Veteran executives Matt Grandis and Ross Meltzer to oversee commercial development for premium rights holders across sport, entertainment and media 

Washington, D.C., June 6, 2024 – Winners Alliance, an organization transforming athlete rights and commercialization in global sports, has partnered with Team Playmaker, a new sales, marketing and partnerships agency representing best-in-class rights holders across sport, entertainment, and media. Led by veteran executives Matt Grandis and Ross Meltzer, Team Playmaker will serve as an extension to rights holders, crafting strategic ideas and building impactful partnerships that connect brands, properties and fans to accelerate growth strategies and elevate athletes’ collective power.

Team Playmaker will serve as the official partnership development agency of Winners Alliance, bringing new commercial opportunities to Winners’ affiliate athlete collectives worldwide including the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA), Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA), EuroLeague Players Association (ELPA), and Michael Johnson’s new track & field venture. Team Playmaker will also work with additional rights holders, commercial brands and properties across sport, entertainment and media. 

“The creation of Team Playmaker represents an exciting opportunity to diversify our work and elevate our impact,” said Matt Grandis, Co-Managing Partner of Team Playmaker. “This venture, backed by the strength of Winners Alliance, allows us to be dynamic and innovative in our work to generate more meaningful, memorable, and measurable growth for our partners. We’re eager to help our longstanding partners meet their unique business objectives and we look forward to exploring new opportunities across sport, entertainment, media, lifestyle and culture.” 

“Teaming up with Winners Alliance was an obvious choice given our shared focus on athletes’ best interests, imaginative thinking, and impact,” said Ross Meltzer, Co-Managing Partner of Team Playmaker. “We’re excited to drive results for Winners Alliance’s diverse and inspiring athletes as well as a myriad of other best-in-class partners. There is tremendous potential for sport and entertainment to catalyze business growth, brand building, and internal impact, and we will be wholly focused on harnessing and unlocking that potential for our partners.”

Team Playmaker will provide end-to-end sales and marketing solutions across various functions including research and analysis, strategy and ideation, go-to market narrative, asset creation, business intelligence, digital strategy, partnership sales execution and revenue generation. The agency will work with partners to create and unlock new commercial opportunities around partnerships, sponsorships, athlete marketing, content, naming rights, jersey patch sales, events, activations, licensing, and more.   

“Winners Alliance is proud to partner with Team Playmaker and we recognize this as a milestone in our commitment to maximizing athletes’ collective power,” said Eric Winston, President of Winners Alliance. “We’re confident that Team Playmaker will create innovative and impactful opportunities for our athletes at scale, and will set the standard for effective marketing strategy and revenue generation for the sports and entertainment industry as a whole. Ross and Matt have unparalleled track records and we’re excited to work alongside them to transform commercialization in global sports.” 

Grandis and Meltzer boast more than 50 combined years of sales and marketing experience. Prior to launching Team Playmaker, the Co-Managing Partners led commercial efforts at CSM Sport & Entertainment where Grandis served as Chief Commercial Officer and Meltzer served as President of Properties and Chief Business Officer. Throughout their careers, Grandis and Meltzer have overseen commercial activities and sales and marketing strategy for a variety of premium brands, properties and rights holders across Formula 1, NFL, MLB, global football, domestic soccer, tennis, rugby, college sports, mass participation/running, media, and entertainment. 

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About Winners Alliance

Winners Alliance is a global, athlete-centric commercial solution focused on optimizing, protecting, and maximizing athletes’ collective value through the creation of novel group licensing, partnership, sponsorship, content, event and investment opportunities. Launched in August 2022, Winners Alliance serves as the for-profit affiliate of the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA), Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA), and EuroLeague Players Association (ELPA), representing the group commercial rights of hundreds of athletes worldwide and creating scalable commercial opportunities that are impactful for athletes and partners alike. To learn more, visit www.winnersalliance.com and follow @WinnersAlliance on LinkedIn, Instagram and X.  

About Team Playmaker

Team Playmaker is a global sales, marketing and partnerships agency representing best-in-class rights holders across sport, entertainment, and media to accelerate growth strategies. Team Playmaker serves as an extension to rightsholder teams, crafting strategic ideas and building impactful partnerships that connect brands, properties and fans. Learn more at www.teamplaymaker.com. 

