FEATURED STORY
The AI Stack We’d Use If We Owned A Sports Team
Clawd bot. AI Voice Agents. MCP. RAG. Fine-tuning. n8n. Agentic Workflows.
If the line above doesn’t sound like English, you should read this week's piece.
Every day, it feels like new AI jargon drops, and somehow, even more AI products hit the market. While some of you might be up to date - experimenting with every new tool that comes out - most sports teams still run their businesses on email and Excel.
The reality is that the sports industry as a whole is not adopting artificial intelligence at the same pace as other sectors.
So in today’s piece, we’re outlining the AI stack we would deploy if (when) we run our own professional sports team.
For the sake of brevity, we’re focused strictly on business use cases. We’ll cover on-field and on-court applications in a future piece. We also expect to revisit this topic as the landscape continues to shift rapidly.
After reading this, if you run or own a team and want help figuring out where to start in this AI race, feel free to reach out. We’re happy to help.
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LEAGUES & TEAMS
Photo: PGA Tour discloses $12.9B valuation after $1.5B SSG investment.
PGA Tour discloses 20% TGL stake via $50M investment; circuit valued at $12.9B after $1.5B SSG stake (Feb. 17th)
PGA’s Annual Report to Membership reveals TGL stake investment, which depreciated to $38.3M by end of 2024; 2026 report likely to show first full-season TGL financials
SSG paid an initial $1.5B for 11.62%, valuing the entity at $12.9B [Golf]
Former LPGA star and TGL LA Golf Club investor Michelle Wie West joins WTGL as player (Feb. 23rd)
Wie West becomes WTGL’s 8th committed player ahead of winter 2026-27 launch
Women’s league to mirror TGL model at SoFi Center via LPGA–TMRW Sports partnership [FOS]
Chicago Bears advance stadium financing talks in Indiana and Illinois amid interstate bidding war (Feb. 24th)
Indiana House passes bond bill that would over ~60% of project cost; session expires Friday, accelerating decision timeline
Illinois weighs Mega Project tax bill, including tax and infrastructure incentives; $90M lease break fee tied to Soldier Field exit [FOS]
David Blitzer reportedly in talks with IPL’s Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Rajasthan Royals franchises over a majority stake acquisition (Feb. 25th)
Blitzer’s Bolt Ventures competes with Avram Glazer, KKR, and Blackstone, among others, for the RCB or Rajasthan Royals stakes [Reuters]
LIV Golf receives $266.6M cash injection, totaling $5.3B in PIF-backed funding (Feb. 22nd)
Total PIF funding reaches $5.3B after capital infusion on Feb. 1st, 2026
LIV reportedly averages ~$100M monthly burn with possible 2026 spend exceeding total past $6B [MoneyInSport]
Former USMNT star Jozy Altidore joins Russel Westbrook in $1B OKC USL relaunch project (Feb. 19th)
$1B entertainment district tied to 2028 USL relaunch; features a 10K-seated, MLS-approved venue with $121M coming from public money
Echo Investment Capital heads the investment; backs youth soccer training facility Sogility [Sportico]
Real Madrid GK Thibaut Courtois acquires minority stake in Ligue 2 club Le Mans (Feb.19th)
Courtois invests via his SM&T investment firm NxtPlay Capital; Brazil-based sports investment firm Outfield becomes Le Mans majority shareholder
Club’s athlete–investor roster includes Novak Djokovic and ex-F1 drivers Felipe Massa & Kevin Magnussen [OneFootball]
YouTube reportedly in talks to stream four additional NFL games following successful international game streaming (Feb. 24th)
Prior Brazil stream drew 17.3M global viewers; package includes four games retained from NFL Network deal [SportsPro]
ESPN to air WNBA, NWSL in ‘Women’s Sports Sundays’ slot (Feb. 19th)
Replaces vacated MLB Sunday Night Baseball slot; includes 12 games over 9 weeks
Doubles down on ESPN’s women’s sports ambitions, including deals with the WNBA, NWSL, Athletes Unlimited softball, and volleyball leagues, among others [FOS]
FIFA ‘studies’ possible launch of proprietary cryptocurrency (Feb. 22nd)
Governing body explores FIFA token and FIFA coin for its ~6B global fanbase [SBJ]
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STARTUPS & VENTURE CAPITAL
Photo: SportIQ raises $6.2M in Series A funding.
