Deal Brief · Week of Oct 5

Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.

Investments

Lionel Messi completes his purchase of CD Eldense

Messi acquired 100% of CD Eldense, the Spanish second-division club, buying out the full stake held by Colombian investment group Grupo TH — pending approval from Spain’s National Sports Council. It’s his second Spanish club this year, after fifth-tier Cornellà in April, and he’s also involved with Uruguay’s Deportivo LSM alongside Luis Suárez.

Micah Parsons joins RejuvStem as investor and board member

Parsons came on as investor, board member, and ambassador at RejuvStem, a regenerative-therapy and wellness company — a strategic role advising on brand growth and positioning.

Jake Shane joins Dolce Glow’s cap table

The creator made his first brand investment, taking a stake in self-tanning brand Dolce Glow and signing on to work across events, launches, and content, including through his podcast. Dolce Glow closed an $11M Series A led by CAVU in August.

New ventures

Sammi Cohen launches business news show Social Commerce Network

Cohen is launching SCN, a livestreamed news-and-interview show pitched as a modern-day CNBC — CEOs and operators across consumer, tech, fintech, retail, beauty, and the creator economy.

Warner Bailey launches entertainment-industry workspace Loyd

Bailey — who built the anonymous “Assistants vs Agents” account into a media brand off a decade of Hollywood assistant complaints — co-launched Loyd with Ryan McCaffrey and Vince Morales, an intelligent workspace built to streamline the grunt work usually dumped on entry-level staff.

Greg Mabin and Tevaun Smith launch supplement brand Liquid Theory

Greg Mabin and Tevaun Smith have launched Liquid Theory, a daily energy and recovery supplement built around a 600mg liposomal NMN/NAD+ pouch. The two former Iowa teammates are joined by Anthony Gair, who left Big Four consulting to run day-to-day operations, and Adam Runquist, the consumer-brand operator who advised Carbon6 through its $210 million exit.

Fundraising and acquisitions

Brad Pitt’s Miraval raises €15M from Crédit Agricole

The Provence wine business Pitt co-owns raised €15M from Crédit Agricole’s investment arms, which take a minority stake via a reserved capital increase to fund international expansion and marketing. Pitt and Angelina Jolie bought the Correns estate for around €25M in 2008 and partnered with the Perrin family in 2012.

Slow Ventures backs three more creators from its $64M Creator Fund

Slow took equity stakes in creators Erin McGoff, Will Lasry, and Kyle Lee out of its $64M Creator Fund — a model where it invests in a creator’s holding company for roughly 10% of earnings, with a right of first refusal on spinouts. It now has seven completed investments and expects to back around 20; its highest-profile deal to date is Steven Bartlett’s Steven.com, valued at $425M last October.

BetterDays launches with $7M from Maveron and Will Ventures

Celebrity barber Victor Fontanez (VicBlends) co-founded men’s grooming brand BetterDays with CEO Joey Thomas, launching with $7M in pre-revenue funding. Fontanez brings 23M-plus followers and a client list that includes Barack Obama and Tom Brady; Thomas ran digital expansion at DUDE Wipes.

Brand endorsements

Nothing names BTS’s V a global brand ambassador

V fronts the launch campaign for Nothing’s flagship Headphone (1) Pro. He joins Charli XCX, who became Nothing’s first global ambassador earlier this year — and took an equity stake.

Donovan Mitchell signs a multi-year extension with adidas

Mitchell’s extension carries his signature line through the D.O.N. Issue 10, making him the seventh active NBA player to reach ten signature shoes with a single brand — a group that includes LeBron, Durant, and Curry. The deal also expands adidas support for his former high school.

Olivia Miles signs with adidas on the day she’s named WNBA Rookie of the Year

The Lynx guard joined adidas Basketball as an ambassador the same day she won Rookie of the Year, joining a women’s roster led by Candace Parker that includes Kelsey Plum and Kahleah Copper.

Christian Gonzalez signs with adidas Football

The Patriots cornerback joined adidas’s football roster — alongside Patrick Mahomes and Travis Hunter — debuting not in a performance launch but in the Willy Chavarria x adidas “October Collection,” a fashion collaboration.

LaNorris Sellers signs an NIL deal with Midas

The South Carolina quarterback formalized a relationship that predated the contract — he’d promoted the auto-repair chain and fronted a tire-giveaway campaign before signing.

Wonderful Pistachios signs its first NIL roster of seven college athletes

The brand launched its first NIL program with seven athletes across six sports — including Quincy Wilson and JuJu Lewis — anchored by a “Don’t Hold Back All-Stars” social campaign through the 2026–27 season.

Devin Booker debuts the Futura x Nike Book 2

Booker gave the Futura x Nike Book 2 its first public appearance at Phoenix Suns Media Day, wearing the unreleased collaboration on court. The artwork was created specifically for Booker, who built a friendship with Futura over several years before the collaboration.

Tyrese Maxey and New Balance unveil the Maxey v1

Maxey’s first signature shoe released worldwide. He worked with the New Balance product team on the design, which pairs FuelCell cushioning with a dual rail plate system and draws on the brand’s lifestyle models, including top-lacing cues from the 2002 and sculpted outriggers in the spirit of the 9060.

Partnerships

Hailey Bieber’s rhode launches at Sephora across 19 European markets

rhode made its first physical retail entry into continental Europe — 500-plus Sephora stores across 19 markets, a full branded takeover of the Champs-Élysées store, and a Café Rhode in Paris. The e.l.f.-owned brand cleared $10M at Sephora US within two days of its 2025 launch.

Media deals

Shaquille O’Neal joins crime drama Gravesend for season three

O’Neal joined the Prime Video series as a cast member (playing Mustafa) and executive producer. Gravesend’s season-three premiere topped Prime Video’s purchased-sales chart after its late-September debut.

Baron Davis stars in and produces sports drama Last Shot

Davis co-stars as a basketball coach and executive produces the coming-of-age film, alongside Jaime Pressly and Michael Rapaport, drawing on his own playing career for the role.

Shawn Levy signs an overall TV deal with Disney’s 20th Television

Levy and 21 Laps signed a multi-year overall deal with 20th Television starting October 2027, ending an eight-year Netflix run that produced Stranger Things. He’ll keep working in the Stranger Things universe while continuing his film work for Marvel and Lucasfilm.

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Deal Brief · Week of Sep 28

Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.

Investments

Lexie Brown joins the UPSHOT League’s ownership group

Brown became the first active player in the UPSHOT League’s ownership group, joining early backers Cheryl Miller, Ann Meyers Drysdale, and Tamika Catchings. An eight-season WNBA veteran and 2021 champion, she was part of Debut Capital’s inaugural Investor-in-Residence class and holds an angel position in BARCODE.

New ventures

Dwyane Wade launches draft docuseries The Call: Hoopers

Wade’s WY Network, with Goat Farm Network, launched a weekly YouTube series following six first-round picks from the 2026 NBA Draft through the final days before draft night, leading with Michigan’s Morez Johnson Jr.

Khloé Kardashian brings her fragrance portfolio to 1,300 Sephora stores

Kardashian’s fragrance line — XO Khloé, Almost Always, and the new XO Blue — made its physical retail debut across 1,300 Sephora US and Sephora at Kohl’s doors plus Sephora.com, after building direct-to-consumer with beauty incubator Luxe Brands. The launch carries a 360 media campaign across paid social, digital, and out-of-home.

Fundraising and acquisitions

Notes.fm Raises $5 Million to Help Artists Recover Lost Royalties

Notes.fm, the music royalty collection platform helping musicians and music companies identify and collect 100% of their royalties, announces it has raised $5 million from leading artists, managers, executives and strategic partners across the music industry. The round includes participation from Benny Blanco, Zach Bryan and his managers, Tainy, Blake Slatkin, WME's Ari Emanuel, and Chord Music's Sam Hendel and others.

Brand endorsements

Venmo signs nine college athletes to NIL deals

Venmo named a nine-athlete NIL roster across five sports and launched Money Moves, letting athletes receive part of their NIL earnings through the app and route some back to teammates, coaches, and family.

Eileen Gu joins SK-II as global ambassador

The freeski star signed her first skincare partnership, fronting SK-II’s “Free to Bare” campaign anchored on its Facial Treatment Essence.

Charlie Woods signs his first NIL deal with TaylorMade

The 17-year-old FSU commit signed a club-and-ball deal with TaylorMade — the brand his father plays — joining an amateur roster that includes future FSU teammate Miles Russell and US Women’s Amateur winner Asterisk Talley.

Trey Murphy III joins New Balance Basketball

Murphy signed with New Balance after years in Nike, joining a roster that includes Tyrese Maxey, Cooper Flagg, Cameron Brink, and Josh Allen. He’d spent the offseason posting workouts in the brand’s shoes before the deal closed.

Sir Mark Cavendish named Speediance brand ambassador

The British cycling legend fronts the smart-gym brand’s “Build for Belief” global campaign, built around resilience and the mental side of recovering from setbacks.

Nike signs 40 LSU athletes to Blue Ribbon Elite

LSU — the program’s first school when it launched last December — expanded its Blue Ribbon Elite roster fourfold to 40 athletes across football, baseball, gymnastics, track, and more.

Cara Delevingne named Armedangels brand ambassador

Delevingne fronts the sustainable label’s AW26/27 “Never the Expected” campaign, built around SaXcell — a next-gen Lyocell fiber made from 30% recycled cotton waste and 70% FSC-certified wood pulp.

Koji Mukai named a Burberry brand ambassador

Burberry has appointed Snow Man’s Koji Mukai a brand ambassador. The courtship ran years. Mukai wore Burberry privately and on stage, was invited to the SS25 show at London Fashion Week in September 2024, then sat front row at SS26 in a velvet brocade suit in September 2025. private wear, an SS25 show invite, then a front-row seat at SS26.

Media deals

Lewis Hamilton’s Dawn Apollo Studios signs a first-look deal with Skydance Sports

Hamilton signed a multi-year first-look deal between Dawn Apollo Studios and Skydance Sports, the sports-entertainment arm of Paramount Skydance. It spans scripted, unscripted, and animation, with Hamilton executive producing everything, and extends beyond film and TV into Paramount’s video games and consumer products. Dawn Apollo launched in 2022 and drew first blood with F1, the Brad Pitt film Hamilton produced and appeared in, which grossed more than $634M worldwide.

Noah Baumbach signs a first-look feature deal with Warner Bros.

Baumbach signed a three-year first-look deal with Warner Bros. beginning in 2027, ending a five-year Netflix run that produced four films. His first project goes to Clockwork, Warner’s new specialty label, with David Heyman and Margot Robbie’s LuckyChap producing an original about two college students in New York.

Disney signs Like Nastya to a content development deal

Disney signed the kids’ creator to its first content deal with a major entertainment company — an original animated preschool series for Disney Jr. and Disney+, new live-action content, and a curated slice of her existing library on Disney platforms.

ESPN orders a second season of The Breakdown with Peyton and Kuechly

ESPN ordered 11 episodes of the Omaha Productions and NFL Films series, with Manning and Kuechly breaking down strategy and storylines from opposite sides of the ball ahead of marquee NFL matchups.

Roles and appointments

Myles Turner elected NBPA vice president

Turner was elected to a three-year term on the NBPA Executive Committee, replacing the retired Garrett Temple, and joins a committee that includes president Fred VanVleet, Jaylen Brown, and Karl-Anthony Towns.

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Deal Brief · Week of Sep 21

Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.

Investments

LeBron James invests in birria chain Mike’s Red Tacos

James backed the fast-growing Southern California birria concept as it prepares to open its first LA-area location in Pasadena. The deal reunites a familiar group: chairman Bill Phelps co-founded Wetzel’s Pretzels, was a founding investor in Blaze Pizza (which James backed in 2012 at ~10 locations), and led Dave’s Hot Chicken, where James invested again.

Rich Paul leads an athlete round into Beekeeper Coffee

The Klutch Sports founder led a star-studded round into the ready-to-drink brand, bringing in Draymond Green, Anthony Davis, Zach LaVine, Fred VanVleet, De’Aaron Fox, Jared Goff, and golfer Min Woo Lee. The round landed alongside a nationwide Target debut; Beekeeper already sits in Erewhon, Wegmans, and Gopuff.

Markiplier becomes GoPro’s largest shareholder with an 8.5% stake

Mark Fischbach disclosed 13.5M shares of GoPro — an 8.5% stake worth roughly $9.3M — making him the company’s single largest shareholder. He filed as a passive investor, with plain reasoning: the stock looked undervalued and he wants the company to survive.

Flau’jae Johnson expands her real estate portfolio with another 15 acres

The LSU star added 15 acres for an upcoming commercial project, building on 20 acres she bought in Georgia while still in college.

New ventures

Chris Paul launches an athlete-led media company with Genius Sports

Paul launched an athlete-led media company — a JV between his Ohh Dip!!! Entertainment and Schell’s Words + Pictures, with Genius Sports as exclusive commercialization partner. Schell produced The Last Dance; Genius brings AI-powered tracking data across 1,000-plus sports organizations.

Malik Davis launches microdrama studio Upscale

Davis launched Upscale Media Films as a full-service microdrama producer built to own the pipeline end to end. It’s already making vertical shows with Kevin Hart’s Hartbeat.

Vivian Tu launches finance app Ask Dolly

The creator known as “Your Rich BFF” brought her finance app out of beta — customized markets news and financial guidance in her signature voice, aimed at making financial education accessible to underserved communities.

