OurCrowd & leAD Sports Launch $50M Sports Tech Fund

ADvantage fund to invest in 15 early stage technologies that are reshaping the sports landscape

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Jerusalem, Israel  / Berlin, Germany – Feb. 1, 2018 – OurCrowd, the leading global equity crowdfunding platform, today announced the launch of its 13th fund, ADvantage. The new $50 million fund will be solely focused on sports tech, and was co-founded with leAD Sports, a global sports tech accelerator backed by the Adi Dassler International Family Office (ADIFO).

ADvantage will initially focus on 15 early stage sports tech ventures primed for growth, including companies providing next-gen fan engagement and experience; solutions for connected athletes and communities; and startups in the derivative sports space, including eSports, fantasy, and new sports.

The fund will be co-managed by two active and veteran venture capitalists with domain-specific sports tech expertise: OurCrowd’s Jeremy Pressman and leAD Sports’ Christoph Sonnen.

Jeremy Pressman, ADvantage Partner and Israel’s only active venture capitalist who is also a professional athlete, has been focused on sourcing sports tech deals for over five years.

“Sports tech is a new and emerging sector with some 4,000 companies worldwide and over $5 billion invested over the past five years,” Pressman noted. “ADvantage will build on the momentum of OurCrowd’s successful investment in Replay Technologies, which was acquired by Intel for $180 million. We are excited to continue bringing emerging technologies to our ~25,000 investors and help pave the way for the next generation of sports tech startups,” he concluded.

ADvantage Partner Christoph Sonnen is a serial entrepreneur and seasoned venture capitalist with vast experience in venture building and early stage investments. One of Red Bull’s founding employees, Sonnen has founded, invested in, built and sold multiple business ventures over the past two decades.

“’I believe that defining the future of sports tech requires new approaches, macro level overview on future trends and a solid eco-system of innovative partners,” Sonnen said. “This latest announcement of a $50 million investment fund together with OurCrowd, one of the world’s most innovative investment platforms, focused on ventures disrupting the sports industry, brings us a step closer to becoming a global powerhouse for sports entrepreneurship,” he remarked.

Jeremy Pressman and Christoph Sonnen will be available for interview at the 2018 OurCrowd Global Investor Summit.  For more details or to arrange an interview, email leah@ourcrowd.com.

Note to Editors –

About ADvantage: ADvantage intends to invest in early stage technology companies aimed at reshaping how we play and experience sports. Backed by leAD Sports, an initiative spearheaded by the grandchildren of Adi Dassler to further sports innovation, and OurCrowd, the leading global equity crowdfunding platform, ADvantage will leverage a strong global network to source leading opportunities in the spaces of fan engagement and experience, connected athletes and communities, and derivative sports (eSports, fantasy, and new sports). Led by serial entrepreneur and accomplished venture builder Christoph Sonnen and venture investor and professional athlete Jeremy Pressman, ADvantage is targeting a diversified portfolio of 15 startups from around the world.

For additional information contact: investor.services@ourcrowd.com

About OurCrowd: OurCrowd is the leading global equity crowdfunding platform for accredited investors. Managed by a team of seasoned investment professionals and led by serial entrepreneur Jon Medved, OurCrowd vets and selects opportunities, invests its own capital, and brings companies to its accredited membership of global investors. OurCrowd provides post-investment support to its portfolio companies, assigns industry experts as mentors, and takes board seats. The OurCrowd community consists of almost 25,000 accredited investors from over 112 countries. OurCrowd has raised over $650M and invested in 145 portfolio companies and funds. To join OurCrowd as an accredited investor visit www.ourcrowd.com and click “Join.”

The 2018 OurCrowd Global Investor Summit, Feb. 1, 2018, in Jerusalem, Israel, is the largest equity crowdfunding event in the world, and the largest investor event in the entire Middle East.  The event will bring together Corporate partners like GE, Honda, DuPont, Samsung, and more, along with entrepreneurs, global delegations from over 50 countries, industry leaders and members of the press from all over the world.  10,000 are expected to register to attend. Learn more at summit.ourcrowd.com

About leAD Sports: leAD – legacy of Adi Dassler – is a Berlin based sports entrepreneurship platform that helps fund and nurture remarkable sports startups.  

Adi Dassler’s oldest daughter and her three sons have recently initiated commitment to leverage Adi Dassler’s legacy to create a new platform for sports technology entrepreneurship and innovation. Its founders’ legacy in sports and extensive network in the global sports industry bring together some of the most sought-after experts in the field to fund and nurture remarkable sports startups. This next-generation accelerator model with tightly aligned support for entrepreneurs and a linked fund that will capture value from the Accelerator’s leading companies will create an unprecedented ecosystem for sports technology value-creation. For more details: contact@leadsportsaccelerator.com

Passion for sports – leAD Sports Accelerator: www.leadsportsaccelerator.com

Video: leAD Sports Accelerator – the Legacy https://vimeo.com/202071653

For Press Materials: https://blog.ourcrowd.net/LEADSPORTS

Press contact: OurCrowd: Leah Stern, Dir. Of Communications / UK: +44 747 0196826 / US: +1 703 626 4310 / E: leah@ourcrowd.com

/ Estee Yaari / Israel: +972 50 200 7073 / E: estee.yaari@ourcrowd.com