Matt Higgins

@mhiggins · Co-founder and CEO, RSE Ventures

@franconissim1 Nice to meet you. I get asked this question a lot, as unfortunately there are less jobs available in sports than people who want them. In my experience, sell sell sell. If you can sell, you can break into a any sports organization. And once inside, you can rise up. Also, you have to be willing to start anywhere, literally at the bottom. Some of my closest friends in the business started out with a fancy law degree, making copies until midnight. Work ethic matters everywhere, but it really matters in sports. You have to be willing to prove yourself under trying circumstances and long hours.

3 share tweet・a year ago

Nissim Franco

@franconissim1

@mhiggins Thank you so much for your answer. I agree with you 100%, and that is exactly what I'm looking for, the opportunity to get into the sports industry and show everyone what I can do. I'm a hustler, looking to prove myself at any level. I know you're super busy, but I'd love to grab lunch or I can meet you at your office at your earliest convenience... lunch is on me.

3 share tweet・a year ago

COSTAS ANDRIOPOULOS

@candriopoulos · https://medium.com/strictly-curious

Hello Matt and thank you for taking our questions. Where do you look for emerging trends (e.g. sources, events, websites, etc.) and how do you pick ventures in nascent industries?

3 share tweet・a year ago

@mhiggins · Co-founder and CEO, RSE Ventures

@candriopoulos Great question. Honestly, I rely on people I trust who have better visibility than I do in specific sectors. For example, Gary Vaynerchuck. He's my partner in Vaynermedia, and is a force of nature. He has limitless opportunities to see everything early because he gives speeches all over the place, talks to millions of people on Twitter, Snapchat. So when he comes to me with a trend, I take notice. You don't have to have all the answers yourself - you just need to know where to go to get them. Also I try to keep an endlessly open mind. The idea from drone racing came from someone on our staff. I had no idea it might be a thing, or in some places, already was a thing, but I listened, and did my own research.

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Niv Dror

@nivo0o0 · Writer/Social Editor @ProductHunt

Hey @mhiggins thanks for joining us! Last summer I got to live stream from the @IntChampionsCup's account right from the field — one of the most memorable things I've ever done. Question: What do you see as the future of virtual reality and live sports? Watching a game on TV already has a lot of advantages over going to the game, and VR will only amplify that. Do you see "attending a game" in VR has something mainstream in the next few years? (I took the image on the left)

@mhiggins · Co-founder and CEO, RSE Ventures

@nivo0o0 @intchampionscup Glad you enjoyed the experience! We have an amazing lineup for this year's tournament as well. Hope you will join us. As for VR, I'm quite bullish on the opportunity in sports. I'm also biased, as an investor in NextVR. I think VR opens up an entirely new viewing experience that just can't be replicated otherwise. The ability to get insanely close to the action from the comfort of your own home. There's lots to be figured out in terms of the still clunky user experience, but it's just a matter of time. Great to see sports teams and leagues jump in early to experiment, which is unusual in my experience. It usually takes a long time for mature sports brands to get comfortable with tinkering in new areas of tech (see Snapchat).

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Andrew Ettinger

@andrewett · Product Marketing, Twitter (ex-PH)

Which company in your portfolio do you think everyone here will know about in 5-10 years?

@mhiggins · Co-founder and CEO, RSE Ventures

@andrewett Great question. Struggling not to offend any of my colleagues...but let's hope they are not paying attention right now...I'll say, the Drone Racing League. It has the makings of being its own sports, and I have undying belief in our founder...Runner up would be RESY. Love what we are doing to tap into the way in which dining has become a new category of experience. Please try it out.

Snah Desai

@s_haverford · Operations Analyst, ServiceTitan

how to do you assist founders in building and operating their companies? Do you offer advice, resources or access to talent?

@mhiggins · Co-founder and CEO, RSE Ventures

@s_haverford Depends on the circumstances, but in general, I try to supply something that they don't have and that they need. That obviously might be money, talent, an introduction, some strategic advice, or a shoulder to cry on in those dark hours. Every one making a go out of it needs a different assist. My goal with every founder I support is to identify where I can be most useful, and free up my time to make an impact. I also believe in reducing friction as much as possible. Many of our companies operate out of a big open floor plan, one large melting pot of ideas and frenetic energy. My office is a glass box that anyone can use, so that there are literally no barriers to interaction. Everything here is focused on progress. I find the right environment can shorten the time it takes to innovate - or the time it takes to acknowledge our mistakes and move on.

upvote share tweet・a year ago

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Niv Dror

@nivo0o0 · Writer/Social Editor @ProductHunt

Question about the International Champions Cup: How did that part of Relevant Sports come about? Was it the European teams who got together to set up all the summer friendlies through you guys, or I guess, can you talk about how you get all these big European teams to come play in the States every summer?

@mhiggins · Co-founder and CEO, RSE Ventures

@nivo0o0 A few years ago, we saw an opportunity to organize all these friendlies that were taking place around the world and create something that actually mattered. The summer window leading up to the start of the season created a window to build a global tournament. I recruited Charlie Stillitano and Jon Sheiman to launch Relevent Sports. Steve Ross came up with the idea to actually create the tournament concept, and we've spent the last four years building a worldwide team so we could go where the teams wanted to go - China, Australia, US, Europe. The matches are now broadcast to 170 countries. It's been a massive undertaking involving hundreds of people, but it's great to see it come together every summer. This year, we will be putting on some amazing matches, including Man United v. Man City at the Bird's Nest in Beijing.

5 Pixels Studio

@reno_web_design · 5pixels.com

Hello Matt, Do you foresee AI predicting accurate game results in the near future? Do football players invest into tech startups? Thank you.