NEVER DONE
MEET THE VERSION1 STAFF TEAM
Version1 employs over 20 full-time staff across content, communications, partnerships, business development, operations and finance. We believe in the power of uniting people from different backgrounds to build the best organization we can.
Brett Diamond
Chief Operating Officer
Brett Diamond was named chief operating officer of Version1 when the organization was founded in July 2019. He leads the organization’s business operations from its headquarters in Eagan, Minnesota. Before joining Version1, Brett spent three years with the Minnesota Vikings, most recently as director of partnership strategy and 11 seasons in the National Football League’s events department. In various roles on both the operations and business sides of the NFL’s major events, Brett was involved in planning 13 Super Bowls and served as event director for the Pro Bowl for two years. From 2010-2016, Brett worked as a liaison from the NFL to communities bidding to host the Super Bowl, including working closely with the Vikings and the Minnesota community for Super Bowl LII.
Mike Olson
Chief Financial Officer
Mike Olson is the chief financial officer at Version1 overseeing financial reporting, accounting and related functions. Previously, Mike was a managing director and senior equity research analyst at Piper Sandler where he covered the video game, internet and digital media sectors and companies including Activision, Electronic Arts, Amazon, Google and others. As a senior equity research analyst, Mike received multiple awards, including the 2019 TipRanks Top 100 Analysts of the year, 2017 TipRanks Top 20 Analysts of the year, 2015 Thomson Reuters/StarMine Earnings Estimator, 2011 Financial Times/StarMine No. 2 Stock Picker and No. 2 Earnings Estimator, and 2010 Wall Street Journal “Best on the Street” for the Leisure Goods & Services sector. Mike earned an undergraduate degree in business, with a concentration in finance, investments and banking, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Annie Scott Riley
Chief Marketing Officer
Annie Scott Riley oversees the creative and marketing teams at Version1. She is a seasoned storyteller and life-long gamer with 17 years of marketing and creative experience, and was a 2021 Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal 40 Under 40 honoree. Annie began her career as a blogger in New York City and has traveled the globe creating a high volume of journalistic content for travel, fashion, luxury and other lifestyle publications, covering experiences from waltzing at a Venetian palace ball to biking down the side of a Yukon mountain. Prior to joining Version1, Riley served as the editorial director at Aveda and spent seven years at marketing and advertising agencies in social and digital roles on accounts including Cadillac, U.S. Bank, Delta Air Lines, Subaru, Post Foods, Evereve, H&R Block and more.
Shannon Tufford
Vice President of Production
Shannon Tufford leads Version1’s production team. With over 20 years of production experience, she has produced content and experiences for a diverse client portfolio. Prior to Version1, she was Executive Producer for BI Worldwide, producing content and events for Fortune 500 companies in a gamut of venues, spanning from convention centers and ballrooms, to the top of Aspen Mountain and in the middle of the Baltic Sea. Shannon has produced for virtual broadcasts and national PBS programs, post-produced for such brands as Activision and Purina, and has been spotted on various film and commercial sets.
Jake Trobaugh
VP of Esports & Acquisitions
Jake Trobaugh supports business development by overseeing the evaluation of new opportunities to grow Version1’s portfolio across the esports and gaming industry. He is a former professional Call of Duty player who retired to successfully earn degrees in finance and economics. Jake was an investment banking analyst and a consultant for private equity firms and hedge funds prior to returning to the esports industry in 2019 due to the growth and franchising of the Call of Duty League. In his spare time, he can be found petitioning to be verified on Twitter (@REPPINjt) or handcrafting mediocre memes.