Amy Chang launches medical-aesthetics practice Matera

The beauty creator opened a self-funded, 2,000-square-foot “slow beauty” practice in Santa Monica, built around a no-commission model — providers paid 20–25% above market regardless of volume, to remove the pressure to upsell. It projects seven-figure first-year revenue.

Joshua Weissman opens his first restaurant, Ben & Lynn’s

The YouTube chef opened a fried-chicken restaurant in a restored 1920s bungalow in East Austin, counter-service, built around a signature sandwich and honey-dipped chicken.

Fernando Mendoza launches “Finance with Fernando” with U.S. Bank

The Raiders quarterback launched an educational video series with U.S. Bank as its “Chief Financial Playmaker,” pitched as a practical guide for Gen Z.

Fundraising and acquisitions

Howard Schultz joins Pivot25 Productions as investor and strategic partner

The former Starbucks CEO came on as investor and strategic partner at Pivot25, the company Ryan Clark co-founded. Schultz reached out after Clark’s July ESPN departure and pushed him to think beyond a single show; Pivot25 recently secured a multi-year Netflix deal for The Pivot.

Brand endorsements

On Enters Football with Kylian Mbappé and Thierry Henry

Kylian Mbappé has ended a Nike relationship dating to 2006 and signed with On as the Swiss brand launches its football division. Thierry Henry is On’s new Director of Football. The agreement includes cash and equity, giving Mbappé a financial stake in the company.

Baker Mayfield launches a collection with Every Man Jack

Every Man Jack has launched its first-ever co-created collection with Baker Mayfield, out now exclusively at Target stores and Target.com. Mayfield started as an ambassador, ran the Sweat Equity campaign with the brand, and has now moved into product — selecting the scents and shaping the story behind them.

Brooks Running signs Cooper Kupp, Maddy Westbeld, and Oscar Bobb

Brooks added the NFL receiver, WNBA forward, and Premier League footballer to its global ambassador roster across storytelling and content initiatives.

Chime signs Jaxson Dart to a multi-year partnership

Chime has signed Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart to a multi-year partnership spanning national advertising, original content, social fan experiences and financial education. Dart has worked with Chime earlier this year on Compound Combine, the company’s nationwide financial education series.

Malachi Toney signs an NIL deal with adidas

The Miami receiver joined adidas Football’s roster alongside Patrick Mahomes and Travis Hunter, deepening the brand’s Hurricanes ties. His NIL slate already includes Hellstar and Leaf Trading Cards.

Belinda Bencic joins Golden Goose as brand ambassador

The Swiss tennis star — Olympic singles gold medalist and 2025 Wimbledon semifinalist — becomes a global ambassador for the 2026–27 season, launching with an off-court, city-based campaign.

Sol de Janeiro signs Trinity Rodman and Tara Rudd

The body-care brand extended a Washington Spirit partnership into individual deals with the two USWNT players, who’ll represent its Brazilian Bum Bum Cream and Cheirosa line.

Camila Cabello is Tommy Hilfiger’s newest global ambassador

Cabello fronts Freedom Eau de Parfum — Tommy Hilfiger’s first major women’s fragrance launch in over a decade.

TXT’s Soobin named a Dolce&Gabbana global ambassador

The luxury house named Soobin a global ambassador, his first formal brand ambassadorship, after he attended its Spring/Summer men’s show in Milan.

Media deals

Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz launch an artist resale royalty program with Bonhams

The Dean Collection is launching a resale royalty program with Bonhams — sellers can allocate a share of proceeds to the artist, and Bonhams matches it. Built to give living artists a stake in the secondary market, it’s billed as the first art-auction royalty mechanism of its kind in the US.

Roles and appointments

Chris Paul joins Owl Ventures as venture partner

Beyond his new media company, Paul joined the education-and-workforce VC firm as a venture partner, supporting founders across a platform with $2.2B-plus in committed capital and 100-plus investments.

Dee Brown joins Zawyer Sports & Entertainment as VP of basketball operations

The former NBA player was named VP of basketball operations at Zawyer, expanding from a prior consulting role as the league builds toward its 2027 season.

José Calderón named assistant GM of the Cleveland Cavaliers

Cleveland promoted Calderón to assistant general manager. He joined the Cavs as a special advisor in 2022 after NBPA work following his 14-year playing career.

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Deal Brief · Week of Sep 14

Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.

Investments

Joel Embiid, Malik Monk, and Taijuan Walker back floating nuclear reactors

Bluecore Energy closed a $50M seed led by Silverton Partners, with NBA players Joel Malik Embiid, Monk, and MLB pitcher Taijuan Walker joining as strategic angels. The company builds compact water-cooled nuclear reactors on barges — floating power plants for ports, data centers, and waterfront infrastructure. Headquartered inside the Port of Long Beach, it’s already secured a terminal, taken delivery of barges, and brought in a test reactor. Kevin Hart’s HartBeat Ventures and Simu Liu’s Markham Ventures are also in.

Ronaldo and Roberto Carlos take an 80% stake in Inter de Limeira

The two Brazil legends are part of an investment group that secured 80% of Inter de Limeira, a Série C club that hasn’t played in Brazil’s top flight since 1990. The consortium — led by executive Enrico Ambrogini and including a Saudi prince — is targeting a climb to Série A within eight seasons. Founded in 1913, Inter were the first club from outside São Paulo city to win the Paulistão.

A-Rod backs menswear brand Jack Archer

Rodriguez made a direct investment in Jack Archer, the menswear brand built around its Jetsetter Tech Pant — adding to exposure A-Rod Corp already held through OpenStore’s 2022 acquisition of the brand, as it expands product and retail.

Dak Prescott and Drake Maye become athlete-owners of Athletic Brewing

The non-alcoholic brewer signed both quarterbacks to multi-year partnerships with equity stakes, starting with its “Athletic Fits” campaign. They join an athlete-owner roster that includes JJ Watt, Lance Armstrong, and Naomi Osaka.

Kendall Jenner takes an equity stake in Trip

Jenner acquired a stake in Trip, the London CBD drinks and supplements brand, and becomes global ambassador on its new campaign. A Coefficient Capital-led Series A last November valued Trip above $300M. She joins a cap table that already includes Joe Jonas and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley.

Gillian Anderson invests in women’s football vehicle Crux Football

Anderson backed Crux Football, a multi-club ownership vehicle built exclusively for the women’s game. Crux owns Montpellier Féminines and co-owns Sweden’s FC Rosengård, with a cap table that includes former Netflix executive Cindy Holland and a Player Investor Collective of Abby Wambach, Julie Foudy, and Sue Bird.

CatGPT takes an equity stake in Smooth Media

Creator Cat Goetze — CatGPT — took an equity stake in Smooth Media as she joined as strategic adviser, becoming the first outside shareholder in the firm that represents her and 70-plus other creators.

New ventures

Steven Bartlett and Authentic launch OBSN, with up to $400M to deploy into creator businesses

Bartlett’s Steven.com and Authentic Brands Group launched OBSN — short for “Obsession” — a venture built to turn large creator audiences into durable media companies and consumer brands, with plans to deploy up to $400M over the coming years.Steven.com brings media, data, and audience growth, Authentic brings the brand-building, licensing, and distribution machine behind Reebok, Champion, and the likenesses of Shaq and David Beckham.

Jalen Brunson launches family-owned brand advisory firm Thirty Third Management Group

Brunson and his family launched a New York-based advisory firm to manage his off-court business and represent clients across sports, business, and philanthropy. His mother Sandra is president after eight years running his off-court business; his sister Erica leads client services.

Chris Paul launches an athlete-led media company with Genius Sports

Paul launched a new athlete-led media company — a JV between his Ohh Dip!!! Entertainment and Schell’s Words + Pictures, with Genius Sports as exclusive commercialization partner. Paul brings his production company; Schell, who produced The Last Dance and ESPN’s 30 for 30, runs production; Genius brings AI-powered tracking data across the WNBA, EPL, and 1,000-plus sports organizations.

Shareef O’Neal debuts his first sneaker as SHAQ Brand creative director

O’Neal debuted “Shareef by Shaq” during New York Fashion Week — his first collection as the brand’s creative director. The design is personal: a zipper referencing the scar from his open-heart surgery, an open-heart “R” logo, and four snaps nodding to the heart’s chambers and Shaq’s four titles.

Pusha T and Pharrell launch Grindin’ Coffee with Lavazza

The pair launched a two-blend coffee line made with Italian roaster Lavazza, sold exclusively through GrindinCoffee.com — a dark roast and a medium, offered as ground or whole bean.

Brand endorsements

Isaiah Johnson becomes the first NIL signing for Li-Ning’s Way of Wade

The Texas point guard is the first athlete to sign an NIL deal with Dwyane Wade’s Li-Ning sub-brand.

Tee Higgins joins Under Armour’s football roster

The Bengals receiver joined UA across footwear, apparel, and accessories, featuring in the brand’s WE LOVE FOOTBALL series. He joins Justin Jefferson, DeVonta Smith, and Cam Ward.

Nike signs 18 Alabama athletes to Blue Ribbon Elite NIL deals

Nike added 18 Crimson Tide athletes across eight sports to its Blue Ribbon Elite roster, deepening a three-decade partnership. The program runs past logo placement into campaigns, product, and creative direction.

Mandy Moore becomes ABCmouse’s first celebrity partner

Age of Learning signed Moore to front ABCmouse’s back-to-school campaign — the first celebrity spokesperson in the app’s 15-year history.

Rhode launches a collection designed with Alexandra Leclerc

Rhode dropped a limited-edition collection with Alexandra Leclerc, built around three mini Pocket Pearls — a portable twist on its bestselling Pocket Blush — plus charm accessories and a new Peptide Lip Tint shade.

Media deals

Jake and Logan Paul land a fight competition series at Hulu and ESPN

Hulu and ESPN greenlit a fight competition series from the Paul brothers, produced by Brent Montgomery’s Wheelhouse and Jake’s Most Valuable Promotions. Fighters split into rival teams coached by each brother, with eliminations settled by a fight across six disciplines. Casting is open now, production slated for 2027.

Bart Scott and Willie Colon launch The Bart & Willie Show

The two former Jets launched a twice-weekly NFL show with Playmaker, new episodes Mondays and Fridays. The pair have worked together for years on SNY’s Jets Post Game Live.

Roles and appointments

Taj Gibson joins the Chicago Bulls as an assistant coach

Gibson joined the Bulls’ staff under new head coach Tiago Splitter, beginning his coaching career after 17 NBA seasons and 1,012 games across eight teams.

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Deal Brief · Week of Sep 7

Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.

Investments

TOGETHXR and Alex Morgan’s Trybe Ventures take a stake in Bet on Her

The sports media company and Morgan’s fund acquired equity in Bet on Her, a mobile app built to fix the fragmentation of women’s sports fandom — highlights, scores, stats, and schedules across more than 60 leagues, plus a global map of women’s sports bars.

Micah Parsons joins better-for-you candy brand Good Candy as co-founder

Parsons came on as co-founder of Good Candy, a sour gummy brand pitched on 70% less sugar, added electrolytes, and no artificial ingredients. It adds to a business slate he’s built mid-career, alongside a long-running deal with jewelry brand GLD.

Lily Collins named IM8 global ambassador — with equity

Collins signed a multi-year deal with IM8, taking equity in parent company Prenetics alongside the ambassador role. She started on the supplement at her physician’s recommendation while filming in England in late 2025.

New ventures

Lando Norri launches junior racing team LN4 Fusion

The McLaren driver co-founded LN4 Fusion, a junior single-seater team racing across Europe’s ladder from 2027, alongside karting outfit Fusion Motorsport and an investment group led by Dan Richards. It’ll compete in Italian F4, Formula Regional European, and F3, and has acquired select assets from AIX Racing — including its F3 entry through 2027 — while applying for a Formula 2 slot.

Josh Allen launches Out of Pocket Studios

Allen launched a media venture spanning entertainment, commercial, and experiential projects, building on an alliance he struck with Skydance Sports in early 2025. The opening slate includes: a Labor Day special on CBS hosted by Nate Burleson, a weekly NFL Play Action on Paramount+, and a documentary, The Buffalo Miracle, from Oscar winner Ben Proudfoot.

Fundraising and acquisitions

Omri Casspi’s Swish Ventures closes a $250M Fund III

The first Israeli to play in the NBA closed a $250M third fund at Swish Ventures, taking the firm to roughly $800M in AUM in under two years. The backers include Sequoia Capital, US pension funds, university endowments, and family offices. The new fund targets Seed and Series A companies across cybersecurity, infrastructure, physical AI, defense and govtech.

Lady Gaga’s biotech startup Outer Bio raises $23M

Gaga revealed her involvement in Outer Bio, the biotech she co-founded in 2020 with fiancé Michael Polansky, its CEO — she’d sat on the board privately for years. The company has raised roughly $23M, with Wing Ventures and Initialized Capital among early backers. Its product, Yuna, is an ex vivo platform that keeps surgically discarded human skin alive for around 30 days — far past the few days standard cultures survive — for studying skin health directly.

Brand endorsements

Lamine Yamal launches his first American Eagle collection

Coming off Spain’s World Cup summer, Yamal dropped a 29-piece capsule drawing on his off-pitch style — baggy denim, cargo pants, oversized denim shirts. It’s the first full product collaboration under the five-year global ambassador deal he signed with American Eagle in January, the retailer’s first multi-year talent partnership.

Utorg signs padel world No. 1 Agustín Tapia as its first global ambassador

The Abu Dhabi fintech signed the FIP No. 1 across the Premier Padel season and digital activations for its Utapp wallet — Tapia has held the top ranking since 2023 with 55-plus career titles.

