The Profluence Pod 🌐

Audio Timeline: 0:35 - Feel good stories * 6 marathons in 6 days, the nation's only team comprised entirely of deaf and hard of hearing players has made the NCAA tournament, and more. 3:05 - Business of Athletes * Odell Beckham Jr. is suing Nike over $20M in damages. * Virgil van Dijk is the newest investor in the wearable tech company Whoop . * Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield are partnering to s...

Audio Timeline: 1:25 - Business of Athletes * Hall of Fame QB John Elway has invested significantly in Tom’s Watch Bar , an entertainment-focused sports super bar. * Mick Foley , a former pro wrestler, is the top-earning athlete on the video platform Cameo . * Lionel Messi is investing in the digital collectible NFT company Sorare . * Tom Brady , Steph Curry , and Shohei Ohtani were all investors...

Audio Timeline: 0:25 - Feel good stories * Philadelphia Phillies $50,000 donation and UNC student-athletes raising money for the Children’s Hospital. 2:00 - Business of Athletes * Potential Hall of Fame baseball player Jimmy Rollins is launching ScoutUS Pro, an app connecting athletes and scouts in one place. * Steph Curry filed the trademark “CURRYVERSE’ with an intent to use it in the metaverse....

Audio Timeline: 1:40 - Business of Athletes * Mitchell & Ness , a lifestyle athletic apparel company, announced its roster of investors — LeBron James , Kevin Durant , James Harden , Joel Embiid , Chris Paul , Odell Beckham Jr ., and Devin Booker . * Eli Manning’s PE firm, Brand Velocity Group, launched an innovative investment sports-focused vertical, Brand Velocity Group Sports (BVGS). * NBA pla...

Audio Timeline: 0:35 - Feel good stories * Giving back with a 50-mile run across the Grand Canyon. 4:08 - Business of Athletes * Golf+ , a VR golf platform raised a $6 million seed round with athlete investors including Tom Brady, Steph Curry, Mike Trout, and Rory McIlroy . * Christiano Ronaldo was named the most marketable athlete in the world according to SportsPro , with Serena Williams in 2nd...

Audio Timeline: 0:00 - Feel good stories * Amazing story from the Ironman World Championships, Cooper Kupp giving back in a major way, and Patriots owner Robert Kraft donating millions. 2:25 - Business of Athletes * World Champion Fantasy , an online fantasy esports platform, announced JuJu Smith-Schuster is now an equity owner in the company. * UBS announced the second season of "Front Office", a...

Audio Timeline: 1:20 - Feel good stories * Joe Burrow is giving back in a big way and the cool story of a seventeen-year-old raising money for cancer. 3:20 - Business of Athletes * Spanish athletes Pau Gasol , Rudy Fernandez , and Iker Casillas are investing in INDYA , a startup focused on improving the performance of athletes through technology and nutrition. * Annika Sörenstam and Vijay Singh (r...

Audio Timeline: 1:25 - Feel good stories * College athletes give back to the community thanks to their NIL money. 3:05 - Business of Athletes * Lebron James , Kevin Love , and Draymond Green are the newest investors in pickleball through Major League Pickleball’s 16-team expansion. * Chris Paul , Vernon Davis , and Jimmer Fredette are investing in Scout’s $2.6M seed round. The company helps users...

Audio Timeline: 1:30 - Feel good stories * Steph Curry donates 25 million meals and MJ’s financial literacy course 3:30 - Business of Athletes * Former NBA star Pau Gasol has invested in Colvin , a flower marketplace based in Spain. * Arena Club , a new sports card collecting platform co-founded by Derek Jeter , has officially launched. * Perch , a weightlifting camera and data startup, has raised...

Audio Timeline: 0:30 - Feel good stories * $16M raised by pro quarterbacks, $3M for mental health services, and Planet Fitness’ initiative for teenagers. 2:45 - Business of Athletes * Shaquille O’Neal is contemplating an investment in the NBL (Australia). He would join current NBA players Thaddeus Young and Khris Middleton. * Nicklas Bendtner , a former soccer star for Arsenal F.C., recently launc...

Audio Timeline: 0:35 - Feel good stories * Lacrosse player makes NFL roster and raising money for baseball disability 2:10 - Business of Athletes/Sports * Tim Tebow is investing in a Jacksonville expansion franchise that will compete in The United Soccer League (USL). * ALT Sports Data has completed its initial $1.5M Seed Round funding to expand its sports trading and consumer data operations. * N...

Audio Timeline: 1:30 - Feel good stories * An update on John Daly’s heartwarming donation and Kobe Bryant’s wife 3:15 - Business of Athletes * Enhanced water company, Lemon Perfect , has brought on tennis star Sloane Stephens as an investor and ambassador. * Former NFL quarterback Michael Vick is launching his co-founded NFT platform FanField this fall. * The Player’s Impact , a venture capital fi...

Audio Timeline: 0:35 - Feel good stories * A new Guinness World record and $125,000 scholarship donation. 1:55 - Business of Athletes * Venus Williams’ superfood nutrition company, Happy Viking , revealed an array of new athlete investors including Megan Rapinoe, Michelle Wie, Serena Williams, Reilly Opelka, Isaiah Hartenstein, Collin Sexton, and Kevin Durant. * Naomi Osaka’s company, KINLÒ, annou...

