The Profluence Pod 🌐

In 2021 Mark Neifeld founded the Sport Fishing Championship - the most extensive saltwater fishing championship series in North America - where he serves as CEO & Commissioner of the international sports property. 

Prior to SFC, Neifeld spent a decade in entrepreneurship and worked for the Texas Rangers and Dallas Cowboys. 

Fishing is one of the largest recreational sports activities in the world. 

Chapters:

(01:05) SFC’s “The Catch” on CBS Sports

(05:20) Idea for Sport Fishing Championship

(12:00) Blueprint for creating a sports league

(15:20) Company building + operations + hiring 

(18:15) Running a league vs. a company

(21:15) Monetizing a sports league

(26:00) Trends to watch in sports 

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Mark Neifeld links:

Website: https://sportfishingchampionship.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markeneifeld/

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Andrew Petcash links:

🏠 Website: https://profluence.com

✉️ Newsletter: https://www.petcashpost.com

🎙 Podcast: https://profluence.com/podcasts/

🐣 Twitter: https://twitter.com/andrewpetcash

🕺 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@andrewpetcash

📸 Instagram: https://instagram.com/andrewpetcash

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewpetcash/

🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3q5jhAuCVT2FZCkLW5xBiQ/

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Thanks for listening!

Last year, Cipher Sports raised a $5M Series A led at CEO by longtime sports media professional Adam Fiske. 

Cipher Sports arms users with the ultimate combination of tools, content, and communities to make sports more bettable. They have four major brands under management including Dimers, Fantasy Insider, Stats Insider, and Convertr. 

This is an in-depth conversation at the intersection of sports betting, media, and entrepreneurship. 

Chapters:

(01:00) Why is now the time to build in sports?

(03:20) Merging two companies and 4 co-founders

(04:45) US vs. Australian market 

(11:00) Advantages of running a global company 

(13:20) Overview of Cipher Sports

(17:20) Building a media-first brand

(19:40) Machine learning and AI

(22:50) Sports betting market overview + trends

(31:05) Trends to watch in sports 

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Adam Fiske links:

Website: https://ciphersports.io/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ajfiske

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adam-fiske-78980574/?originalSubdomain=au

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Andrew Petcash links:

🏠 Website: https://profluence.com

✉️ Newsletter: https://www.petcashpost.com

🎙 Podcast: https://profluence.com/podcasts/

🐣 Twitter: https://twitter.com/andrewpetcash

🕺 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@andrewpetcash

📸 Instagram: https://instagram.com/andrewpetcash

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewpetcash/

🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3q5jhAuCVT2FZCkLW5xBiQ/

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Thanks for listening!

OneTeam Partners aligns with world-class player's associations and helps athletes maximize their name, image, and likeness rights by focusing on four key areas: group licensing, athlete marketing, content, and venture investing.

RedBird Partners sold 40% of their stake in OneTeam at a $1.9B valuation in 2022. 

Malaika Underwood was previously a VP at the Brandr Group and IMG. She is also a member of the USA women’s baseball team. 

Chapters:

(02:00) Malaika’s athletic background

(04:45) OneTeam’s initiatives in NIL

(10:10) Challenges of group licensing in college sports

(13:20) Overview of OneTeam Partners

(15:30) Setting up a player’s association in college

(19:50) New innovations OneTeam is looking at

(24:40) Growth of women’s sports

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Malaika Underwood links:

Website: https://joinoneteam.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/oneteampartners

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/malaika-underwood-11979b8/

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Andrew Petcash links:

🏠 Website: https://profluence.com

✉️ Newsletter: https://www.petcashpost.com

🎙 Podcast: https://profluence.com/podcasts/

🐣 Twitter: https://twitter.com/andrewpetcash

🕺 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@andrewpetcash

📸 Instagram: https://instagram.com/andrewpetcash

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewpetcash/

🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3q5jhAuCVT2FZCkLW5xBiQ/

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Thanks for listening!

TicketRev just raised $1.1M as the first-ever reverse ticketing marketplace - modeled after shoe marketplaces like StockX and GOAT.

Jason Shatsky co-founded the company while in college at Babson University. 

