Atlanta Falcons Ownership Starts Venture Fund

AMB Sports and Entertainment — parent company of the Atlanta Falcons, Atlanta United, PGA Tour Superstore, and Mercedes-Benz Stadium — is aiming to strengthen its existing properties by launching a venture fund.

The uncapped fund, AMBSE Ventures, is backed by Falcons owner Arthur Blank and adds to a string of other ventures from sports entities.

• The Los Angeles Dodgers’ ownership group created Elysian Park Ventures in 2014. It recently participated in a $15 million Series B funding round for LeagueApps.
• Courtside Ventures was started in 2016, partly backed by Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert. In July, the fund was included in a $13 million round for sports card marketplace Dibbs.
• The Green Bay Packers partnered with Microsoft to fund early stage companies through TitletownTech in 2019. The venture recently helped lead a $5.2 million round for StatusPRO.

AMB Sports and Entertainment CEO Steve Cannon told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that Blank is ready to make “multimillion dollars’ worth of investment into smart business models.” 

“If and when Georgia becomes a legalized sports betting state, there will certainly be technologies we look at there,” he said.

AMBSE Ventures will take an equity position in the companies and expects to initiate multiple investments within the next year.