The Australian footwear company Ida Sports, which designs football shoes specifically for women, has closed a $2 million funding round led by Michele Kang’s Kynisca Sports Int’l. Other participants included Elysian Park Ventures, Tipt Ventures and Firebird Ventures. The new capital will be used to advance Ida’s research, development and manufacturing.
Kang launched Kynisca over the summer. It’s the first multi-team organization dedicated solely to women’s sports, with Kang’s three soccer clubs and the Kynisca Innovation Hub. Ida said her revenue tripled from 2022 to 2023 and expects the same for this year.
Ida Sports was founded in 2017 by Laura Youngson, a STEM advocate and TED speaker, together with former professional cricketer Ben Sandhu. The duo wanted to create what they thought was missing in the enormous market of football products: a women-specific football shoe designed for women’s feet and needs. Three years later, in 2020, the first boot, the Classica, was released onto the market. Global pandemic aside, the boots garnered 5-star reviews from players worldwide.
