Legacy Global Sports, a division of New Hampshire-based Legacy Holding Co., has entered the athlete representation business by acquiring the practice of NHL player agent Alec Schall.
Schall represents seven players, including Toronto Maple Leafs wing James van Riemsdyk and Montreal Canadiens wing Max Pacioretty. He also serves as agent or adviser to about 30 NHL prospects.
Financial terms of the acquisition of Schall’s agency, r4pa LLC, were not disclosed.
Schall will become director, player representation, of Legacy Global Sports under the deal. He will report to Sean O’Brien, Legacy vice president.
Legacy owns and operates hockey tournaments for junior hockey players around the world. Its parent, the privately owned Legacy Holding Co., employs 3,200 workers and is engaged in several business lines, including shipping and distribution. Both companies are headquartered in Portsmouth, N.H.
O’Brien said Legacy plans to acquire more athlete-service agencies, including more hockey representation firms. Additionally, O’Brien is targeting agencies that represent golfers and soccer and baseball players.
Athlete representation is a “natural extension” of Legacy’s existing tournament business, O’Brien said. Of the young players who have participated in Legacy’s World Selects Invitational events in the last several years, 106 have been drafted by NHL teams, with 20 of those first-round picks.
O’Brien said once the company decided to enter the business of representing players about 18 months ago, it met with several hockey agents before selecting Schall.
“We didn’t want a large agency,” O’Brien said. He declined to disclose other firms or agents he talked to about an acquisition. “We wanted a small agency that fit well into our business so we can grow it.”
Schall began his career in sports as an intern and later as a hockey agent from 1994-98 at Advantage International, the predecessor to Octagon. In 2000, he started r4pa — an acronym for Resources For Professional Athletes. The firm has been headquartered in Philadelphia, and Schall will continue to be based there.
Schall said Legacy offers support for him to expand his business and cited synergies between the pipeline of young, talented hockey players and a representation firm. He noted, however, that the partnership does not guarantee representation of those players who are participating in the events.
With the acquisition, Legacy immediately becomes a small- to medium-sized player in the hockey representation business. O’Brien said he does not have a timetable for more acquisitions.
“We plan to grow in hockey and we do plan to grow, potentially, in other sports,” he said. “Right now, we are focused on getting Alec acclimated into our current business. We are not going to rush the business. We want to see how it goes, but our strategy is to continue to grow.”
