Relevent Sports

What Relevent Sports does

Relevent Sports is a New York-based, privately-held commercial partner that operates exclusively in international football, selling media rights, sponsorship rights, and licensing rights on behalf of top leagues and governing bodies. The company's portfolio is anchored by long-term, multi-region mandates: a 20-year joint venture with LALIGA for North and Central America (including Mexico), a 17-year Bundesliga partnership for the Americas, the Premier League Summer Series event platform in the United States, an EFL media and marketing partnership across the Americas, and — its most significant win in 2025 — a landmark global mandate to represent UEFA men's club competitions media and sponsorship rights for the 2027-2033 cycle, the first change in global agency partner since the Champions League's creation over 30 years ago. Beyond rights brokerage, Relevent functions as a strategic operator and capital co-investor, organizing the International Champions Cup men's, women's, and youth tournaments across North America and Asia for more than a decade.

The business model rests on three revenue streams: media rights commercialization (commission on rights sold to broadcasters, including a record $1.4 billion ESPN deal for LALIGA North America), sponsorship rights sales to brand partners, and professional services revenue from event organization. Pricing is bespoke and undisclosed, reflecting large-anchor enterprise contracts rather than transactional volume. Go-to-market is enterprise field sales targeted at football leagues, governing bodies, broadcasters, and global brand partners, with deal flow publicized through sports-business media (SportBusiness Journal, SportCal, Financial Times, Forbes).

Relevent is wholly owned by billionaire Stephen Ross as part of a broader portfolio of sports and entertainment holdings that includes the Miami Dolphins, Hard Rock Stadium, the F1 Miami Grand Prix, the Miami Open Tennis, Related Companies, and Equinox. The company has 11-50 employees, no disclosed external funding, and a leadership team led by CEO Boris Gartner (appointed 2025) with Stephen Ross as owner. In April 2025, Relevent settled an antitrust lawsuit against FIFA and the US Soccer Federation, clearing the regulatory path for official European league matches to be staged in the United States.

Name

Relevent Sports

Legal name

Relevent Sports, LLC

Website

https://releventsports.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Relevent Sports is a privately-held New York commercial partner that sells media, sponsorship, and licensing rights for top international football leagues — including UEFA, LALIGA, Bundesliga, the Premier League, and EFL — and organizes premium football tournaments in North America and Asia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sports Commercial Rights Representation

NAICS

Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events (7113), Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events without Facilities (71132), Agents and Managers for Artists, Athletes, Entertainers, and Other Public Figures (7114)

SIC

Services-Racing, Including Track Operation (7948)

akta.pro primary industry

Sports Data, Analytics & CRM Services (Fan Data, Insights, Audience Development) (MPAKAKAO)

akta.pro secondary industries

Hospitality, VIP & Experiential Sponsorship (Suites, Fan Zones, On-Site Activations) (MPAKALAH), Sports Branded Content (Team/League/Brand Integrations) (MPADAEAI)

Keywords

• Sports media rights
• Sponsorship sales
• Football commercialization
• Event organization
• Licensing rights

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Media Rights Commercialization: Relevent sells media rights for football leagues and competitions to broadcasters across regions, including the landmark UEFA Champions League rights and LALIGA North America media rights.
2. Sponsorship Rights Sales: The company commercializes sponsorship rights for football properties, creating bespoke partnerships that maximize value for brands while delivering engagement for fans.
3. Event Organization: Relevent organizes and operates high-profile football matches and tournaments including the International Champions Cup (men's, women's, and youth editions) in North America and Asia.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Relevent Sports is a commercial partner that represents media rights, sponsorship rights, and licensing rights for top international football leagues and governing bodies, including UEFA Men's Club Competitions, LALIGA North America, Bundesliga Americas, EFL Americas, and the Premier League Summer Series. Beyond rights commercialization, Relevent also builds, organizes, and operates high-profile football events and tournaments such as the International Champions Cup in North America and Asia. The company delivers a full-service platform that combines deep market knowledge, strategic relationships, and proprietary capital investments to maximize the value of premium football properties.

