Betting on expertise – Biggest growth opportunity in sports – Metabolic health – AI personal training – Materials science – Omnichannel fitness – IoT automation – Digital venues
Week 43
Skin In The Game is a weekly newsletter dedicated to investing in sports & health startups. We highlight the founders and investors shaping the future of sports and its adjacent markets.
We also run a regulated investment club that connects investors with founders and industry experts across emerging sports & health technologies like AI, Psychedelics, Web3 and the Metaverse.
Join our community
If you find this free newsletter useful, consider joining our Investment Club for founders, investors, and industry experts in sports & health.
Subscribers get access to live investment opportunities sourced from our community; our investment database (with thousands of sports & health deals and investors active in recent months); a private LinkedIn group; and investment insights from our network of industry experts.
Confessions
As stock indices tank and rates climb higher, Scott and I have been hard at work formalising our expert network, with a view to generating deal flow and domain expertise for our investment club.
It’s been a busy, productive, and at times frustrating period as we seek to simplify things and sharpen up the commercial proposition for investors, founders, and industry experts. It’s fair to say we’ll both be glad when this planning phase is over and we can focus on executing.
We have a strong network in sports and health, but nailing people down as partners and finding a structure for the expert network that benefits us and them has been an interesting and very worthwhile challenge. We think we have that now, and it might be useful to share the basic shape of what this looks like.
Our thesis is that expertise is undervalued in early-stage investing. The era of generically positioned venture funds and crowdfunding platforms funnelling dumb money into random tech startups is ending (at least, it should be). It’s 2022; in all things people seek specificity, expertise, and passion for the cause. So it makes sense to build a verticalised business around an investment universe that’s technologically innovative, ridiculously emotive, and influencer-driven. Hence sports and health.
Nobody can be an expert at everything. Instead of positioning ourselves as gurus, we are focusing on creating a platform for experts, investors and founders to collaborate and co-invest. This already happens informally – investors ask experts for feedback on deals (as Venture Partners, consultants, LPs etc). But nobody is productising this process, enabling investors to systematically draw upon the insights and wisdom of domain experts to de-risk investments.
To achieve that we’re building a squad of domain experts to cover the core investment themes in sports & health that excite us right now – Mental Health (including Psychedelics), Artificial Intelligence, Wearables & Connected Health, Web3, Metaverse & VR/AR, eSports, and a plethora of other technological fields that we cannot possibly cover as a two-man band.
This process has been ongoing for the past year via this newsletter, endless Zoom calls, and IRL meetings, and we are now beginning to nail people down and formalise how we can work with them. It’s exciting. We think we’re building something of great value to the eco-system.
Why are we so obsessed with experts? Because they’re nodes that drive network effects. They also have massive utility value. They are nothing less than the engine of our business, sourcing, analysing, and promoting investment opportunities.
What can we offer them in return for all this help? How do we incentivise the best and brightest in the sports & health industry to help us? By offering preferential access to our community of founders and investors – and early access to deal flow.
This is a clear exchange of value that costs everyone nothing but time. Of course time is valuable, but ROI can be easily measured and learnings applied. So risk is low, and reward is high. We are creating optionality for experts, and ourselves. And we’re betting (perhaps naively, but we don’t care) that if we connect with people authentically over a shared vision for the future of sports and health, good things will happen.
If this interests you, drop us a line and we can talk you through it in more depth. And if it doesn’t interest you, we’d love to know why, so we can refine our model.
Deal Flow
This week we have 45 sports & health deals across Health & Wellness, Web3, Esports & Metaverse, IoT, Sports Betting, Fitness, Apparel & Merch, Psychedelics, Nutrition, Funds & Accelerators, Fertility, Media, Sponsorship, Outdoor Pursuits, and Sports Venues.
For access to our investment database with thousands of sports & health deals and investors active in recent months – along with live investment opportunities – consider joining our Investment Club.
Fitness
🇦🇺 Vitruvian Raises $15M in Series A Funding – Vitruvian, an Australia-based in-home power and private coaching platform, raised a Sequence A funding spherical of $15m. Backers included Larsen Ventures and Ten13.
💻 Fitr Closes SaaS Fit Tech Fundraising Round at $1.2M – The global SaaS business which provides a unique all-in-one remote coaching software, closed an oversubscribed fundraising round at $1.2M. Fitr generated interest from institutions, private investors, and high-profile industry players, including CrossFit sporting legend Mat Fraser.
