Startups to watch

Profiles of startups reshaping sporting goods across the value chain—from materials innovation, design and advanced manufacturing, and retail tech and AI to new product categories and community-driven business models.

IN THE SPOTLIGHT

david goldsbury via unsplash

LifeLabs and the science of a cooler swing

2026-02-09T13:20:00+00:00By

A materials science company chose golf—not Everest—to prove its cooling fabric works where people actually play. The strategy reveals how innovation reaches mass markets

Startups to watch in 2026

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NFL champion, NWSL star back cleat startup Caddix

2026-03-27T15:29:00+00:00By

The Baltimore startup targeting ACL and lower-body injury reduction secures backing from a Super Bowl quarterback and an NWSL defender.

ROXFIT app

Roxfit raises £1.9m for AI HYROX training

2026-03-11T19:12:00+00:00By

Yorkshire fitness tech startup targets its 260,000-strong user base with fresh capital to deepen AI capabilities and expand gym partnerships globally.

Hosel

UK startup raises £500,000 to modernize golf resale

2026-03-11T15:22:00+00:00By

Scottish golf tech startup Hosel targets a $3bn pre-owned market long dominated by generalist platforms with poor pricing transparency.

reflo cover

UK sustainable sportswear startup Reflo raises £2.5m

2026-03-09T19:22:00+00:00By

UK sustainable sportswear brand bypasses VC to let customers buy in alongside footballer Harry Kane on Crowdcube

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Next-gen wearable patch PointFit wins VC backing

2026-03-09T16:11:00+00:00By

Hong Kong startup PointFit reads lactate through sweat in real time, as VC firm Seveno Capital backs its path from elite sport to mass market.

Gertje_Klack_portrait

Soqa’s founder on closing the female football product gap

2026-03-06T14:54:00+00:00By

German start-up Soqa is building female-first football products the big brands won’t. Founder Gertje Klack explains the gap, and the strategy to close it.

the corts cover

Volleyball finally gets its own female apparel brand

2026-02-19T15:20:00+00:00By

Corts, a female-founded LA label, enters a sport with 800,000 young US players and no dedicated apparel incumbent.

Branwyn

Branwyn lands on The Lead’s Foremost 50

2026-02-17T19:37:00+00:00By

Oregon-based challenger earns industry recognition for applying seamless knitting to natural fibers in women’s next-to-skin performance apparel

david goldsbury via unsplash

LifeLabs and the science of a cooler swing

2026-02-09T13:20:00+00:00By

A materials science company chose golf—not Everest—to prove its cooling fabric works where people actually play. The strategy reveals how innovation reaches mass markets

SGIE Daily Digest

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