Product overview

Relevent Sports operates as a full-service commercial partner and event organizer for premium football properties. The company offers two integrated service lines: (1) Global Commercial Rights Representation — managing media, sponsorship, and licensing rights for leagues including UEFA Men's Club Competitions (2027-2033 mandate), LALIGA North America (20-year JV), Bundesliga Americas (17-year), EFL Americas, and Premier League Summer Series; and (2) Football Event Organization — building, organizing, and operating the International Champions Cup events for men's, women's, and youth levels across North America and Asia. The portfolio is anchored by long-term, multi-region partnerships with top football properties.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• UEFA Men's Club Competitions Global Commercial Rights Representation
• LALIGA North America Joint Venture
• Bundesliga Americas Partnership
• Premier League Summer Series
• EFL Americas Partnership
• International Champions Cup

Quantifiable outcome

• $1.4 billion ESPN media rights deal for LALIGA

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• US Soccer Federation (USSF)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2025Settled antitrust lawsuit in April 2025, clearing the way for FIFA to permit official European soccer league matches to be played in the United States. Settlement concluded case challenging FIFA's geographic market restrictions.
• UC3 (UEFA Club Competitions)flagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Landmark mandate awarded in 2025 to represent global media and sponsorship rights for UEFA men's club competitions for 2027-2033 cycle. This is the first global commercial rights sales partnership since the formation of UC3 and first change in agency partner since the Champions League was created over 30 years ago.
• Deutsche Fußball LigacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2024Partnership entered September 2024 to expand German football in the US market.
• LALIGAflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner20-year joint venture with LALIGA for North and Central America covering media, sponsorship, and licensing rights. Led to record $1.4 billion ESPN media rights deal. Partnership is expanding to Mexico.
• BundesligacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner17-year partnership with Deutsche Fußball Liga for the Americas region to help expansion in the important US market.
• Premier LeaguecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for the Premier League Summer Series event platform in the United States, building and operating high-profile football matches.
• EFL (English Football League)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMedia rights, content, and marketing partnership across the Americas. CBS secured EFL rights in US through Relevent partnership.
• UEFA (Previous Partnership)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrevious partnership to represent men's club competition media rights in the United States from 2024-2027.
• Relevent Sports (as promoter)minorOthersPromoted LaLiga's attempt to stage Barcelona vs. Villarreal match in Miami. Cited insufficient time to execute the event when plans were scrapped in October 2025.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Deltatre: Sports media and technology company providing OTT platforms, data, and digital services to football leagues and broadcasters. Adjacent peer because it powers much of the digital distribution Relevent's rights deals depend on.
• Endeavor Streaming: Direct-to-consumer streaming platform provider for sports properties (including UFC, WWE, PGA). Indirectly comparable as a potential disintermediator of traditional rights agents if more leagues adopt DTC models.

Broad incumbents

• IMG (Endeavor): Largest global sports marketing and rights agency, with a football portfolio that overlaps Relevent's (e.g., Serie A, other leagues). Comparable as a competitor for league commercial rights mandates and premium event organization, but operates across many sports, not exclusively football.
• Wasserman: Global sports marketing and talent representation firm with football representation and brand consulting capabilities. Overlaps with Relevent in commercializing player/athlete marketing and sports properties, though not primarily focused on league-level rights.
• CAA (Creative Artists Agency): Major talent and sports agency expanding into football commercial rights and event activation. Competes with Relevent for premium sports properties and global brand partnership deals, though diversified across entertainment and multiple sports.
• Octagon: Global sports marketing agency with sponsorship, media rights, and event capabilities overlapping Relevent's. Competes for football properties and corporate sponsorships, but diversified across many sports categories.

Direct peers

• TEAM Marketing: Swiss sports rights agency that held the prior global mandate for UEFA club competitions until Relevent won the 2027-2033 cycle. Directly comparable in core activity of commercializing European football media and sponsorship rights for leagues and governing bodies.
• Infront Sports & Media: Sports marketing company with deep European football rights portfolio (e.g., Bundesliga international, Italian sports properties). Closely comparable in commercializing football media and sponsorship rights for international expansion, and a competitor for league mandates.
• Soccer United Marketing (SUM): US-based commercial arm of MLS handling media rights and sponsorship sales for Major League Soccer and Mexican Football Federation in the US. Directly comparable model of monetizing football commercial rights for league partners in the Americas.

Others

• Relevent Football Club: Founder Matt Higgins's separate venture, but thematically linked as part of the broader Relevent brand ecosystem focused on soccer community and engagement in the US. Adjacent enabling player rather than a direct commercial competitor.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/relevent-sports

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Relevent Sports