Tennis Australia, the governing body for tennis in Australia, has announced the creation of Wildcard Ventures, a new entity that will identify and invest in early-stage companies focusing on technologies across sports, health and entertainment. Tennis Australia is the latest sports organization to launch its own venture capital fund to help advance SportsTech start-ups, following the lead of American top sporting organizations like the NFL, the NBA and MLB. In what Tennis Australia has defined as “a world-first,” the fund has been set up as a syndicate opportunity, allowing it to team up with like-minded investors who are also looking to advance the world of SportsTech. The core investment team of Wildcard Ventures comprises Techstars’ managing director, Todd Deacon (general partner), the head of innovation at Tennis Australia, Machar Reid (general partner), and a finance business partner, Lauren Coridas (operations manager). The Wildcard Ventures Advisory Committee includes partners from major venture capital firms, who will advise on the viability of the opportunities identified.

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