Tony Wyllie

Tony Wyllie has accepted the role of regional president and managing director of Special Olympics North America. Special Olympics is a global inclusion movement using sport, health, education and leadership programs to end discrimination against and empower people with intellectual disabilities. In his role, he will focus on enhancing the movement’s mission for over 750,000 athletes in 21 countries including Canada, the Caribbean and the United States.

Tony spent more than three decades in communications for the NFL, most recently as senior vice president of communications for the Washington Redskins. He is the only executive in the NFL to have won the Pete Rozelle Award for the best NFL public relations staff with three different teams.

After internship experiences with the Houston Oilers, San Diego Chargers and the Dallas Cowboys, Tony’s career highlights include guiding the Rams franchise through their 1995 transition from Los Angeles to St. Louis and assisting with the relocation and renaming of the Tennessee Titans. He was one of the first hires of the expansion Houston Texans in 2000, helping to build the new franchise’s image even during the two years prior to the team’s first game in 2002.

Tony, a Rice Business alumnus, earned his MBA in 2007 and received his B.A. in journalism from Texas Southern University where, as an alum, he created the TSU Pioneer award and scholarship fund to benefit graduating students in need. Tony was honored with the Southwestern Athletic Conference Alumni Association Lifetime Achievement Award for his contributions to the league’s athletic heritage and was inducted into the National Black College Alumni Hall of Fame in September, 2017.

While in Houston, Tony served on numerousboards of directors, including the Ensemble Theatre, March of Dimes, the Management Leadership for Tomorrow, John P. McGovern Museum of Health & Medical Science, the Houston Texans YMCA and the Touchdown Club of Houston. He is currently on the board at County Christian School in Ashburn, Va. and Central Loudoun Little League in Leesburg, Va.

He and his wife, Natasha, are parents of son James Anthony and daughter Toni Simone. The family resides in Northern Virginia.