The Profluence Pod 🌐

Former Executive Director of U.S. Figure Skating Ramsey Baker dives deep into Olympic Sports, National Governing Bodies, the IOC, and the upcoming 2028 LA Summer Olympics.  Ramsey Baker is currently an SVP at Aggregate Sports.  Aggregate Sports works on behalf of a variety of sports properties, leagues, teams, and federations helping them to maximize their revenue while creating the greatest exper...

Frank Michael Smith tells his story of how he has built an audience of more than 3 million followers/subscribers and billions of views around sports and pop culture content.   Frank runs his multiple business endeavors through JUICE Productions, which includes a creative agency, sponsorships, games, and more.  A fascinating conversation on the state of social media, how to grow an audience, and th...

Pro League Network's brands include SlapFIGHT Championship, World Putting League, CarJitsu, and the Pro Carrom Tour. They have an owned audience of over 500K subscribers/followers across their brands. Pro League Network makes betable sports entertainment. They own a portfolio of brands and produce short-form, wagering-ready, and accessible live sports content for their partners to monetize (wa...

The Player’s Fund is the UK's first-ever “athlete-fueled” venture fund that aim to invest £40M with vehicle composed of athlete collectives including Chris Smalling, Carlos Boozer, Héctor Bellerín, and Serge Gnabry. Ruari Bell is an ex-professional athlete himself who has built agencies and businesses including 4cast and the Bell Partnership.  The Player’s Fund is an outlet for athletes invest...

James Kimball was at the forefront of the WWE’s groundbreaking college athlete NIL program and is now building his own agency.  Novo Sports Group is a management agency operating at the intersection of emerging athletes, talent, properties, & brands. Chapters: (02:40) Corporate to Entrepreneur (05:30) WWE’s NIL program (13:50) 5-6 figure deals (15:30) Novo Sports Group (20:20) Sports Agency La...

Jordan Rogers revamped his life after a stint in jail up the ranks at Nike and now with his own company Perseus Creative.  Perseus Creative teaches athletes, executives, & learners about personal branding, creativity, & life of service through marketing and speaking engagements.  Chapters: (01:40) From Inmate to Executive (07:10) Journey to Nike (12:30) Opportunity with Perseus Creative (1...

A multiple-time exited founder Jim Cavale is very involved in the NIL and college sports industry and sees the next opportunity with what he’s building at Athletes. Org.  Athletes.org (AO) is a 501c non-profit organization designed exclusively for college athletes to receive on-demand support in navigating their respective college athletics experience and a voice to speak into the future of colleg...

In 2013, Tom Waterhouse (.com) was sold to William Hill Australia for a 20x plus exit. WaterhouseVC invests in listed and unlisted businesses related to wagering and gaming. Whilst the Fund has a concentrated portfolio, the fund is diversified across both geography and market capitalization. Tom Waterhouse comes from the fourth generation of the Waterhouse racing dynasty and is the grandson of one...

After getting fired from his sports radio job, Kevin Jones put his last $17,000 of savings to build Blue Wire.  Kevin Jones has over 12 years of experience in the sports industry as a beat reporter for the 49ers at KNBR, team reporter for the Cleveland Browns, and contributor to WUSA-TV in Washington D.C. Blue Wire is a sports podcasting platform with over 500 shows under its umbrella. They have r...

Kyle Martino spent 6 years in the MLS and is currently building a handful of soccer companies after many years as a TV analyst and a run for President of U.S. Soccer.  Martino’s portfolio includes Street FC, Football Cafe, Over Under Initiative, and Goalpher.  Chapters: (01:40) Transitioning from athlete to next stage (05:15) From sports to entrepreneurship (08:35) Creating community (11:00) Over...

As sports continue to grow as an asset class, venture capitalist & tech executive Soma Somesegar has entered the space through ownership.  Soma is a majority owner of the Seattle Orcas in Major League Cricket and a minority owner of the Major League Soccer team Seattle Sounders. He is the current managing director of Madrona Venture Group.  This was a great conversation on Soma’s journey from...

Andrew Steinwold first bought Bitcoin in 2013 and now runs a $100M venture fund focused around the metaverse.  Sfermion is a multi-strategy investment firm focused on the immersive internet. Their mission is to accelerate the emergence of the metaverse by investing in the companies & founders creating the digital future.  Sports and the metaverse have massive overlap, which led to a great conv...

