Alex Rodriguez and business partner Marc Lore are investing in Mojo, an app serving as a “stock market” for professional athletes through which fans can buy and sell players at values based on performance.
With the help of a $75 million funding round led by Thrive Capital, Mojo is expected to debut with its first sport — football — by the end of the year. Tiger Global Management also participated in the round.
Rodriguez and Lore, who purchased a 20% stake in the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves and the WNBA’s Minnesota Lynx for $1.5 billion last April, will not be involved in the day-to-day operations of the company.
- The funding will be used for hiring engineers, data scientists, and market movers.
- Some of the funds will also be used for marketing.
Mojo CEO and co-founder Vinit Bharara said the company is still making arrangements with sports leagues, gaming commissions, and regulators.
Market Open
“I’ve always thought the idea of a sports stock market was the holy grail — the vision could transform sports, and fandom as a whole,” Lore said.
He previously worked with Bharara on a sports trading market called ThePit, but sold it to Topps for $5.7 million in 2001. Bharara highlighted that with new gaming laws and legalization, they “can do it the way it was supposed to be done.”
