Click here to read the full article.
Unrivaled, the women’s three-on-three basketball league, announced that its Series C fundraise has surpassed an initial $100 million target and is now oversubscribed — valuing the league at $650 million.
The funding
round was led by Ten Pillars Sports Fund, backed by UC Investments, which manages the University of California system’s investment funds. Other participants in the round included Carmelo Anthony, Geno Auriemma, the Berman Family, Bessemer Venture Partners, Jenny Just, Ashton Kutcher, Alex Morgan and Trybe Ventures, Dan Rosensweig and Trae Young.
Founded in 2023 by women’s basketball stars Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart, the league’s third season tips off in January 2027 and will air nationally across Warner Bros. Discovery’s TNT Sports. (WBD is an existing investor in Unrivaled.)
According to the league’s founders, a key element of the Unrivaled business model is its “player-first” compensation structure, which provides participating players with equity opportunities in addition to competitive salaries and benefits. Since the league’s formation, the value of the player equity pool has increased more than 550% and is now worth close to $200 million.
“This raise is fueling the next stage of Unrivaled’s growth and expanding our impact across the women’s basketball ecosystem,” Unrivaled CEO and co-founder Alex Bazzell said in a statement. “We’re partnering with investors who share our vision to create lasting value and greater opportunity for the best players in the world, while continuing to elevate the game for fans. Unrivaled was built by players and for players, and their ownership, leadership and ambition continue to drive the league forward and define a new model for the sport.”
Unrivaled said its second season was marked by “significant growth across the business,” including in ticketing, merchandise, social and fan engagement, record-setting attendance and continued expansion of the league’s digital ecosystem. In 2026, it expanded to eight clubs and 54 players ahead of schedule. Unrivaled’s sophomore season also included major attendance records as the league took its product on the road for the first – and second – time, playing in front of sold-out crowds at both Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia and Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
“The moment for women’s sports is here,” commented Jagdeep Singh Bachher, UC Investments’ chief investment officer. “Young people get it. We get it. Anyone who’s watched Unrivaled knows this game is every bit as thrilling as any other sport out there. We’re excited to help propel that momentum forward.”
Unrivaled’s latest funding round comes after its announcement in May 2024 of an oversubscribed Series B investment in September 2025 that increased the its valuation to $340 million. Early investors in Unrivaled include a notable list of institutional investors, business moguls and sports stars including Giannis Antetokounmpo and Build Your Legacy Ventures, Amy Banse, Dan Benton, Stephen Curry, Moira Forbes, Coco Gauff, Linda Henry, Tyus and Tre Jones, Billie Jean King and Ilana Kloss, David Levy and Horizon Sports & Experiences, Next Legacy Partners, Amy Banse, Ann Sarnoff, Richard Sarnoff, John Skipper, Dawn Staley, Wanda and Alex Sykes, JuJu Watkins, Gary Vaynerchuk and Warner Bros. Discovery.
“This raise reflects the confidence investors have in what we set out to build at Unrivaled: a league where the best players in the world have a real stake in the value they create,” said Unrivaled co-founder Breanna Stewart. “Moving forward, this investment gives us even more resources to support our players, elevate the experience for fans, and grow a league that is shaping the future of women’s basketball.”
“From the beginning, our goal has been to raise the standard for what players and fans should expect from women’s basketball,” said Unrivaled co-founder Napheesa Collier. “This investment allows Unrivaled to keep pushing that standard higher, creating the best possible environment for players to compete and thrive, while making the experience bigger and better for the fans who continue to show up for women’s basketball.”
Unrivaled was represented in this fundraise by Inner Circle Sports. “We work across a range of different leagues and teams, and what Unrivaled has accomplished in just two years is truly unprecedented,” said Maddie Winslow, director of Inner Circle Sports. “Unrivaled has been innovative from day one across every part of its business model, and they’ve backed their ambition with a real track record of execution which created incredible demand for this fundraise. The raise undoubtedly marks a significant chapter in the league’s accelerated growth trajectory.”
