Geek Locker
Welcome back to the Geek Locker Roundup— your bi-weekly collection of the latest sports innovation news, product releases, and design resources!
Last week, I updated a pair of older articles that are both particularly relevant as we head into the winter season. It’s still shocking to me how poorly athletes in professional team stay warmed up throughout the course of a game while on the sideline. Especially regarding injury prevention, it’s also interesting to see how the equipment for sports like football has not yet developed temperature-dependent models. Critical safety gear like helmets, pads, or even performance gear like rackets or gloves could all be improved in unique temperature ranges, and in this world of marginal gains, these specific pieces of gear might become commonplace in professional leagues.
Hot N Cold (Sports' Version, 2024)
Note: This article combines and updates two posts originally published on The Geek Locker website.
Next week, in a mulligan on last week’s article, I’ll be publishing an overview of the types of sports companies already traded on public markets. I’m starting to believe that it’s only a matter of time until individual sports teams are acquirable in public markets, and a surprising amount of sports gear companies have already been rolled into massive conglomerates like Amer Sports and Wolverine Worldwide. Many other unique sports companies like the WWE and Churchill Downs (Kentucky Derby host) stick out as pretty unique public offerings even in the wider entertainment industry, so it will be fun to explore this wide range of companies.
As we near the end of the year, I’ll also be sharing upcoming changes and updates on the future of this newsletter!
Stat of the Week
Many months ago, I wrote about the 80+ GPS/Smart watches available on the market for purchase. I’ve finally arrived at a decision (I’ll get a Coros Pace Pro early next year), and to make the decision slightly easier, DC Rainmaker and Desfit released a 2024 Sportswatch Year in Review. Over 20(!) different sportswatches released this year, adding to the chaos of the market, and I don’t expect the range of choices to diminish any time soon. However, this extremely long video made my decision much easier by getting a full view on the most modern options available, and serves as a good gift guide as well!
As always, I appreciate your engagement and please share with others who might be interested in reading about sports innovation. On to the news!
Company Cable
There are a lot of company updates this week, so I’ll try to keep each brief!
Club and rec sports management platform 360Player has raised ~$25M in funding from Five Elms Capital. I am excited to do a recap of all the sports tech funding events this year to see how many team and league management platforms launched this year across the globe. I think the number might be greater than 5…
Metta World Peace is launching Tru Skye Ventures, a $100M VC fund. The fund has been co-launched with the ex-CEO of Boost Mobile Stephen Stokols. The fund has hit the ground running, and has already invested in Barcode, a plant-based drink supplement similar to Athletic Greens.
At home boxing exercise startup GROWL has raised a $4.75M seed round. The company is using computer vision and a laser-based tracking systems to track boxing and workouts in home. There have been a multitude of companies trying to make the same type of at-home gym or boxing system take off (e.g. FightCamp), so I am a bit skeptical that this system will be able to break through the noise.
Russell Westbrook has teamed up with local investment firm Echo to boost the sports and entertainment industry of OKC. It will be interesting to see how this more city-specific approach to sports celebrity investment plays out!
Avenue Sports has invested in the 3-on-3 women's basketball league Unrivaled. The league is launching in just over a month, so Avenue might be looking to get in before the league takes off. On the flip side, it might be a bad sign that Unrivaled is in need of additional capital so close to the launch of the league.
After a government-induced business restructuring, the Canadian ski company G3 is ready to hit the slopes again! It’s always exciting to see a (re)new entrant in the gear market, especially one with some great touring equipment.
New Releases
New Releases shows off new products and features that are hitting the market.
M1 Skis has releases the first ever all-aluminum pair of skis. The skis are CNC machined, and while I’m skeptical they’ll become a common sight on the mountain in the next couple years, they do look insanely cool.
Wahoo has released its biggest bike computer yet, the Elemnt Ace. It seems like the screen on every type of device continues to grow, and for something like a bike computer, it might be warranted. Despite the screen size being the big focus, Wahoo has finally added a virtual bike bell to the computer when you tap it, a great feature.
Columbia has partnered with Disney to release a series of Darth Vader themed outdoor gear. I won’t be wearing this specific model during the ski season this year, but as soon as they release Lord of the Rings themed Mammut backcountry skiing gear, I’ll be all over it.
North Face and SKIMS have teamed up to release a line of winter gear. Columbia landed a collaboration with Star Wars, and North Face landed a Kardashian collaboration. Unsurprisingly, I think North Face will benefit more from the partnership!
Jaguar has revealed the first car concept in its new electric-focused future. Reviews so far have been mixed, and above all else, it’s clear that the aesthetic of the Cybertruck and its subsequent adoption has lots of car companies rethinking their lineup.
Some News
Some News shares select news stories from across the sports and design world.
It seems that the MLB is toying with some creative rule changes, including the "Golden At-bat.” I for one would be a huge fan of this type of rule. Especially for a sport like baseball, interesting rule changes like this might be key to capturing a new audience pulled away by other sports.
The sports teams of New England are starting to get on the unique streaming service train. The Red Sox and Bruins are launching their own netionwide free, ad-supported streaming TV (“FAST”) streaming service through NESN. The timeline for deployment is yet unknown, but the sports media landscape continues the march towards becoming more stove-piped.
LA Transit authorities have requested $3.2B in funding from the federal government for the 2028 Olympic games. I wrote about the ballooning cost of hosting the Olympics ahead of Paris 2024, and it seems like the US might be getting off to a blazing start for 2028.
The Australian government has injected $385M into its olympics programs with a focus on 2028 and 2032. If the budgets for the Olympics themselves keep rising, so should the budgets for the teams… I think?
Skiing and snowboarding are gaining momentum in China, and resorts are bringing fun tech to entice tourists. Anecdotally, it seems like Japan is becoming a global skiing destination, and perhaps China or South Korea is next!
Nike is set to close down its NFT operation through RTFKT in January. It might have been a matter of time until this happened, but still notes a shift in Nike’s strategy as it tries to reverse its retraction in recent years.
Grab Bag
Grab Bag features interesting or useful sports innovation and product design resources, ranging from books and websites to individual graphics.
Ever wanted to take a picture of an object and get the plans to build it in Lego? Now you can! I wish I’d had this growing up, although I feel like I might have accidentally ordered the bricks to recreate some full-sized super car (which may have cost more than the car itself).
For those with a subscription, CyclingNews provided a breakdown on modern modeling techniques affecting professional cycling. It’s an interesting behind-the-scenes look at how computational modeling and stats are affecting the decision-making of teams and the overall strategy in the sport.