🥎 Fastbreak AI Continues Aggressive Travel Expansion

This is Buying Sandlot — the only newsletter that focuses solely on the business of youth sports.

Let’s get to it.

Fastbreak AI is all-in on sports travel.

The sports operations firm further bolstered its emerging Fastbreak Travel vertical by acquiring a pair of housing firms — Competition Travel and Groupbook.

The additions come a few months after Fastbreak bought GroupHousing. The company now has about 650K-750K annual hotel nights on its platform, co-founder and CEO John Stewart told Buying Sandlot. Stewart added he expects to make more acquisitions that could push that figure into the 1.5M-2M range.

But lodging is just one component.

Fastbreak is emphasizing concierge services and experiences, which is a strength of Competition Travel. Stewart said Fastbreak will also handle ground (and eventually air) transportation, parking spots for buses, dining, finding practice space and arranging medical coverage, logistics and anything else clients need.

The packages will be similar to the ones utilized by professional teams, which Stewart said Fastbreak is already providing travel solutions for. He also believes the all-encompassing approach — and Fastbreak’s ongoing expansion — can make youth sports more affordable.

Stewart said Fastbreak’s “stay to save” model includes contractual guarantees with hotels for the lowest possible rate up to 10 days before an event. Further savings are found in bundling other needs. Fastbreak also works with clubs and teams to backstop and validate costs at stay-to-play events outside its platform.

"We're going to get them the best price and the best rate,” Stewart said. “And if that rate happens to be significantly cheaper than the tournament operator is offering through their housing partner -- quite frankly, that's something the tournament operator or housing partner is going to have to come to terms with that client. They shouldn't be doing that. This is part of the problem."

Stewart said he expects Fastbreak will move into airfare and airline ticketing in late 2027/early 2028, including potential charter flights. He gave the example of a slew of Miami-area clients traveling to a tournament in Lexington, Kentucky, without any direct commercial flight options.

“As ridiculous as that sounds, the economics actually work in your favor if you're filling up an entire 737 or 757 or 777," he said. "You can give the athletes on the plane a better experience. You can go door to door when it's sometimes really difficult to get to."

High school football is religion in Texas.

Clear Life Media brings it into living rooms with the help of Blackmagic Design.

The Lone Star State-based company produces high quality, multi-camera live streams for its “Game of the Week” productions, as well as youth and adult grappling competitions for its “Clear Life Combat” on-demand channel, using Blackmagic’s workflow and suite of affordable solutions including:

All stakeholders in the youth sports industry expect top-notch live streaming. Blackmagic Design makes it possible using the same products as professional teams, allowing high quality, affordable and easy to learn multi-camera streaming and filming.

For more information, visit Blackmagic Design.

*Sponsor

USA Lacrosse has tabbed the youth sports management platform as its preferred mobile-first engagement solution.

The partnership will provide youth lax organizations “with access to industry-leading technology designed to simplify administration, strengthen communication and enhance the experience for players, coaches and families.”

USA Lacrosse members will receive preferred access to the TeamSnap One platform. The partnership expands TeamSnap’s presence in the lacrosse ecosystem; the national governing body has close to 425K members.

Movement intelligence firm pMotion has partnered with Unrivaled Sports and NJ Youth Soccer.

The moves significantly expand the firm’s youth sports presence, connecting it to almost 1M athletes. The partnerships come after a recent seven-figure Series A raise led by Cobalt Capital; Unrivaled co-founder David Blitzer’s Bolt Ventures was also involved.

PMotion bills itself as a “human movement intelligence and predictive health platform.” Its technology operates via smartphone camera and identifies injury risk by analyzing movement, identifying biomechanics inefficiencies and creating personalized corrective programs. Initial assessments take about two minutes.

The Unrivaled partnership will bring pMotion to its events, facilities and leagues. There is already an offering tied to Ripken Baseball.

NJYS — a state organization affiliated with U.S. Youth Soccer and now the U.S. Soccer Federation — will launch pMotion with its Olympic Development Program athletes.

PMotion was founded in 2019 by Keith Pyne, who is currently a medical advisor for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Lakers and previously served as the Washington Nationals’ medical board chairman. The platform has been used by pro teams in MLB, the NBA and the English Premier League.

The baseball and softball developmental giant will launch “PG Central” this week at its WWBA World Championship in Jupiter, Florida.

The live, on-location show debuts on PG digital channels tonight at 7 p.m. ET; the program is “designed to serve as a key destination for the latest news, features and analysis from across the travel baseball landscape.”

PG said it will provide a first look at its 2027 schedule on the inaugural edition.

The program will be on site at all PG Flagship events through next year.

Quick Take: Love the idea of consolidating coverage of the fragmented world of youth sports in a pro-style around-the-league show. This can work in every sport, and appeal to enthusiasts of all ages— particularly younger athletes.

A Dubai-based investment firm plans to pair a free-to-use youth soccer complex with a wellness resort in Morocco.

RD Dubai’s proposed project would provide training access and opportunities for underprivileged youth next to the resort, which will have 150-200 room and be designed to appeal to entrepreneurs. The location of the complex has not been reported.

Morocco will host the 2030 Men’s World Cup with Portugal and Spain following a run to the quarterfinal round this past summer. Its men’s national team has also won bronze at the Paris Olympics and the U-20 World Cup in recent years.

Internet provider TEC has agreed to a 20-year partnership with Kentucky Sports Factory in Madisonville.

The 90K-square-foot indoor facility — managed by The Sports Facilities Companies — will be known as Kentucky Sports Factory, Connected by TEC.

TEC will also "provide ultra-high-speed fiber Internet service to the Madisonville area at speeds of up to 8 gigabits" and has pledged to open a branch in the area staffed by local hires.

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