Unrivaled announced Monday morning that the league has closed its Series A investment round — and the list of investors is as star-studded as you can imagine.
Unrivaled’s star-studded list of investors shows how big-time the league is
Giannis Antetokounmpo, JuJu Watkins, Dawn Staley, and Michael Phelps headline the latest list of Unrivaled investors.
Photo by Logan Riely/NBAE via Getty Images
Noa Dalzell is a senior writer covering the WNBA and all of women’s basketball for Breakaway, SB Nation’s women’s sports vertical, as well as the Celtics for CelticsBlog.
Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo, world-renowned swimmer Michael Phelps, South Carolina women’s basketball head coach Dawn Staley, and USC guard JuJu Watkins are just a few of the well-known names investing in the new 3-on-3 professional women’s basketball league co-founded by Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart.
The latest investment round, led by the Berman family, has secured $28 million in funding. The league’s total capital value is now $35 million, thanks to an initial $7 million seed round.
Unrivaled President Alex Bazzell gushed about the league’s early momentum in an official statement announcing the investments. Unrivaled, set to tip off in January 17th in Miami, includes 33 WNBA standouts, including Angel Reese, Brittney Griner, Chelsea Gray, Alyssa Thomas, and others.
“As women’s sports continue to surge in popularity and impact, we’re inspired by the growing momentum around Unrivaled and grateful for the strong support from our investors,” said Bazzell. “Our players haven’t even taken the court yet and the foundation we are building with our partners unites unparalleled expertise, strategic insight, and an incredible product. Together, we’re setting the stage for Unrivaled for years to come.”
The full list of Series A Round investors includes:
- Linda Henry, CEO of Boston Globe Media and partner at Fenway Sports Group
- Marc Lasr, CEO of Avenue Sports Fund
- Nicole Phelps, president of the Michael Phelps Foundation and mental health advocate
- Warner Bros Discovery
- Amy Banse, venture partner, mosaic, board member and investor, and retired Comcast Corp Executive
- Black Economic Alliance Venture Fund
- Threadneedle Ventures
- Off-Court Ventures
- Richard ‘Rip’ Hamilton, former NBA All-Star and champion
- Joe Ingles, 11-year NBA veteran and 5-time Olympian
The list of seed round investors includes:
- Alex Morgan, former soccer player and Olympic gold medalist
- Dan Benton, prolific technology investor
- Carmelo Anthony, former NBA All-Star and Olympic gold medalist
- Geno Auriemma, University of Connecticut women’s basketball coach
- Moira Forbes, executive vice president of Forbes
- Tyus & Tre Jones, NBA players
- Ashton Kutcher, actor
- Dan Rosensweig, business executive and former president of Chegg
- John Skipper, former president of ESPN
- Richard Sarnoff, a global business leader in the media world
- Gary Vaynerchuk, co-founder of Resy and Empathy wines