Moroccanoil names Aryna Sabalenka its first athlete ambassador

The haircare brand signed the world No. 1 as its first-ever athlete ambassador — a shift from tournament sponsorship (it’s backed the Miami Open since 2024) to a single player headlining global campaigns.

Naomi Osaka named a Tatcha global ambassador

Tatcha signed Osaka as a global ambassador alongside style figure Kiko Mizuhara and its first neuroscience ambassador, Dr. Claudia Aguirre. New CEO Diane Kim framed the trio as deliberately distinct — covering science, culture, and performance separately rather than three versions of the same woman. Tatcha sold to Unilever in 2019 for $500M.

Chloe Kelly becomes Shokz’s UK ambassador

Chloe Kelly has been named a UK ambassador for Shokz, fronting the open-ear audio brand’s “Always More” campaign. The partnership also coincides with the launch of the Shokz x Chloe Kelly Limited Edition Clutch OpenDots 2 Gift Box, which introduces the brand’s OpenDots 2 headphones in a new pink colourway.

Alex Eala lands a sponsorship deal with Panasonic

The highest-ranked Filipino in WTA history became an ambassador for Panasonic Philippines, coming off a fourth-round run at Wimbledon.

Hilary Duff joins Reebok as brand ambassador

Duff fronts Reebok’s “Unfiltered & Unstoppable” campaign across activewear and lifestyle apparel, joining a roster Authentic has been assembling — Karol G, Angel Reese, PartyNextDoor. It caps an active commercial year that included deals with Ladder, Bath & Body Works, and Aperol while touring.

Eva Longoria and Becky G front Willy Chavarria’s debut UGG collaboration

Longoria and Becky G star in “UGG and Kisses,” launching Chavarria’s first UGG collab alongside Danny Trejo — a contemporary Latino family loosely modeled on Married… with Children, filtered through Chavarria’s Mexican-American lens. The collection runs five unisex styles built on UGG silhouettes.

Robert Pattinson joins Jaeger-LeCoultre as global ambassador

The watchmaker named Pattinson a global ambassador, with his first campaign debuting mid-September.

Theo James named Gant’s global brand ambassador

Gant named James its global ambassador, launching with an FW26 campaign shot in Tribeca that leans on 1990s New York and relaxed American sportswear.

Roles and appointments

Michael Carter-Williams joins Brunswick Sports Management as partner

The former NBA guard joined Brunswick to lead its basketball practice, coming in as a partner with equity. He previously founded and ran NIL agency SOL Sports Group; Brunswick is an eight-person firm with clients across the NFL, NBA, college, and high school.

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Deal Brief · Week of Aug 31

Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.

Investments

Harrison Barnes buys a community bank in Paton, Iowa

Barnes acquired Community State Bank, a 70-year-old institution in Paton, Iowa, through Barnes Bancorp, where he serves as chairman — putting in $25M of his own capital for controlling ownership. An Ames native, he’s sat on two bank boards over the past decade and built the vehicle alongside managing director Jeff Plagge, a former Iowa superintendent of banking, assembling a board with more than 200 years of state banking experience. His thesis took shape during Covid, when he watched local banks act as “economic first responders” through PPP lending.

New ventures

Christian McCaffrey launches his first signature shoe, The CMC

McCaffrey debuted The CMC through while on earth, the brand he joined as co-founder and investor in August 2025 after ending a longtime Nike deal. He spent a year on development — a single-layer nylon upper, rubberized toe cap, and a midfoot plate against twisting — across four colorways, men’s and women’s. It’s also while on earth’s first signature athlete shoe.

Fundraising and acquisitions

Authentic Brands buys 51% of Drake’s OVO

Authentic Brands Group acquired a 51% majority stake in OVO’s intellectual property, with Drake retaining 44% and creative control, and Vince Holding Corp. taking the remaining 5% plus the operating business. Vince becomes OVO’s primary apparel and retail licensee, running design, merchandising, and stores, with a US retail and wholesale push ahead. OVO, founded in 2008 and now running roughly a dozen stores, joins an Authentic portfolio north of $32B that includes Reebok, Champion, and the personal brands of Shaquille O’Neal and Kevin Hart.

Dolce Glow raises an $11M Series A

The self-tanning brand closed its first institutional round, an $11M Series A led by CAVU Consumer Partners, with Sofia Richie Grainge, Olivia Culpo, and Jaclyn Hill among the participants. Founder Isabel Alysa Vita built it from celebrity house calls into an at-home line in 2021, now stocked at Sephora and Ulta.

Brand endorsements

Gunna named Under Armour global ambassador and creative director of P-Star

Under Armour named Gunna a global ambassador and creative director of P-Star, a new platform spanning apparel, footwear, and cultural storytelling. P-Star is an evolution of P by Gunna, the line he launched with boohooMAN in 2024.

Kristen Bell named L’Oréal Paris global ambassador

Bell joined L’Oréal Paris as a global ambassador across skincare, haircare, color, and makeup, with a debut campaign reframing the brand’s sixty-year-old tagline. She joins a roster that includes Jane Fonda, Kendall Jenner, and Charles Leclerc.

Kim Kardashian joins Broc Shot as brand advocate

Kardashian signed with Broc Shot, tying a decade of public conversation about her psoriasis to the supplement. The company is a roughly 15-person, DTC operation out of Utah, built around sulforaphane from broccoli seeds.

Sophie Cunningham signs with Once Upon a Coconut

The WNBA guard became a national face for the coconut water brand across advertising, retail, digital, and appearances.

Nike signs 11 Clemson athletes to its Blue Ribbon Elite NIL roster

Nike added 11 Clemson athletes across football, softball, and gymnastics to its Blue Ribbon Elite roster, marking 25 years with the school. Blue Ribbon Elite runs deeper than logo placement — athletes work with Nike on brand campaigns, product innovation and creative direction. The full roster across schools including Texas, LSU, South Carolina and Ole Miss is approaching 90 athletes.

Partnerships

Snoop Dogg’s Dr. Bombay teams with Deel to hire an international taste tester

Deel partnered with Dr. Bombay — the ice cream brand co-founded by Snoop Dogg and Cordell Broadus — on a hiring stunt for its first International Ice Cream Taste Tester: a three-month, fully remote contract at $10,000 a month, open globally, with work on a Deel-themed flavor.

Media deals

Netflix signs The Pivot to a multi-year deal

Netflix signed a multi-year partnership with The Pivot — hosted by former NFL players Ryan Clark, Channing Crowder, and Fred Taylor — taking first-look rights on new content from Pivot25 Productions and getting Netflix-exclusive bonus episodes. The show has run independent since splitting from Fanatics in January 2025, and has put out more than 500 episodes and approached a billion views since launching in 2022.

Blake Griffin launches a late-night sports show with Prime Video and Wondery

Griffin is hosting and producing The Stepback with Blake Griffin, a weekly late-night sports show co-produced by Amazon’s Wondery and Mortal Media, the company he runs with former NFL lineman Ryan Kalil. The format has him behind a desk on topics like sports-betting economics, NIL, and taxpayer-funded stadiums.

Disney signs Dhar Mann Studios to a content deal

Disney signed Dhar Mann Studios to an original content deal, opening with a 20-episode order for kids, tweens, teens, and families. Dhar Mann has built one of the world’s largest digital audiences — 170M-plus followers and nearly 300M views a week across platforms.

The Beatles’ Apple Corps and Universal Music strike a global partnership

Apple Corps and UMG signed an exclusive, long-term global deal covering The Beatles’ physical and digital merchandise, licensing, and e-commerce.

Maluma signs a global deal with Fénix Entertainment for his 2027–28 world tour

Maluma partnered with Fénix Entertainment to develop and run his next world tour across 2027 and 2028. Fénix is the Argentine promoter behind Luis Miguel’s 2023–24 run — the highest-grossing Latin tour on record per Billboard Boxscore.

Roles and appointments

Russell Westbrook joins Project B as co-founder and chief strategy officer

Westbrook came on as co-founder and CSO of Project B, taking an ownership stake and a board seat. The league runs as a global grand prix — week-long tournament stops through Asia, Europe, and the Americas, streamed live on YouTube, launching January 2027. He joins co-founders Grady Burnett and Alana Beard, with a women’s roster already signed that includes Nneka Ogwumike, Alyssa Thomas, and Jewell Loyd.

Tristan Thompson joins Dubai Basketball’s front office as global ambassador

Thompson took his first front-office role since retiring, working with Dubai Basketball’s leadership on international expansion. The club launched in 2023 and became the first Gulf team ever to compete in the EuroLeague in 2025–26.

Jon Jay and Tyson Ross join BrknPar as athlete venture partners

The two former MLB players came on as venture partners at BrknPar, committing capital alongside the fund. They’ll help source deals, run diligence, and work with portfolio companies. Jay is on the Cardinals’ management staff; Ross is a special assistant with the Dodgers.

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Deal Brief · Week of Aug 24

Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.

Investments

Ashton Jeanty joins athlete-OS startup Nukleus as investor

The Raiders running back invested in Nukleus and became its public face ahead of launch. The platform is building a career operating system for athletes — one shared workspace for the agents, attorneys, accountants, and marketers around a player, replacing the usual sprawl of email and PDFs. Founder Hector Rivas ran a sports agency prior to starting Nukleus.

Andrew Bogut invests in athlete-intelligence platform Athoz and leads its Australia push

Bogut backed Athoz and joined as its regional partner in Australia, where it’s secured deals across the NRL, NBL, and AFL. The product turns player metrics into roster and readiness calls for coaching staff. The rollout follows Athoz’s acquisition of Optimum Scouting.

New ventures

Jaylen Brown previews the first shoe from his self-funded brand, 741

Brown gave a first look at a new model from 741, the brand he launched in September 2024 after turning down more than $50M in endorsement offers to keep full ownership and creative control. It’s the first player-owned sneaker brand launched during an active career — Brown cites Kobe’s unrealized Mamba Brand as the reference point, and frames the whole thing around athletes capturing the value they create.

Jameis Winston launches two shows with Playmaker

Winston is producing a travelogue and a talk show with Playmaker, the Better Collective-owned sports media company, through his own production company. It extends a parallel media career he’s built over two years — Fox Sports digital correspondent at Super Bowl LIX, a Netflix MLB booth on opening day, and Fox World Cup correspondent this summer.

James Harden brings Smiling Moose to Scottsdale

Harden is part of the local ownership group opening the Colorado-born sandwich chain’s first Arizona location, alongside fellow ASU alums. Founded in 2003, Smiling Moose is built around The Original Mo, a hot sandwich on a fresh-baked baguette.

Leonardo DiCaprio and Jeff Bezos launch the $200M Phoenix Species Project

DiCaprio’s Re:wild and the Bezos Earth Fund committed $200M to recover 100 critically endangered species across 30 countries — the largest single philanthropic initiative dedicated to species recovery. The design goal is structural: move conservation off short-term grant cycles onto sustained multi-year funding.

Christian Bale nears completion on a $22M foster care village

Bale is approaching the finish on Together California’s Village for Brothers and Sisters, a $22M development in Palmdale built to keep siblings in foster care under one roof — 12 townhomes, two studios for young adults aging out, and a 7,000-square-foot community center. He co-founded the charity with his wife Sibi and UCLA’s Dr. Eric Esrailian, bought the land in 2022, and broke ground in 2024.

Fundraising and acquisitions

Unrivaled raises Series C at a $650M valuation

The 3-on-3 women’s league co-founded by Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart closed an oversubscribed Series C of more than $100M, nearly doubling the $340M valuation it hit last September. The player equity pool is now reportedly worth close to $200 million — roughly 30% of the league’s total valuation — with at least 95% of players holding a stake. Ten Pillars Sports Fund, backed by the University of California’s investment arm, led the round, with reinvestment from Carmelo Anthony, Ashton Kutcher, Alex Morgan, and Trae Young.

NORTH Performance launches with 30 athletes as equity co-owners

The supplement brand debuted globally with 30 action-sports athletes on its founding roster as equity co-owners, with a combined audience north of 100 million. The roster spans surf, snow, mountain bike, and motocross names like Danny MacAskill, Torah Bright, and Julia Mancuso.

Brand endorsements

Neymar Jr. becomes global ambassador for Lifefit

Lifefit debuted with Neymar as its global face. Built by Medicare, Portugal’s leading health-plans company, it folds clinical guidance, nutrition, and training into one subscription, launching in Portugal before Brazil and the US.

Tate McRae becomes the new face of Calvin Klein

McRae stars in Calvin Klein’s Fall 2026 denim campaign, anchoring new silhouettes including the Low Rise Baggy and a returning ‘90s Straight Jean.

Jennie launches her first solo Adidas Originals collection

adidas Originals by JENNIE drops September 1 — the BLACKPINK member’s first solo capsule after eight years inside a group deal. It’s ballet-inspired, women’s-exclusive, and spans apparel, accessories, and footwear.

Champion names BTS’s V one of eight global faces

V leads Champion’s “Spoken Like a True Champion” fall campaign as one of eight faces — alongside Romeo Beckham, Kyle Kuzma, and Sofi Tukker — with the creative leaning on individuality over athletic performance.

Inde Navarrette fronts Gap’s fall denim campaign

Navarrette is a new face of Gap’s Fall Denim Collection alongside artist Malcolm Todd, running across digital, stores, and billboards in Times Square and on Sunset Boulevard.

