Sports and media company Pro League Network announced Thursday that KB Partners has invested in PLN, closing its seed funding round and bringing the total raise to $4.2 million.
KB Partners and Kucharz join previously announced investors Eberg Capital, Kevin Garnett & Big Ticket Sports, John Brenkus, Chris Groveand Ezra Kucharz to finalize the seed funding round.
PLN has produced over 100 hours of live sports and shoulder programming in the past year. The company will use the funding to accelerate its programming schedule, with the goal of being a 24/7 network of purpose-built live digital sports.
Founded by Mike Salvaris and Bill Yucatonis, PLN produces sports purpose-built for digital audiences. Its portfolio of sports includes assets like CarJitsu Championship, SlapFIGHT Championship, Ultimate Tire Wrestling, Putt Tour, Pro Carrom Tour, and the forthcoming 3×3 streetball-style league str33t, developed in partnership with Garnett and Big Ticket Sports.
“We’re thrilled to have KB Partners as part of the PLN team,” said Salvaris & Yucatonis. “It’s clear to us they understand our vision of a vertically-integrated network of sports that reach a modern audience, through the type of competition, the sports’ presentations, and their distribution and methods of engagement. We can’t wait to have Keith and his team help us continue to build toward our goals.”
Keith Bank
“Mike & Bill and their team have shown an incredible ability to understand how to launch sports that build immediate fanbases because of their combination of intense competition with attention-grabbing presentations,” said KB Partners Founder and CEO Keith Bank.
“More than just viral sports, PLN has seen where sports fans’ attentions are going and have been ahead of the curve on meeting audience demands, creating new, emerging sports that have clear paths to long-term success.”
PLN has built an audience of millions of viewers worldwide with its sports earning more than 10 million impressions per week. “Fans have loved the company’s sports that feature a unique combination of elite athleticism, attention-grabbing visuals, and easy-to-understand competitions, all presented with engaging storytelling to create rooting interests and a dose of irreverence,” the company said.
In addition to their unique nature, the company’s sports are designed with what the company calls “a forward-looking business approach.” PLN owns and operates each of its portfolio sports and media rights, allowing the company to vertically monetize, including wagering, and a decentralized approach to distribution across platforms.
Roger Ehrenberg
“In less than two years, PLN has cemented their positioning as the leading producer of digital-first, purpose-built sports,” said Eberg Capital founder Roger Ehrenberg. “In working with Mike & Bill, I’ve been impressed with how they’ve mixed creativity with elite sports competition and entertainment programming – and their audience growth supports it. I’m looking forward to having KB Partners join the team and help us build to the goal of an always-on network of digital-first sports.”
PLN recently announced a rights fee agreement with Stadium, making the network the exclusive live home for the CarJitsu Championship and SlapFIGHT Championship in the U.S while CarJitsu Championship and Ultimate Tire Wrestling were featured as part of ESPN8: The Ocho.
Since its debut in 2022, CarJitsu Championship has become a viral sensation, garnering millions of impressions per week on social media. After its first live fight card on March 15, 2024, CarJitsu exploded with more than 30 million views and impressions in the days following the event. The sport was recently approved for wagering in New Jersey.
Recently featured in Esquire, SlapFIGHT Championship was founded in 2017 by PLN’s Creative Director and commentator and promoter JT Tilley as the first slap fighting competition in the U.S. SlapFIGHT Championship’s competitions have generated a significant fanbase online, regularly receiving millions of social media impressions via YouTube, TikTok and Instagram channels.
Pro League Network’s sports have been approved for wagering across several North American states and jurisdictions with lines offered on DraftKings, BetMGM, bet365, Betway, Betfred, Tipico, and Action247.
PLN has partnered with US Integrity and Odds On Compliance’s ProhiBet to safeguard its sports integrity and ensure adherence to state-specific regulations. PLN also recently teamed up with Birches Health with the aim to ensure that wagering on PLN sports is done in a healthy, sustainable manner through the production and promotion of clinician-led educational materials and support resources.