The Profluence Pod 🌐

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 . Michael Schreck links: Website: https://collegiatesmg.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-schreck-732a9b3/ . 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/ . 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  . Jonathan Ludwig links: Website: https://www.fantium.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/FANtiumOfficial LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanludwig9b75a71223/ . 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/ . 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 . Jake Hirabayashi links: Website: https://www.thefuturesapp.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/jakehirabayashi LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jake-hirabayashi-3585a2233/ . 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/ . 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 . Steve Scebelo links: Website: https://nflpa.com/about/players-inc LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevescebelo/ . 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/ . 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 . Ahmad Nassar links: Website: https://ptpaplayers.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/ahmad4athletes LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anassar/ . 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/ . Thanks for listening!

(00:35) Business of Athletes Mike Trout and Tiger Woods team up for a golf course, a women's basketball coach makes an investment, and Steph Curry is going to be rich rich. (04:35) NIL/College Sports Mattress Mack's $75,000 deal for FAU basketball players and what league will shut down if the NCAA dissolves into athletes as employees. (06:50) Business of Sports A $100M women's fund and more innovative sports leagues pop up.

Prior to founding Altius Sports Partners, Casey Schwab was the VP of business & legal affairs at the NFLPA, where he helped lead the NIL program for all NFL players. Altius Sports Partners is a unique advisory company in college sports led by business leaders providing solutions for NIL and all other major changes impacting college athletics. We cover a handful of fascinating topics including paying college athletes, where NIL is headed, and Altius’ role in placing general managers at Universities.  Chapters: (01:10) NIL's impact on professional sports (06:25) Origin story of Altius Sports Partners (12:05) Evolution of NIL collectives (14:50) Shifting gaps of competition within NIL (18:30) General managers and “athlete departments” (24:00) Full vision for college sports (26:15) Market size of NIL compared to the NFL (31:25) Companies needed in NIL . Casey Schwab links: Website: https://altiussportspartners.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/caseydschwab LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cdschwab/ . 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/ . Thanks for listening!

Founded in 2016, TOCA Football has raised over $50M in venture capital and built an impressive conglomerate in the soccer/football space.  Prior to founding TOCA Football, Eddie Lewis was a professional soccer player for 14 years and played 82 games for the United States men’s national team.  We touch on several interesting topics today including the 2026 World Cup’s impact on American soccer and TOCA’s plans to become the TopGolf for soccer with its newest initiative.  Chapters: (01:15) European vs. American Soccer (06:20) Impact of the 2026 World Cup on US Soccer (12:00) Journey from pro athlete to entrepreneur (14:25) NIL’s effect on sports (17:40) Web3, AI, and TopGolf for soccer at TOCA (23:30) Learnings from raising $50M and entrepreneurship (27:00) Value of athlete investors and Harry Kane (29:15) Trends to watch in sports . Eddie Lewis links: Website: https://www.tocafootball.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lewiseddie/ . 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/ . Thanks for listening!

(01:10) Business of Athletes NFL QBs invest in women's sports and TMRW sports get more money from big-time athletes. (3:45) NIL/College Sports Strange NIL deal at Texas A&M + Charles Barkley sounds off on politicians about NIL. (7:00) Business of Sports More youth sports x entertainment companies raising big Series A rounds.