A-rod startup Jump raises $30 million to take on Ticketmaster
Baseball legend Alex Rodriguez and business partner Marc Lore have raised $30 million in funding for a new ticketing and fan experience business that they hope will outperform the struggling incumbents in the industry.
The funding round for Jump, which has so far been undercover, was led by Forerunner Ventures and joined by Courtside Ventures, Will Ventures and Mastry Ventures. Other investors include MetaLab and Drive by DraftKings, with early funding coming directly from the founders, including Rodriguez and Lore.
Management has been in discussions with team owners and executives to see how to improve the status quo and attract potential customers. The ticketing industry has seen a lot of drama lately, as executives at Live Nation Entertainment Inc. confronted lawmakers in Washington over the botched sale of Taylor Swift tickets in November. Live Nation Entertainment was formed in 2010 through a merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster.
Rodriguez and Lore started considering the sector in 2020 when they attempted to buy the New York Mets and get a look under the hood of a professional sports franchise. They concluded that there is an opportunity to improve overall economics by developing a service that serves fans in the weeks leading up to a game, during a game and in the weeks after.
“As Alex and I began exploring ownership opportunities with sports teams, we spoke to industry executives and began to see firsthand how many teams were missing the mark in terms of their fan experience,” Lore said in an email. “We quickly realized that there were so many untapped opportunities to rethink the entire fan journey.”
Jump plans to offer ticketing, e-commerce, content and event experience services, including dynamic ticketing, which would allow fans to switch to a better free seat mid-game. Chief Executive Officer Jordy Leiser said in an interview that management hopes to work with existing ticket sellers and open up the industry with less exclusive offers.
Leiser said the capital will be spent hiring people while they develop the product. Jump remains in development mode and needs engineers, product managers and data scientists. He said that Jump isn’t currently looking for additional capital, but will raise more if needed, as the product is still “a quarter away” from going to market.
Rodriguez and Lore have plunked money into many ventures in recent years, including a $1.5 billion deal for a stake in the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves. Her other investments include online brokerage Tornado and sports exchange Mojo.
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