Tilman J. Fertitta currently serves as the United States Ambassador to Italy and San Marino. He presented his credentials to President Sergio Mattarella on May 6, 2025. The Ambassador who was born in Galveston, Texas and has lived in Houston, Texas throughout his life, is an American billionaire businessman, television personality, New York Times best-selling author, and professional sports team owner.

Fertitta is the sole owner of Fertitta Entertainment which owns the restaurant giant Landry’s, the Golden Nugget Hotel and Casinos, and the NBA’s Houston Rockets. Through his restaurant and hospitality company, Fertitta owns more than 600 properties in 36 states and over 15 countries. His restaurants include a signature collection of more than 60 award-winning restaurant concepts such as Catch, Mastro’s, Morton’s The Steakhouse, Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse, Chart House, and two of New York’s most famous - Keen’s Steakhouse and The Corner Store. He also owns over a dozen popular casual dining brands such as Rainforest Café and Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. Fertitta’s hotel division includes two Forbes Five-Star properties, the Montage Laguna Beach Resort Hotel and The Post Oak Hotel at Uptown Houston. Fertitta also owns the NBA’s Houston Rockets, purchased for $2.2 billion in 2017, and the eight Golden Nugget Casinos. Additionally, he is the largest shareholder with a 12.5% stake in Wynn Resorts and the largest individual shareholder in the global online gaming giant DraftKings, with this Fertitta has positioned himself as a major influence in the world’s premier luxury and gaming brands.

With a net worth of $11.3 billion, Forbes ranks him among the 100 wealthiest Americans. He starred in CNBC’s “Billion Dollar Buyer” and authored the best-selling book “Shut Up and Listen!” Additionally, Fertitta served as Chairman of the Board of Regents at the University of Houston System for over eleven years, until being appointed as U.S. Ambassador, where the Fertitta Center (sports arena) and the Tilman J. Fertitta Medical School have been named in his honor.