Rachael Lopez – Las Vegas Raiders

Rachael Lopez has always understood what it means to be part of a team. Long before she negotiated sponsorship agreements or advised business leaders inside an NFL franchise, she was learning those lessons on the court and on the field. That athletic foundation, built through years of disciplined training and shared victories and losses, now shapes how she approaches her role as counsel for the Las Vegas Raiders.

Rachael Lopez | Las Vegas Raiders | Counsel, Legal

Raised as a multi-sport athlete, Lopez played basketball, softball, volleyball, and soccer, developing an early appreciation for accountability, preparation, and collective effort. By high school, volleyball had become her primary focus, earning her a spot on the college roster at Loyola University New Orleans, where she competed at the NAIA Division I level. After her freshman year, she transferred to Arizona State University, where she continued to play recreationally while shifting her attention toward academics and long-term career planning. She graduated from ASU’s W.P. Carey School of Business in the Honors College with a degree in business management, balancing her competitive instincts with a disciplined academic approach.

That combination of athletic drive and business acumen would later become a defining advantage. Lopez did not want to give up sports after college. Instead, she began looking for a way to remain connected to the industry while building a professional career. That search led her to an internship with the NFL Players Association, where she worked in marketing and business development for NFL Players Inc., the organization’s for-profit licensing and marketing arm. There, she gained firsthand exposure to the commercial engine that powers professional sports.

“Being an athlete, playing college volleyball, that mindset is transferable to what is required to be a lawyer and especially a lawyer for a pro sports team,” Lopez says. “Determination, discipline, and integrity. These values provide you with the foundation for how to handle legal challenges.”

The next play, from athlete to attorney

During her time at the NFLPA, Lopez became increasingly interested in the legal side of sports, particularly in licensing, intellectual property, and brand protection. Sitting across from legal interns and watching attorneys work alongside business leaders sparked a realization. The law offered a path that aligned with her values and her desire to make an impact inside sports organizations.

She enrolled at the University of Arizona’s James E. Rogers College of Law and graduated near the top of her class. After law school, Lopez joined Gallagher & Kennedy, a prominent Arizona-based law firm, where she built a broad legal foundation. Her work spanned employment defense, personal injury, commercial litigation, and insurance matters. That variety of work proved especially valuable later in her career, enabling her to evaluate risk from multiple perspectives.

“I think being a former athlete benefits your ability to be a strong lawyer in sports,” Lopez says. “You can learn the skills and be an excellent lawyer, but understanding the industry and how it works helps when you step into this world.”

Her transition from private practice to an in-house role with a professional sports team brought her the opportunity to work for the Dallas Stars of the NHL. There, Lopez shifted away from courtroom-centered work and into transactional and operational legal support. She negotiated contracts, coordinated insurance and risk management, and advised business teams on creative and commercial initiatives, all while ensuring compliance with league rules. The role provided her first opportunity to pursue the law in conjunction with her passion for athletics inside a professional sports organization, preparing her for the next step.

The path to the Silver & Black

In October 2023, Lopez joined the Las Vegas Raiders, bringing with her experience from both the NFLPA and the NHL. The move represented a return to the western United States and a strategic career leap into one of the most iconic brands in professional sports.

The Las Vegas Raiders are one of the NFL’s most historic franchises, known for their global fan base and bold identity. Since relocating to Las Vegas, the organization has become a central pillar of the city’s sports and entertainment ecosystem, anchored by Allegiant Stadium, a world-class venue that hosts Raiders games, major concerts, and global events such as the 2024 Super Bowl.

Inside that ecosystem, Lopez operates on the business side of the organization. Her responsibilities span marketing, sponsorship, stadium operations, intellectual property, data privacy, insurance, and risk management. She works closely with creative and commercial teams to bring new initiatives to life.

One of the most rewarding aspects of her role is seeing abstract legal work come to life in tangible experiences. Walking through Allegiant Stadium, Lopez sees sponsorship assets she negotiated displayed throughout the venue, integrated into game-day presentations and fan engagement efforts.

“When you go into the stadium, you’re looking around at the in-game presentation and halftime performances,” Lopez says. “I see a lot of our sponsorship deals and assets that are live in the building. It’s really cool to see these things come to life.”

That visibility reinforces the connection between legal work and fan experience. It also reflects how deeply integrated the legal department is within the Raiders organization.

Culture, community & competition

For Lopez, working with the Raiders has reinforced the parallels between athletics and law. Both environments demand preparation, resilience, and the ability to perform under pressure. Both require collaboration across diverse teams with different perspectives and expertise.

“In sports, you get people who have a sports background, but there are others who have a solid business background who see things completely differently,” Lopez says. “The more diversity, the better. That’s how you build stronger solutions.”

One of her proudest contributions is supporting the Raiders Foundation and its community initiatives. Through legal guidance and operational support, Lopez helps ensure that outreach programs are structured responsibly and positioned to make a lasting impact across Las Vegas. For her, those efforts align closely with the values she learned as a young athlete, in which community engagement and team responsibility were central.

The scale of major events has also been a defining highlight. Lopez and the Raiders’ legal team played a key role in the extensive preparation required to host the 2024 Super Bowl, managing contracts, compliance, and coordination with external partners. The experience mirrored the intensity of playoff hockey she witnessed during her time with the Dallas Stars, reinforcing the role of behind-the-scenes legal work in contributing directly to marquee moments on the national stage.

From a career perspective, Lopez recognizes how rare in-house sports roles can be. The competition for these positions is fierce, and persistence is often required to break in.

“These jobs don’t come up often, so when they do, you want to jump in and get your feet wet,” Lopez says.

Looking ahead with purpose

Having achieved what she once considered her dream role, Lopez now focuses on long-term impact rather than personal milestones. Her goals center on continued growth, expanding her expertise, and strengthening the team’s connection to the Las Vegas community.

She remains grounded in the mindset that carried her from volleyball courts to boardrooms. Discipline, preparation, and teamwork remain constant themes, regardless of the setting. Whether she is negotiating a sponsorship agreement, advising on stadium operations, or supporting community outreach, Lopez approaches each challenge with the same values and energy that once fueled her athletic career.

For her, the journey is not about reaching a finish line. It is about continuing to contribute to something larger than herself. Inside one of the NFL’s most recognizable franchises, she now plays a different position, but the objective remains the same. Contribute to the local community, lead with purpose, and help build something that lasts beyond the final whistle.