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The Athlete-Backed Venture Capital List
Noah Lack
October 17, 2024
In partnership with
Pictured Left to Right: Matthew Dellavedova-Athletic Ventures, Alejandro Bedoya-SeventySix Capital, Ryan Nece- Next Legacy Partners
Let’s skip the small talk,
I am getting asked by people on all sides- athletes, investors, entrepreneurs about who’s who in the world of Athlete meets Venture Capital.
So I have compiled a list of 15 athlete backed venture capital firms to help out.
Please note that each firm has a different structure and investment thesis I will briefly touch on. The common denominator is they all work for/with a group of athletes to invest, accelerate, or acquire deal flow.
The views are my own and Athletes & Assets ™ is not affiliated with any of the following firms.
THE TOP DOGS (NO PARTICULAR ORDER)
1. Next Legacy Partners
2. The Player’s Impact
3. Athletico Ventures
4. Athlete Ventures
5. Courtside VC
6. Sequel
7. SeventySixCapital
8. The Players Fund
9. The Players Company
10. The Collectiv
11. Jones Trauber Capital
12. Forma Capital
13. 4th and 1 Ventures
14. Rx3
15. Apex Capital
Next Legacy
Next Legacy has a base of Athlete LPs and invests in fund managers in the Silicon Valley ecosystem, but has possesses an inflection fund which invests directly in the enterprise, consumer, and fintech sectors.
The Player’s Impact
The Player’s Impact invests in generalist investment opportunities in an SPV (special purpose vehicle) structure. So instead of a fund, investors (which are mainly athletes) can invest on a deal by deal basis.
Athletico Ventures
Athletico Ventures helps elite athletes get access to consumer, impact, or sport & media startups.
Athletic Ventures
Not be confused with Athletico Ventures on the other side of the world, Athletic Ventures puts together syndicate funds for elite athletes to invest in sector agnostic industries in the Series A category and beyond.
Crossover VC
Over 40+ athletes are helping Crossover VC invest in pre-seed and seed stage funds as well as select early stage opportunities.
Sequel
Sequel is a invitation only private athlete backed investment firm fund based in the United Kingdom investing in early stage startups.
SeventySixCapital
SeventySix Capital is heavily indexed in the sports tech ecosystem and enables athletes to work hand and hand with portfolio companies.
The Player’s Fund
The Players Fund is UK-based firm investing in tech agnostic Seed and Series A startups.
The Players Company
The Players Company has 500+ members investing in syndicate fund deals passed along through partner VC and PE firms.
The Collectiv
The Collectiv is a new athlete community backed firm that invests in sports tech startups and emerging leagues.
Jones Trauber Capital
Jones Trauber is an Athlete backed firm investing in early stage sector agnostic tech companies.
4th and 1 Ventures
4th and 1 is an athlete membership growth stage syndicate, investing in sports tech and consumer brands in the Seed, Series A, and Series B range.
Rx3 Growth Partners
Drifting a little later than Venture, Rx3’s athlete backed fund invests in later growth stage consumer brands.
Apex Capital
With a venture arm and private equity arm, Apex has a Impact Program focused on pre-seed, their Elite Performance Fund with athlete LPs focusing on Seed/Series A, as well as a deal by deal syndicate basis.
I know, there may be 1-2 firms we missed…
Let us know! And if you’re still reading, I strongly encourage you to
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Athletes and Assets, Inc. accepts no liability for the content of this blog, or for the consequences of any actions taken on the basis of the information provided. Please invest responsibly and consult a financial advisor before making investing related decisions.