Homefans is experiencing massive MoM growth for their marketplace where fans can connect, plan, and book sports trips and experiences hosted by locals. Luke Verbeek spent 1 year in the corporate world before jumping into entrepreneurship and founding HomeFans in 2014.  Homefans is currently focused on soccer in Europe and South America, but plans to expand to more sports and regions in the near fu...

Didier Occident speaks to some of the most significant football programs in the world about financial literacy, wealth building, and maximizing earnings off the field.  Didier created Secure The Bag to present this to collegiate teams like Alabama, Washington, and Florida State. He also founded Occident Wealth Management (under Northwestern Mutual) where he signed on more clients in 6 months than...

Ferran is the CEO and Managing Director of Gasol16 Ventures, Pau Gasol's business and strategic investing vehicle.  Prieto also co-founded Everest Talent Management to help a variety of athletes to maximize their "off-the-field" impact and economic opportunities. Working with athletes is a long-term, strategic approach to their non-playing activities that not only make a mark on thei...

(01:20): Business of Athletes - KD invests in cycling, Zion Williamson is in trouble, and more (06:00): NIL/College Sports - Pac12 is dying, Arch Manning deal, and interesting $5M collective agreement (10:50): Sports Business - $70M VC fund, $1B Adidas x soccer team deal, and other important stories

Combat IQ is the world's first AI-powered data analytics company dedicated to combat sports using machine learning and computer vision.  Prior to founding Combat IQ, Tim Malik worked as a professional football scout in the Canadian Football League.  They raised a pre-seed round in late 2022 and completed Techstars in London. Combat IQ plans to expand outside of just combat sports in 2024.  Cha...

Betr recently completed a $35M Series A2 ($300M valuation) led by tech entrepreneur Joey Levy and influencer Jake Paul.  Betr is labeled as the world’s first microbetting app with a heavy focus on sports out of the gate.  Joey Levy has been building in the fantasy and sports betting space since 2014 while at Columbia University.  Chapters: (01:20) Journey to Betr (05:50) 19-year-old founder (09:00...

In July 2023, Better Collective acquired Playmaker HQ for up to $54M with $15M upfront.  Playmaker is a sports media platform, content machine, and emerging talent agency.  Brandon Harris is a long-time entrepreneur who has spent over a decade building in sports.  Chapters: (01:20) Entrepreneurial path (03:45) Overview of Playmaker  (05:20) Scaling to 70 employees (08:00) Business lessons learned ...

(00:10) Business of Athletes (03:25) College Sports/NIL (07:15) Sports Business

Brian Woods is building another sports property, after previously selling The Spring League to Fox and creating the USFL.  Prep Super League is an elite, 11-on-11, spring football league for aspiring college football prospects seeking supplemental instruction, enhanced competition, and a less restrictive environment to pursue NIL deals. Prep Super League is attempting to revolutionize the gap betw...

Led by Antonio Cacorino, APEX Capital, is bringing the athlete investment movement into Europe.  APEX focuses on investments in the sports, media, and entertainment industries.  Prior to bringing together athletes for a syndicate and fund, Antonio spent time in the finance industry at Welz, Leonteq, and BNP Paribas.  Chapters : (01:30) Saudi money in sports (05:30) APEX Capital origin story (09:45...

(01:30) - Business of Athletes : Dwyane Wade, London Basketball Team, and athletes following passion investments (10:40) - NIL : Senators making a statement, $15M Texas, and Livvy Dunne (14:00) - Sports Business : Jay-Z, soccer, and acquisitions

Soccer is growing at a rapid pace in the United States, and the USL is in a prime position prior to the 2026 World Cup on North American soil. Orange County SC won the 2021 USL Championship Cup, which is the second tier of US soccer behind the MLS.  Before becoming president of OCSC, Dan Rutstein was a sports reporter, British Diplomat, AR entrepreneur, soccer referee, and whisky podcast host.  Ch...

Bruce Buffer is the legendary UFC announcer and Matt Whitteker is an exited unicorn founder at SaaS company Assent.  They came together to co-found the sports company MILLIONS, which raised a $10M Series A in 2021.  MILLIONS unites the sports world through a single social commerce platform allowing athletes, gyms, fans, and brands to connect and be brought together. Chapters : (01:20) Rise of spor...