Partnerships

Reebok and Zellerfeld 3D-print Allen Iverson’s The Question

Reebok rebuilt Iverson’s first signature shoe as a fully 3D-printed slip-on, printed as one piece in recyclable TPU — no molds, stitching, glue, or laces.

Reebok and 50 Cent revive the G-Unit G6

Reebok brought back 50 Cent’s first sneaker, the G-Unit G6, which sold out two hours after its rerelease.

Media deals

Megan Thee Stallion signs a global distribution deal with Interscope and keeps her masters

Megan signed a distribution and strategic partnership with Interscope through her own Hot Girl Productions, retaining full ownership of her masters and publishing. Interscope handles global reach; she stays independent and owns the catalog — the same structure she’d run with Warner since 2024.

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Legacy · Aug 2026

Featured profiles exploring how athletes build wealth beyond sports.

There is a version of career risk-taking that Silicon Valley has made almost fashionable: the engineer who leaves a stable job to chase a startup with a ninety-nine percent chance of failure. Matt Singletary took a version of that bet. The odds were probably worse.

Matt’s father is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. For most of his life, it felt less like an inheritance and more like an audit. Every snap, every game, every season invited comparison to one of the greatest linebackers the game has ever seen. He played through college and briefly in the NFL and CFL before football ended the way it does for most players, abruptly, and on someone else’s schedule.

Most people would enter their next chapter staying close to the game. Matt chose to leave it all behind.

He moved to Los Angeles to start over in an industry where he had no experience, no relationships, and no obvious advantage - except for a lifelong obsession with comics and anime, a side of himself he’d spent most of his childhood keeping quiet.

But what makes Matt’s story interesting isn’t the transition itself. Plenty of athletes reinvent themselves. It’s the mindset behind it. He approached acting less like a second act and more like a search for product-market fit - testing, learning, refining until something finally clicked. Mark Ruffalo’s advice, that one role might come from every hundred auditions, became a useful benchmark. Every “no” became another step toward the inevitable “yes.”

Eventually, the work began to compound. He appeared on Chicago P.D., worked with Hugh Laurie in Chance, landed a lead role in the film Hood, and wrote and starred in one of the earliest athlete-led YouTube series, years before “creator economy” became a category of its own.

I sat down with him to talk about the weight of carrying a Hall of Fame last name every time he stepped onto a football field, the unlikely path from football to Hollywood, and the mindset he developed along the way - one that now shapes far more than his acting career.

This Q&A has been lightly edited for clarity and length.

Your dad is a Hall of Famer - someone whose name carries weight with anyone who follows the NFL. How did that shape the way you approached the game?

Matt: Honestly? I was scared to play. I felt like I was growing up in a Hall of Famer and NFL coach’s shadow, and that I had to earn my last name.

My dad played twelve years. Ten trips to the Pro Bowl. All-Pro. Hall of Fame. Anything short of that would’ve been a failure.

There was a part of me that was excited too, but I knew I’d get compared to my dad no matter what I did, and that usually won out.

Early on, I wouldn’t even let myself find out if I loved football. I played hockey, baseball, basketball, soccer, water polo, anything that wasn’t football, just so I wouldn’t have to face it.

Eventually, the thinking became: if I’m going to get compared to him anyway, I might as well find out if I even like this thing.

At first, the fear was I hope people think I’m good enough. It was about external validation. Over time it turned inward, and got heavier: what if I don’t even think I’m good enough. That’s the harder version. I actually preferred when it was about other people. Because that one’s easier to live with.

At what point did you realize the real question wasn’t whether you could keep playing, but whether you wanted to?

It happened in one of those quiet moments, probably on the floor of a shower, which became a habit for me. Lights off, water running, some Hans Zimmer on repeat. That was how I’d shut everything out.

It did take me a while to ask that question. Life just kept presenting the next step, and I took it, without processing whether I actually wanted it. Some of that was a trap of my own making. Every year I played, these questions would be running in the background. If I quit, would people think I gave up? Would people respect it if I didn’t want to play anymore? I never had clean answers to these, but they were a big part of why I kept playing.

Most career transitions happen between adjacent worlds. Football to Hollywood isn’t one of them. Where did that ambition come from, and what gave you the conviction that it was a bet worth making?

I was a nerd who happened to play sports. Comics, anime, Harry Potter, Tolkien, I was excited about all of it. What I loved about those worlds was that they gave me somewhere else to go.

Growing up, I struggled to fit in. I got bullied. Back then, they offered an exit. I remember reading my first Harry Potter book in fifth grade, and it completely rearranged something in me. I was in Chicago, but I was also at Hogwarts.

So there was always this quiet thought underneath everything: I have so many stories in my head. What if I could make them?

One day, I met a guy, JT Neal, who’d been doing some acting work. We saw Straight Outta Compton together, and it hit both of us the same way, watching Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, Eazy-E just decide to build something themselves. We walked out of that theater and said, what if we just did our own thing? We didn’t know how to write at the time, so we got a few MasterClass subscriptions and started learning. Our first scripts were terrible. Then they got a little less terrible.

By the time I had to decide whether to commit to this, I already knew what the alternative looked like. I had a corporate job after football ended, doing spreadsheet work I didn’t really understand, and there was an older guy training me on Excel who told me, “One day you’ll look back on this and laugh, you’ll know this stuff like the back of your hand, just like me.” I remember thinking - I don’t want this, I don’t want to become you.

I wasn’t running the math on my odds in the industry. I just knew the bad days here beat the best days over there. Once I realized that, it stopped being a risk I had to talk myself into.

In what ways is Hollywood similar to, or different from, football?

The overlaps are obvious once you see it.

The more you can do, the more valuable you are. A long snapper who can also block and catch is more valuable than one who only snaps. A lineman who can play center and guard has a longer career than one who only knows one position. It’s the same instinct that made me want to show range as an actor instead of getting boxed into one type.

Another similarity is that you’re allowed to experiment and fail, as long as it happens somewhere safe. In football, that’s a practice rep. In acting, that’s the auditions.

But you can only take those risks responsibly if you’ve actually studied. As a defensive end, I can’t gamble on a cutback lane if I don’t know the defense. During an audition, I can’t improvise a scene if I don’t know how the director likes to operate.

Every director in Hollywood is basically a different defense you have to study. Someone like Aaron Sorkin or Quentin Tarantino wants every word delivered exactly as written, no improvising. Whereas other directors might hand you three words on a page and say go. Knowing which one you’re working with before you walk on set is its own skill.

At 6’4” with an athletic background, it would’ve been easy for Hollywood to put you in one box. How intentional were you about avoiding being typecast?

Not at the start, because you can’t afford to be. My first real role was on Chicago P.D. It was basically, “you want to play a cop?” And the answer was yes, because it got me on camera.

Part of why JT and I wanted to build our own stuff eventually was exactly this. The industry looks at a big guy and sees “cop” or “security guard.”

My personal cheat code is you show as many sides of yourself as you can, as often as you can. The audition is the one place I get to create on my own terms. Even in a role written as “no-frills cop,” it’s my shot to show range. I’m not just auditioning for the role in front of me. I’m auditioning to be remembered, because Hollywood is a small town. There are maybe sixty major casting directors in the whole business, and they scroll social media just like everyone else. If they’ve already seen a different side of you online, that’s one more reason to remember your name.

It’s a fine balance. I spend a lot of energy trying not to become the difficult actor who says no to everything, while also not becoming so agreeable I disappear into whatever box people put me in.

You landed the lead in Hood before you had years of credits behind you. Why do you think someone was willing to take that risk on you?

Most of my career, in sports and in Hollywood, has been built on potential rather than a track record. That part actually felt familiar.

Around that time, I got introduced to WME. Their read on me was pretty direct. They thought I had the potential to be something like a Dwayne Johnson type. They wanted to hip-pocket me, build me up quietly on my own projects until I had something real to show for it.

Hood was kind of a perfect storm of what production was looking for. A bigger guy. Physical. Durable enough to save them the stunt budget. And, on top of all that, someone who could actually act. I wasn’t the best at any single one of those things. But I could do all of them at the same time, and that’s rarer than being the best at one. Nobody hires the jack of all trades because he’s the best. They hire him because he’s the only one who can do four things at once, none of them perfectly, but well enough that it works.

Taking on a lead role that early came with real risk. Too much exposure, too soon, can hurt you more than it helps. I knew that. But I’d studied, practiced, worked with coaches. So by the time the cameras were rolling, I was ready.

Looking back, Roommates feels like an early creator-economy play. You wrote and starred in a scripted comedy series that lived on YouTube before creators were building businesses around their own audiences. Did you see a bigger shift happening?

I’d love to tell you we saw the whole creator economy coming and got ahead of it on purpose. Some of that was planning. A lot of it was blind faith and a good amount of naivety.

There’s a piece of advice that’s stayed with me ever since I heard it. Mark and Jay Duplass were speaking at South by Southwest, and their whole message was basically: stop waiting for someone else’s permission. Make your own stuff. It’ll be bad. The next one will be a little better. Just keep going.

Roommates came together around 2016, 2017, when YouTube wasn’t yet a place people associated with “a show.” We had a hunch there was something there, and that we’d retain more creative control building it ourselves than going through a traditional studio path. That was the mentality. The stuff we actually cared about, writing our own characters, being funny on our own terms, happened to line up with the one lane that was open to us.

Along the way, I also picked up something from Mark Ruffalo. He said that it takes roughly a hundred auditions to get a job. I’m like, okay, that’s just a volume play then. If that’s the ratio, the only lever I can control is volume. Roommates was my way of putting that into practice. I’d rather make forty bad episodes of something we built ourselves than wait around for two perfectly written auditions a year.

Today you also spend your time helping athletes navigate their careers. What’s the thesis behind that work?

If there’s a thread connecting everything in my career, football, the auditions, my roles, all of it, it’s that failure became useful to me once I stopped scoring it against what other people thought. At some point it just became more about what I actually learned from trying the thing.

For most of my life, I was performing for people who didn’t even have my phone number. What will they think was all I thought about, and half the time I couldn’t even say who “they” were. People who couldn’t reach me if something happened, good or bad, somehow lived rent-free in my head.

It took me a long time, close to thirty years, to realize that an identity built entirely on performance is a liability.

That’s the whole idea behind my work today. I help college athletes work through the same stuff I never had help with. We’re talking to a dozen schools in Texas this year, with the goal of eventually reaching all fifty states. There are a lot of people around college athletes for the wrong reasons these days, especially with NIL money in the mix. Some are there for the trips, the perks, the gifts. Very few of them are actually in your corner, helping you navigate the ups and downs.

I tell these kids the same thing I had to figure out myself. You treat failure as part of the process, and put in the reps until nobody in the room can say anything that shakes you. Get to the point where you can look at any room and say, nah, I’ve done this and failed two hundred times, nothing you say is gonna shake me. Not because you’re arrogant. Because you put in the reps, and you were harder on yourself than anyone could ever be.

It’s tempting to tell Matt’s story as one about an athlete who became an actor. After talking to him, that feels like the least interesting part. What stayed with me wasn’t the unconventional career path, but the mindset that made it possible. He approached uncertainty the way founders build companies - treating rejection as feedback, iteration as progress, and success as the byproduct of staying in the game long enough for the odds to tilt in his favor.

These days, most of that mindset goes into his work with professional and college athletes. To keep up with what he’s building, you can find him on LinkedIn, Instagram, or at his website.

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Deal Brief · Week of Aug 17

Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.

Investments

Derek Jeter backs ALUM, a luxury hospitality brand built for college towns

Jeter is in as investor, board advisor, and ambassador on ALUM, which is building members’ clubhouses, condo-hotel residences, and chef-driven dining within walking distance of campus. The first property — 116,000 square feet in Tuscaloosa — is underway, with sites secured or in talks at Oregon, Michigan, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Kentucky, and Notre Dame, and a target of 30–40 locations.

Arthur Fils joins performance cosmetics brand Tiva as investor and ambassador

The French tennis player closed out Tiva’s funding round as both a backer and a user — the startup’s grip gels and friction balms were already part of his match routine. Tiva is now in 130 retailers across France.

Vaca adds a group of athletes and CPG operators to the cap table as part of its $1.5M seed round

The beef-tallow tortilla chip brand closed a $1.5M seed led by BAM Ventures, pairing athlete backers (DeAndre Hopkins, Nyjah Huston, and MLB’s Shane Bieber, Mark Canha, and Shelby Miller) with operators like Sweetgreen’s Nic Jammet and Kettle & Fire’s Justin Mares. Built DTC first, it’s now moving to shelf at Whole Foods.

DeAndre Hopkins invests in Lemon Perfect

Hopkins now owns a piece of Lemon Perfect, after approaching the brand about buying in rather than taking a partnership deal. He was already drinking it. What convinced him, he says, was that it tasted like the lemonade he loved as a kid with no sugar added — so ownership was the only version of the conversation he was interested in. He frames it as where athlete deals are heading: asking for equity instead of taking the check.

Alix Earle takes an equity stake in Cymbiotika

Earle bought into the liposomal supplement brand, which hit $150M in 2025 revenue. It’s a familiar pattern for her — she already holds stakes in Poppi, SipMargs, and Gorgie, and launched her own brand, Rēale Actives, in March. She joins a cap table that includes The Weeknd, Post Malone, Kendall Jenner, and Hailey Bieber.

New ventures

Travis Kelce launches NIL venture Tekta with Publicis Sports

Kelce is building Tekta with Publicis Sports and 3 Arts Sports — a consulting and activation firm that helps brands find, structure, and measure NIL deals across a network of 45,000 Division I athletes and 68 Power Four schools. The timing tracks the market: NIL spending is projected at $4.5B for 2026–27, up from $3.6B. Tekta plans to add branding and financial-literacy education for the athletes on the other side.