Media Contacts

[email protected] 

ELPA and Winners Alliance form exclusive partnership to unlock commercial opportunities for players in Europe’s top basketball league

Frankfurt/Washington, D.C., May 20, 2024 – The EuroLeague Players Association (ELPA) and Winners Alliance, an organization transforming athlete rights and commercialization in global sports, today announced an exclusive commercial partnership to optimize the commercial rights of the more than 300 professional basketball players competing in EuroLeague. This partnership represents a historic first in collective commercial rights management for EuroLeague players. 

Among its initial priorities, Winners Alliance will advise ELPA leadership on organizing and aggregating players’ group commercial rights. Additionally, Winners Alliance will consult with ELPA on its collective bargaining efforts and strategies to prevent unauthorized use of players’ names, images and likenesses. 

“The team at Winners Alliance has unmatched experience in understanding and maximizing the value of athlete rights on a global scale,” said Boštjan Nachbar, ELPA Managing Director. “They have a proven track-record from working with the most prestigious player associations in the world. With their expertise, we are eager to explore and create new, meaningful and comprehensive opportunities for our players. This is a crucial step for ELPA in safeguarding and expanding IP rights and opportunities of our members. Our cooperation will help players become more visible and will ultimately benefit the growth and potential of EuroLeague and basketball in general.”

“This partnership between Winners Alliance and ELPA is truly groundbreaking,” said Eric Winston, President of Winners Alliance. “It comes from our shared goal of empowering athletes and looking out for their best interests by maximizing their value throughout their careers and beyond. Our collaboration with ELPA is all about tapping into opportunities available to their players and changing the game for how athlete rights are handled globally. Winners Alliance remains committed to unlocking athlete potential and pioneering innovative initiatives across global sports, and EuroLeague players in particular have tremendous potential to capitalize on their commercial rights. We are excited to explore these opportunities together with ELPA.”

Winners Alliance recently spearheaded the first group licensing program in professional tennis through its partnership with the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA), led by Novak Djokovic and Vasek Pospisil, and has since partnered with premium brands like Fanatics Collectibles, Hilton, Priority Pass and TUMI, directly contributing to players’ off-court financial upside and visibility. Earlier this year, Winners Alliance partnered with the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA), taking a previously-fragmented group rights structure and transforming it into a first-of-its-kind opportunity to work with 500+ men’s and women’s cricketers worldwide. The company also announced its alliance with legendary sprinter Michael Johnson to build a new and improved track & field model dedicated to empowering runners, protecting their rights and creating novel opportunities. 

ELPA was founded in 2018 out of necessity among professional basketball players to protect and provide stability to their working conditions and benefits. 

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About ELPA

EuroLeague Players’ Association represents the players’ unified voice in regards to EuroLeague Basketball and assists their members in achieving their goals, on and off the court. Through collective bargaining with EuroLeague Basketball and the EuroLeague clubs, ELPA seeks to achieve a higher level of protection of players’ individual and collective rights and to improve the working conditions, economic benefits, and job security of all its members.

In collaboration with specialists in various sports fields, ELPA provides support for players’ physical and mental well-being. ELPA also engages in organisational, financial, educational, and marketing activities which advance the economic stability and security of its members. To learn more, visit www.elpa.basketball and follow @ELPA on LinkedIn, Instagram and X.  

About Winners Alliance

Winners Alliance is a global, athlete-centric commercial solution focused on optimizing, protecting, and maximizing athletes’ collective value through the creation of novel group licensing, partnership, sponsorship, content, event and investment opportunities. Launched in August 2022, Winners Alliance serves as the for-profit affiliate of the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA) and Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA), representing the group commercial rights of hundreds of athletes worldwide and creating scalable commercial opportunities that are impactful for athletes and partners alike. To learn more, visit www.winnersalliance.com and follow @WinnersAlliance on LinkedIn, Instagram and X.  

Media Contacts

For Winners Alliance: [email protected] 

For ELPA: [email protected]