🤖 Altis Closes $10.5M Seed Round, Increasing Financing by 50% for its AI Personal Trainer – Altis, an AI personal trainer powered by the world's first Movement Operating System, announced over $3M in financing, bringing its total financing to date to $10.5M, with additional investments from Mike Capps, former head of gaming titan Epic Games, Bill Flynn, former CEO of Amtrak, and US Olympians JR Celski and Georganne Moline.
Health & Wellness
🩸 Metabolic Health Startup Levels Adds $38M Series A – The company’s series A round was primarily made up of operator investors like Andrea Funsten (Basecamp Fund), Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal (Acquired Podcast), Lenny Rachitsky and the Airbnb Alumni Syndicate, and more. Additionally, Levels received investments from more than 1,400 members, hitting the crowdfunding limit of $5M in less than six hours.
👵 DUOS Secures $15M Series A to Double Down on its “System of Aging” – DUOS, a digital health company on a mission to increase the longevity and independence of older adults, closed a $15M Series A funding led by Imaginary Ventures, along with participation from existing investors Forerunner Ventures, Declaration Partners, and new investor Optum Ventures.
🩸 9am.health Raises $16M Series A To Build a Comprehensive Virtual Diabetes – 9am.health, a fast-growing virtual diabetes clinic that delivers personalised, affordable, and compassionate care directly to consumers, closed a $16M Series A funding round. The latest round was co-led by 7Wire Ventures and Human Capital and included participation from new investors StartUp Health and Leaps by Bayer, and existing investors Define Ventures and Founders Fund.
🇺🇸 Nudj Health raises $10M in Series A Funding to Deliver Evidence-Based Lifestyle Medicine – The round was led by Nebraska Medicine, Teal Ventures, Cohn Family Trust and HIP (Health Innovation Pitch).
🐛 Caterpillar receives £450,000 for app that rewards a healthy lifestyle with popular loyalty points – Caterpillar, the digital rewards app for health promotion, education and behavioural change, has received £450K in funding from investors including Jenson Funding Partners.
Web3
🏏 NFT Cricket Platform Rario Raises $120M Round Led by Dream Capital – Alpha Wave Global also participated in the funding round and joined existing investors, gaming company Animoca Brands and venture capital funds Presight Capital and Kingsway Capital.
⚽️ Billionaire Peter Lim’s ZujuGP Buys Tokigames As Digital Platform Pursues Online Football Gamification – ZujuGP, cofounded by billionaire Peter Lim and his son Kiat Lim, has acquired the team behind Tokigames as the digital platform for football seeks to gamify the sport for online fans.
⛓ NFT betting firm Stakes raises $5.3m to build out social wagering platform – New York-based startup Stakes has raised $5.3M in seed funding to continue development of a social wagering platform where players compete for bragging rights and NFTs rather than direct financial gains. Participants in the round include Digital Currency Group, FBG Capital, CMS Holdings, LD Capital, Cadenza Ventures, Matrixport Ventures, and Sterling Select Group.
⚽️ Goals raises $15M to build NFT alternative to FIFA video game – Swedish startup Goals has raised $15M in seed funding to help build an NFT-based soccer video game that can be a genuine alternative to EA Sports’ FIFA series. The round was led by Northzone and included previous investors Cherry Ventures, Moonfire Ventures and Banana Capital. Also on board were high profile angel investors, including FC Barcelona defender Gerard Pique, the co-founder of NFT video game Axie Infinity, and Sorare co-founder Nicolas Julia.
Esports & Metaverse
🚴♀️ Wahoo Acquired Virtual Training Platform RGT Cycling – A Zwift competitor, RGT’s virtual training platform has gained acceptance in the cycling community since launching in late 2019.
🎮 Epic Games raises $2bn to grow metaverse efforts – Game developer and publisher Epic Games has raised a $2bn round of financing involving Sony Group Corporation and KIRKBI.
🎮 Community Gaming closes $16m Series A round – Esports tournaments platform Community Gaming has closed a $16m Series A funding round, led by SoftBank Group. The round was carried out via Softbank’s SB Opportunity Fund and included participation from Animoca Brands, Binance Labs, BITKRAFT Ventures and Griffin Gaming Partners.
🏁 Animoca Brands acquires Eden Games for $16M to grow motorsport ecosystem – Metaverse and blockchain gaming firm Animoca Brands has purchased French developer Eden Games in a $16M deal designed to enhance and extend the former’s REVV motorsport ecosystem.
