Athletico Ventures Research
Investment Thesis
Athletico Ventures helps elite athletes invest in promising European startups alongside tier-one institutional investors. Founded in 2020 by Arthur Bernard, a 12+ year veteran of sports and entertainment (EVP at Lagardere Sports, ex-Betclic) with prior venture experience at Alven, the firm's core insight is that professional athletes bring differentiated value beyond capital: their celebrity, personal networks, and social reach can meaningfully accelerate brand visibility and customer acquisition for early-stage consumer and impact businesses. Athletico Ventures positions itself as a bridge between the sports world and the tech investment world, giving athletes a structured, professionally managed way to build an investment portfolio and a second career track beyond their playing years.
Sector Focus
The firm is thesis-agnostic across B2B and B2C but concentrates on three pillars:
- Consumer (e-commerce, marketplaces, fashion/resale, wearables)
- Impact, spanning education, health/wellness, climate, and food
- Sports & Entertainment (sports media, fan engagement, gaming/prediction products)
Portfolio evidence spans fintech-adjacent wellness (Rocapine), plant-based food (Umiami, All Plants), sports collectibles and NFTs (Sorare), resale/e-commerce (Wethenew), hardware wearables (Oura), electric mobility (Cowboy), insurance (Life5), workplace mental health benefits (moka.care), sports media tooling (ScorePlay), and a sports prediction game (Omada).
Stage Focus
Athletico Ventures invests from late seed through Series B, most commonly writing checks alongside a lead institutional investor rather than leading rounds itself.
Check Size
Reported check sizes cluster around €150K-€500K per deal, consistent with a "follower" strategy that reserves roughly 20% for follow-on participation in existing portfolio companies.
Lead Tendency
The firm follows rather than leads. Its model is to syndicate smaller, athlete-sourced checks into rounds anchored by established lead investors (e.g., C4 Ventures leading Wethenew's Series B, Educapital leading Rocapine's Series A), trading board influence for speed and access.
Recent Activity
Activity is bursty rather than continuous, consistent with a syndicate/collective structure rather than a traditional drawn-down fund:
- June 2026: Participated in Rocapine's $13M ($11.2M/€11.2M) Series A to scale a portfolio of wellness apps.
- 2023: Six deals closed through the newly launched Athletico Ventures Collective#1, including Wethenew's €20M Series B (May 2023) and Life5's Series A.
- Prior to the Collective structure, the firm made roughly ten direct/syndicated investments including Sorare, Oura, All Plants, and Cowboy.
Portfolio Highlights
Notable names include Sorare (NFT-based fantasy sports, one of Europe's best-known crypto/gaming unicorns at the time of investment) and Oura (health wearables, later a multi-billion-dollar valuation company). Other portfolio companies — Wethenew, ScorePlay, Omada, Life5, moka.care, All Plants, Cowboy, and Umiami — reflect the firm's consumer/impact/sports thesis rather than a single vertical bet.
Team
- Arthur Bernard — Founder & Managing Partner. Prior EVP at Lagardere Sports, former Betclic executive, and prior venture experience at Alven. Writes a regular "Insights about athlete-investors" newsletter and speaks at industry events (e.g., SuperReturn International) on the democratization of sports investing.
- Christophe Chausson — Venture Partner. Also Founder & Advisor at Chausson Partners and a board member at Circle Sportswear.
- Gawain Davies — Venture Partner (Athlete Venture Partner), focused on Entertainment & Sports at seed and Series A.
Decision Process
Public information does not disclose a formal investment committee; the structure appears to be founder-led (Arthur Bernard) with venture partners sourcing and vetting deals, then syndicating checks to the athlete/investor collective for individual participation decisions.
Founder Preferences
Consumer and impact-sector founders building recognizable, culturally relevant brands that can benefit from athlete distribution, credibility, and marketing support — rather than deep-tech or highly technical enterprise infrastructure plays.
Geographic Focus
Primarily Europe (France, UK, Germany, Netherlands, Spain, Italy), with the firm headquartered across London and Paris.
Notable Investors in the Collective
Athletico Ventures Collective#1 (launched September 2023) pools capital from 40+ elite athletes and executives, including footballers Antoine Griezmann, Eric Dier, Randal Kolo Muani, and Sébastien Haller; motorsport drivers Pierre Gasly (F1) and Jean-Eric Vergne (Formula E); tennis player Paul-Henri Mathieu; volleyball player Wilfredo León Venero; and esports personality Gotaga, alongside tech and media executives such as Roxanne Varza (Station F) and Andrew Georgiou (Warner Bros Discovery).