A host of top female athletes have joined venture capital firm Players Fund.
The UK’s first athlete-led VC firm has signed up Olympic champions Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill – who won heptathlon gold at London 2012 and silver at Rio 2016 – and Allyson Felix, also retired, an American sprint star.
Retired Eni Aluko MBE, who represented England at three football World Cups, also joins Manchester United star Nikita Parris – a Euro 2022 winner – and London City Lionesses’ Danielle Carter at Players Fund.
Dame Ennis-Hill and Felix have both launched startups – hormonal health firm Jennis (pictured below) and Saysh sneakers, respectively. Aluko is already part of a multi-club ownership group promising to invest $100 million in women’s football clubs across Europe and Latin America.
“I’m honoured to join alongside these phenomenal women to drive The Players Fund’s mission of empowering athletes forward,” said Dame Ennis-Hill. “Together, we can spark real change in VC and beyond by backing founders of all backgrounds, and for me in particular female entrepreneurs where possible.”
Its existing male athlete investors include cricketers Ben Stokes, KL Rahul, Stuart Broad and Jos Buttler, plus footballers Chris Smalling, Serge Gnabry and Héctor Bellerín.
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Fergus Bell, managing partner of The Players Fund, said: “We are thrilled to welcome these groundbreaking athletes to The Players Fund. Their expertise takes us one step closer to our goal of creating the foremost athlete investor network.
“This remarkable group has the power to support founders and spark meaningful change in the athlete community and beyond.”
Rowena Samarasinhe, Athlete Committee Chair, added: “At The Players Fund, we are invested in democratising the investment opportunity to all athletes and we are particularly passionate about supporting women athletes and other non-traditional investor groups on this journey.
“Today’s announcement marks our commitment to this purpose and we are so excited to have such influential women joining our team.
“As women, and as we fight for an equal voice, there is something so empowering about taking control of our financial future, rather than relying on others to create one for us.
“The research has shown that women athletes make great entrepreneurs and now is the time for women athletes to redefine their narrative. We hope that The Players Fund will go some way to supporting this.”
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