Brian Michael Cooper
Brian Michael Cooper is President of the Houston Roughnecks. Prior to joining the Roughnecks, Cooper was a law partner in the Houston and Denver offices of Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP and a member of the firm’s Entertainment, Media and Sports Practice.
Cooper has over 20 years of experience as a sports attorney, agent, executive and advisor, and is a four-time Super Lawyers Texas Rising Star. Before returning to his law practice, Cooper served as Director of Sports Programming for DISH Network. Cooper also served as Senior Associate Athletic Director at Rice University and President of the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the NBA G-League affiliate of the Houston Rockets. During his tenure with the Vipers, Cooper negotiated the first single-team hybrid affiliation agreement between an NBA and NBA G-League team, an alliance that culminated in the Vipers’ 2010 NBA G-League championship.
Prior to joining the Vipers, Cooper worked as an attorney at Haynes Boone LLP in Houston. For his work in Houston sports, he received the Outstanding Service Award from the Houston Bar Association’s (HBA) Entertainment and Sports Law (ESL) Section in 2009 and 2012, along with the HBA ESL Chairman’s Award in 2014. Cooper began his legal career at Proskauer LLP in New York, where his clients included the NBA, NHL, ATP, and MLS.
A graduate of Cornell University, Harvard Kennedy School, and Columbia Law School, Cooper has served on the boards of Texas Accountants and Lawyers for the Arts and Interfaith Ministries of Greater Houston. An avid runner, he also has completed five New York City Marathons and two Houston Aramco Half Marathons.
Cooper lives in The Woodlands, Texas with his wife Jacqueline and their daughter Kendall.