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In 2023, sports tech racked up over $37 billion in M&A and financing deals, according to Drake Star. That’s a ton of momentum, especially with 790 private financing deals—up from 752 last year—driven mainly by early-stage companies. Sure, the competition for funding is tougher now than it was a few years back, but that hasn’t stopped exciting new ventures from popping up. Just look at Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier's 3-on-3 league, Unrivaled, Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy's TMRW Sports, and the sports-betting content platform SoBet. With so many fresh ideas in play, the sports industry is set for an exciting future! #VentureCapital #Startup #SportsInvestments

Get ready to be blown away by the fast-paced revolution happening in the American Football industry! 🏈 At BestStartup US, we recently published an illuminating article spotlighting 10 trailblazing US-based startups in American football. These inspiring companies are not just making a mark but effectively changing the game! Deep dive into their inspiring journey here: https://lnkd.in/dAhV3n3T Featuring: Hall of Fame Resort & Entertainment Company, an impressive sports, entertainment, and media giant transforming the football scene. Answers Analytics, cofounded by Jon Shalala, revolutionizing football coaching with real-time analytics. National Collegiate Rugby, founded by veteran Steve Cohen, nurturing talent and fostering growth in collegiate rugby. ProU Sports, conceptualized by Thomas Coiner, recreating fan engagement with their unique sports platform. Pro Hooper, disruptively merging contact management and sporting events, making it a much easier field for pro hoopers to navigate. SearchYourTeam, the brainchild of Gaetan Ekoondo & Wesley Mukerinkindi, connecting talented young athletes to professional football opportunities. CEOAthletics, envisioned by Logan Dickey & Michael Fanous, is leading the charge in leveraging college athletes' names and likenesses for sustainable incomes. FL Newsletter, the brainchild of Matthew Berry, delivering free, quality football content right to your inbox every morning! Hall of Fame Bets, co-founded by Erik Jones and Hari Meyyappan, merges the exciting worlds of football, baseball, and basketball, through predictive analytics. Together, these pioneering startups are paving a dynamic path for the future of American football. Join the game and celebrate their innovation! #AmericanFootball #Startups #Innovation #BestStartupUS #SportsTech

Ashley Rodriguez and I reached out to top sports VCs and other investors asking for two promising startups — one they've invested in and one they haven't. We compiled a list of 25 startups innovating in sports, from companies developing AI for pro teams to fledgling leagues to hormone testing that could help female athletes. They're changing the game in media, betting, venue security, memorabilia, and more. Read the full list for Business Insider: https://lnkd.in/ezfuQ3Kt

Been on my mind that many of the VCs I've talked to have played high level sports, whether in college or as pros, and I wanted to share some of my ideas as to why this might be the case. From a high level, sports recruitment is not unlike venture capital investment in terms of the respective odds of success. According to Tifo and The Athletic, less than 50% of football transfers turn out to be successful while only a handful of newly acquired players in each transfer window become massive wins. As a fan of Manchester United, I didn't need the stats to prove this hit rate. Meanwhile, around 50% of early-stage VC-backed companies return less than 1X the initial investment with only 15-20 companies per year accounting for 85%+ of industry returns. The key to success in either game is to get your hands on one or more of the small number of outliers and continue to back them, whether through follow-on rounds or coaching. Both industries are also massively competitive. Clearly the most successful sportspeople are some of the most determined people on the planet, just look at a swimmer's training schedule or a boxer's gritted teeth mid-fight. But I would argue VC is just as competitive. In the last few decades, the VC industry has seen huge inflows of LP $ which have transformed it from a boutique craft industry to a fierce game of massive firms. Every hot deal is battled over by the top investors, sales has become one of the key skills of a young VC, and firms like a16z have built out thousand-person teams to win over founders. Some firms have also moved into earlier rounds in the hope of beating competition to the best deals, but this has just shifted the trenches downard toward seed and series A. So I feel that there may be truth to the idea that former athletes succeed in venture because they have developed a killer instinct to overcome their competitors. Furthermore, there is an emphasis on continuous improvement in both sport and VC. The greatest athletes, take Ronaldo or Tiger, train even harder than those below them. The mission does not stop when they reach the top. They continue to perfect their skills and improve even the most minute details of their game. This is similarly true of great VCs. A VC should always be learning, whether a generalist diving into a new thesis area or a specialist going even deeper into their existing knowledge base. I've heard more than one of the VCs I admire say that they'll know their time is up when they no longer feel the need to continue learning. On a personal note, I find the excitement of sport and VC comparable in ways. Of course the feeling of a last minute goal can't be replicated but the idea of helping a team of two or three people build a world-changing tech company massively excites me. Without any proof, I could imagine former pro sportspeople wanting to make the transition to VC to keep some of the sheer excitement they felt as an athlete.