SportIQ, a smart basketball shot tracking and shooting analytics startup, raises $6.2M in Series A funding (Feb. 19th)
Producer of FIBA-approved 9D sensor ball plans new consumer product launch in Q2 2026 and eyes smartball prototype development in ‘other sport’
Investment backed by KB Partners, Koppenberg Management, and Match Ventures [FinSMEs]
Pred, the ‘fastest’ P2P sports prediction market exchange, raises $2.5M in funding (Feb. 17th)
Funds will fuel key team hires spanning finance and sports sectors, drive market liquidity, and grow trader base
Investment led by Accel; other investors include BEF by Coinbase Ventures and Reverie, among others [BusinessInsider]
Ex-Tesla engineers launch Fort, a YC-backed strength training wearable (Feb. 17th)
Tool tracks 50+ exercises, tracking reps, power, and form against personalized goals
Company also targets the integration of bloodwork biomarker data [SportsPro]
Cristiano Ronaldo invests $7.5M for 10% stake in Herbalife’s wellness digital platform Pro2col (Feb. 19th)
Platform in US/Canada beta; EMEA expansion planned
Adds to Ronaldo’s growing wellness portfolio, including Bioniq, Erakulis, and WHOOP [Bloomberg]
PointFit, a sweat-biomarker wearable skin patch startup, receives funding from Seveno Capital, reaches a $10M valuation (Feb. 25th)
Plans to roll out a multi-biomarker platform that spans performance, metabolic health, and longevity; startup targets US and consumer markets, following elite sports applications [FittInsider]
Marquee, a pro sports recruitment and scouting decision intelligence startup, raises $1.2M in Pre-Seed funding (Feb. 17th)
Funds will fuel product development, MVP launch, and global marketing & sales
Investment led by AnD Ventures; other investors include Avishai Abrahami & Omer Shai (Wix) and Ami Serkis (365Scores), among others [YNET]
Kash, a social-native prediction market platform, raises $2M in Pre-Seed funding (Feb. 25th)
Funds will expand ops and protocol development; platform embeds prediction markets natively into X with flash markets, leverage
Investment led by Big Brain Holdings and Spartan Group; other investors include Coinbase Ventures and Kosmos Ventures, among others [FinSMEs]
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M&A AND INVESTMENTS
Photo: Ares Management reportedly plans to launch a European-focused sports fund.
Ares Management reportedly plans a European-focused sports fund by year's end (Feb. 20th)
Targets debt + equity sports, teams, and adjacent business investments; expands sports strategy beyond its dedicated US sports fund
Follows Ares’s $3.7B raise for its sports fund back in 2022; portfolio includes Chelsea FC, Inter Miami, Miami Dolphins, and France SailGP [SportsPro]
Bruin Capital, a SM&E PE firm, hires L Catterton’s Adam Hasiba as its first MD, to target sports, entertainment, and consumer/media intersections (Feb. 24th)
Follows Bruin $1B raise in January via 26North, TJC; Hasiba to target fan-engagement, media, and experiential platforms [Sportico]
Indian Golf Premier League raises $100M from 10 franchise owners (Feb. 23rd)
Each franchise reportedly commits $10M over ten years, alongside a collective $250M infrastructure pledge
Franchises span Hyderabad, Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, and Chennai, among others [AdvancedTV]
Interactive Strength, a connected fitness brand holdco, acquires game-based connected rowing machine company Ergatta to expand gaming tech (Feb. 18th)
Ergatta to continue operating as a standalone brand; CEO and leadership team remain
Deal adds to Interactive’s recent Wattbike, Climbr, and Forme acquisitions [Ergatta]
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STRATEGIC VENTURES
Photo: NHL installs Cosm’s C360 Capture Systems 10.5K cameras in all arenas.
NHL installs Cosm’s C360 Capture Systems 10.5K cameras in all arenas (Feb. 25th)
Deployment spans 1.5K+ games annually, captures every play, player, and every ‘inch of the ice’
Four C360 systems per arena across 32 venues support replay, EDGE tracking, and officiating review [Cosm]
Jump launches agentic AI suite for pro sports organizations, post-$23M Series A (Feb. 19th)
Pricing, inventory, and intelligence tools span ticketing, revenue strategy, and fan engagement
Follows $23M round led by Alexis Ohanian last year; partners include Denver Summit FC, North Carolina Courage, and Minnesota Timberwolves & Lynx [Jump]
Note: Jump is a portfolio company of Courtside Ventures
Pro League Network, a niche sports producer, debuts FAST channel via Prime Video and LG (Feb. 24th)
Move will spotlight creator-driven sports, featuring the Ford Bronco Extreme Golf Invitational & Optima Motorodeo, and replays of Kai Cenat’s CarJitsu battle & T-Pain’s debut of Chest Chop [SportsVideo]
MLB expands its multiyear TikTok content partnership (Feb. 24th)
#MLB posts up ~60% in 2025, with 10.7M+ followers across accounts
Select creators gain access to an MLB archive along with collaborative league-creator initiatives [MLB]
2K will add college hoops to NBA 2K26 (Feb. 20th)
First inclusion in NBA 2K adds 16 universities to ‘myTEAM’ and ‘myCAREER’ gameplays; potential full mode expected in 2027 [SportsPro]
San Diego Wave FC signs multiyear deal with sports sponsorship activation startup PlayMaker Software (Feb. 19th)
AI platform manages contract activations, tracks progress, and builds proposals
Move builds on PlayMaker’s deal with Austin FC late 2025; marks the platform’s first NWSL client [SBJ]
ArenaDocs, a sports-focused contract drafting and review tool for sports and entertainment, launches SaaS for teams’ in-house counsel (Feb. 25th)
Legal AI platform spans drafting, editing, and reviewing contracts ranging from common industry practices, including suite sales and sponsorships, among others [SBJ]
Rugby League Commercial taps SI (formerly Sportz Interactive) to deploy AI highlight automation via ‘Automated Content Technology’ (Feb. 24th)
Integrates AI clipping for real-time match highlights; SI supports 150+ global clients with its FanOS platform, including UEFA, FIBA, IPL, and UFC, among others [SuperLeague]
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JOB BOARD
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Now - here are some cool roles we found and personally curated this week. Enjoy!