TMRW Sports, the technology and media company backed by Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, has announced its first round of outside investors – a star-studded group that includes some of the most famous athletes, franchise owners, executives and institutional investors Of the world.
The list includes more than 65 people and companies, including athletes such as NBA stars Steph Curry and Chris Paul; F1 champion Lewis Hamilton; Stanley Cup winner Sidney Crosby; NFL quarterback Josh Allen; and Grand Slam tennis champions Serena Williams and Andy Murray. Other people include pop star Justin Timberlake; NFL owners Mark Wilf and Arthur Blank; media mogul Dick Ebersol; tech founder Alexis Ohanian; MLB owner John Henry; Kevin Warren, Big Ten Commissioner; and David Blitzer, who has invested in the five major American leagues.
The company declined to comment on the amount raised or the valuation. A complete list of investors is provided in the chart below.
TMRW Sports, pronounced “sports of tomorrow,” was founded earlier this year by Woods, McIlroy and former Golf Channel president Mike McCarley with the goal of using new technology and new media to help reimagine sports for future audiences. Its first project, a golf league called TGL, is expected to debut in 2024. TGL will feature teams of golfers competing on a custom-built venue every Monday night, a significant departure from the 18 tournaments multi-day holes that are customized for the sport.
“From the beginning, our plan has been to partner with the best in class in every way imaginable and Tiger, Rory and I value the support of this unparalleled team of investors, advisors and ambassadors who believe in the our vision to leverage technology to create progressive approaches to sports,” McCarley, the group’s CEO, said in a statement. “Their combined broad reach and cultural relevance will expand the potential opportunities and fan bases for TMRW’s projects.”
To that last point, TMRW Sports says the investing group touches more than 500 million people on Twitter and Instagram. This could be instrumental in the group’s push to spread the word about TGL and any endeavors it pursues beyond the gulf.
TGL is the last big disruption in professional golf. As the PGA Tour wrestles with Saudi-backed incumbent LIV Golf on the courses and in the courtrooms, PGA stalwarts Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy are looking to further improve the economics of the world’s biggest stars. sport It’s unclear which PGA Tour players will participate in TGL when it makes its debut in 2024.
The institutional investment was co-led by Connect Ventures, a partnership between global talent agency CAA and private equity giant New Enterprise Associates, and 25madison Ventures. Other investing firms include Excel Sports Management, Apex Capital, sports organization Misfits Gaming Group, Ohanian’s Seven Seven Six, McIlroy’s Symphony Ventures and Woods’ TGR Ventures.
The investment announcement follows a handful of other TMRW Sports executive hiring news, staff appointments and outside counsel.
A handful of investors, including Ebersol, former NHL COO John Collins, former NFL executive Eric Grubman and Dynasty Equity co-founder Don Cornwell, were previously announced.
