Jay Sugarman on community development
From Thinking Differently with Philadelphia Union's Jay Sugarman (Ep. 16) · · Bryn Mawr Trust
“When I got an opportunity to, you know, figure out where we're going to put the stadium, uh, in Philadelphia and there was a real push to put it in Chester, I was like, let's do it. Now we can have real impact on a community that really needs the help. And, you know, it was great putting the stadium there, but it was 20 events a year. It didn't really have the impact we wanted. The Sportslex was always part of the dream, the ability to put a 365day facility and with Wispus' help and sponsorship, you know, we we opened that facility last year and it has changed everything. Now we can have the Chester community be part of the Philadelphia Union uh community and we can help them in ways we never could before.”
On , Jay Sugarman, Chief Executive Officer & Chairman at SAFEHOLD INC, spoke about community development during Thinking Differently with Philadelphia Union's Jay Sugarman (Ep. 16) on Bryn Mawr Trust.
About Jay Sugarman
Jay Sugarman, chairman and CEO of Safehold and principal owner of the Philadelphia Union, discussed his career and approach to decision-making on the "Planning Perspectives" podcast in April 2026. He described founding the real estate company Starwood in the late 1980s as a contrarian move, saying he and his partner saw opportunity when real estate was "finally hated enough." He said he aimed to modernize real estate finance by applying corporate-world methods, similar to his current work with ground leases. Sugarman also explained his investment in the Philadelphia Union, stating that during the 2000s internet boom he believed soccer would grow in the U.S. as the world's sport. He said the club chose to focus on youth development, style of play, and innovation rather than trying to outspend larger ownership groups in the Eastern Conference.