Tracy McGrady revives the ABCD Camp after a 20-year hiatus

McGrady acquired an 80% stake in the storied high school showcase Sonny Vaccaro ran from 1984 to 2006, with Vaccaro keeping the rest. The first edition in 20 years ran in Phoenix, sponsored by Adidas. ABCD is where Kobe won MVP in 1995 and a 16-year-old LeBron outplayed Lenny Cooke. A documentary is now in development with Carmelo Anthony’s Creative 7.

Jermaine O’Neal and VICTORYROAD+ launch prep sports media brand FUTR5

The six-time All-Star formed a JV to build FUTR5, covering the country’s top high school athletes across YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram, with free short-form feeding a paid tier for live games and documentaries. O’Neal’s Dynamic Prep — a three-time recent champion — anchors it, with baseball added next school year.

Serena Williams rebrands Serena Ventures as Starfire Ventures

Williams dropped her own name from the firm she’s invested through for over a decade, reasoning that a personal name can cap what a company becomes — and she wants this one bigger than her. The track record is already substantial: 100-plus startups and 16 unicorns in the portfolio.

The Cavinder twins launch wellness brand Go Two

Haley and Hanna Cavinder — among the first athletes to build national NIL profiles — launched Go Two, a “frictionless wellness on the go” brand, debuting with two products (Debloat and Sleepy) and plans to expand into hydration, protein, and collagen. It joins a portfolio that already spans the TWOgether fitness app, Azucar tequila, and Hustle Beauty.

Deebo Samuel opens Problem Lounge in Old Town Scottsdale

Samuel opened a three-level concept with chef Cleashaun Hill in the long-vacant Barney’s Boathouse building: flame-grilled dining on the ground floor, a cocktail lounge upstairs, and a rooftop open-air hookah space.

Mo Bamba opens a card shop near the Texas campus

The former one-and-done Longhorn is opening a trading card shop by his old campus, announced through his YouTube channel and the Mo Bamba Cards and Collectibles socials.

Fundraising and acquisitions

Samsonite buys 85% of Shay Mitchell’s BÉIS at a $210M valuation

Samsonite is acquiring 85% of BÉIS for $178.5M in cash, valuing the travel brand Mitchell founded in 2018 at roughly $210M. Beach House Group, the incubator that owned 70%, is selling its entire stake, while Mitchell rolls over about half her equity to keep 15% and stays on as Founder and Head of Creative and Design.

Alex Cooper’s Unwell takes its first outside investment at a $500M valuation

Whitesell’s WTSL — the Silver Lake-backed firm he launched after exiting Endeavor — invested an undisclosed sum valuing Unwell at $500 million, the media company’s first outside capital. Cooper and husband Matt Kaplan, who self-funded the business since 2023 and say it’s been profitable from day one, keep a majority stake.

Brand endorsements

Marriott Bonvoy names Alex Eala the face of its Tennis The World campaign in APAC

The highest-ranked Filipino player in WTA history, and the first to win a WTA Tour singles title, fronts the Asia Pacific edition (excl. China).

eToro extends its Formula One position with Pierre Gasly

eToro signed the Alpine driver, building on the deal that made it Alpine’s exclusive trading and investment partner — running across live events, social, and podcast activations.

Kate Spade names Tyla global brand ambassador

The Tapestry-owned label signed Tyla to a yearlong deal fronting its fall 2026 campaign, built around “joy hiding in plain sight,” with nods to her album APOP* woven in.

Charlie Puth joins Lucky Brand as brand ambassador

Puth fronts Lucky Brand’s fall campaign as the lead name in a roster approach — the brand says it’ll keep spotlighting artists and creators through the season.

Loewe names David Jonsson brand ambassador

The Spanish house tapped the Alien: Romulus and Industry actor as it sets its course under new creative directors Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez.

Under Armour signs Li Yueru, its first female Chinese basketball athlete

The Dallas Wings center — a 2022 World Cup silver medalist — will work with UA across China and globally on youth basketball, women’s sports, and community programming.

New Balance signs five-star recruit Jett Harrison to an NIL deal

New Balance signed the 16-year-old Ohio State commit — the No. 1 recruit in the 2028 Rivals300 — joining his older brother, Cardinals wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr., on the football roster.

Media deals

Alan Ritchson signs a first-look feature film deal with Netflix

The Reacher star signed a first-look deal through his Dancing Skeleton banner to star in and produce a slate of films. First up: an untitled MotoGP heist thriller from Fast & Furious writer Chris Morgan. The deal follows War Machine, which drew 139.9M views in its first 91 days.

Vic Mensa launches The Vic Mensa Show with Chance the Rapper as first guest

Mensa launched a weekly podcast and video series through ORANJ, his new production company, in partnership with Mass Appeal. Season one runs 24 episodes, with Rapsody, Lena Waithe, and Van Lathan Jr. among the lineup.

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Deal Brief · Week of Aug 10

Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.

Investments

Bryce Harper and Andy Roddick invest in Jimmie Johnson's Legacy Motor Club

The two-time NL MVP and the 2003 US Open champion join a new ownership group at the Cup Series team alongside IndyCar’s Scott Dixon, Dario Franchitti and Tony Kanaan, plus Kelly Slater, Chase Utley, Darius Rucker, Guy Fieri, Away’s Jen Rubio and CrossHarbor’s Sam Byrne. Johnson stays majority owner with Knighthead Capital Management.

Jack Draper, Tom Segura, Gunna and Bethenny Frankel back watch marketplace Bezel

Authenticated luxury watch marketplace Bezel has added four new investors: comedian Tom Segura, rapper Gunna, tennis player Jack Draper, and entrepreneur Bethenny Frankel. They join a cap table that already includes Kevin Hart, John Legend, J Balvin, and Michael Rubin. Founded in 2022, Bezel has since passed $1 billion in watch listings.

Arthur Fils takes a stake in performance cosmetics brand Tiva

The French tennis player invested and signed on as ambassador, closing out the funding round the startup opened earlier this year. Tiva makes grip gels and friction balms for athletes and is stocked in 130 retailers across France.

New ventures

Stephen and Ayesha Curry open three restaurants with Michael Mina in Charlotte

The Currys are collaborating with award-winning Chef Michael Mina to roll out a trio of new concepts at The Ritz-Carlton, Charlotte. The first, Bourbon Steak, will be a steakhouse. The second, The Eighth Rule, will be a bourbon-forward cocktail lounge and social dining destination. The third, Sweet July Cafe, will be a lifestyle-forward café.

Mookie Betts launches baseball glove company LGND

Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts has launched LGND, a new baseball glove company that is set to debut with two collections: the MOOK Series and MVRK Series. In addition to its premium glove offerings, LGND will feature an interactive glove customization platform that allows players to design a glove that reflects their individual style and preferences.

Kevin Love opens a Topps partner card store in Lake Oswego

Kevin Love and his brother Collin launches The Alley, a new store that sells trading cards, carrying everything from packs of Pokémon cards to a special, mint condition shiny Michael Jordan card. The Topps partner store includes a wall for individual cards, a card pack bar, and a community lounge and breaking studio.

Fundraising and acquisitions

IG Group buys Underdog for up to $1.3 billion, cashing out several early athlete-investors

The London-listed trading firm is paying $1.1 billion upfront plus a $200 million earnout, with up to $850 million more to employees if the company clears $400 million EBITDA in 2028. Kevin Durant, Jared Goff, Matthew Dellavedova and Wilson Chandler came in on a $10 million round in 2021, when Underdog was valued at $485 million.

Beyoncé buys out Moët Hennessy’s stake in SirDavis

She now owns the American whisky outright, two years after launching it with the LVMH group as its first US spirits brand built in-house rather than acquired.

Jake Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions merges with the PFL

The combined company runs under the MVP banner with close to 400 fighters across boxing, MMA, live events and distribution, led by PFL chief John Martin, previously chairman and CEO of Turner. Paul and Nakisa Bidarian stay on as co-founders and board members, with existing shareholders 885 Capital and Knighthead Capital Management coming in as founding investors.

Partnerships

Kim Kardashian’s SKIMS enters India through an exclusive deal with Reliance Brands

Reliance will operate SKIMS across physical retail and digital, opening first in Delhi and Mumbai before a phased rollout. India follows London and Dubai on the brand’s international map, with Hong Kong and Seoul next.

Sydney Sweeney launches a $22 Erewhon smoothie for her lingerie brand SYRN

Sydney Sweeney has landed an Erewhon collab, launching the Blueberry SYRN — it blends MALK organic almond milk, blueberries, açaí and almond butter with vanilla bone broth protein and Erewhon’s organic A2 whey. The name does double duty. SYRN is Sweeney’s own lingerie brand, launched in January 2026 and backed by Coatue Management, so the smoothie doubles as a media buy for a business she wholly founded rather than a one-off endorsement.

De’Aaron Fox launches a Sharpie capsule with Under Armour

The limited-edition D. Fox x Sharpie collection turns hand-drawn sketches inspired by the Spurs guard’s story into footwear and apparel built on his signature line.

Brand endorsements

Coco Gauff and Taylor Fritz sign long-term deals with Oura

Oura has signed tennis players Coco Gauff and Taylor Fritz to long-term partnerships, announced heading into the 2026 US Open. Gauff’s leans on her reading life and family legacy. Fritz’s campaign frames him as the athlete-entrepreneur, launching with a digital takeover in The Athletic and extending to LinkNYC kiosks across New York City and print in The New York Times.

Luka Modrić joins Kerma Games as brand ambassador and celebrity IP partner

The Croatia captain joins a roster of global names the studio has been assembling across sport and entertainment.

Nike signs 11 high school football players to NIL deals

The prep class was selected at The Opening Finals at Nike’s Philip H. Knight Campus and spans the 2027 and 2028 recruiting classes, the brand’s largest disclosed high school group.

Bella Hadid fronts Alo’s Pre-Fall 2026 campaign

Her second for the brand after Fall 2025, shot in Los Angeles by Mert & Marcus and running across the Airlift Rebel bra, the Trail sneaker and the Softsculpt Precision tank.

Karina joins Converse as global brand ambassador

Converse has officially announced K-pop group Aespa member Karina as its newest global brand ambassador. She models two key sneaker styles: the refined Chuck 70 X and the bold platform Run Star Crush.

Pomellato names Yang Zi global brand ambassador

Kering-owned Milanese jeweler Pomellato has appointed Chinese actress Yang Zi as its global brand ambassador. Her debut campaign for the maison spotlights the Nudo collection, shot by photographer Chen Man.

Montblanc names Wang Anyu brand ambassador

Luxury maison Montblanc has appointed Chinese actor Wang Anyu as its newest brand ambassador. Known for roles in “Dreaming Back to the Qing Dynasty,” “The Last Immortal,” and “Romance in the Alley,” Wang has nearly 9.5 million followers on Weibo.

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Horizon · Aug 2026

First-person stories from athletes building their next chapter.

By Kotaro Umeda. Edited by Allen Lee.

Chink.

That’s the first word I ever looked up.

I was 10 years old. Nobody explained it to me. They just kept saying it. I still remember the feeling. Not anger. Not even sadness. Just confusion.

Growing up, I was usually the only Japanese kid in the room - classrooms, locker rooms, birthday parties.

I learned English through Lil Wayne. I had Tha Carter III and Tha Carter IV on repeat after school, trying to figure out what “real G’s move in silence like lasagna” actually meant.

Then summer came, and I’d go back to Japan. Except my Japanese wasn’t Japanese enough, so they’d treat me like a foreigner there too.

In Japan, I was the American kid. In America, I was the Japanese kid.

I knew I was different before I had a word for it.

“Where are you from?” was the question I dreaded most. I never felt like I had a good answer. And for a long time I thought that meant I didn’t belong anywhere.

Back then, different felt like a wall between me and everyone else. I didn’t know it would eventually become the thing I relied on most.

For most of my life, soccer was the only world I knew. It was the first place I learned that being different didn’t always mean being the person everyone noticed. Sometimes it meant noticing what everyone else missed.

I was never the flashiest player on the field. I was more interested in seeing something before everyone else did - reading patterns, anticipating situations, and understanding where the game was about to go.

From the age of 6 until I was 27, my job was incredibly specific. Sit in pockets in front of the two center backs and connect with my 10, 7, 11, or 9, and if none of that was on, maintain possession of the ball.

To someone watching from the outside, it probably looked simple. But it required me to constantly read what was happening before it happened - the space opening up, the movement of a teammate, the smallest shift in a defender’s body.

Then in 2025, I retired from professional soccer, and suddenly, the thing that had defined my life for two decades was gone. I remember realizing I would never again need to know exactly where to stand relative to a center back. Strangely, I didn’t feel sad. I felt free.

I never planned on getting into the fashion industry. It found me.

During my second year in the league, I was walking through Porto on an off day when a scout approached me and asked if I would come to a casting. I didn’t think much of it. At the time, it was just a way to make some extra money.

At first, I thought modeling was simple. I just needed to stand there, look good, and get paid. But I was wrong. I found out quickly that it’s another way of telling a story. You have a few seconds to communicate something through your face, your posture, your movement, the way you wear something. There’s nowhere to hide the way there is on the pitch, where you can blend into a system, into ten other guys.

In front of a camera, it’s just you. And that was uncomfortable.

I went from locker rooms filled with people who had spent their entire lives chasing the same dream, to studios filled with people who had never watched me play. Nobody asked about my stats. Nobody cared which leagues I had played in or what clubs I had played for. I had to figure out what else I brought to the industry.

