Angela Ruggiero is a global sports leader, advocate, entrepreneur, author, brand ambassador, investor, motivational speaker, podcaster, and advisor whose work has been featured in top global and national media publications.
Ruggiero is a four-time Olympian and gold medalist in Ice Hockey for Team USA and was the first female non-goalie to play in a men’s professional hockey league. She has been named the Best Player in the World by The Hockey News and is a member of the class of the 2015 US Olympic Hall of Fame, the 2017 IIHF Hall of Fame, and the 2015 Hockey Hall of Fame (the 4th woman ever inducted).
As the visionary co-founder & CEO of Sports Innovation Lab, a technology-powered market research firm, Ruggiero and her team empower industry-leading sports brands to identify the trends, products, and services that will fuel the future of sports. Angela spearheaded groundbreaking research which defined and coined the term Fluid FanTM for the industry, and leads clients, including the NFL, NHL, FIFA, Coca-Cola, DraftKings, and CLEAR, to develop innovative strategies for connecting with these evolved fans.
She was a distinguished United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee and International Olympic Committee Member/Executive Board Member for almost a decade and served as the Chief Strategy Officer for the successful Los Angeles bid to host the 2028 Olympics.
Angela has been named to Sports Business Journal’s 40 Under 40 List and Forbes’ Top 25 Most Powerful Women in Sport. She currently serves on the International Olympic Committee’s Digital and Technology Commission, the IOC’s Ethics Commission and the IOC’s Nominations Commission, the Board of Harvard Athletics, Titletown Tech, Boston Athletic Association, and is a Member of World Rugby’s Executive Committee.
Angela wrote a book titled "Breaking the Ice: My Journey to Olympic Hockey, the Ivy League & Beyond," which was published by the Drummond Publishing Group in 2005. Aimed at young women, the book details Angela's experiences as a female hockey player and the challenges she faced in a male-dominated sport. Through the book, Angela shares how she overcame misconceptions about women's hockey and provides inspiration for young women to pursue their passions, despite any obstacles they may face.
She is a graduate of Harvard College (BA) and Harvard Business School (MBA), and earned a Masters in Education from the University of Minnesota.
