MATTHEW SCHUSTER
FOUNDER & CEO
Matthew Schuster is the Founder and CEO of Watershed Sports & Entertainment. Schuster has an extensive background as a corporate strategy executive, consultant and venture investor, focused primarily on the Sports, Media and Entertainment industries. He holds various Advisory roles in the areas of Sports, Education, Music and Social Impact (e.g., Athleta-Ed, Global Sports & Entertainment Business Academy, World Surf League, A Show For A Change). He is also a Virtual Mentor for Capital Factory, a venture accelerator and investment fund for entrepreneurs in Texas.
Previously, Matt was the Vice President of Corporate Strategy and M&A for Endeavor (formerly WME | IMG). Schuster joined WME in 2013; in this role, he identified and evaluated potential investment opportunities and worked across all divisions of the company to strategically optimize the businesses and develop new commercial venture opportunities. He supported the Company through transformational transactions and post-deal strategies, such as the acquisitions of IMG, PBR, UFC, IMG Live/Fusion, the restructuring of IMG China, the exploration and launch of E-Sports opportunities and the company’s ultimate rebirth as Endeavor. In his final year at Endeavor, Matt spent significant time working as a strategic liaison for the UFC and its direct-to-consumer digital subscription platform, UFC Fight Pass. In this capacity, he worked to optimize the content strategy, ideate and launch Dana White’s Contender Series and enhance the user experience through new platform features, such as a 24-hour curated linear stream.
Prior to joining Endeavor, Schuster worked at The Walt Disney Company, focusing on strategy, investments and business development in the sports, media, entertainment and consumer products sectors. He engaged on key initiatives, such as ESPN competitive strategy, international strategy & TV channel acquisitions, China content strategy, Consumer Product Licensing strategy, Consumer Product Evolution Opportunities, Video Games and Mobile App strategies. Prior to Disney, Matt was a Director of Corporate Development at the National Football League. His experience at the NFL included areas such as new stadium development & financing, launching the NFL Ticketing Exchange (secondary ticketing platform), partnerships with in-stadium mobile apps, video game deal negotiations (e.g., Madden NFL), new video game product launches (e.g., EA Sports Active – NFL Training Camp), new sponsorship categories (e.g., state lottery), International Regular Season Games initiative and other “blue-sky” new business opportunities. Schuster also has experience working in various positions in corporate strategy, business development and mergers & acquisitions at General Electric Company and Goldman, Sachs & Co.
A graduate of Indiana University, Schuster also earned an MBA from Columbia Business School. Originally from Fort Worth, TX, he currently resides in Los Angeles with his wife Tara, son Grayson and dog Lucy.