The answer was something I’d spent years trying to overcome.

I was different.

Except this time, that wasn’t a problem to solve. It was the reason I was there.

The casting directors weren’t looking for someone who already belonged in that world. They wanted someone shaped by different cultures who could communicate with an audience in a way nobody else in the room could.

At first, soccer and fashion couldn’t look more different. One happens under stadium lights, measured in goals and wins. The other happens in studios and showrooms, measured by something harder to define - taste, emotion, a feeling nobody can quite explain.

During those years, my life became an odd combination of match days and castings. I never thought the two worlds had much to do with each other. But the more time I spent moving between them, the more familiar they started to feel.

The best people in both worlds had the same obsession. They noticed the smallest details that everyone else overlooked.

On the pitch, that meant reading a defender’s hesitation before it turned into a gap. In a studio, it was a creative director arguing for twenty minutes over a sleeve length, whether a shirt should be tucked or untucked, or a shade of blue that was almost right but not quite. From the outside, those details can look insignificant. But I’ve learned that the smallest details are usually where the biggest differences are created.

I felt that most clearly the first time I walked a runway at New York Fashion Week in 2025. I didn’t know the designer had spent over a year planning that one hour. I didn’t know even the seating was engineered - certain people in certain seats, so photographers could catch the clothes and the celebrity in the same frame.

Fifteen minutes on a runway, built on a year nobody in the audience ever saw.

Over time, I realized they were changing the way I understood storytelling itself.

Soccer taught me to think in cause and effect. One run created the next chance. One decision changed everything that came after it. Fashion showed me a story could live in a color, a silhouette, or the way someone moved. Sometimes it was one frame, caught a half-second too early or too late, and either way changed the whole feeling of the shot.

The best storytellers weren’t always trying to explain something. They made you feel something first. The meaning came later.

Today, speaking has become the place where all of those experiences come together.

After one of my recent speaking engagements, a young Asian student waited until everyone else had left before walking over to me.

Before he said a word, I knew something was wrong. I couldn’t have told you exactly why. Maybe it was the way he avoided eye contact. Maybe it was his body language. I didn’t ask. I just waited with him.

Then he said it.

“I wanted to attempt suicide.”

He told me he was one of the only Asian students at his school. He talked about the bullying, the racial slurs, and how different he felt every day - like there was no version of himself that fit anywhere.

I didn’t have the perfect answer for him. And I couldn’t erase what he had been carrying or tell him everything would suddenly be easy. I just sat with him. I told him I knew the feeling of walking into a room and wondering why you didn’t fit. We talked for a while after that. Before he left, I made sure he had someone he could call and gave him a way to reach me too.

For years, I thought being different was the thing I had to overcome. Sitting across from him, I understood it had become the one thing only I could have brought to that conversation. I didn’t need him to explain what it felt like to be different. I knew that feeling before he ever found the words.

Maybe that’s what all those years were preparing me for. Learning to notice what people weren’t saying. Learning to understand what couldn’t always be explained with words.

The same thing that once made me feel like I didn’t belong had become the way I understood people who felt like they didn’t either.

I think about that ten-year-old kid in Cleveland sometimes. The one who spent years wondering how to answer the question, “Where are you from?”

Wrong question, it turns out.

I spent years trying to figure out where I belonged. Looking back, maybe I was never supposed to belong to just one place.

Every world I entered asked something different of me. America. Japan. Soccer. Fashion. Speaking. I spent so much of my life trying to become enough of one thing that I almost missed what all those worlds had given me.

I spent years trying to become less different. Now I realize that difference was the thing I was always meant to bring.

I’m different.

Kotaro

Kotaro is a former professional soccer player who has played in Campeonato de Brasil, Campeonato de Portugal, United Soccer League, and the Hong Kong Premier League. Today, he's a keynote speaker, author, and fashion model. To keep up with Kotaro, follow him on LinkedIn and Instagram.

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Deal Brief · Week of Aug 3

Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.

Investments

Chan Ho Park and BTS’s Suga buy a minority stake in the Athletics

Through investment group Team61, the former MLB pitcher and the BTS member are taking a minority position in the A’s — with actors Ken Jeong and Daniel Dae Kim also in the group. Park, the first Korean to play in the majors, becomes the first Korean to buy into an MLB club and takes on a senior adviser role to owner John Fisher.

Virat Kohli takes a 28% stake in fitness chain Vault

Kohli and his brother Vikas formalized a combined 28% equity stake in the premium fitness chain, backing its franchise-led expansion across India. Vault has passed 30,000 members across 30 clubs and is targeting more than 50 by the end of 2026.

Fundraising and acquisitions

Iskra Lawrence’s Saltair sells majority stake to TSG Consumer

PE firm TSG Consumer is acquiring a majority stake in Saltair, the body-care brand Lawrence founded in 2022. She stays on as chief community advocate.

New ventures

Jake Paul launches a family office at Dallas’s Old Parkland

Paul is opening a family office at the Old Parkland campus, tapping former Merrill Lynch director Laura Brady to run it. The firm goes past wealth management — it’s built as an investment and venture-building vehicle spanning AI, defense tech, consumer brands, sports, and real estate, and a platform to scale companies across Paul’s broader ecosystem.

Lewis Hamilton opens his first trading card store

Card Culture by Lewis Hamilton opened its flagship in Frankfurt, built with Dave & Adam’s Card World as a premium retail experience. A collector since childhood, the seven-time F1 champion is positioning it as a bet on the future of the category.

Ice Spice debuts her first fragrance, In Ha Mood

Developed with Revlon, Ice Spice’s debut scent launched on Ulta Beauty’s TikTok Shop.

Brand endorsements

Zendaya becomes the face of Prada Paradoxe

Prada Beauty named Zendaya global ambassador for its Paradoxe fragrance — a scent she says she wore long before the brand approached her, discovered through a friend and turned into her signature.

MS Dhoni becomes the new face of Malabar Gold & Diamonds

The retired India captain signed a long-term deal anchoring the retailer’s “Responsible Jeweller” campaign across its 445 showrooms in 14 countries.

Lee Hyun-joong signs a three-year deal with Nike

The South Korea national-team forward will receive footwear, apparel, and equipment from Nike over three years, and take part in the brand’s global campaigns and marketing.

Roger Vivier names Tan Jianci global ambassador

The French luxury footwear house appointed the Chinese actor and singer its new ambassador, with a role spanning campaigns and personal interpretations of the brand’s archive.

Elsa Hosk becomes the face of haircare brand Lunesi

The Swedish model signed on as global brand ambassador for the premium haircare brand.

Sanju Samson joins Al Ansari Exchange as brand ambassador

The Indian international signed a one-year deal covering advertising, digital content, appearances, and customer engagement.

Roles and appointments

Eddie Pope joins the MLS front office

The former MLS and U.S. Men’s National Team star was named SVP of sporting development for MLS and SVP of competition & operations for MLS Next Pro, overseeing development pathways and the long-term vision for MLS Next Pro.

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Deal Brief · Week of Jul 27

Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.

New ventures

Savannah James launches holding company Signed, backed by Jay-Z’s PE firm

James and business partner April McDaniel are consolidating their portfolio under a new company called Signed, built to house women-focused media and business ventures. It brings together three existing brands — McDaniel’s creative agency Crown+Conquer, the women’s community Let It Break, and their Everybody’s Crazy podcast — as the foundation for new brands under the umbrella. The launch comes in partnership with MarcyPen Capital Partners, the PE and venture firm co-founded by Jay-Z.

Mookie Betts launches baseball glove company LGND

The Dodgers shortstop is entering the equipment business with LGND, debuting with two lines — the MOOK Series and MVRK Series — plus a customization platform that lets players design their own gloves.

Stephen and Ayesha Curry open three restaurants with chef Michael Mina

The Currys are rolling out a trio of concepts at The Ritz-Carlton, Charlotte, with award-winning chef Michael Mina: a steakhouse (Bourbon Steak), a bourbon-forward lounge (The Eighth Rule), and a lifestyle café (Sweet July Cafe). It extends a partnership that began when Curry launched The Eighth Rule with the MINA Group in San Francisco last year.

Kevin Love opens a trading card store in his hometown

Love and his brother Collin launched The Alley in Lake Oswego, Oregon — a Topps partner store with a card pack bar, a community lounge, and a breaking studio. Inventory runs from Pokémon packs to a mint Michael Jordan card at $375.

Elvis Duran and Paul Heyman launch podcast venture Podrophenia

The broadcasting veteran and WWE Hall of Famer opened Podrophenia, a podcast and creator-development company running out of MCM Studios in Manhattan — offering creators production facilities, audience development, and monetization support.

Fundraising and acquisitions

Iron Maiden sells 50% of its catalog and NIL rights to Pophouse

The band sold a half-stake in its music catalog and its name, image, and likeness rights — including Eddie, the mascot — to Sweden’s Pophouse Entertainment, the firm behind the ABBA Voyage venture. The deal runs beyond the music: the two are filming the current “Run for Your Lives” world tour for a cinematic project.

T.I. signs his entire catalog to Reservoir Media

The global publishing deal covers every song T.I. has written, from his 2001 debut I’m Serious through this year’s Kill the King — a quarter-century of catalog in a single agreement.

Brand endorsements

Ella Bright becomes Rare Beauty’s first ambassador outside Selena Gomez

The Off Campus breakout is the face of Rare Beauty’s “Made You Blush” campaign — the first time the brand has named an ambassador other than founder Selena Gomez.

Keely Hodgkinson launches her first signature collection with Nike

The Olympic 800m champion’s debut athlete pack spans footwear and apparel — black with metallic gold accents, carrying a custom “tornado” signature logo built to signal motion, energy, and control.

Napheesa Collier joins Thorne as athlete partner

Collier signed with supplement brand Thorne, joining a roster that includes Jrue Holiday, Ben Shelton, and Madison Keys.

Jordan Chiles launches her first signature leotard collection with Nike

The two-time Olympian developed the line with GK Elite, translating athlete-driven design into competition-ready apparel — and making signature styles more accessible to young gymnasts.

De’Aaron Fox and Under Armour team up with Sharpie for new shoe launch

Under Armour and Sharpie turned hand-drawn sketches inspired by Fox’s story into the limited-edition D. Fox x Sharpie collection, spanning footwear and apparel.

Napheesa Collier launches her first Jordan Brand signature shoe

Jordan Brand unveiled the “Queen Phee” Heir Series 2, Collier’s first Player Exclusive. The five-time All-Star helped design it — a True Blue and Baltic Blue colorway nodding to Minnesota, with her daughter Mila’s name tucked inside.

Media deals

SOFI TUKKER launches publishing JV Animal Talk with Third Side Music

The Grammy-nominated duo formed a new publishing venture, Animal Talk, with Third Side Music handling global administration, rights management, and sync. TSM also extended its worldwide publishing deal with the pair, a relationship dating to 2017.

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Deal Brief · Week of Jul 20

Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.

Investments

Nationals prospect Ronny Cruz sells 10% of his future earnings for $1.2M

Cruz partnered with Agentiq to take up to $1.2M upfront against a maximum 10% stake in his future on-field income. Public investors buy shares in his career and receive distributions as he advances through baseball and starts earning.

Coby White joins Ballislife Drink as equity partner

The Charlotte Hornets guard signed on as brand ambassador and equity partner for Ballislife Drink, joining the brand's roster of NBA athlete partners. White grew up watching Ballislife post his own high school highlights.

New ventures

Megan Moroney launches her first fragrance, Calliope, with Scent Beauty

The country star spent a year and a half developing Calliope — heart-shaped bottle included — her entry into the fragrance category, arriving mid–Cloud 9 Tour.

Togethxr and iHeart launch Everyone Watches Women’s Sports

The media company co-founded by Alex Morgan, Chloe Kim, Simone Manuel, and Sue Bird is launching a weekly podcast with iHeart, hosted by Olympic gold medalist Jordan Chiles, journalist Ari Chambers, and comedian Sam Jay.

Brand endorsements

Bryce Harper and Under Armour launch the UA Harper 11

The 11th installment of Harper’s signature cleat makes it the longest-running active signature footwear line in MLB. The pair signed a 10-year extension in 2015 — then the largest endorsement deal for a baseball player.

Livvy Dunne and JUNKLESS launch a nationwide NIL contest

Dunne is partnering with the snack brand and The Livvy Fund to award one female college athlete a paid NIL deal. Dunne personally selects the winner, who becomes a JUNKLESS brand ambassador — $4,500 cash, a semester’s supply, and monthly content features through December.

IU becomes Jaeger-LeCoultre’s first Korean global ambassador

The singer and actress joins the Swiss watchmaker as a global ambassador, debuting through its “The Hour Before” interview series.

Guo Hanyu joins Lululemon as brand ambassador

The Chinese tennis player is the first from her country signed by Lululemon to compete across all four Grand Slams. She holds six WTA doubles titles and a career-high doubles ranking of No. 9.

Sourav Ganguly joins InsuranceDekho as brand ambassador

The former India captain fronts a campaign for the insurtech platform aimed at its network of more than 497,000 advisors.

Partnerships

Amy Poehler backs new narrative audio studio Please and Thanks

The studio, launched by former Pineapple Street Studios executives Joel Lovell and Henry Molofsky, debuts with Manifesto! for Audible Originals. Poehler’s Paper Kite Productions has partnered with the studio on an investigative documentary audio series, sold to Universal Studio Group Audio for a 2027 launch.

