Talisman

What Talisman does

Talisman is a privately held, New York-headquartered global agency operating at the intersection of sport, entertainment, commerce, and emerging technology. Founded by Dharpan Randhawa, the firm delivers four integrated service lines — Partnerships (sponsorship brokerage and rights representation), Activation (campaigns, live experiences, and fan engagement), Ventures (capital introduction and opportunity platform for sport, fandom, and emerging tech), and Advisory (commercial strategy and intelligence for brands, investors, governments, and rights holders). It serves enterprise clients including global brands (Kraken, Roborock, Off-White, TUMI, Dropbox, Stella Artois, BetterHelp), sports rights holders (Williams Racing, McLaren Racing, Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal Women, Real Madrid, NY Liberty, ONE Championship, UTS, Major League Volleyball), and investors, with disclosed marquee mandates such as securing more than $28M in sponsorship partnerships for ONE Championship.

The firm's commercial model is professional services: it earns via partnership brokerage commissions, advisory retainers, activation project fees, and venture-related deal flow. Its go-to-market is direct enterprise engagement, supported by The Playbook Weekly editorial intelligence platform and a senior advisory bench. Underlying technology is light: the firm has no disclosed proprietary models, platforms, or APIs, and its "platform" is better characterized as a curated content library and CRM-driven deal pipeline than a technology product.

Talisman operates from seven offices spanning New York, London, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Dubai, Singapore, and Shanghai, serving clients across North America, Europe, MENA, and APAC. With 11-50 employees and a single $1.5M funding round disclosed in January 2024, the company runs a capital-light, relationship-driven model. Revenue is not publicly disclosed, but a $5M-$10M band is plausible given headcount, deal volume, and limited institutional capital raised.

Name

Talisman

Legal name

Talisman Agency

Website

https://thetalismanagency.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Talisman is a New York-based global sports and entertainment agency that brokers partnerships, designs activations, runs a ventures platform, and provides advisory services to brands, rights holders, and investors across seven international offices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sports & Entertainment Marketing Agency

NAICS

Agents and Managers for Artists, Athletes, Entertainers, and Other Public Figures (7114), Agents and Managers for Artists, Athletes, Entertainers, and Other Public Figures (71141)

SIC

Services-Services, Nec (8900)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYMPAKALAK

Sponsorship Sales, Valuation & Analytics Services (Rights Sales, Measurement, Consulting)

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Sports (Leagues, Teams, Events, Venues)/Sports Sponsorship & Endorsements

SECONDARYMPAKAMAC

Athlete Marketing, Endorsement & Sponsorship Representation

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Sports (Leagues, Teams, Events, Venues)/Athlete Representation & Agency Services

SECONDARYMPAKALAA

Athlete & Team Sponsorship Deals (Official Partners, Jersey/Kit Sponsors)

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Sports (Leagues, Teams, Events, Venues)/Sports Sponsorship & Endorsements

Keywords

• Sports partnerships brokerage
• Sponsorship representation
• Brand activation services
• Entertainment advisory
• Commercial intelligence platform

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Partnership Brokerage and Representation: Commercial representation and partnership acquisition for sports rights holders, leagues, and properties. Securing sponsorship deals and strategic partnerships across global sport and entertainment.
2. Strategic Advisory: Commercial advisory services for brands, investors, governments, and rightsholders navigating the evolving business of sport and entertainment.
3. Activation and Experiential: Creating culturally relevant campaigns, experiences, and fan engagement platforms. Develops live experiences, hospitality, content, and experiential commerce.
4. Ventures: Connecting capital to opportunities shaping sport, entertainment, fandom, and emerging technology. Works with founders, investors, athletes, brands, and rights holders.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Talisman is a global sports and entertainment agency that brokers strategic partnerships between brands and sports rights holders, designs culturally relevant activation campaigns, operates a ventures platform connecting capital to opportunities in sport and entertainment, and delivers strategic commercial advisory to brands, investors, governments and rights holders. Its service portfolio—Talisman Partnerships, Talisman Activation, Talisman Ventures, and Talisman Advisory—is delivered through direct enterprise engagements and supported by The Playbook Weekly intelligence platform.

Product overview

Talisman is an award-winning global agency operating at the intersection of sport, entertainment, commerce, and emerging technology. The company offers four core service lines—Talisman Partnerships, Talisman Activation, Talisman Ventures, and Talisman Advisory—which work together as an integrated platform. Talisman Partnerships handles strategic commercial relationships and sponsorship strategy. Talisman Activation creates culturally relevant campaigns and fan engagement experiences. Talisman Ventures operates as a venture and opportunity platform connecting capital with emerging opportunities. Talisman Advisory provides strategic intelligence and commercial guidance. Supporting these core services are The Playbook Weekly (an editorial intelligence platform) and a Global Internship Program for developing talent.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Playbook Weekly: Talisman's editorial intelligence platform covering the evolving intersection of sport, entertainment, culture, technology, and commerce.

