Back for 2026, our Sports & Entertainment Startups to Follow report highlights the technologies and companies setting the pace for the industry’s next chapter.

SPORTS TECH STARTUPS TO FOLLOW IN 2026

Here we are after four years on from the first edition. What started as an attempt to bring clarity to a fast-moving ecosystem has, year after year, become a way to step back and take stock of how the sports industry is evolving.

Each edition reflects a different moment in that journey: shifting priorities for rights holders, maturing technologies, and evolving expectations from fans.

More than a list of companies, this guide is built around observing how innovation actually shows up in practice, how ideas move from pitch decks to pilots, from experimentation to real operational use, and how collaboration between technologies, sports IPs and other commercial stakeholders increasingly showcases progress across the industry.

SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT STARTUPS TO FOLLOW IN 2026

DOWNLOAD OUR STARTUPS REPORT 2026

The 2026 edition features 40 sports tech startups identified through our work, network, and annual applications, each addressing concrete challenges across the sports value chain.

Structured around off-the-pitch and on-the-pitch categories, the selection reflects how technology today rarely fits neatly into a single box, with solutions increasingly spanning commercial, operational, and performance contexts. Some of these companies are at an early stage, others are scaling, and several are already working closely with leading organisations. Together, they offer an overview of an ecosystem that is becoming more focused, more interconnected, and more intentional about where technology creates value.

We hope it acts as a starting point for discovery, dialogue, and connection, offering one clear lens on where the ecosystem stands right now, and where it may be heading next.