Media deals

Netflix strikes a deal with celebrity chef Nick DiGiovanni

Netflix will host DiGiovanni’s full back catalog alongside new content from his “Nick DiGiovanni” and “Nick’s Kitchen” channels, streaming day-and-date with YouTube.

Stokes Twins sign a content deal with Netflix

Alan and Alex Stokes are bringing their YouTube archive to Netflix and moving into long-form with a new series set to premiere in 2027.

Colin & Samir partner with Lexus on a four-part YouTube series

The creators are producing four sponsored videos and four ad campaigns with Lexus, developed with Google Creative Works and Portal A. The series follows them driving cross-country in a GX 550 and RZ 550e to reconnect with their creativity after both lost their homes in the 2025 LA fires.

Roles and appointments

Whoop hires former Olympian DJ van Hameren

The wearables company appointed van Hameren — a two-time Olympic track cyclist who spent three decades at Nike — as Chief Marketing Officer, leading global marketing, brand partnerships, and international expansion.

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Horizon · Jul 2026

First-person stories from athletes building their next chapter.

By Michal Mrazik. Edited by Allen Lee.

Seen by Millions, Known by None

For most of my life, I thought hockey would be the reason people remembered my name.

Not because I wanted fame. But because everything I did revolved around becoming the best hockey player I could possibly become.

Then one day, the internet decided something else about me mattered more.

I still remember that evening after practice. I thought something was wrong with my phone.

It wouldn’t stop buzzing.

Tons of Instagram notifications. New followers every time I refreshed the screen. First it was a few hundred. Then thousands. Then tens of thousands.

I remember staring at my phone thinking, is Instagram broken?

It took me a few days to figure out what had happened. Someone had dug up an interview I had done after the World Junior Championship, clipped thirty seconds of it, and posted it online. And the internet did what the internet does.

I actually didn’t score the game-winning goal or do anything spectacular in that game. I was simply answering a reporter’s questions after a game, the same way I had done dozens of times before. A camera happened to catch my face at an angle millions of people liked.

That’s it… I went viral because of the way I looked.

Almost overnight, strangers from every corner of the world felt like they knew me. Thousands of people confidently explained who I was without knowing a single thing about me. Some made edits with dramatic music. Others posted reaction videos. Even memes. Suddenly, I wasn’t just a hockey player.

But the strangest part wasn’t that people found me attractive. It was that the thing I had spent almost twenty years building suddenly became invisible.

Nobody cared about the years I spent chasing the NHL dream. Or that I had represented Slovakia at the World Championships. Or the early mornings, the bus rides, the injuries, the rehab, the sacrifices my family made so I could keep playing the game I love.

Twenty years of work disappeared behind thirty seconds of video. And those thirty seconds became my introduction to the world.

In some ways, it opened doors. I met incredible people, had conversations I never would have had otherwise, and connected with people far beyond the hockey world. For that, I’m genuinely grateful.

But attention has a cost people rarely talk about.

Overnight, my identity stopped feeling like it belonged to me.

People recognized me in places I had used to go. Some filmed me before saying hello. Some took photos without asking. My parents started getting questions from complete strangers. Random numbers started calling my phone. Over time, my inbox became this strange mix of kindness, curiosity, opportunities, and people projecting an entire identity onto someone they’d only seen for a few seconds online.

Then there were the comments. Some were kind. Some were funny. Some reduced everything I had worked for to four words.

“Just a pretty face.”

It’s strange how a sentence from someone you’ll never meet can stay with you longer than a compliment from someone you love.

Not because I believed it. I didn’t. But because it reminded me how quickly people mistake what they can see for who you are. And it’s not their fault. Thirty seconds isn’t enough time to know anyone.

Dealing with all that attention made me realize something. Athletes talk about physical toughness constantly - how to take a hit, play through pain, compete on little to no sleep. But nobody trains you for the mental part of professional sports. Millions of strangers could praise you, criticize you, laugh at you before you’ve even said a word to them. There’s no coach or playbook for that kind of stuff.

On every team I played for, the guys who handled attention best weren’t the most physically talented ones. They were the ones with something steady underneath it all - a workout routine, a sleep schedule, a recovery regimen, a diet, and most importantly, a relationship with their mind that didn’t shift depending on what people said about them that day. I didn’t have a name for what that was. I just knew, watching them, that I wanted whatever they had.

Retired At Twenty Three

Monday, October 2nd, 2023. Hartford.

I flew to New York five months into the hardest training block of my life, chasing one more shot at an NHL contract with the Rangers.

This was my chance.

First day of camp, I fell into the boards. A player about my size fell right behind me, knees first, straight into my lower back.

A few hours later, I was lying in a hotel room, barely able to move.

Dislocated coccyx. Multiple herniated discs.

Just like that, my first real shot at the NHL ended during the first period of my first practice.

By the end of the week, they sent me down to the ECHL in Cincinnati. I played three games in three days, barely able to stand upright. I did what I had been taught to do my entire career - push through the pain and don’t complain about it.

Looking back, I shouldn’t have. But I didn’t know how to do it any other way. Pain was just the cost of playing. So I kept training. Kept playing. Kept telling myself I’ll get through it.

In the fall of 2024, the pain came back. This time, it wasn’t something I could skate through.

I flew to Prague, then Vienna, then Paris, then London, looking for one doctor who’d tell me something different than the last one.

Nobody did.

Finally in London, I got a definitive answer. The only option left was a surgery that carried a real risk of leaving me in a wheelchair. And even if it went perfectly, my hockey career was over.

I was twenty three years old.

I wrote my retirement announcement on the four-hour train ride home. I cried the entire way.

For almost twenty years, I had asked my body to carry my biggest dream. I trained it relentlessly. Pushed it past its limits, season after season. Expected more from it every single year, and never once asked if it had more left to give.

Somewhere in there, I stopped seeing my body as something I was responsible for, and started treating it like something that simply had to keep producing.

That’s when I realized that most support systems for elite performers, athletes or otherwise, are built to manage output, not protect the person producing it. People obsess over performance. They rarely ask what it costs you, in your body or your mind, until something breaks badly enough to notice.

My mom always told me nobody cares about your health more than you do. I used to think that was just something moms say.

After Hartford, I finally knew what she meant. And I knew exactly how expensive it is to learn that lesson at twenty three years old.

What Now?

After I retired, people kept asking me the same question: what now?

For a long time, I didn’t have an answer. But I couldn’t stop thinking about one thing: how do you sustain performance at the highest level without it costing you everything else?

At first, I thought what happened to me belonged to professional sports. Then I started meeting founders, artists, actors, investors, musicians, creators. People operating at the top of their fields.

On paper, their lives looked nothing like mine. But underneath, they felt familiar in a way.

I met a founder who hadn’t slept more than five hours a night in years because there was always another urgent problem to solve. An actor who admitted he’d stopped taking care of himself because there was “no time” between projects. A creator who tracked every little detail about his content but couldn’t remember the last time he had a full night of uninterrupted sleep.

People admired them for their output. Almost nobody asked what it was costing them.

I recognized the pattern immediately because I’d lived it too.

Everyone wants elite performance. Almost nobody builds a system to sustain it. It’s never just physical. It’s never just mental, either. It’s both. I don’t think I really understood that until I’d already lost the chance to apply it to my own career.

I can’t stop wondering what my own career might have looked like if someone had helped me understand that sooner. Whether Hartford happens the same way if I’d known then what I only know now.

What frustrates me about a lot of the wellness world today is how much of it sells fragments and calls it a solution. A cold plunge here, a supplement stack there, a morning routine borrowed from a successful businessman with no connection to how you actually sleep, train, or think.

So that’s the space I’m building in now. Not another supplement. Or another app that spits out a generic plan. Something closer to what the Greeks understood a long time before wellness became an industry - that the body and the mind were never meant to be trained separately. The kind of system I wish someone had offered me before I went pro.

I don’t have all of it figured out yet. What I do have is a question I can’t put down, and a growing list of people telling me I’m not the only one thinking about this.

I believe the next generation of elite performers won’t win because they push themselves harder. They’ll win because they learn how to last longer.

That’s what I’m trying to build.

I don’t know exactly what it’ll become yet. But for the first time since I was a little kid chasing the NHL, I’m waking up every day chasing something that feels just as important.

M.M.

Michal Mrázik is a former professional ice hockey player who represented Slovakia at the World Championships and played across the Slovak Extraliga, AHL, and ECHL. He's the author of Life Doesn't End Here, and is currently building a performance system for elite performers across sports, entertainment, and business. To keep up with Michal, follow him on LinkedIn and Instagram.

Originally published on mainstreet on July 2026.

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Deal Brief · Week of Jul 13

Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.

Investments

Alma Mater draws a group of athlete-investors

The golf footwear startup, founded by Nike Golf and FootJoy alums, brought on a wide roster of athlete backers — including NFL players Jordan Poyer and Levi Wallace, MLB veterans Kevin Millar and Jackie Bradley Jr., NHL legends Joe Pavelski and Tyler Seguin, and professional golfers Taylor Montgomery and Natasha Oon — ahead of a new fundraising round. Its shoes use a proprietary three-piece construction platform.

APEX takes a stake in the Northern Super League

The athlete-backed investment firm — whose 100+ backers include Carlos Sainz, Lando Norris, and Giorgio Chiellini — is investing an initial $20M in Canada’s first professional women’s soccer league, with an option to reach $30M. The deal values the NSL at roughly $85M.

Fundraising and acquisitions

David Beckham’s IM8 raises $1B

Beckham’s wellness startup secured $1B in growth financing from General Catalyst’s Customer Value Fund. Under the structure, the fund covers up to 70% of IM8’s monthly marketing spend in exchange for a capped return tied to each month’s cohort of newly acquired customers.

Full Swing, the Tiger Woods–backed golf simulator, acquired for $530M

Versant — the Comcast spinoff that owns Golf Channel — is buying Full Swing from Bruin Capital for $530M. Woods has held a stake since 2015; the company powers TGL, the league he co-founded with Rory McIlroy, and is the PGA Tour’s official simulator.

New ventures

Megan Thee Stallion launches her first fragrance with Coty

The three-time, Grammy award-winning singer launches her new fragrance, Hot Girl Summer Eau de Parfum, marking the latest expansion of her growing business portfolio. Developed in partnership with Coty, the limited-edition product is designed as a unisex offering, and will debut through an exclusive launch with Ulta Beauty. This marks the latest extension of her Hot Girl Summer brand, which started as a Walmart swimwear line and has since grown into menswear and pet apparel.

Michael Strahan’s SMAC Productions launches a podcast network

The media platform Strahan co-founded with Constance Schwartz-Morini is launching a podcast network this fall, anchored by two flagship shows — one with Terrell Owens and Chris Spencer, the other with Strahan and Schwartz-Morini.

Brand endorsements

Hailey Bieber and Gap launch The Hailey Jean denim capsule

Bieber reimagines Gap’s relaxed denim icons through her own ‘90s-leaning lens, with two fits — the Extra Baggy and ‘90s Low Rise Loose — anchoring a limited-edition capsule and campaign.

Kylie Jenner teams up with Dunkin’ on the King Kylie Collection

A limited-time nod to her “King Kylie” era, the collaboration pairs a retro campaign with three pink-hued drinks: a Candy Pink Lemonade Refresher, a Vanilla Pink Cloud Latte, and a Pink Lemon Drop Suncloud Lemonade.

Graff taps BTS’s Jung Kook as its first-ever global ambassador

British luxury jeweler Graff made history in by appointing BTS member Jung Kook as its first-ever global house ambassador in its 66-year history. He fronts the House’s new Laurence Graff Signature campaign in pieces from the brand’s unisex goldwear collection.

Michael Jordan named Upper Deck’s first Legacy Partner

Jordan extended his 30-year relationship with Upper Deck, granting the company exclusive rights to keep producing his authenticated autographed collectibles — and taking a more hands-on role in product selection and creation.

Sachin Tendulkar becomes the face of Sulphur Mills

The cricket icon signed on as brand ambassador for the Indian agriculture company, lending his national reach to a push for sustainable farming technologies and soil health.

Darian Mensah signs a luxury watch NIL deal with Derby Watch Supply

The Miami quarterback inked one of the first-ever luxury watch NIL partnerships ahead of his Hurricanes debut, promoting the Rolex Datejust after leading Duke to an ACC title last season.

Media deals

Viola Davis inks a first-look deal with Universal Global Television

JuVee Productions, Davis and Julius Tennon’s company, signed a first-look TV deal with UGT — kicking off with Pawn, a romantic drama adapted from a Kennedy Ryan short story.

Roles and appointments

Landry Fields joins Project B to lead its men’s basketball division

Project B, the new global basketball league, has named former Atlanta Hawks general manager Landry Fields as its head of men’s basketball. The league will feature 6 teams with 11 players and plans to expand across Europe and Asia. Valencia, Spain, and Tokyo have already been announced as two of the host cities. It has started rolling out its women’s circuit, with participation from Dallas Wings rookie Azzi Fudd, former WNBA MVP Nneka Ogwumike, Alyssa Thomas, Jonquel Jones, Jewell Loyd and Seattle Storm rookie Awa Fam.

Jeremy Lin makes his in-game broadcasting debut

Lin called live games at NBA Summer League in Las Vegas alongside play-by-play announcer Drew Carter, providing on-air commentary and analysis in his broadcasting debut.

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Deal Brief · Week of Jul 6

Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.

