Piqué (r) and other athlete launch partners will hold an equity stake in TPT's global venture.THE PLAYERS TRIBUNE
The Players' Tribune plans to expand its digital platform internationally later this spring, starting with multilingual content featuring athletes from around the globe. TPT's global expansion, initially focusing on Europe, the Middle East and Africa, will be in partnership with Barcelona's Gerard Piqué and his investment group, Kosmos. Financial terms of the partnership were not disclosed. Additionally, TPT will open offices in London and Barcelona on April 1. The TPT int'l platform will be a geo-targeted experience so that users will see stories about athletes from their region of the world. The int'l site will mirror TPT's U.S. site, but will have an added focus on video. Brand partners for the new platform are yet to be announced. TPT President Jaymee Messler said, "We’ll use the same fundamental blueprint we developed in the U.S., which is partnering with athletes by providing high-quality content production and a platform with global reach in which they can tell their stories in a unique and authentic way." Alongside Piqué, athlete launch partners include football players Dani Alves, Ronaldinho, Thibaut Courtois, Ivan Rakitić and Thiago Alcântara, tennis player Tomás Berdych, UFC fighter Stipe Miocic, NBA players Pau and Marc Gasol and former F1 driver Carmen Jordá. They will be involved in TPT's business and hold an equity stake in the venture. In addition, there will also be content from other athletes, including football players Lionel Messi, Neymar, Luis Suárez and Harry Kane and golfer Jason Day, among others. Athletes will tell their stories in their native language on the new platform. TPT's global edition also will feature stories from football players leading up to the FIFA World Cup, which begins June 14 in Russia.