TicketRev went through the Techstars accelerator this last year and received an investment from the Minnesota Twins at the end. 

Chapters:

(01:15) Building his first business as a teenager

(03:30) Overview of TicketRev

(06:00) Problems in the ticketing industry

(11:30) Web3 technology x tickets

(13:00) Competing against the conglomerates

(17:15) Value of university + accelerators

(20:00) How to sell a pitch

(23:35) Trends to watch in sports 

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Jason Shatsky links:

Website: https://www.ticketrev.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jshatsky

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonshatsky/

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Andrew Petcash links:

🏠 Website: https://profluence.com

✉️ Newsletter: https://www.petcashpost.com

🎙 Podcast: https://profluence.com/podcasts/

🐣 Twitter: https://twitter.com/andrewpetcash

🕺 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@andrewpetcash

📸 Instagram: https://instagram.com/andrewpetcash

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewpetcash/

🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3q5jhAuCVT2FZCkLW5xBiQ/

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Thanks for listening!

CSMG helps their collegiate partners understand & maximize marketplace value for media rights and sponsorships and provides managed solutions for NIL and group licensing for agencies, brands, institutions, and student-athletes. 

They also run esportsU and host May Madness which is the collegiate video game equivalent of NCAA March Madness. 

Michael Schreck co-founded CSMG in 2014 and is also an adjunct professor at Manhattanville College. 

Chapters:

(01:40) Thoughts on NIL Valuation numbers

(03:40) Shift to team and collective brand deals

(05:20) Overview of CSMG

(08:30) Esports in the college landscape

(16:30) Conference realignment 

(21:00) Separation in college conferences

(25:00) Opportunities in the college space

(29:40) Monetizing women’s sports better

(31:35) Thoughts on the future of AI

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Michael Schreck links:

Website: https://collegiatesmg.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-schreck-732a9b3/

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Andrew Petcash links:

🏠 Website: https://profluence.com

✉️ Newsletter: https://www.petcashpost.com

🎙 Podcast: https://profluence.com/podcasts/

🐣 Twitter: https://twitter.com/andrewpetcash

🕺 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@andrewpetcash

📸 Instagram: https://instagram.com/andrewpetcash

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewpetcash/

🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3q5jhAuCVT2FZCkLW5xBiQ/

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Thanks for listening!

(01:00) Business of Athletes - more investors in TMRW sports, Steph Curry on the big screen, and several players buying soccer teams

(04:15) NIL/College Sports - collectives merging, athletes "retiring, and plenty of other topics to discuss

(06:30) Sports Business - $65M in fundraising for a team management platform and other interesting developments

Jonathan is a repeat entrepreneur having founded and sold his first company INCENT Corporate Services. 

He then spent the last few years as a web3 angel investor, including a gem in the NFT fantasy platform Sorare. 

Jonathan jumped back into the founder seat in 2022 leading a $2M seed round for Fantium and recently announcing 3 big athletes utilizing their platform. 

Fantium is a unique blockchain-based platform that allows fans to invest in the future careers of athletes. 

Chapters:

(01:25) From founder to angel investor back to founder

(03:45) Spotting opportunities as an investor 

(08:50) Possibilities of web3 x sports

(12:40) Origin story of Fantium 

(15:40) Felix Mischker raising $52,000 on Fantium

(18:10) Who’s investing in these athletes?

(23:55) Raising $2M seed round at Fantium 

(29:10) Starting in tennis and moving to other sports

(31:05) Trends to watch in sports 

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Jonathan Ludwig links:

Website: https://www.fantium.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FANtiumOfficial

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanludwig9b75a71223/

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Andrew Petcash links:

🏠 Website: https://profluence.com

✉️ Newsletter: https://www.petcashpost.com

🎙 Podcast: https://anchor.fm/andrewpetcash

🐣 Twitter: https://twitter.com/andrewpetcash

🕺 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@andrewpetcash

📸 Instagram: https://instagram.com/andrewpetcash

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewpetcash/

🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3q5jhAuCVT2FZCkLW5xBiQ/

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Thanks for listening!

Started by all former college & pro baseball players, The Futures App raised $2.65M to launch into the sports tech ecosystem.