Ashley Glassel
Director of Content
Ashley Glassel joined Version1 in August 2019 as a consultant to help build the first Minnesota Røkkr roster. She soon joined full-time as director of content and continues to build and grow the brand via content and vision. She frequently hosts Version1 and Røkkr streams, tournaments and events and is co-host of The Rotation podcast. Glassel, known by her gamertag “MiDNiTE,” has over 10 years of experience as an influencer in esports. She is an original core member of OpTic Gaming and helped build the organization’s legacy from 2010-2019. She initially played for OpTic Girls and was kept on as a content creator. During her tenure, Ashley helped represent and grow the OpTic brand, whether it was through her own streams and videos, or being involved in native OpTic content and sponsor deliverables.
Cassie Batinich
Director of Communications
Cassie Batinich oversees Version1’s communications and media strategy and its corporate social responsibility commitments. She has over 10 years of professional experience in corporate communications, media relations and sports and brand marketing. Previously, Cassie worked at Weber Shandwick Minneapolis and Ketchum New York as a media relations specialist. From 2015-2018, she served as a communications consultant to the Minnesota Super Bowl Host Committee, supporting community engagement and philanthropic priorities and creating an immersive experience for nearly 6,000 media members who visited Minnesota in the 10 days leading up to the game. Cassie is on the board of the Hale Page Diamond Lake neighborhood association in Minneapolis and is a dog foster and volunteer for Wags & Whiskers Animal Rescue of Minnesota.
Ang Legein
Director of Marketing
Ang Legein leads the Version1 marketing team and brings over 15 years of experience in online technology, marketing, television and film to the organization. Her background includes agency experience, working with national and global companies such as Caterpillar, Ammann, Lenovo, and Comcast on branding, digital and environmental experiences. She also has experience producing and managing documentary, reality and scripted television in Los Angeles. Ang received her MBA from the University of Minnesota Carlson School of Management, and volunteers to give back to the community focusing on healthcare. Currently, she serves as Chair of the Marketing and Communications committee for the Hennepin Healthcare Young Professionals Foundation.
Chris Vanderbeek
Director of Events & Business Operations
Chris Vanderbeek oversees live production and the operations team at Version1. He brings over eight years of experience in the sports & entertainment industry to the organization and has worked in multiple leagues including the NHL, NBA, WNBA, collegiate hockey and minor league baseball. Chris’s experience is rooted in producing immersive events that blend lights, music and video with live entertainment to create a seamless experience for fans. Before joining Version1, Chris worked in event production and presentation at the Minnesota Wild, Minnesota Timberwolves & Lynx and the St. Paul Saints. Chris has also supported live production at four NBA All Star Weekend events.
Jenna Johnson
Director of Partnership Strategy & Activation
Brian “Saintt” Baroska
Coach, Call of Duty
Brian “Saintt” Baroska is the head coach of Minnesota Røkkr and a former professional Call of Duty player. Before joining Version1 when Røkkr was founded in 2019, Brian coached and played professionally for eUnited until 2018. Saintt is a highly regarded veteran who began his professional career in 2008 with the release of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.
Daniel “Loony” Loza
Coach, Call of Duty
Danny “Loony” Loza joined Minnesota Røkkr as an assistant coach in October 2021 ahead of the Call of Duty: Vanguard season. Prior to joining Røkkr, Loony was a professional competitor with Seattle Surge in 2021 and Toronto Ultra during the 2020 CDL season. Loony brings a decade of experience competing at the highest level of Call of Duty to Røkkr’s coaching staff. As a player, he won six major tournaments.
Jayson “Fireburner” Nunez
Coach, Rocket League
Jayson “Fireburner” Nunez joined Version1 as the head coach of the Rocket League team when it was established in August 2020. Prior to this role, Jayson coached Torment and Gimmick at Cloud9 in Rocket League Championship Series 8 and 9. Jayson played competitively for NRG from 2015 to 2019 and participated in every RLCS LAN event until his retirement from competition in 2019, one of only two players to do so. He won four RLCS North American tournaments with NRG, including the 2017 FACEIT X Games Rocket League Invitational. Jayson earned Clutch Playmaker and Golden Striker awards in Seasons 7 and 3 respectively.