Investments

Premier Lacrosse League raises $100M, adds Glen Powell and Rob McElhenney as investors

The $100M Series E was led by Ares Sports and Joe Tsai, with Powell and McElhenney joining the cap table. Proceeds go toward media distribution, sponsorship growth, the Women's Lacrosse League, and youth access — ahead of lacrosse's Olympic return at LA28.

Pau Gasol invests €55M in Liga F

Gasol16 Ventures, partnering with Fortified Partners, is putting €55M into Spain’s top women’s football league — acquiring between 35% and 49% of Liga F clubs’ future commercial revenue rights for 25 years.

Kyle Lowry joins the Toronto Tempo ownership group

The former Raptors star and his wife, Ayahna Cornish-Lowry, have taken a stake in the WNBA’s Toronto Tempo — joining an ownership group that includes Serena Williams, Masai Ujiri, and Larry Tanenbaum.

Giannis Antetokounmpo doubles down on Superpower

The NBA MVP is joining preventative health platform Superpower as its first-ever Global Brand Ambassador while increasing his existing investment. The platform gives everyday consumers access to the deep diagnostic testing typically reserved for pro athletes.

Josh Morrissey invests in Indigenous food brand Mitsoh

The Winnipeg Jets defenseman came in as a strategic investor in Mitsoh’s multimillion-dollar growth round, led by Raven Indigenous Capital Partners. The capital funds national expansion and production upgrades for the traditional meat snack brand.

New ventures

Ashton Kutcher leaves Sound Ventures to launch a new VC firm

Kutcher is departing Sound Ventures to start a new fund with Morgan Beller — formerly a GP at NFX, a partner at Andreessen Horowitz, and co-lead of Meta’s Libra project. The firm targets early-stage companies building the physical layer beneath AI: infrastructure, energy, and deep tech.

Georgina Rodríguez launches activewear brand Mimoa

The Dubai-based, direct-to-consumer line debuts with 27 lifestyle basics — leggings, crop tops, hoodies — all priced under €100, positioning premium athleisure at an accessible tier.

Brand endorsements

Erling Haaland becomes the face of WALOVI

The Manchester City striker signed as global ambassador for WALOVI, the international arm of Wang Lao Ji — a Chinese herbal tea brand whose recipe dates to 1828. Another line on one of football’s deepest commercial portfolios.

Jeremy Lin signs his first beverage collaboration with Passion 24

Lin has partnered with Passion 24 to build GuoLiShui, a Taiwanese hydration drink made with fruit juice, coconut water, electrolytes, and green tea extract.

BTS’s V becomes JINRO’s first-ever global ambassador

The world’s best-selling soju has named V its inaugural global ambassador, part of a strategy to grow Jinro’s brand recognition and appeal across international markets.

Shane Lowry partners with Stryker as global brand ambassador

The major champion signed a multiyear deal with the medical technology company’s Joint Replacement division, fronting a campaign focused on the role caregivers play in recovery.

Lori Harvey named Chief Creative Advisor at Gran Coramino

Kevin Hart’s tequila brand has appointed Harvey to lead its “Coramino Woman” initiative, steering creative direction, campaigns, and cultural activations following the brand’s milestone of over $200 million in retail sales.

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Deal Brief · Week of Jun 29

Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.

Investments

Jalen Brunson takes equity in Just Salad

The Knicks star and 2026 Finals MVP has become a partner and equity owner in the New York–born fast-casual chain — its first-ever athlete partnership and his first restaurant investment. Brunson will be embedded in operations, working with the leadership and culinary teams.

Pat McAfee joins PB&J brand Jams as co-owner

The host's first food and beverage investment is a leadership position with Jams, a PB&J brand that launched in July 2025 and has nationwide distribution at Walmart and Target.

Baker Mayfield, Jalen Williams, and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone invest in OKC's new soccer club

The Heisman winner, Thunder forward, and Olympic gold medalist are backing Oklahoma City's new professional soccer club and its surrounding stadium district, developed by Echo Investment Capital.

New ventures

Grace Beverley becomes co-owner of Water2

The serial founder behind TALA and SHREDDY has taken a co-ownership stake in Water2 and launched Water2skin, a shower-filter range for skin and hair. She was a customer first — her fiancé installed the filters at home before she signed on.

Matty Matheson and Ricky Staffieri launch film studio Super Athletic Film Co.

The Bear’s Fak brothers have teamed with producer Hannah Welever to launch a production company focused on original film and TV. Its first feature, Grind, won the 2026 Frontières Platform at Cannes’ Marché du Film.

NBA players union launches commercial arm PLYRS UNTD

The NBPA has launched PLYRS UNTD, a consumer-facing brand built to commercialize the collective name, image, and likeness rights of NBA players — created in collaboration with Kendrick Lamar’s creative agency, Project 3. It will pursue licensing, merchandise, content, and player-brand collaborations.

Fundraising and acquisitions

L Catterton invests in Mara Roszak’s haircare brand Rōz

The consumer-focused PE firm has taken a significant minority stake in Rōz, the clean haircare line from celebrity stylist Mara Roszak — whose red-carpet clients include Emma Stone and Zoe Saldaña. Existing backers Silas Capital and G9 Ventures joined the round.

Brand endorsements

Darryn Peterson signs one of the richest rookie shoe deals in NBA history

The No. 2 pick re-upped long-term with Adidas — the brand that first signed him at 16 — in one of the richest rookie sneaker contracts the league has seen.

Jude Bellingham joins men’s grooming brand Onside

The Real Madrid and England midfielder has signed as partner and global ambassador for Onside, the premium men’s personal care brand co-founded by NBA star Jayson Tatum.

Kaia Gerber named Uni’s first Creative Partner in Residence

The luxury body care brand tapped Gerber for a long-term role spanning content, product innovation, and creative direction — launching with a Theo Wenner–shot campaign for its 24-Hour Body Serum.

Kim You Jung joins Charles & Keith as global brand ambassador

The Singapore-based footwear and accessories brand named the South Korean actress its newest global ambassador.

Kilian Jornet joins AI running app Kotcha as athlete founder

The trail-running legend has come on as an athlete founder at Kotcha, alongside marathon great Eliud Kipchoge. The AI platform turns elite training philosophies into adaptive plans that flex around a runner’s life.

Media deals

Mercedes Ron signs first-look deal with Amazon MGM Studios

The My Fault author has signed a first-look deal to executive-produce every future adaptation of her books, and can bring other authors’ IP to the studio for adaptation.

Alex Cooper partners with Google Pixel on microdrama

Cooper is entering the microdrama space with Moving On, a 14-episode branded vertical series produced by her media company Unwell in partnership with Google Pixel.

Roles and appointments

Novak Djokovic joins General Atlantic as Global Strategic Advisor

The 24-time Grand Slam champion is joining the growth-equity firm as a Global Strategic Advisor, working directly with leadership, portfolio companies, and investors across healthcare, life sciences, consumer, and tech.

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Deal Brief · Week of Jun 22

Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.

Investments

Jake Paul closes oversubscribed $100M growth fund

Anti Fund — the venture firm Paul co-leads with Geoffrey Woo — closed its oversubscribed $100M Growth Fund I, bringing total AUM north of $180M. The portfolio already includes OpenAI, SpaceX, Anduril, Cognition, and Helion, backed by a global LP base spanning institutional investors and family offices.

Gareth Bale launches $500M+ sports private equity fund

The retired Wales and Real Madrid star has formed a sports-focused fund with American PE firm Juggernaut Capital, targeting north of $500M. The vehicle plans to invest across teams and leagues in both men’s and women’s sports.

Kat Stickler joins potato chip brand Snackish as part-owner

The creator has taken a stake in Snackish — a chip brand founded by SmartSweets’ Tara Bosch — which just made its nationwide retail debut at Target.

New ventures

Justin Bieber expands SKYLRK into audio equipment

Justin Bieber is taking his lifestyle brand SKYLRK into consumer tech with an audio line — headphones and speakers merging streetwear aesthetics with personal electronics.

Hailey Bieber’s Rhode drops its first bronzer under e.l.f.

Rhode released Pocket Bronze — its first cream bronzer — as part of its Summer 2026 collection. It’s the first new product since e.l.f. closed its acquisition of the brand last August for up to $1B.

Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions brings World Series of Poker back to ESPN

Omaha Productions will produce the 2026 WSOP Main Event and Final Table for ESPN, marking the tournament’s return to the network.

Ice Cube takes BIG3 public at $290M valuation

The league co-founded by Ice Cube has struck a deal with SPAC Graf Global Corp. to go public later this year at a $290M valuation — giving fans a chance to buy stock in the league. Investors include former Baltimore Orioles owner John Angelos and Fortress Investment Group’s Peter Briger and Drew McKnight.

Brand endorsements

Priyanka Chopra joins Rolex as global brand ambassador

Priyanka Chopra Jonas has officially joined Rolex’s roster of Testimonees — alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, Zendaya, and Martin Scorsese — representing the brand from the world of cinema.

Madonna becomes KIKO Milano’s global brand ambassador

The Italian cosmetics brand named Madonna its global ambassador as it makes its first push into the American market — anchoring a U.S. retail rollout starting with three Macy’s doors, with 27 more planned in the coming months.

Harry Kane and Declan Rice sign with Ōura ahead of the World Cup

England’s captain and vice-captain have both signed as global ambassadors for Ōura, using the Ring 5 to monitor sleep, recovery, and daily readiness as the tournament gets underway.

Antoine Semenyo named Ahmad Tea’s global brand ambassador

The Bournemouth and Ghana winger is the lead face of Ahmad Tea’s new “Preparation is Everything” campaign, spanning TV, digital, retail, and on-pack activations globally.

Tyler “TD” Davis named Guardian Sports’ first-ever Loop signature athlete

The former NFL player and flag-football competitor is now the face of Guardian Sports’ Loop headband — a bet that safety gear becomes the next category as flag football heads to the Olympics.

Neymar licenses his AI likeness to microdrama platform FlareFlow

Neymar has licensed his AI likeness for a 16-title vertical microdrama franchise with FlareFlow, spanning sports redemption drama to science fiction — produced using AI-powered live-action workflows.

OG Anunoby is getting a Skechers signature shoe

After his Knicks title run, Skechers confirmed Anunoby is getting his own signature shoe — only the brand’s second basketball signature athlete after Joel Embiid, and the first to win an NBA Finals in a Skechers.

Kelsey Plum joins Adidas

The WNBA star has signed with Adidas, joining a women’s basketball roster that includes Candace Parker, Aliyah Boston, and Satou Sabally. Plum was previously with Under Armour, whose partnership ended in April.

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Deal Brief · Week of Jun 15

Tracking the deals shaping the business of culture.

Investments

Paolo Banchero takes equity in Triad Training Systems

Banchero has become an investor and lead ambassador in Triad Training Systems — makers of the R3BAR he’s used since he was 14, from Seattle youth prospect to No. 1 overall pick. Instead of pursuing a traditional endorsement deal, he acquired an equity stake in his origin story.

20+ NFL and MLB athletes back modular housing company Kinexx

Jameis Winston, Mark Ingram, Cam Jordan, Jaylon Johnson, and a roster of pro athletes are backing Kinexx Modular Construction, which just launched a crowdfunding campaign targeting 25,000 homes. The raise is also being opened up to non accredited investors.

New ventures

Tom Brady launches organic coconut water brand Good Nut with Gopuff

Brady’s second venture with Gopuff — after GOAT gummies — is a certified-organic coconut water called Good Nut. Three flavors, $3.29 a can, Vietnamese coconuts, no added sugar. The chocolate variety is the first certified-organic chocolate coconut water on the market. Coconut water is an $11B market by 2030; Gopuff says its own category sales are up 115% YoY.

Pierre Gasly enters the functional beverage market with Minded

The Alpine F1 driver spent two years building Minded, a premium electrolyte brand bridging high-performance hydration and everyday wellness, unveiled during Monaco Grand Prix weekend.

Coco Rocha launches OFF/DUTY by Coco Rocha on QVC

The supermodel is turning her on-the-go lifestyle into a fashion and accessories label in partnership with Xcel Brands, debuting on QVC in Fall 2026.

Drake drops Cloudar, his second fragrance

Better World Fragrance House is back with Cloudar — a woody-aromatic EDP made with perfumer Michael Carby and Givaudan. $152 for 3.4 oz, exclusively at Ulta June 7.

Brand endorsements

Julián Álvarez becomes the face of AI camera startup XbotGo

The Argentine World Cup winner signed as global ambassador for XbotGo ahead of 2026, fronting a “Dare To Dream” campaign built around AI auto-tracking cameras for grassroots football. La Araña goes Silicon Valley.

Suni Lee becomes Phlur’s first-ever celebrity ambassador

The Olympic gold medalist is fronting Phlur’s “Icons with an Icon” campaign across its three best-sellers: Missing Person, Father Figure, and Vanilla Skin. The brand went viral on TikTok, and was acquired by TSG. This marks Lee's official entry into the fragrance category.

Ilia Topuria partners with neurotech brand Vielight

The UFC champion has partnered with Vielight, whose light-therapy technology targets brain performance and recovery.

Brie Bella partners with HONE Health on longevity and hormone optimization

The WWE Hall of Famer signed as official ambassador with HONE Health, using the platform for hormone optimization and post-workout recovery — as both an active competitor and a mom.

Roles and appointments

Queen Latifah and LL Cool J join BET Media Group’s Board of Advisors

BET’s inaugural advisory board brings together six figures across entertainment, sports, and finance — Queen Latifah, LL Cool J, BET founder Bob Johnson, NFL EVP Troy Vincent, Lazard President Raymond J. McGuire, and Paramount Skydance’s George Cheeks.

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