Florida Funders and Florida Institute Invest in NOCAP Sports
Florida Funders and the Florida Institute back an automated digital marketplace empowering college athletes to monetize their name, image and likeness (NIL)
TAMPA, FL (November 10, 2021) Florida Funders, recognized as the top VC in the Southeast region by Pitchbook, announced today its investment in NOCAP Sports, an inclusive digital marketplace that allows athletes, schools, and businesses to connect and conduct automated, compliant, transparent and verified NIL related transactions with full oversight from independent third parties.
Florida Funders has invested in NOCAP Sport’s $2.5M seed round from the Florida Funders’ Fund 2, LLC., supporting NOCAP’s efforts to ramp up marketing, platform development, campus ambassador programs, hiring and HQ expansion in Miami. Also participating in the round is the Florida Institute (Institute for Commercialization of Florida Technology), the Acquired Wisdom Fund, Bakari Sellers, and executives from Wasserman, College Hunks, Orreco, Pulse Sports and the Philadelphia Union, among others.
NOCAP Sports was founded in May 2020 in response to loosening restrictions on university athletes monetizing their name, image and likeness (NIL) with brands, businesses and fans. NOCAP Sports delivers a seamless experience for all parties, providing athletes with education, promotional and revenue opportunities, universities with the compliance tools to ensure athletes stay within the rules, and brands and retailers a way to activate athlete talent easily and safely.
“Florida Funders is thrilled to get in on the ground floor of this emerging marketplace,” says Tom Wallace, Managing Partner at Florida Funders. “NOCAP Sports is providing athletes equal access to the best technology, resources, and endorsement opportunities for free — they’re changing the entire game. We're excited to share with these incredible athletes everything NOCAP Sports has to offer in the new NIL era.”
To date, NOCAP has secured 61 universities to join the platform, expanding the pool of athletes available for brand partnership opportunities. University partners include the University of Arkansas, the University of Nevada Las Vegas, Boise State University, the University of San Diego, the University of New Mexico and more.
“College sports is in the midst of its most significant and impactful change in its history of existence,” explained Nicholas Lord, Co-Founder and CEO at NOCAP Sports. “In an ecosystem that’s massively fragmented, and for the first time ever, we’re providing free and equal access at the fingertips of college athletes to compliantly monetize their name, image, and likeness We’re excited to have Florida Funders and the Florida Institute’s support to scale these opportunities across Florida and the entire country.”
Earlier this year, NOCAP announced a strategic alliance with Inmar Intelligence, a recognized leader in influencer marketing, to work with its brand partners to curate endorsement opportunities for the student-athletes using NOCAP’s marketplace. This partnership combines a best-of-breed platform experience with Inmar’s advertiser relationships that span across 2,000+ brand and retail clients in a variety of industries and verticals.
“NOCAP Sports is more than just a platform, it’s a gateway to services for schools and athletes,” says Sarah Fuller, Director of Athlete Relations at NOCAP Sports and the first woman to play in a Power Five conference team. “NOCAP is equipping the next generation of student-athletes in the NIL market that is expected to grow like never before.”
“As a college athlete, I know first hand that every stage of the process can be overwhelming,” said Collin Gillespie, college basketball player for Villanova Wildcats and NOCAP Sports ambassador. “NOCAP Sports makes this process seamless, while opening a magnitude of commercial opportunities. I highly recommend every student athlete to utilize their services and endorsement opportunities.”
“We’re extremely proud to work with NOCAP Sports in supporting our athletes at no cost to them or our schools,” said Terry Prentice, Director of Athlete Brand Development & Inclusive Excellence at the University of Arkansas. “NOCAP Sports is able to eliminate the compliance and documentation burden for everyone involved while also providing athletes robust opportunities. Athletics are one of the many driving forces at universities, and it’s important that we help give back to the students who make it possible.”
About Florida Funders, LLC
Recognized as the top VC in the Southeast region by Pitchbook, Florida Funders is a hybrid of a venture capital fund and an angel investor network that discovers, funds, and builds early-stage technology companies in Florida and beyond. In order for Florida to evolve from the Sunshine State to the Startup State, we ensure there is as little friction as possible in the ecosystem, that investors have access to meaningful deal flow, and entrepreneurs have access to a wide range of accredited investors, capital, and experience. Florida Funders educates our community of investors, provides transparency during the funding process, fosters communication across the ecosystem, and empowers the strategic relationships that drive investments. Our team is composed of serial entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, and experienced angel investors singularly focused on uncovering Florida’s next breakout technology companies. To learn more, visit www.floridafunders.com.
About Florida Institute
Formed by the Florida Legislature in 2007, the Institute for Commercialization of Florida Technology supports and funds innovation companies that create clean jobs in new industries driving the global economy. The Institute provides company building services and seed funding through the Florida Technology Seed Capital Fund to promising Florida startups that are developing products that improve and save lives and help companies improve their bottom line. The organization’s investment decisions are guided through a strong partnership with its Private Fund Manager, Florida Funders. The Institute’s economic impact over the last ten years was $2.6 billion, with fiscal revenue impacts of nearly $297 million to federal, state, and local governments.
About NOCAP Sports
NOCAP Sports is an inclusive, digital marketplace that allows athletes, schools, and businesses to connect and conduct automated, compliant, transparent and verified name, image and likeness (NIL) related transactions with full oversight from independent third parties. It is the only free to use platform for athletes and schools.
NOCAP’s mission is to give every athlete regardless of school, sport, level or background, free equal access to the best technology and resources to maximize their name, image and likeness. The company was founded by Nicholas Lord, a former entrepreneurial student-athlete, Casey Floyd, the former Director of Compliance at the University of Michigan, and Stan Golubstov, Chief Technology Officer of multiple large-scale companies.
For more information about NOCAP, please follow NOCAP on Twitter, Instagram and Linkedin or visit our website at NOCAP Sports.
PRESS CONTACT:
Marely Arias
Carve Communications for Florida Funders
(954) 249-5413