Technology is changing how leagues/teams operate and how fans consume sports. And the money is following great ideas. In 2023, the sports tech sector saw $37B in deals and $7B in new money raised for investment funds. 2024 will probably be another strong year of funding as well. But raising capital as a founder isn't for the faint of heart. It takes: - Persistence - Persuasion - Product - Patience - Passion (Plus a great pitch deck) Check out these 17 sports startups and the pitch decks they used to raise millions from investors. #sportstech #sportsbusiness #investing

#CA-based ALT Sports Data secures $2.5million in seed #funding. This round was co-led by Eberg Capital and Relay Ventures, with additional participation from Trinity West Ventures, NuFund Venture Group and several notable sports and technology industry veterans. ALT Sports Data is at the forefront of #utilizing proprietary data to activate a growing wave of new sports #enthusiasts. Their mission revolves around building the most extensive database and league portfolio in #alternative sports, offering a gateway for sports book #operators to tap into an audience of over 83 million potential bettors in the United States alone, with a global reach exceeding 1 billion. This funding round comes as ALT Sports Data has secured 17 official league rights deals and 35 commercial #agreements. With early revenue being generated across three fronts: data, demand generation, and league services; and the #infrastructure built and now proven, in 2024, these funds will be utilized to efficiently scale the #business. ALT Sports Data is the leading source of official and #unofficial alternative sports trading data unlocking millions of #participatory fans and potential bettors for #sportsbook operators, media platforms and event producers. ALT Sports Data, Inc. Eberg Capital Relay Ventures Trinity West Ventures, LLC NuFund Venture Group Simon Sokol Joe Dunnigan To share your startup story write us on - [email protected] #altsportsdata #funding #startup

"15 sports startups raised millions through their pitch decks, showcasing the booming opportunities in the sports industry. From tech innovation to sports betting, the market is ripe for disruption. Check out the key takeaways and insights from their successful funding rounds. #SportsStartups #PitchDecks #FundingSuccess"

Do you want to own a sports team? There’s a new way that investors are getting ownership in sports…investing in the future winnings of athletes. Imagine placing $100 in your favorite rising star for them to go on to generate hundreds of millions in career earnings! Here are a few sports-tech startups that’ll allow you to do just that: 💸NILLY – invest in future NIL earnings & rights of your favorite college football or basketball players/teams 🏌🏽Carry – invest in undervalued pro golfers & receive a share of future earnings and access to exclusive experiences 🏈Vestible – buy & trade stock in athlete’s salaries. Broncos LB Baron Browning is offering up 1% of his future salary 🎾FANtium – invest in rising tennis stars, and get a piece of their success ⚾Big League Advantage – invest in future earnings of rising MLB stars. Fernando Tatis Jr. paid $30M to investors They seem more 'fintech' than 'sports-tech' but we cover this & a lot more in our latest edition of “The 4th Quarter”. Give it a read and let me know if you learned something! 👇🏽

Are you looking for an exciting, innovative and potentially profitable way to diversify your investment portfolio? Consider the world of sports collectibles! From baseball cards to signed memorabilia, these objects of fandom are becoming a hot trend in the world of alternative investments. And when it comes to investing in these pieces, there’s a standout platform making things incredibly simple - Collectable. We dive into this rising trend in our latest article "Is Investing in Sports Collectibles the next Big Alternative Asset Trend?" (https://lnkd.in/eB_TarCm) Founded by David Yoken, Jason Epstein, and Ross Schimel, Collectable is a New York-based startup that has created a fractional investment platform for sports collectibles, allowing anyone to invest in high-end collectibles, akin to investing in stocks. They've set numerous IPO records and have been featured by prominent media outlets including Bloomberg and Forbes. Are you ready to delve into an investment opportunity that's both nostalgic and cutting edge? Check out the full article now! #Investment #AlternativeAssets #SportsCollectibles #Collectable #FinTech

#CO-based Splash secures $14.1million in series A2 round #funding. Boston Seed, Velvet Sea Ventures, K5, Elysian Park, Acies Investments, Accomplice, and Counterview were among the backers. Trybe Ventures, Erik Seidel, Adam Levitan, Sam Kennedy, Theo Epstein, Jonathan Kraft, Mike Gordon, and Peter Jennings. With the money, the company hopes to #concentrate on creating new kinds of real-money games, building community, and quickening the expansion of the Commissioner Economy—a platform that lets #influencers, brands, sports media personalities, and content #creators interact with and make money from their audiences in novel ways. Additionally, the #business has opened up its Partner Solutions branch, which aims to help #advertisers reach over 2 million active sports-related gamers who generate over 750 million page views annually throughout the Splash portfolio. Splash, which was founded in 2021, is a peer-to-peer, real-money #gaming platform where friends and groups that are #passionate about sports may play against one another. Boston Seed Capital Velvet Sea Ventures Elysian Park Ventures Acies Investments Accomplice VC Counterview Capital To share your startup story write us on - [email protected] #splashsports #funding #startup