IoT
🤖 IoT Automation Pioneer KINEXON Raises $130m in Funding Round Led by Thomas H. Lee Partners – BMW i Ventures and Telekom Innovation Pool co-invest and announce commercial partnerships.
Sports betting
🎲 Better Collective acquires FUTBIN and related domains for €105m – Sports betting media group Better Collective has announced the acquisition of FIFA community platform FUTBIN and its related assets for up to €105m (~£87m).
🎰 TAPPP Raises $10m And Is Launching Live Betting Service With Major League Rugby – The NYC company was formed in 2012 and focused on developing pre-paid cards for access to live and archived sporting events, striking deals with Major League Baseball and the National Football League.
Advanced materials
👨🔬 LifeLabs Secures $6M Series Seed 3 Funding – Materials science company LifeLabs closed a $6M Series Seed 3 financing round led by Asia Green Fund, bringing total funding to $13.8M.
Apparel & Merch
👟 Allyson Felix’s Saysh Secures Multimillion-Dollar Investment From Iris Ventures – Saysh, the women’s lifestyle brand cofounded by Olympic track and field champion Allyson Felix, is ready to dash into new territory with millions of dollars in series A financing led by the new, specialist consumer fund Iris Ventures, with participation from Redpoint Ventures.
Psychedelics
🏥 Numinus to Acquire Novamind, Creating the North American Industry Leader in Psychedelic Therapy and Research – Following the deal, the combined company will operate 13 wellness clinics and will be positioned as a leading psychedelic-assisted therapy provider in North America.
🍄 Nue Life Health raises $23M Series A Led by Obvious Ventures for psychedelics platform – The startup raised a $23M Series A equity financing led by Obvious Ventures (co-founded by Ev Williams, Co-founder of Twitter), which also includes additional venture debt financing from Western Technology Investment. The lion share for the round was in equity.
Nutrition
🍃 Leaft Foods yields protein from the world's most abundant source: leaves – The company has raised a Series A round of $15M from Khosla Ventures, NBA star Steven Adams, New Zealand indigenous investor Ngāi Tahu and sovereign health provider ACC via their Climate Change Impact Fund.
🧃 Aaron Judge, Lexi Thompson, Bryson DeChambeau Among Investors In A SHOC Energy Drink’s $29M Series B Round – New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, golfers Lexi Thompson, Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka, Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman, Washington Commanders defensive end Chase Young, professional skateboarder Paul Rodriguez, NASCAR driver Chase Elliott and Pro Football Hall of Famer Michael Strahan are among the investors in the latest round. Keurig Dr Pepper, A SHOC co-founder Lance Collins and 7-Ventures, LLC, the venture arm of the 7-Eleven convenience store chain, also participated in the round.
🍗 Umiami goes big – “Meatless meat” company raised $30m from lead Astanor Ventures, together with VERSO CAPITAL, Kima Ventures, Redalpine, Newfund, French Partners, and Bpifrance.
🧉 Koia secures investment from A-listers ahead of Series B round – Plant-based nutrition beverage company Koia has closed an investment bridge round from a group of professional sports and entertainment icons. Celebrity investors include The Weeknd, Kevin Hart and his trainer Ron “Boss Everline, Kyler Murray, Ryan O’Reilly, Josh Bell, Cordae, Internet Money and Pink Sweats. Also contributing to the round were Karpreilly, AF Ventures, Monogram Capital and CircleUp. The round will lead to a larger Series B funding this summer, according to the company.
🐓 The plant-based meat startup that raised $10M for its alternative chicken nuggets – The San Francisco-based company recently closed a seed round at $7M. The round was led by Stray Dog Capital, with additional support from Standard Meat Company, a privately-owned meat processing and packaging company suppling major national restaurant and supermarket chains.
🍒 Deebo Samuel, Lindsey Horan Among First Athlete Investors In Cheribundi – Lindsey Horan, Tyrese Haliburton, Michaela Onyenwere and Samuel are the cherry drink brand’s first-ever athlete investors.
🍽 Upside Foods valued at over $1B after Temasek, Abu Dhabi Growth Fund-led funding – Upside Foods has raised $400M in a funding round led by Temasek and Abu Dhabi Growth Fund, valuing the cultivated meat company at over $1 billion, the company said on Thursday. SoftBank (9984.T) Vision Fund 2 and Synthesis Capital are among the investors who took part in the latest round.
