Suffolk Launches Sports Center of Excellence Led by Ex-Nike Executive

Suffolk Construction has launched a national Sports Center of Excellence and handed it to Matt Swaim, a former Nike vice president with more than 25 years of sports and entertainment project experience.

The Boston-based contractor announced the new unit on Oct. 1. It will concentrate the firm's work on stadiums, training facilities, arenas, collegiate recreation centers and other venues.

Swaim joined Suffolk in 2024 as executive vice president, according to his LinkedIn profile. Before that, he served at Nike as vice president of real estate, design and construction, where he led the master planning and delivery of the company's 300-acre, 4-million-square-foot campus expansion.

What will the new division actually do?

In his new role, Swaim will sharpen Suffolk's preconstruction and planning practices, support project staffing across the firm, and push consistent approaches to risk management, scheduling and execution throughout the unit, according to the announcement.

Suffolk also emphasized preconstruction as the division's core discipline. To that end, the company appointed Will Gamba as vice president of preconstruction for its Sports and Entertainment sector. Gamba will manage preconstruction for major sports projects from design through the guaranteed maximum price phase.

The company's track record in the sector includes the Gillette Stadium North End Zone Expansion in Foxboro, Massachusetts, completed in 2023.

Why is Suffolk reorganizing now?

The contractor tied the move to shifting demands in stadium construction. Venues have become more complex, face tighter timelines and now operate year-round, and clients increasingly expect builders to deliver more features in less time.

"Sports projects require a level of planning, coordination, and execution that matches the significance of the opening day deadline," Swaim said in the news release. "But delivering a successful sports facility is about more than meeting a date. It is about understanding how a venue will operate, connect with its community, and perform long after opening day."

The creation of a dedicated national unit signals that Suffolk intends to compete for a growing pipeline of sports venue work — and that it sees disciplined preconstruction, rather than field execution alone, as the deciding factor in winning it.