SBJ Power Up: Racket sport club management tool pulls in $54M

Keep your head on a swivel for a special Thursday edition of the SBJ Tech newsletter. We get a sports industry reaction to Ticketmaster’s hiring of a new global president, and also break down the new viewing features that Peacock rolled out for the NBA. — Ethan Joyce

In today’s edition of Power Up:

• CourtReserve raises $54M
• Hudl acquires movement software co.
• Lucra brings gaming tech to padel

Racket sport club management platform CourtReserve has secured a $54M investment from Mainsail Partners, an Austin, Texas-based growth equity firm that focuses on B2B software companies.

With the new capital, which represents the company’s first raise, CourtReserve will focus on scaling the use of its platform -- which is currently deployed by more than 2,000 racket/paddle sports facilities -- and enhancing artificial intelligence-powered features like member insights and predictive analytics.

CourtReserve, based in St. Augustine, Florida and founded in 2016, primarily serves the North American market but has clients in Europe and Asia-Pacific as well. Its capabilities include court, member, event and staff management, and monthly pricing ranges from $99 to $549 per club.

The company did not retain an investment banker to assist on the deal.

Hudl has added another startup to its burgeoning portfolio, acquiring New Zealand-founded Athletic Data Innovations, a software platform that adds a robust layer of movement analysis to existing tracking systems. This is the 18th acquisition for Hudl, the Nebraska-headquartered tech giant whose roots are in video analysis but have expanded to include multiple wearable devices, as well as tools for live streaming, coaching tactics and advanced analytics across a wide range of sports.

ADI’s founder, Andrew Gray, is a performance coach with deep experience working in rugby, and he will join Hudl’s team. His company takes raw data from GPS or LPS wearables and optical tracking systems and provides feedback on mechanical power and other load metrics beyond the standard datapoints of distance and speed. ADI’s IP will be incorporated into Hudl Signal, the firm’s athlete management system that launched last April.

Lucra, the peer-to-peer gaming platform backed by investors including SeventySix Capital and Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo, has a new partnership with padel court operator No Strings Inc. that will allow players to wager against one another in head-to-head matches and tournaments.

To facilitate the partnership, Lucra’s white-label software platform will be integrated into No Strings’ mobile ecosystem and in-venue kiosks/screens to allow players to bet each other cash, credits and sponsor-supplied prizes.

No Strings was founded in 2024 and remains in stealth, with plans to launch its first flagship site in Q3 of 2026.

Lucra’s current list of sports clients includes Dave & Buster’s, Five Iron Golf and Puttshack.

• NHL inks licensing agreement with Kalshi, Polymarket
• Hawks, JPMorgan Chase unveil fan reward program
• Goodell: We’ll be ready to negotiate labor deal when NFLPA is
• PGA Tour to begin 2026 at Sony Open, won’t play The Sentry
• NBA Europe heading to market over the next 8 weeks
• EA Sports, NFL extend and expand exclusive licensing deal for Madden franchise

• CNN: The battle for the future of the internet is underway
• Reuters: AI assistants make widespread errors about the news, new research shows
• Axios: Exclusive - Meta slashes jobs in its AI operations