The entertainment industry has been bracing for consolidation, but few deals would reshape the landscape as dramatically as Netflix acquiring Warner Bros. Discovery. While the idea might excite shareholders and Wall Street analysts, the downstream effects on creators, consumers, athletes, teams, and sports-tech operators would be massive—and not in a good way.
The entertainment industry has been bracing for consolidation, but few deals would reshape the landscape as dramatically as Netflix acquiring Warner Bros. Discovery. While the idea might excite shareholders and Wall Street analysts, the downstream effects on creators, consumers, athletes, teams, and sports-tech operators would be massive—and not in a good way.
SailGP is not your grandmother’s yacht club. Launched in 2019, the league features identical high-performance F50 catamarans that “fly” above the water on hydrofoils, reaching speeds of over 100 km/h.
By combining world-class sailors, cutting-edge boat tech, and dramatic, short-course races in iconic global venues — from New York to Sydney to Rio — SailGP reframes sailing as a modern, high-octane sport, more akin to an aquatic mix of Formula 1 and America’s Cup than the leisure yachting stereotype many associate with sailing.
Identical boats & global series = level playing field, high entertainment value. By using identical F50 boats and standardized rules, SailGP ensures that races are decided by skill, strategy, and crew — not by who spent more on equipment. That helps make outcomes more unpredictable and exciting, which tends to draw and retain fans.
Global reach + attractive venues. Events are held in major coastal cities around the world putting SailGP on the map as a global sporting brand, not a niche sailing pastime.
Modern media approach. The league is designed for spectator engagement with broadcast-friendly formats, onboard cameras, and a turbo-charged presentation — making it accessible (and visually thrilling) even to those who know nothing about sailing.
Growing commercial appeal. As emerging sports increasingly draw investor attention particularly those with technological appeal and lower legacy baggage SailGP stands out. Investors see opportunity in being early adopters of a rising global league.
Far from being theoretical, SailGP’s attraction to celebrities and pro athletes is already playing out:
High-profile names like Anne Hathaway jumped into a female-led consortium that acquired a SailGP team, reportedly for ~$45 million. Fast Company+2Conzit Labs+2
Soccer superstar Kylian Mbappé, former F1 champion Sebastian Vettel, boxing champ Deontay Wilder, and NFL’s DeAndre Hopkins have all invested in various SailGP teams.
Most recently, Hollywood heavyweights Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman purchased the Australian SailGP team — rebranding it with flair and immediately bringing large mainstream visibility.
This pattern mirrors a broader trend across sports: entertainers and athletes investing in teams to diversify their brand and portfolio.
Owning a major franchise in leagues like the NFL, NBA, or Premier League has long been elite territory — but it often comes with massive entry costs, complex league politics, and heavy operating overhead. In contrast:
Lower barrier to entry. SailGP is still growing, meaning relative valuations for teams haven’t (yet) skyrocketed. That gives new investors a better entry point before the league becomes ubiquitous.
Flexibility & branding upside. For a celebrity, owning a SailGP team offers a fresh platform: water-side glamour, global exposure, lifestyle association, and — with strong media and sponsorship potential — chances to monetize beyond the sport itself.
Aligns with modern athlete mindset. Increasingly, pro athletes and entertainers view investments as components of their long-term brand/wealth strategies — not just side projects. SailGP offers the cross-section of performance, prestige, tech, and entertainment that fits this mindset.
Media and content growth potential. The league is already doubling down on storytelling and content: in 2025 it launched a docuseries to build fan engagement and draw non-traditional sailing audiences. That means growing fanbase and media value over time.
Sponsorship & commercialization opportunities. With a sleek, fast-paced sport that appeals to global audiences and luxury brands, SailGP has strong potential for high-end sponsors, hospitality, and lifestyle partners which translates into real returns for investors.
First-mover advantage. As more celebrities and athletes buy in, early investors may benefit from brand-building dividends and rising valuations especially if SailGP achieves mainstream status.
If you’re a high-profile athlete or entertainer looking to invest in sports — but want more than the typical:
Go for SailGP now, while it’s still nascent.
Use your brand, reach, and network to amplify team visibility and culture.
Leverage SailGP’s storytelling and media potential to create a lifestyle brand around the team, beyond just sport.
Think long-term: as SailGP grows, you’re not betting just on wins — you’re investing in an emergent global entertainment sport.
If interested in learning more reach out to info@sportstechatlanta.com
In a sports landscape where women’s leagues are finally getting the spotlight. Rival is stepping in with a bold statement: a sportsbook engineered exclusively for women’s sports. Set to launch in regulated U.S. markets by 2026, Rival is positioning itself at the intersection of fandom, equity, and emerging sports tech opportunity.
Rival plans to roll out first in Colorado, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, with a roadmap to expand into every U.S. state where sports betting is legal. The goal is clear: bring dedicated women’s sports betting to markets hungry for innovation and underserved by traditional operators.
Unlike legacy sportsbooks where women’s sports often get buried behind dozens of men’s leagues, Rival flips the script. The platform is expected to feature:
NWSL
WNBA
NCAA women’s basketball
WSL
WTA
…and additional global women’s competitions as demand scales.
This is designed to create a purpose-built home for women’s sports bettors, not just another tab on a crowded app.
Rival is co-founded by:
Kelly DiPaola – creative strategist and producer
Jodie Taylor – former England Lioness & current Arsenal executive
Together, they’re building a platform rooted in authentic representation of the athletes, leagues, and fans that drive the women’s sports movement forward.
Rival may be the first exclusive women’s sports sportsbook but it’s entering a market already shifting fast.
FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM, and Fanatics still control most of the U.S. betting economy. And with the explosion of interest in women’s sports, these platforms are rapidly expanding their offerings.
Big sportsbooks are already partnering directly with women’s leagues:
FanDuel → Official sportsbook partner of the PWHL
Fanatics → Partnered with the NWSL’s Washington Spirit
These partnerships signal that women’s sports aren’t just “added value” anymore; they’re becoming core business drivers.
Record-breaking engagement around women’s basketball—powered by stars like Caitlin Clark has produced unprecedented betting volume on existing platforms. This surge is reshaping how sportsbooks think about product, marketing, and audience development.
Where traditional sportsbooks bolt women’s sports onto their platforms, Rival is designing a community-first ecosystem from day one. That means:
A dedicated space for fans who want more than surface-level coverage
Data and markets built around women’s sports storytelling
A cultural hub that treats women’s sports as the main event, not an afterthought
For the women’s sports industry and for the broader sports tech community. Rival represents a new kind of opportunity: a platform built to grow with the moment, not just capitalize on it.
In a moment when women’s sports are breaking into the mainstream like never before, few leaders have had a bigger impact than VC Kara Nortman. What started as an early, conviction-based investment has evolved into a movement — reshaping how capital, culture, and community converge inside the women’s sports economy.
Angel City FC didn’t finish near the top of the NWSL standings this season — 11th out of 13, a tough result for a club with sky-high expectations.
But the on-field record is only a fraction of the story.
Since launching in 2020, the Los Angeles club co-founded by Nortman has become the blueprint for how to build a modern women’s sports franchise. Powered by a star-studded ownership group: Natalie Portman, Serena Williams, and a roster of cultural heavyweights. Angel City flipped the old model on its head.
Before the first match was even played, the club broke sponsorship records, activated partnerships in ways traditionally ignored by men’s sports, and created a fan experience built for the next generation of sports consumers.
“We went from nothing to $30 million in revenue. We sold out matches. We proved what many thought was impossible,” Nortman said recently. That momentum became the foundation for Monarch Collective, Nortman’s investment platform for women’s sports.
Nortman has been vocal about the massive global gap between men’s and women’s sports — but even she didn’t expect the acceleration to be this fast.
“Men’s sports drive about $500 billion globally,” she notes. “When we launched Monarch in 2023, women’s sports were valued around $500 million. Today, it’s close to $3 billion.”
That’s exponential growth. And it’s changing what investors look for.
Nortman’s thesis is simple: you can’t copy-paste the men’s sports model.
Women’s sports fans behave differently. Brands activate differently.
And the industry is young enough to experiment.
“How many men’s teams are dropping Sephora boxes from the rafters or running Fenty lipstick cams?” she jokes. “Angel City did and it worked.”
The creativity paid off. Last fall, Bob Iger and Willow Bay acquired a majority stake in Angel City for $250M, making it the most valuable women’s sports franchise on the planet.
Nortman left a traditional VC role at Upfront Ventures to lean fully into women’s sports. Monarch is the result — a fund built to invest in teams and leagues where the demand already exists.
The strategy is a hybrid:
venture-style innovation,
private equity–style operational support.
Monarch doesn’t spread bets across 200 startups.
It goes deep with a select group of franchises, working alongside majority owners to build systems, talent pipelines, governance structures, and long-term financial sustainability.
The question they always ask:
Is this a sport people already watch, and can we elevate it with investment, distribution, and modern operations?
That lens avoids hype cycles and keeps focus on assets with real cultural footholds.
Monarch’s LP group reads like a who’s who of tech, philanthropy, and entertainment including Melinda French Gates and former Netflix executives. Their initial fund closed at $250M, more than double the original target.
Some teams win championships. Others win revenue. Nortman’s perspective: the ecosystem thrives when enough teams have the capital and support to be sustainably competitive.
Angel City set the model and now clubs in Kansas City, San Francisco (Bay FC), and Washington D.C. are following the same roadmap.
Nortman is bullish, but she’s realistic.
Women’s sports has had big moments before like the 1920 women’s soccer match in Liverpool that drew 60,000 fans before the sport was banned by the English FA.
The lesson: growth without infrastructure can vanish overnight.
So there are four pillars she believes must be built now:
Strong league-wide governance
Committed ownership groups
Investment in operations + infrastructure
Authentic community connection
Breakout superstars open doors.
Operational excellence keeps them open.
Women’s sports aren’t a niche. They’re one of the fastest-growing sports verticals on the planet — backed by data, fan behavior shifts, and a brand ecosystem hungry for new audiences.
Kara Nortman and Monarch Collective aren’t just investing in teams.
They’re reshaping the business model of sports itself.
Major League Baseball is entering a new broadcast era. Netflix has acquired rights to its first-ever live MLB game package, securing Opening Night for the next three seasons beginning in 2026. The streamer is also now the home of the Home Run Derby and will air one annual special event game, starting with the Field of Dreams matchup on August 13. It’s a clear continuation of Netflix’s “tentpole-only” live sports approach—choosing cultural spectacles over full-season commitments.
At the same time, NBC is re-entering the baseball landscape for the first time in more than two decades. NBC will take over Sunday Night Baseball, carry the entire Wild Card Series, and feature special primetime games throughout the season across NBC, Peacock, and NBCSN. Combined with its recently secured NBA rights, NBC is reclaiming a prominent position in U.S. sports broadcasting.
MLB’s shifting lineup of media partners signals a future where streaming platforms and legacy networks are rethinking how they deliver marquee live sports moments.
