🚀 Upside Weekly Recap: Introducing Upside's New Smart AI introductions, SKUs Added to Database, Top Weekly Product Reviews: Metabolic Elite, Aris Training, CURREX.

As a reminder, in July 2025 we announced our new AI based product comparison tool (Interactive tables, Upside AI Assistant) which is part of our Upside Tech scouting platform which is being trusted by 100+ teams (NBA, NFL, MLS, MLB, NHL, WNBA, Premier League, NCAA, national rugby teams, Top 14, Calcio, laliga, pro tennis..).

At Upside, we’ve built one of the most comprehensive performance technology databases in sports and tech with the top 500 products and companies in performance tech. From GPS tracking and recovery systems to strength training solutions and biometric monitoring tools, our platform covers the products shaping athlete performance today.

But technology in sports moves fast—new SKUs, product launches, and price changes are happening constantly. That’s why our team updates the database every single week, so that teams, practitioners, and decision-makers always have access to the most accurate and up-to-date information.

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🚀 New AI Features Live This Week on Upside AI Assistant: Goal Setting, Smart AI Introductions

We’re excited to announce two powerful enhancements designed to make it easier than ever for teams to discover the right solutions, vendors, and experts.

✨ Goal Discovery (New)
Our upgraded AI assistant now helps teams clarify their needs step by step—making it simple to identify priorities, align objectives, and find the best path forward.

A practitioner can now ask our AI assistant “My goal is to reduce injuries, which modalities do you recommend?”. Our AI assistant will then recommends in 2 seconds the type of modalities and vendors to use to reduce injuries.

🤝 Smart AI Introductions (New)
No more friction when connecting with vendors. Our automated AI email assistant now facilitates seamless introductions between teams and vendors, saving time and ensuring you get to the right conversations faster.

Here is below a quick demo of those 2 new AI features:

With these new features, the Upside AI Assistant isn’t just answering questions—it’s actively guiding and connecting teams to accelerate success.

📘 New Products Added this Week to the Upside Product & Company Database

This week we added the following new specs/pricing changes, and new SKUs and products below to our database of the top 500 performance tech products and companies.

Source: Upside Product/company Database, Confidential, September 2025

⭐ Top Product Reviews by Practitioners This Week

One of the most valuable parts of the Upside platform is the perspective from those on the ground—the practitioners who test, implement, and refine these technologies with athletes every day. This week, we’re featuring a new set of practitioner-led reviews that offer a behind-the-scenes look at how products perform in real environments:

Picture: Upside Global, confidential, September 2025

Here is a summary of the three reviews shown in the image above:

Metabolic Elite

Rating: 4.7/5
Quote: “As a practicing orthopedic surgeon with 40 years of experience, I’ve observed that BPC-157 consistently demonstrates positive effects on tissue healing, particularly for tendons, ligaments, muscles, and bones. It appears to accelerate recovery times and improve functional outcomes after injuries.” – Dr Ting, an expert surgeon in orthopaedic sports medicine.

Summary: The reviewer, Dr Ting, highlights Elite BPC-157 as a “remarkable innovation” in musculoskeletal injury treatment and recovery. They emphasize its consistent effectiveness in tissue healing and its ability to accelerate recovery and improve outcomes after injuries.

Picture: Elite BPC-157 LPT

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Aris Training

Rating: 4.7/5
Quote: “The Aris Pro is a gamechanger. By using the Aris Pro, my athletes love the feeling of the smart resistance and the results they are achieving: speed, quickness, vertical leap, agility, and 4th quarter stamina.” – Gil Thomas, Head Coach, Basketball

Summary: The reviewer, basketball coach Gil Thomas, describes Aris Pro as a “gamechanger” in sports performance training. He praises its smart resistance system, noting that it enhances speed, agility, vertical leap, and stamina, while athletes enjoy the training experience and results.

Picture: Aris Pro

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CURREX

Rating: 4.2/5
Quote: “The CURREx insoles are very light and customizable. They also help prevent injuries. The customer support team is great and very responsive. I highly recommend CURREx insoles to any teams looking to use high performance insoles to help reduce injuries.” – First team physical therapist, Soccer

Summary: The reviewer, a soccer team physical therapist, values CURREx insoles for their lightweight, customizable design and injury-prevention benefits. They also commend the responsive customer support and recommend the product to teams seeking high-performance insoles for injury reduction.

Picture: CURREx insoles

These reviews go beyond specs and marketing—they capture how technology is actually being used, what works best, and where there’s room for improvement. By bringing practitioner voices directly into the scouting process, Upside makes it easier for teams and organizations to make informed, evidence-based decisions.

Join Today

All these features—the product comparison tool, Upside AI assistant, are available through flexible membership options, including monthly and annual plans. The practitioner community and product review sections are free for all practitioners. So if you are a practitioner who wants to join our online community of practitioners please contact us at julien@upsideglobal.co and we will create your online exec profile.

Interested in learning more? Contact us today to see a live demo, get pricing information and subscribe to our new Tech scouting platform. You contact us at julien@upsideglobal.co or click on the button below.

