The HRL (Horse Racing League), the premier team-based, horse racing league today announced a significant expansion of its commercial organization ahead of its 2027 inaugural season. The league has appointed Renee Wilm as Chief Business Officer, J-T Ladt as Chief Marketing Officer and Clifford Lidell as Chief Brand Officer, and has named Elevate, the award-winning global sports and entertainment agency, as its exclusive partner for ticketing, hospitality and sponsorship sales.

The leadership team in partnership with Elevate will build the commercial engine powering the HRL’s launch with a marquee sponsorship program spanning league, live event and team assets, premium hospitality and ticketing at the sport’s most storied venues, initially Gulfstream Park in Miami, Keeneland in Lexington and Santa Anita Park in Los Angeles and an always-on marketing and digital content strategy built to bring a younger, more diverse audience to thoroughbred racing.

Co-founded by former Liberty Media CEO and F1 Chairman, Greg Maffei and Skylark founder Danny Epstein, the HRL is designed to bring season-long continuity to thoroughbred racing through compelling storytelling, premium live events, celebrity and brand-led team identities, a first-of-its-kind draft selection process and championship rivalries with $10 million of prizes.

The inaugural season arrives at a moment of significant opportunity for horse racing driven by the durable appeal of live sports. The 2026 Kentucky Derby averaged a record 19.3 million viewers and reached a peak audience of 24 million. Viewership for this past weekend’s Breeders Cup was up 18% compared to just two years ago. Last year, more than $11 billion was wagered on races in the U.S., and estimates put the global fan base for horse racing approaching 48 million.

Danny Epstein, Chief Executive Officer of the HRL, added, “Renee, J-T and Clifford have built and grown some of the most successful properties in sports, entertainment and culture. With them leading our commercial strategy, and, with Elevate’s reach and sales expertise behind us, we are ready to revolutionize the sport and offer partners and fans something horse racing has never experienced. Through celebrity partnerships and a digital-first strategy, the HRL is excited to introduce a new generation of fans to this legacy sport.”

As the HRL’s exclusive commercial agency, Elevate will work alongside the league’s leadership team to package and sell sponsorship opportunities, develop ticket and hospitality products, and sharpen marketing and paid media with audience intelligence. The partnership is supported by EPIC, Elevate’s proprietary AI-powered insights platform, which will help the HRL unify consumer and ticketing data and turn it into real-time actions that support smarter decisions and more personalized fan experiences.

“Transformational moments like the launch of a league demand an integrated agency model that can connect strategy, data, and execution. The HRL is backed by world-class leadership, and is designing around the fan from day one,” said Ben Gumpert, Chief Strategy and Growth Officer at Elevate. “It has all of the ingredients to create a compelling platform, and we are proud to partner with them to turn that vision into sustainable fandom.”

The HRL’s expanded leadership team includes:

  • Chief Business Officer Renee Wilm, a seasoned legal and commercial executive with more than 25 years’ experience driving transformational transactions in sports and media. Ms. Wilm joins the HRL after serving as CEO of the inaugural F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix, a first-of-its-kind street race with record-breaking revenue, and overseeing business affairs at Liberty Media, where she worked closely on strategic initiatives across its portfolio, including with Formula 1, the Atlanta Braves and SiriusXM.

  • Chief Marketing Officer J-T Ladt, a marketing, content and brand leader with more than 20 years’ experience at the intersection of content and commerce. Mr. Ladt comes to the HRL from Illumination Entertainment, where he served as EVP, Head of Strategic Brand Partnerships, leading partnership, brand and digital strategy across Minions, Despicable Me, Sing and Super Mario Bros franchises. He previously held top content posts at Fuse Media, Red Bull and National Geographic Channel.

  • Chief Brand Officer Clifford Lidell, a leading brand creative executive with over 15 years of experience building category-defining businesses across media, technology and consumer products. Mr. Lidell joins the HRL having previously served as Chief Brand Officer for Complex Media, where he led brand strategy, creative, content and marketing, and having previously held strategic brand leadership roles with NTWRK and PacSun.

Additional details on teams, the schedule, ticket access, sponsorship opportunities and broadcast plans will be announced shortly.

ABOUT THE HRL

The HRL (Horse Racing League) is the premier team-based, horse racing league, culminating in a season-long championship. Co-founded by Greg Maffei (CEO of BANN Ventures) and Danny Epstein (CEO and Founder of Skylark), the HRL launches its inaugural season in 2027 with ten teams competing at Gulfstream Park, Keeneland and Santa Anita Park, for over $10 million in prize money each year. The HRL is digital-first and focused on season-long storytelling and innovative gaming. For more information, visit www.thehrl.com.

ABOUT ELEVATE

Elevate is an award-winning global sports and entertainment agency founded in 2018 and the chosen growth partner for the world’s leading brands, properties and experience-driven businesses. Through one integrated model, Elevate serves as the trusted advisor for more than 1,000 clients, helping them solve complex challenges and drive business wins.

What began in sports has evolved into a platform now serving clients across culture, attractions, culinary and hotels. Today, Elevate brings operational expertise, data-driven intelligence and world-class creativity together under one roof.

Elevate partners with clients worldwide from offices across North America, Europe and Asia. For more information, visit www.oneelevate.com.

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