Investment dollars are flowing into the sports technology industry at a rapidly increasing rate. Athletes, traditional venture capitalists and team owners have invested in or acquired dozens of sports technology companies this year. But one group in particular stood out for making an aggressive play to reshape the burgeoning youth sports industry with technology.
Blue Star Sports has acquired 18 sports technology companies in the last 18 months in an effort to streamline the youth sports industry. Its acquisitions are intended to come together to create a digital platform for players, parents and coaches to participate in youth sports, an industry that was recently valued at over $15 billion.
Some of the notable acquisitions include Krossover, STACK Media, RaceWire and Pointstreak Sports Technologies. The full list can be found here.
Blue Star Sports, based in Frisco, Texas at the Dallas Cowboys’ headquarters, has raised more than $200 million in private equity funding, including investments from the NFL’s investment arm and Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. The company has quickly grown from one founder to more than 600 employees around the world and has plans to continue its acquisition strategy.
In determining the winner for this SportTechie Award for Outstanding Investor, we considered many different types of individual and group investors. From those betting heavily on the growth of esports to the investors looking at virtual reality, augmented reality or artificial intelligence. Ultimately, we felt Blue Star Sports was deserving of recognition for its bold attempt to acquire and then integrate numerous sports technology companies into one cohesive unit that will look to make youth sports participation more organized, accessible and enjoyable for young athletes around the world.
The nominees for the SportTechie Award for Outstanding Investor were:
Blue Star Sports
Bryant Stibel
Courtside Ventures
Greycroft Partners
SeventySix Capital
