SXSW Startups: FC Football League
The Forrest Four-Cast: February 16, 2019
Fifty diverse startups will aim to impress a panel of judges and a live audience with their skills, creativity and innovation at SXSW Pitch Presented by Cyndx. Winners in 10 categories will be announced at the Pitch Award Ceremony at 6:30 pm Sunday, March 10, at the Hilton Austin.
A finalist in Sports and Performance Data, which will pitch at 12:30 pm Sunday, March 10, Fan Controlled Football League is reimagining sports for the digital age: taking the passion of live sport, the competition of fantasy sports, the engagement of video games, and the global reach of esports and combining them into a fan-controlled, live sport, streamed on Twitch and built for the next generation of fan.
Patrick Dees, co-founder and chief gaming officer of the Los Angeles-based company, answered some questions about their plans.
What is your competitive advantage?
Not to throw shade on any of the other football leagues or start-ups out there, but none of them are what we are or have what we have. There’s nobody else out there engaging fans the way we are, letting them lean in to the sport and really make this experience their own.
What are your goals for FCFL in 2019?
Oh, you mean aside from world domination? But really, we want to create a year-long experience to fully engage our fans. Their decision-making abilities are going to be just as important in the off-season as they are on game days.
Congratulations on securing Marshawn Lynch and Richard Sherman as the first two FCFL Team Owners and Fan Captains. What will their responsibilities look like?
Thank you! Marshawn and Richard, along with Prince Royce who was recently announced as the third Team Owner and Fan Captain, are here to help their fans shape their team identities, influence roster moves, and, of course, call the right plays on game day. That, and we expect a LOT of trash talking out of them with the other five teams.
A central idea for FCFL is that the players do not play for their hometown fans, but for their global fans. How do you predict this will influence social dynamics between different fan bases?
I think we’re going to see a lot of fans connecting with people they never would have before and really see them feel empowered. They’re going to be standing a little taller as their FanIQ rises, and it will come across in their interactions with other teams’ fan bases. I’m personally keeping my fingers crossed for trash-talking in every language out there.
Has FCFL been involved with other pitch events and/or tech conference before?
I feel like my fellow co-founders and I have been on a whirlwind world tour speaking at pitch events and conferences — at any given time, it felt like at least one of us os on the road. We’ve been super successful at pitch events ranging from LEADERS, Sports Tank and SiS Paris to Digital LA, DataCon and World Tokenomic Forum. Mostly what we’ve learned is there’s a lot of excitement in the business community for what we’re doing — folks are pumped for this lean forward sports experience.
What do you enjoy most and least about the startup experience?
Literally enjoying all of it. The thrill of coming up with an idea that you believe is going to change the world; the pressure you’re under to pull together the necessary funding to make your dream come true; the hustle you have to have in order to meet and greet every person that can help you along the way; that “a-ha” moment you feel when you realize you’ve got the best team put together. It’s a wild ride, but definitely worth going through.
Name three people, in any field, alive or dead, you’d like to meet and tell us why.
Kobe Bryant: Kobe’s level of focus and desire to win is unparalleled, even in professional sports. I’m manically competitive. He’s polarizing to be sure, but there is zero doubt that after some exposure to Kobe my drive would only be intensified.
Kurt Cobain: Kurt was a tortured genius who was the reluctant voice of a generation. His music still resonates profoundly with me personally and most of my generation. I’d like to give him a hug. Tell him it’s okay.
Ender Wiggin: “I think it’s impossible to really understand somebody, what they want, what they believe, and not love them the way they love themselves.”
What has the startup experience taught you about life?
Sacrifice is inevitable to achieve your goals, it’s just a matter of making sure you’re sacrificing the right moments in life.
What’s one piece of advice you wish you’d had that you’d give to others wanting to join the startup journey?
It is going to be tough as hell and your mental, physical and emotional health will be tested in the process, but if you really believe in your vision, it is 100% worth it.
Look for more interviews with other SXSW Pitch finalists in this space between now and March.
Click here to see all 50 finalists for SXSW Pitch 2019, along with the links to their interviews on Medium.
Also, if you are an entrepreneur, check out all the cool panels and presentations in the Entrepreneurship and Startups Track, which runs March 8–12 at SXSW.
Hugh Forrest serves as Chief Programming Officer at SXSW, the world’s most unique gathering of creative professionals. He also tries to write at least four paragraphs per day on Medium. These posts often cover tech-related trends; other times they focus on books, pop culture, sports and other current events.
