🔊 $44 Million Raise For New Sports Tech Fund

📰 TOP STORY
Sports Industry Veteran Is Looking To Raise $44 Million For New Sports Tech Fund

 • Sports industry vet Craig Thompson is raising $44 million for a new sports tech venture fund. The general partners are Thompson, the founder of Mindspring Capital, a sports tech-focused investor; and Anton Brams, who is also managing partner of Mindspring Sport, an advisory and incubator led by him and Thompson. Also, leading Match Ventures is investment head Petr Zhukov, founder of the EU's Indigo Sports Tech, a sports-focused VC (more here).

💰 MONEY MOVES 
AI Sports Startup Secures €2 Million In Investment

• Full Venue secures €2 million in investment. Full Venue, an AI company for the sports and events industry, is using the funds to strengthen the team, develop and implement new solutions, and boost internationalization. The round was led by GED Ventures, with the participation of two Business Angels, José Pinto and Pedro Aguiar (more here).

• Charterhouse acquires Two Circles from Bruin Capital. Two Circles, the international digital-focused sports agency, has been acquired by UK private equity firm Charterhouse Capital Partners from US-based sports and entertainment investment firm Bruin Capital for reportedly $315 million (more here).

• Soccer player John Stones and F1 driver Alex Albon invest San Francisco TGL team. Manchester City defender John Stones and Formula One driver Alex Albon have joined Steph Curry in investing in a franchise in the high-tech golf competition created by Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy. Stones and Albon alongside their investment fund manager Apex Capital join several others in the investor group behind the San Francisco team that will play in the TGL project that launches next year (more here).

• Scorestars, a basketball fan engagement app, announced that it has secured €725K in a Seed round of funding. The investment was led by Trind VC, Startup Wise Guys, 3 Comma Capital, and Estonian angel investors (more here).

• GolfForever raises $10 Million in Series A funding. The round was led by Clerisy, a consumer growth equity fund. Also part of the raise are world No. 1 and reigning PGA Tour Player of the Year Scottie Scheffler and three-time PGA Tour winner Tom Kim, who join as equity investors as well as GolfForever ambassadors (more here).

 🤝 PARTNERSHIPS & COLLABS
MeetKai Teams Up With Think450 To Create Sports Metaverse Experiences

• MeetKai announced it has joined forces with Think450. Using MeetKai's AI-enabled, digital twin technology, a digital replica of "The Brotherhood Deli," an in-person fan pop-up shop by the NBPA, will be developed featuring player-endorsed brands, limited-edition merchandise, virtual meet-and-greets with players, content lounges, gamified contests and more (more here).

• XReal announces partnership with Quintar. Through demos at CES 2024, Xreal said it is partnering with Qualcomm, BMW Group, Nio, Quintar, and Forma Vision. Xreal, previously known as Nreal, wants to democratize AR by extending spatial computing capabilities across diverse sectors and audiences in 2024 (more here).

• Welsh Rugby Union extends partnership with Ticketmaster. Following 15 years of partnership the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) and Ticketmaster Sport have renewed a multi-year deal that will see the WRU use Ticketmaster’s ticketing technology for years to come (more here).

• DraftKings inks partnership with NASCAR. DraftKings has also been named the exclusive daily fantasy sports partner of NASCAR in the United States and Canada and has become an Authorized Gaming Operator of NASCAR and will receive additional sponsorship benefits within the NASCAR ecosystem nationally (more here).

• FC Bayern and Bitpanda agree to partnership. The Austrian company will be visible as the German record champions’ new Platinum Partner and official crypto trading partner (more here).

• Bond Sports partners with Cocaptain. Cocaptain, an innovative provider of sports management software, has announced today that it will be joining forces with Bond Sports to build on its vision of enabling sports organizations and facilities to seamlessly deliver sports programming to athletes around the country (more here).

• PrizePicks inks a multi-year sponsorship deal with Wave Sports + Entertainment. The deal includes exclusive gaming sponsorship of the company's award-winning original series, "New Heights," hosted by brothers, Jason and Travis Kelce (more here).

• Relo Metrics (formerly GumGum Sports), announces a partnership with Reading Football Club. This collaboration, a first for Relo Metrics in the UK, is set to enhance the company's footprint in sports analytics while providing Reading FC with advanced tools to drive commercial growth (more here).

🔊 OTHER NEWS
Lebron & Bronny James Sign Exclusive Collectibles Deal With Fanatics

• LeBron James signs collectibles deal with Fanatics. LeBron James has signed an exclusive multiyear deal with the collectibles division of Fanatics Inc. The Los Angeles Lakers star, whose previous deal with rival trading card maker Upper Deck had ended, is a valuable addition to the rapidly expanding Fanatics Collectibles business. He and Bronny James signed a one-of-one card that releases Jan. 19th (more here).

• Where is sports betting legal? A guide to all 50 states. 38 states allow sports wagering in the U.S. Here's where the rest of the action is across America (more here).

• Sorare launches new head-to-head game 'Rivals'. The global sports NFT company has launched head-to-head game mode 'Rivals', which allows friends to pick a game on any day, and pick players from the two line-ups to earn the most points and prizes (more here).

• Major League Soccer launches MLS Innovation Lab. The Innovation Lab Accelerator is focused on player development, creating new fan experiences, and delivering advanced media technology with new, cutting-edge companies (more here).

• Galway sports tech firm looks to build on deals with Premier League and NBA teams. Precision Sports Technology, founded by Emma Meehan plans to launch phase two of its offering, which will be targeted at athletes and physiotherapy patients. They have already landed contracts with several leading sports teams (more here).