings
Associate
kc@acceleratesportsbusiness.com
Mr. Catchings performs research on potential buyers/investors, prepares investor, marketing materials, financial models, and valuations, and also performs other investment banking tasks. He participates in NBA, NHL, and MLS current projects as well as business development efforts for Accelerate Sports.
Prior to joining Accelerate Sports, Mr. Catchings worked as an intern providing legal services to individuals on fixed and limited incomes who cannot afford private legal counsel. He provided individual client support and handled daily administrative tasks and duties. Also, Mr. Catchings worked as an intern at Harvard University Commonwealth Project cooperating with professors, cultural producers, activists, attorneys, and local politicians on community-led justice initiatives and historical research.
Mr. Catchings holds a bachelor’s degree in Economics & Secondary in African American Studies from Harvard University and Master of Management from Duke University.
Memberships/Affiliations:
Inaugural Member, NABC Player Development Coalition
Harvard Alumni Network
Education:
DUKE UNIVERSITY - Master of Management Studies May 2023
HARVARD UNIVERSITY - Bachelor of Arts in Economics & Secondary in African American Studies May 2022
Personal/Sports:
Member of Varsity Basketball Team (2019 Ivy League Champion, 2019 Most Improved Player, 2022 Academic All-Ivy League Team, 2022 Team Captain, 2022 Defensive Player of the Year), Black Men’s Forum.
Team Captain at Harvard University Basketball team ( July 2021 – March 2022)
Member of Varsity Basketball Team, Duke University.