188 The Business of Sports Venture Capital: Michael Proman of Scrum Ventures

Michael Proman is Managing Director and Partner at Scrum Ventures, where he leads the firm’s sports and entertainment investing strategy. His path to venture capital includes experience at the NBA and Coca-Cola, as well as building and exiting his own company.Michael joined the Sports Business Leaders Podcast to discuss how Scrum approaches investing across sports and entertainment, why the firm looks beyond traditional “sports tech,” and what separates an investable company from one that is truly venture-backable. He explains how Scrum evaluates opportunities across areas like human performance, recovery, licensing, fan engagement, and technologies with applications well beyond sports.We also discussed what Michael looks for in founders, why relationships play such an important role in sourcing deals, and how Scrum works with its portfolio companies beyond simply providing capital.A great conversation on venture capital, sports technology, entrepreneurship, and where the next generation of sports businesses may come from.