Products and services

• Talisman Partnerships Strategic partnerships service that engineers commercial relationships between brands, rightsholders, athletes and platforms to drive commercial growth, market access, and cultural relevance across global sport and entertainment.
• Talisman Activation Creates culturally relevant campaigns, experiences, and fan engagement platforms built for the modern attention economy, developing ideas that move beyond traditional sponsorship and advertising to transform partnerships into memorable moments.
• Talisman Ventures Connects capital to the next generation of opportunities shaping sport, entertainment, fandom, and emerging technology. Operates as a venture and opportunity platform working with founders, investors, athletes, brands, and rights holders.
• Talisman Advisory Strategic intelligence and commercial advisory service for brands, investors, governments, and rights holders navigating the rapidly evolving business of sport and entertainment, covering growth strategy, commercial positioning, investment advisory, and market intelligence.
• The Playbook Weekly Talisman's editorial intelligence platform covering the evolving intersection of sport, entertainment, culture, technology, and commerce, built for senior decision-makers across brands, rights holders, media, investment, and emerging technology.

Quantifiable outcome

• $28M+ in sponsorship partnerships secured for ONE Championship
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers24 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• ONE ChampionshipcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerServed as official commercial agency, securing more than $28M in sponsorship partnerships across multiple categories. Structured strategic media rights and content partnership with FanDuel TV. Negotiated Southeast Asia betting partnership with 1XBET.
• Williams RacingcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSecured and structured Kraken's multi-year Formula One partnership including Web3 integration and fan engagement. Structured dashmoto product-led partnership centered on engineering, mobility, and innovation. Advised on partnership development.
• McLaren RacingcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCreated and delivered global gaming and motorsport activations including live fan experiences and documentary production with Free Fire. Conceptualized and executed experiential retail activations across APAC with TUMI. Advised and secured Dropbox's Formula One partnership.
• Tottenham HotspurcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNegotiated and facilitated Kraken's Premier League sleeve sponsorship and official crypto partnership.
• Arsenal WomencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNegotiated ABBYY's partnership focused on women's football, technology, and community engagement.
• Real MadridcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSecured and structured Roborock's global partnership with Real Madrid.
• New York LibertycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBrokered Off-White's first U.S. sports partnership, blending fashion, sport, and community storytelling.
• Ultimate Tennis Showdown (UTS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLed global commercial representation and partnership acquisition strategy. Negotiated Stella Artois' partnership and developed fan engagement activations.
• Major League Volleyball (MLV)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDeveloped league-wide commercial strategy, sponsorship architecture, and partnership acquisition programs.
• BetterHelpcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIdentified, negotiated, and secured Tom Brady as global ambassador. Developed partnership strategy and activation roadmap across multiple WNBA franchises.
• FanDuel TVcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStructured strategic media rights and content partnership with ONE Championship.
• UPLANDcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvided strategic advisory and global partnership representation. Facilitated Aston Villa's official metaverse partnership integrating club IP into immersive digital experiences.
• RVCAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAppointed as exclusive global representative to identify and negotiate strategic partnerships across Formula One, NBA, NFL, and Premier League.
• Step AppcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSecured Usain Bolt as global ambassador. Advised on global growth strategy, tokenomics, exchange positioning, and partnership development for Web3 fitness platform.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Mailman: Digital and social sports marketing agency focused on brand activation across sport in China and APAC. Comparable to Talisman's APAC activation and digital sponsorship work, with overlapping client categories like gaming, automotive, and consumer tech.
• Two Circles: Sports data, fan engagement, and commercial agency working with rights holders and brands on sponsorship strategy and activation. Comparable as a modern, technology-led sports commercial agency overlapping with Talisman's advisory and activation offerings.

Direct peers

• SPORTFIVE: Global sports marketing agency (formerly Lagardère Sports) that does sponsorship sales, partnership brokerage, and rights-holder commercial representation — directly comparable to Talisman's partnership and advisory practice. Talisman's founder Dharpan Randhawa previously worked at SPORTFIVE/Lagardère.
• Octagon: One of the largest global sports marketing agencies, with sponsorship sales, experiential marketing, athlete and property representation. Directly comparable to Talisman across partnership brokerage and activation services.
• Excel Sports Management: Sports talent and marketing agency focused on athlete representation, endorsement negotiations, and brand partnerships. Directly comparable to Talisman's athlete-ambassador work (e.g., Tom Brady for BetterHelp) and a former employer of Talisman team member Nick Syken.
• Wasserman: Global sports marketing and talent management firm offering sponsorship consulting, brand properties, and athlete representation. Directly comparable to Talisman across sponsorship sales and athlete-endorsement work, and where Talisman advisor Tom Fox previously worked.
• Legends: Sports and entertainment experiential agency providing partnership sales, premium hospitality, and sponsorship activation. Directly comparable to Talisman's activation and partnership sales practice, and a former employer of Talisman VP Ben Bianchi.
• CAA Sports: Sports and entertainment division of Creative Artists Agency, providing partnership sales, sports consulting, and media rights advisory. Directly comparable to Talisman, and a former employer of Talisman team member Nick Syken.
• MKTG (Dentsu Sports): Global sports and entertainment marketing agency within Dentsu offering sponsorship consulting, experiential, and athlete marketing. Directly comparable to Talisman and a former employer of Talisman team member Nick Syken.

Broad incumbents

• IMG / Endeavor: Global talent representation, rights, and events business owned by Endeavor, operating across sports, fashion, and entertainment with significantly larger scale. Comparable as a broad incumbent in the same partnership/sponsorship category, and relevant background for Talisman advisor Kenneth Berger (IMG Asia).

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/talisman_agency
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/thetalismanagency
• Instagraminstagram.com/thetalismanagency

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Talisman