The Futures App provides baseball players and coaches with an array of tools along with hosting the world's largest MLB drill database that features some of the game's biggest stars like Pete Alonso, Jazz Chisholm Jr, and Ryan Braun. 

Prior to founding TFA, Jake Hirabayashi played college baseball at UCLA and spent some time in the Minnesota Twins minor league system. 

Chapters:

(02:25) From pro athlete to entrepreneurship

(05:05) Why is now the time to build in sports?

(08:50) The Futures App overview

(09:35) Building B2B vs. B2C

(12:35) MLBPA partnership + shooting unique content

(16:35) Digital coaching ecosystem

(19:10) AI, machine learning, and sensors

(22:30) Trends to watch in sports

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Jake Hirabayashi links:

Website: https://www.thefuturesapp.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jakehirabayashi

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jake-hirabayashi-3585a2233/

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Andrew Petcash links:

🏠 Website: https://profluence.com

✉️ Newsletter: https://www.petcashpost.com

🎙 Podcast: https://profluence.com/podcasts/

🐣 Twitter: https://twitter.com/andrewpetcash

🕺 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@andrewpetcash

📸 Instagram: https://instagram.com/andrewpetcash

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewpetcash/

🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3q5jhAuCVT2FZCkLW5xBiQ/

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Thanks for listening!

The NFL Players Inc is the 25th largest licensor in the world. Steve Scebelo took over in 2020 and has taken the company to record revenue numbers. 

As the for-profit licensing and marketing business of the NFLPA, NFL Players Inc. represents the exclusive group player licensing rights of over 2,000 active NFL players through more than 80 licensees.

Prior to his current endeavor, Scebelo started REP Worldwide, which provided group licensing and brand management services to athlete-driven properties, and eventually formed into OneTeam Partners. 

Chapters:

(01:15) The NFL Players Inc

(06:20) Artificial intelligence and Web3

(08:05) Gaps for entrepreneurs to build in 

(10:30) Jason Kelce and Travis Kelce 

(12:15) NIL helping ease NFLPA efforts

(15:55) Athletes % earnings from licensing

(20:10) Due diligence for licensee companies

(23:50) Steve’s journey to the NFLPA

(26:05) Where sports are headed

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Steve Scebelo links:

Website: https://nflpa.com/about/players-inc

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevescebelo/

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Andrew Petcash links:

🏠 Website: https://profluence.com

✉️ Newsletter: https://www.petcashpost.com

🎙 Podcast: https://anchor.fm/andrewpetcash

🐣 Twitter: https://twitter.com/andrewpetcash

🕺 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@andrewpetcash

📸 Instagram: https://instagram.com/andrewpetcash

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewpetcash/

🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3q5jhAuCVT2FZCkLW5xBiQ/

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Thanks for listening!

Before his current endeavor, Ahmad was the president of the NFL Players Inc. and the founding CEO of OneTeam Partners which was valued at $1.9 billion upon RedBird Capital selling its 40% stake in 2022. 

Founded last year, the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA) has made rapid strides in representing both men’s and women’s tennis players.

This was a fascinating conversation around players’ rights, men’s vs women’s sports, NIL seeping its way upstream, and much more. 

Chapters:

(01:00) Rise of team sports vs individual sports

(02:30) Endorsements in tennis (and where it’s headed)

(08:00) Understanding leverage + athlete investors

(13:30) Impact of NIL on pro sports

(17:30) Ahmad’s career mission of helping athletes

(25:00) Mental Health x Sports

(30:30) Origin story of the PTPA

(35:20) Trends to watch in sports

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Ahmad Nassar links:

Website: https://ptpaplayers.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ahmad4athletes

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anassar/

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Andrew Petcash links:

🏠 Website: https://profluence.com

✉️ Newsletter: https://www.petcashpost.com

🎙 Podcast: https://anchor.fm/andrewpetcash

🐣 Twitter: https://twitter.com/andrewpetcash

🕺 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@andrewpetcash

📸 Instagram: https://instagram.com/andrewpetcash

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewpetcash/

🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3q5jhAuCVT2FZCkLW5xBiQ/

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Thanks for listening!