Chris Gayle, Joe Root, Kagiso Rabada, Andre Russell, Ben Stokes, Kane Williamson Among Star Cricketers to Appear in the First Large-Scale, Officially Licensed Mobile Cricket Game

Pune, India; Adelaide, Australia; Washington D.C., Aug. 26, 2024 – The World Cricketers’ Association (WCA) through its commercial affiliate, Winners Alliance, today announced a partnership with Jetsynthesys-owned Nautilus Mobile to create the first large-scale, officially licensed mobile simulation game in professional cricket history. Through this groundbreaking partnership, Real Cricket™, the most popular mobile cricket simulation game in the world, will feature the names, images, and likenesses of more than 250 professional cricketers, as granted by Winners Alliance. 

Real Cricket™ players will be able to compete as their favorite cricketers, including England’s Jofra Archer, Jos Buttler, Joe Root and Ben Stokes; New Zealand’s Kane Williamson; South Africa’s Quinton de Kock and Kagiso Rabada; and the West Indies’ Chris Gayle, Nicholas Pooran and Andre Russell; along with hundreds of other cricketing stars. By granting their rights through Winners Alliance, cricketers will benefit from incremental off-the-field revenues and increased visibility among Real Cricket’s™ hundreds of millions of global users.

“We  take immense pride in establishing that Real Cricket is the world’s most popular mobile cricket simulation game,” said Anuj Mankar, Director & CEO of Nautilus Mobile. “We are always looking for new ways to enhance the gaming experience for our ultra passionate users. By adding the likenesses of these global real cricket stars via the WCA and Winners Alliance, we’re bringing a level of authenticity and excitement that can’t be found anywhere else, making Real Cricket an unrivaled experience for cricket fans and gamers worldwide. As per our age old slogan and the team’s belief, it truly is ‘Time to get Real.’”

“This is an incredible opportunity for us cricketers and breaks new ground in our sport,” said Mitchell Starc, Australian cricketer. “It’s amazing to see the WCA looking out for us and helping us unlock these unique possibilities by collectivizing our commercial rights through our new partners at Winners Alliance. We’ve seen how athletes in other sports have benefited from similar initiatives, and we’re excited to see how Real Cricket and future partnerships will drive value for athletes and elevate cricket as a whole.” 

Since launching the franchise in 2014, Nautilus Mobile has released various Real Cricket™ titles, amassing over 350 million downloads globally and attracting more than one million daily active users on both iOS and Android devices. Users can compete in a variety of game modes and competition formats including quick matches, international and domestic tournaments, 1v1 multiplayer, play with friends multiplayer, and more. 

“We are thrilled to work with Nautilus Mobile to bring this groundbreaking, officially licensed opportunity to cricketers affiliated to WCA, increasing their off-field earning potential, visibility, and fan engagement,” said Tom Moffat, Chief Executive, WCA. “By leveraging their collective global rights, this is the first time in professional cricket history that hundreds of players worldwide can participate in a collaboration like this. This partnership is a great example of the innovative, player-centric initiatives we aim to pioneer with our partners at Winners Alliance, and also driving new value into the cricket ecosystem.” 

“As the first large-scale group licensing deal in international cricket history, this partnership is a monumental step for the WCA and its athletes,” said Eric Winston, President, Winners Alliance. “Aligning with a best-in-class company like Nautilus Mobile underscores our commitment to generating athlete-centric partnerships that will drive meaningful value to cricketers at scale.”

In January of 2024, Winners Alliance and the WCA forged an exclusive, long-term partnership to protect and optimize the global commercial rights of cricketers, emulating the successful model of players associations in other sports. Among its earliest priorities, Winners Alliance is building a sustainable group licensing program encompassing video games, trading cards, collectibles, and various related categories, maximizing off-field revenue potential for cricketers and directly funding the WCA’s advocacy efforts. 

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About Nautilus Mobile

Founded in 2013, Nautilus Mobile is a leading game developer having built the world’s most popular cricket simulation franchise on mobile. Nautilus Mobile is owned by Pune based Jetsynthesys and backed by Krafton. Annual additions have been made to the product line starting from Real Cricket™ 14 till Real Cricket™ 24 making it one of the most preferred brands for cricket lovers.In the last 10 years they have nurtured and built a strong franchise,whose line of cricket games are the leaders of its genre, making it the most loved and profitable cricket games on mobile.

About the World Cricketers’ Association

The World Cricketers’ Association (WCA) is the global players body in cricket. WCA collectively represents the players across the majority of top cricket playing countries at global level through their domestic players’ associations, and with over 600 international players participating in its global commercial program. WCA cares about:

• Players – Advocating for, supporting, and providing world class services to players at global level
• Players’ Associations – Enabling and empowering players’ associations around the world
• The Game – Positively influencing the direction of the global game
• Optimising Commercial Value – For players and powering the player movement

To learn more, visit www.theworldca.com.

About Winners Alliance

Winners Alliance is a global, athlete-centric commercial solution dedicated to creating novel group licensing, sponsorship, partnership, content, investment and event opportunities for world-class athletes collectively. Launched in August 2022, Winners Alliance serves as the for-profit affiliate of the Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA), World Cricketers’ Association (WCA), EuroLeague Players Association (ELPA), and Grand Slam Track, representing the group commercial rights of hundreds of athletes worldwide. Among its pioneering initiatives, Winners Alliance aims to establish a sustainable group licensing program encompassing video games, trading cards, collectibles, and related opportunities. To learn more, visit www.winnersalliance.com and follow @WinnersAlliance on LinkedIn, Instagram and X.

Media Contacts

Nautilus Mobile: support@nautilusmobile.com 

World Cricketers’ Association: media@thewca.com 

Winners Alliance: david.cooper@winnersalliance.com

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

david.cooper@winnersalliance.com 

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: david.cooper@winnersalliance.com 

For ELPA: s.sylla@elpa.basketball