Brianna Deihl-Wilson
Senior Art Director
Allie Rooney
Senior Marketing Manager
Nesan Furtado
Senior Social Media Manager
Joey Pennacchio
Creative Director
Blaise Butler
Partnerships Manager
Dillon Pomeroy
Partnerships Manager
Josh Corner
Copywriter
Dominic Ollhoff
Short Form Content Manager
Alex LaCroix
Partnerships Coordinator
Ellie Steffens
Marketing Coordinator
Trevor Vaubel
Content Specialist
Katie Andres
Events & Operations Manager
Joe Kelner
Visual Designer
Fong Thao
Graphic Designer
Joey DiGiacomo
Team Ops Coordinator
Kenzee Johnson
People Operations & HQ Coordinator
Shannon Beverly
Production Coordinator
Ryan Melin
Junior Content Specialist
Will DuPont
Junior Content Specialist
Kyle Carthel
Junior Video Editor
OWNERSHIP
JONATHAN WILF
Ownership Partner & PRESIDENT
Jonathan Wilf is an ownership partner and president of Version1 overseeing the organization on behalf of the ownership group. Jonathan recently wrapped up his 15th season as a member of the Vikings ownership group and his 7th as the team’s executive vice president of strategic planning and business initiatives. As vice president, Jonathan serves on the Vikings management team and plays a leadership role in developing revenue-generating initiatives for the organization as well as enhancing and expanding technology applications within the Vikings and at U.S. Bank Stadium. Jonathan served on the new stadium development team and in the planning of the new team headquarters in Eagan.
Jonathan is a partner in Garden Homes, the family-owned, nationwide leader in retail, commercial and private residential development based in Short Hills, N.J. He holds an engineering degree from the University of Pennsylvania, where he studied computer science, and a J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law of Yeshiva University. Jonathan is actively engaged in philanthropy as a trustee of the Wilf Family Foundations and has a passion for supporting causes that involve children and education.
STEVEN WILF
Ownership Partner
Steven Wilf is an ownership partner of Version1 and a partner at Garden Homes, the family-owned, nationwide leader in retail, commercial and private residential real estate development. Steven graduated from the University of Michigan’s College of Literature Science and the Arts. He also serves on the Young Benefactors of The First Tee of Metropolitan New York and the Rex Next Real Estate Committee of UJA Federation of NY. Steven is a trustee of the Wilf Family Foundations and supports many organizations with a particular focus and interest in education and science. Steven is an avid golfer and resides in New York City.
GARY VAYNERCHUK
Ownership Partner
Gary Vaynerchuk is an ownership partner of Version1. He is a serial entrepreneur, five-time New York Times Best-Selling Author, Chairman of VaynerX, CEO of VaynerMedia, CEO of VaynerSports, and Co-Founder of Empathy Wines. He’s a highly sought after public speaker, as well as a prolific angel investor with early investments in companies such as Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Venmo, and Uber.
Gary builds businesses. Beginning at a young age, he capitalized on his entrepreneurial spirit and started his very own lemonade franchise and sold baseball cards at local malls. From there, he began working at his family wine store, where he grew the business from a $3M to a $60M business in just five years. In addition, he transitioned the company to one of the first e-commerce platforms for alcohol in the country resulting in explosive top-line growth.
Today, Gary is the chairman of VaynerX, a modern-day media and communications holding company and the active CEO of VaynerMedia, a full-service advertising agency servicing Fortune 100 clients with offices in the US, UK, and Singapore. In addition to VaynerMedia, VaynerX includes VaynerProductions, Gallery Media Group, The Sasha Group, Tracer, VaynerSpeakers and VaynerCommerce.. Gary also serves as a partner at VaynerSports, Green Street and Resy.
In addition to running multiple businesses, Gary hosts a daily show called “Tea with GaryVee” and is also the host of The GaryVee Audio Experience, a top 100 global podcast; and the host of #AskGaryVee, a business and advice Q&A show on YouTube.