HOW ATHLETES ARE TRANSFORMING THE CANNABIS INDUSTRY
Written by Tristen Ross | Content Creator, ATG | LinkedIn
Cannabis has been a back and forth conversation for years now. With mass criminalization and narratives that taught people that marijuana leads to addictions with hard drugs, we’re finally starting to see a shift in the attitude towards the natural plant; professional athletes being some of its biggest advocates.
Since 2013, 15 U.S. states have passed laws legalizing recreational marijuana, while Canada became one of the few countries to federally make recreational cannabis use legal on October 17th, 2018.
When it comes to professional sports however, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), National Basketball Association (NBA), National Football League (NFL), National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), Major League Soccer (MLS), Major League Baseball (MLB), and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) all ban the use of marijuana within their substance abuse policies. The National Hockey League (NHL) is the only professional sports league that does not include marijuana on its list of banned substances.
Now the belief of whether or not cannabis is actually a performance enhancing drug or not is still in the air. For many athletes, Cannabis is used for recovery and is a healthy alternative for painkillers such as opioids which can have serious long-term negative health effects and are extremely addictive.
There are a number of professional athletes that are making their way into the cannabis industry as either investors, founders, partners or ambassadors.
Al Harrington, 16-year NBA vet and an advisor for us here at ATG, is the founder of Viola, the first Black owned multinational cannabis brand that produces premium products. Al has a strong mission to create opportunities for marginalized communities by offering education, expungement and incubation programs to Black and people of color in the cannabis industry. Al is the first athlete to launch a multi-national Cannabis brand, by partnering with Avicanna. Viola Canada will be hitting Canadian stores in 2021.
Gabby Douglas, American gold medalist gymnast, has invested in and partnered with athletes to launch Motive CBD, an athlete centered company with products to help them train, perform, and recover from intense physical activity. Her partners include downhill skiing legend Bode Miller, former NFL star lineman Nick Mangold and champion bull rider Jess Lockwood, as well as fitness enthusiast and WWE/ESPN announcer Charly Arnolt.
Joe Montana, three-time Superbowl MVP, has invested money into California based cannabis company Caliva and was a part of the seed round for cannabis media company Herb back in 2017.
Mike Tyson, former heavyweight boxing champion, has been selling cannabis products since 2016 through his brand Tyson Holistic. He also plans to open Tyson Ranch, a 420 acre resort based in California where the public can enjoy a weed themed holiday and attend “Tyson University” for those who want to learn to grow their own marijuana.
Kevin Durant, NBA superstar, and his manager Rich Kleiman have also jumped in on the action. Their VC firm, Thirty Five Ventures, invested in a couple of cannabis companies including Dutchie, a cannabis software company that manages websites and online orders for more than 450 dispensaries throughout 18 U.S. states.
Rob Grownkowski, Superbowl champion and current tight end for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, has acquired an ownership stake in Abacus Health Products, inc. which produces CBD topical products under the brand CBDMedic. Ab
Megan Rapinoe, U.S. Women’s soccer player and 2019 FIFA Women’s World Player of the Year, has a foot in the cannabis industry as a brand ambassador for her sister’s CBD focused company Mendi. Her sister, Rachael Rapinoe, founder of Mendi, also played soccer for the under 23 U.S. national team.
KD and Kleiman’s VC firm also sit on the strategic advisory board for Canopy Rivers, a venture capital firm and business accelerator for products and services companies in the legal cannabis and technology industry.
In 2019, Canopy Growth Corporation purchased a majority stake in the Canadian sports nutrition company BioSteel Sports Nutrition and with this acquisition, it’s safe to say that the company is aiming to roll out CBD infused sports drinks in the near future.
Here’s where it gets interesting. Biosteel is The Official Sports Drink for the Toronto Raptors, Dallas Mavericks, Philadelphia 76ers and the Brooklyn Nets. With Kevin Durant currently playing for Brooklyn, it’s hard to know whether or not his involvement with Canopy had any influence on the partnership. Either way, with the growing acceptance of cannabis use in the sports world, it won’t hurt for KD to keep a close eye on an investment that has an opportunity to become the leader of CBD infused sports drinks.
Athletes are some of the most influential people in our society today and as more and more get involved in the growing cannabis industry, it’s confirmation that Athlete Entrepreneurs have the power to transform and amplify industries.