Audio Timeline: 1:25 - Feel good stories * Oscar Tshiebwe doing big things with his $2.5M of NIL money 2:20 - Business of Athletes * Jake Paul raised $50M for his new micro betting platform Betr , athlete investors include Ezekiel Elliot, DeSean Jackson, Richard Sherman, Braxton Berrios, and Dez Bryant. * Philadelphia Eagles’ running back Haason Reddick has joined R7 Energy Drink as an investor an...

Audio Timeline: 1:15 - Feel good stories * $25,000 investment on behalf of LPGA 2:10 - Business of Athletes & Sports * Caleb Williams (USC QB) becomes the first college athlete to ever publicly invest in a company, Futuremood , a sunglass company * Tiger Woods was apparently offered $700-800M from LIV Golf and he turned it down * NWSL’s main sponsor Voyager Digital , went bankrupt possibly impacti...

Audio Timeline: 0:35 - Feel good stories * Former Laker makes a big donation and HBCU’s on the rise 4:08 - Business of Athletes *  Kevin Durant, Odell Beckham, Jared Goff, and Trae Young invested in fantasy sports app Underdog Fantasy’s $35M round. * LIV Golf is raising its prize money next year to $405M, up from $225M. They are also offering equity in the teams to their players. * Hall of Famers...

Audio Timeline: 0:00 - Feel good stories * Female track athlete retires on top and Bo Jackson’s donation 1:20 - Business of Athletes * James Harden is launching his own wine brand starting at $16.99 * Steve Nash and his media company CTRL Media is producing content and a show for the East Asia Super League * Donald Trump and Charles Barkley are both telling players to accept the guaranteed money f...

Audio Timeline: 0:35 - Feel good stories * $100k for cancer, Tony Parker, and Brussels’ $43M investment 2:25 - Business of Athletes/Sports * Sportlight, an athlete tracking startup, has raised $4.7M in funding to expand its operations from European Soccer to the NBA. * The NBA announced $10B in 2020-2021 revenue, while the NFL revealed $11.1B. Both are record-highs. * Esports in China grew 14% des...

Audio Timeline: 3:00 - Feel good stories 4:08 - Business of Athletes * WNBA players Diani Taurasi, Breanna Stewart, and Sylvia Fowles are investing kid’s food brand Yumi . * Jonathan Taylor is now involved with muscle data company Strive . He joined their $6M Series A round led by Future Communities Capital. * Kylian Mbappe is investing in NFT-powered fantasy soccer platform SoRare . 7:30 - Name,...

I had a great conversation with two young men absolutely crushing the NIL game (100+ deals between the two of them). Rayquan Smith: Norfolk State Jack Betts: Amherst College Audio timestamps: * 1:05 - Background intros of Rayquan + Jack * 7:35 - Why are brands working with you and not just athletes at big schools? * 10:00 - Favorite NIL deal + thoughts on peers getting $1M deals * 15:00 - Advice f...

Audio Timeline: 1:05 - Business of Athletes : Title IX, Naomi Osaka’s agency, Black Owned Whiskey, Christiano Ronaldo’s crypto move, and bigger PGA Tour winnings 4:55 - NIL : Johnson v. NCAA update, Chet Holgrem speaks up, Ohio State vs. Texas NIL deals, and a major dating app NIL program 8:00 - Sports Biz/Tech : Innovations ahead of the Qatar World Cup, $40M for esports startup, and massive money...

Happy Monday, Decided to change it up for today’s post… I got probably a dozen emails/DM’s over the weekend asking for a breakdown of the situation taking place in golf between LIV and the PGA Tour. As I’m sure you can imagine, these in-depth breakdowns take a lot of time and research. As I began to jot out some notes I realized it was going to be a really long article. It made more sense to do th...

Audio Timeline: 0:31 - Feel good stories : Tom Brady and orange hair, Jim Harbaugh helping out Michigan employees 1:42 - Business of Athletes : Michael Strahan & Brady, NFL players and their Web 3 projects, $5M for smart fabric tech, Mike Vick, and $6M for the future of women’s sports 8:27 - NIL : A GM in college sports, Pringles’ new deal, Fanatics signs 200 college athletes, and several $100,000...

Audio Timeline: 0:42 - Feel good stories : 100 most influential athletes, athlete proposes to girlfriend thanks to NIL 1:28 - NIL : Breakdown of Lane Kiffin’s Statements and political NIL deal, USC $3M, and a 12 year old golfer gets a deal 6:48 - Business of Athletes: Serena Williams record deal, new fitness athlete investors, Travis Kelce, NFL ticket prices, and the most innovative sports teams I...

Audio Timeline: 0:30 - Feel good stories : Pro Athletes go back and finish college 1:01 - NIL : Nick Saban and Jimbo Fisher’s beef, NIL for Ohio high schoolers, first Nike athlete ambassadors, and more hypocrisy from college coaches 6:45 - Athlete Biz/Investments : Alex Rodriguez and Phil Mickelson stay active in the business world 8:56 - Sports Biz/Tech : Smart basketball, virtual hockey, DAOs in...