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🔍 Recent M&A Deals Of The Week

1.Patriots sells 8% minority stake to Dean Metropoulos & Sixth Street

Owner Robert Kraft has agreed to sell an 8% minority stake in the New England Patriots — 5% to Dean Metropoulos, 3% to private equity firm Sixth Street — valuing the franchise at about $9 billion. The Kraft family retains control. (Source: Reuters)

Upside Take: Another signal that major sports franchises are being treated more like institutional investment assets. With new policies allowing outside capital, teams are leveraging minority sales for liquidity while preserving control. The steep valuations also reflect premium on media rights, real estate, and brand value.

2.Monza (Italian Football Club) sold to Beckett Layne Ventures

Serie B club Monza has been purchased by U.S.-based sports / media investment firm Beckett Layne Ventures (BLV), acquiring an 80% stake. The remaining 20% is still held by the Berlusconi family’s Fininvest, which will transfer that by next year. The purchase price was roughly €30 million ($35 million). (Source: AP News)

Upside Take: Smaller clubs in Europe are attracting overseas investment, particularly from the U.S. This allows capital infusion to sustain operations and aim for competitive growth. For investors, the upside lies in promotion, media rights, player trading, and branding — often undervalued in second-tier clubs.

3.KL Rahul acquires 10% stake in Goa Guardians (Prime Volleyball League, India)

Indian cricketer KL Rahul has taken a 10% ownership stake in the Goa Guardians, a franchise in India’s Prime Volleyball League. The implied valuation of the franchise is between ₹50–70 crore (~USD $6-9 million). (Source: The Economic Times

Upside Take: Athletes investing in other sports is a growing trend, especially in India, where franchise leagues (beyond cricket) are expanding fast. Such cross-sport investment helps with cross-promotion, diversifying income, and deepening one’s brand beyond primary sport.

4.PrizePicks sells majority stake to Allwyn

Fantasy sports platform PrizePicks has agreed to sell a 62.3% majority stake to lottery operator Allwyn International for $1.6 billion, valuing the company at ~$2.5 billion. (Source: WSJ) The Wall Street Journal

Upside Take: This deal underscores the continuing convergence between fantasy platforms, betting, and prediction markets. Companies once operating in “skill‐based games” are increasingly seen as strategic assets in the broader wagering and engagement ecosystem.

5.Apollo in talks to buy majority of Atlético Madrid
Apollo Global Management is in advanced negotiations to acquire a controlling stake in Spanish club Atlético Madrid, marking its first major team ownership effort. (Source: Financial Times)

Upside Take: As private equity firms deepen their sports exposure, we could see more investment vehicles targeting teams, leagues, and sports franchises — vertically integrating capital, media rights, and on‐field performance.

6.Epic Padel raises $10M seed
Virginia-based padel operator & platform Epic Padel raised $10 million in seed funding to expand U.S. operations and build infrastructure across the padel ecosystem (courts, tech, clubs). (Source: Tech Funding News)

Upside Take: Racquet & club sports are getting fresh capital again, signaling belief in ancillary revenue models (real estate, memberships, events) when paired with tech and brand growth.

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⌚ New Product / Initiative Announcements this Week

• Ankored launches a safety & compliance tool for youth sports. (Source: Yahoo Finance)

• Tom Brady joins wellness company Aescape, bringing his longevity protocols to massage robots (Source: CNBC)

• ESPN opens the door to equity deals with sports leagues (beyond traditional contracts). (Source: Axios)

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⭐ Major Coaching / Practitioner Moves

1. Darren Burgess → Juventus (Director of Performance)
   Juventus have appointed Australian Darren Burgess as their new Director of Performance. (Source: SportItalia.it)

   • He will work across all technical areas and age groups in the club, collaborating with staff like Damien Comolli, Giorgio Chiellini, François Modesto, and Igor Tudor.

   • Burgess brings over 25 years of high-performance experience, with past roles including work at Liverpool, Arsenal, in the NFL, NBA, and most recently with the Adelaide Crows (AFL). He’s known for expertise in injury prevention, nutrition, rehabilitation, psychology, and athlete well-being.

2. USA Women’s National Basketball Team → Kara Lawson
   Kara Lawson (from Duke) has been appointed head coach of the U.S. Women’s National Team. (Source: usab.com)

3. New York Liberty → Coaching Change
   The Liberty have parted ways with head coach Sandy Brondello in what the management described as “proactive”. (Source: CBS Sports)

4. Mumbai Indians (Women’s Premier League, Cricket)
   Lisa Keightley has been appointed as the head coach of their women’s team. (Source: The Times of India)

5. Los Angeles Lakers
   Contract extension for head coach JJ Redick. (Source: Reuters)

6. Aston Villa
   They’ve appointed Roberto Olabe as their new President of Football Operations, replacing Monchi. He’ll oversee recruitment, operations, etc. Not exactly medical/performance, but a senior technical appointment. (Source: The Times)

7. Philadelphia 76ers
   Mike Longabardi (formerly head coach of their G-League affiliate Delaware Blue Coats) is being promoted to an assistant coach in the NBA. Again, more coaching than medical/performance support. (Source: Liberty Ballers)

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