Premier League stars Milner and Lallana invest in UpGame
UpGame has seen a 30X growth in monthly revenues since January this year; Several professionals, national federations and college teams have subscribed to the service
(Left) James Milner - Vice-Captain, Liverpool FC
(Right) Adam Lallana - Former Midfielder, Liverpool FC
Oct 12: Two of Liverpool Football Club’s finest – current vice-captain James Milner and former midfielder Adam Lallana – are trying to make sure that no golfer will ever walk alone.
The two stars, as part of their White Rose Sports Management group, have invested in UpGame, a game improvement system that generates and uses a variety of critical stats through which a player is able to track his/her performance on the golf course, in practice, and connect with their coaches more meaningfully.
Milner and Lallana, part of Jurgen Klopp’s team that won the Premier League title in 2019/20, are not just keen golfers but also players who have immense respect and understanding of how stats can become a game-changer. Liverpool FC is known for its judicious use of stats, and the club is owned by Fenway Sports Group, also the owners of Boston Red Sox that was part of the incredible Moneyball story.
UpGame is fast becoming a rage among golfers – elite and casual – with a desire to get better at what they do. In August, the Gurgaon-headquartered company scored three wins in the space of two weeks on the two biggest Tours in the world. Australian Lucas Herbert and compatriot Cam Davis won the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open and the Rocket Mortgage Classic on the European and the PGA Tour respectively. A week later, Min Woo Lee triumphed at the Scottish Open.
The easy-to-use app helps golfers analyse their game and understand their strengths and weaknesses. Its map-based interface and unique metrics, that are shareable between player and coach via the app itself, have led to a 790% increase in data collection by its users.
The app has seen a 30X growth in its monthly revenues since January this year, retaining a little more than 85% of its users as it expands across geographies.
As of now, some of the National Federations that have reposed their faith in UpGame include Golf Australia, Norwegian Golf Federation, Singapore Golf Association, Hong Kong Golf Association, Sports Authority of Thailand, Finland and several European national teams signing up this year. A few leading professionals using UpGame include Charl Schwartzel, Tommy Fleetwood, Matt Wallace, Lucas Herbert, Min Woo Lee and Cam Smith. A large number of college teams in the United States, including some in the top tier of competitions, have also signed up.
White Rose Sports Management was founded by Milner, a serious golfer who plays to a handicap of 7.4. It has recently signed up with the promising England star Ben Schmidt and the red-hot American Johannes Veerman, who recently won the Czech Masters on the European Tour. The company’s approach is rooted in performance, attitude and application, with a belief that all talented athletes can achieve and maintain success with the right mindset and performance-focused management team.
Milner, part of three Premier League-winning teams, said: “The use of data and analytics have become hugely important in nearly all sports. The staff and players at White Rose all appreciate the importance analytics provide in improving and contributing to the performance of individuals and teams”.
“From the moment we conceptualised White Rose Sports Management, we wanted performance to be at the heart of everything we did. And this aspect was very apparent in the UpGame team in our initial interactions. We love their vision of bringing performance improvement to every athlete in the world, the team’s intense focus on making the app better and their deep insights on their users. We are delighted to be a part of their journey.”
Sameer Sawhney, founder and CEO of UpGame, commented: “Last year proved to be critical for UpGame. Our entire team was able to double down our focus on the product and in spite of the challenges of travel, we have become the product of choice in every continent. For example, with college season kicking in the US, we cannot sign up teams fast enough!
“This, 2021, has been a brilliant year for us. Our subscription numbers have grown at an incremental rate, and the quality of feedback has been flattering.
“We are excited to replicate our success in golf to other sports and be at the center of learning and performance improvement in the growing sports technology space”.
Other investors in UpGame include San Francisco-based Danny Conway, Dr. Pawan Munjal and RN Sports Management. Conway was a key member of the early-stage growth team at Facebook, followed by an EIR stint at Andreessen Horowitz. Dr Munjal, is Chairman, CEO and MD of Hero MotoCorp.