Funds, Accelerators & Venture Builders
🤑 Cardinal Sports, Hot Paper Lantern Form $100M Startup Accelerator – Financial services business Cardinal Sports Capital and marketing firm Hot Paper Lantern Digital Sport are combining efforts into an accelerator program that will, in part, help Cardinal invest up to $100M in sports betting and sports technology ventures and use the resources of both businesses to hone startups’ approaches.
🇺🇸 Techstars Picks 13 Sports Tech Startups for Indianapolis Accelerator – Techstars has selected 13 startups to join its fourth-annual Indianapolis sports accelerator. Startups will receive mentorship throughout the 13-week program, whose partners include the Pacers, Colts, NCAA, Indianapolis Motor Speedway and IndyCar Series.
💵 AmerisourceBergen, #8 on the Fortune 500, sets aside $150m for its first corporate venture fund – The fund will be largely focused on early to middle stage investments, in Series A and B.
💵 Arctos Sports Partners Raises $1.1 Billion for Second Investment Fund – Sports-focused private equity firm Arctos Sports Partners has raised $1.1 billion for a second investment fund, bringing the firm’s total assets to more than $5 billion.
🤸♀️ Billie Jean King Enterprises, Elysian Park Ventures, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and R/GA Ventures to Launch First Venture Studio Focused on Women and Sports – illie Jean King Enterprises, Elysian Park Ventures, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and R/GA Ventures are launching the Trailblazer Venture Studio, a new venture studio focused on the biggest growth opportunity in sports: women. The Trailblazer Venture Studio sets out to accelerate the future of women and sports by providing unmatched industry access, insight, and strategic advantages to selected companies. This studio will partner with entrepreneurs and companies, ranging from early-stage startups to later-stage businesses, that put women leaders, athletes, and fans at the forefront of their thinking.
Fertility
👨👩👧👧 Future Family raises $25m for fertility financing – Future Family, a fertility care financing startup, had raised $25m in Series B funding led by Munich Re Ventures. Additional backers in the round also included Triventures, MS&AD Ventures, ORIX, and existing investors Aspect Ventures, Mindset Ventures and OurCrowd.
Media
📹 Sports Video Tech Company Trace Closes $47M Funding Round – Trace, which uses advanced technology to film sporting events, raised $47M in a Series C funding round. The company has reached $65.2M in total funding. The round was led by Pelion Venture Partners and also included Toba Capital, Lakestar, and NextGen VP.
📺 Video-editing platform VideoVerse raises $46.8M – Video-editing SaaS platform VideoVerse on Wednesday said it has secured $46.8M in its Series B funding that it will utilise to strengthen its team, technology and global footprint. The funding round was led by A91 Partners, Alpha Wave Global and Binny Bansal, former co-founder of Flipkart.
🎧 Jomboy Media Pulls in $5M Amid Plans for Multisport Expansion – Jomboy Media, founded by Jimmy O’Brien, closed a $5M raise. The WWE, C.C. Sabathia and Dwyane Wade are among new investors in the company, joining a round led by Connect Ventures, an investment partnership between CAA and New Enterprise Associates.
Sports venues
🏟 OnePlan gets $5.3m funding boost to build out digital venue tech – Technology company OnePlan has raised an additional $5.3M in funding from its Series A investors, Pembroke VCT and Eppes Creek Ventures.
Outdoor pursuits
⛺️ Campspace raises €3m to bring more European nature to the public – Outdoor stays platform Campspace raises €3m to drastically increase supply of privately-owned spots in nature and bring people together in the name of sustainable tourism.
Sponsorship
💰 Serena Williams’ venture fund invests seven-figure sum into OpenSponsorship – New York-based OS received the investment from Williams’ Serena Ventures. The fund joins David Blitzer, the owner of the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers and co-owner of Premier League club Crystal Palace, among OS’ notable investors.
Some tweets
I’m attending a wedding this weekend and it clashes with the F1. I’m assuming it’s not acceptable to second screen qualifying during the marriage ceremony?!
Yours in sports,
Ed
—
Ed Rhys
Co-Founder / Skin In The Game
www.skininthegamegroup.com
Join our community
If you find this free newsletter useful, consider joining our Investment Club for founders, investors, and industry experts in sports & health.
Subscribers get access to live investment opportunities sourced from our community; our investment database (with thousands of sports & health deals and investors active in recent months); a private LinkedIn group; and investment insights from our network of industry experts.
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