
Technology
How adult sports leagues took over your city
Adult social sports leagues are a big deal, and one entrepreneur wants to make them even bigger.

Three years ago, Joe Dzienius developed an addiction to kickball.
A former marathon runner, he picked it up from his buddy, evolving from someone who hadn’t even known the sport existed to someone who practiced new kicking techniques to someone who now plays four nights a week.
Dzienius, who lives in Hicksville, New York, on Long Island, can recite his stats: a win percentage of 65% (the same as Michael Jordan’s), a points differential of 270 (elite), and the No. 4 spot on a Long Island league’s 2024 leaderboard. In January, he traveled to Arizona to compete against the big dogs, and his team, Quit Your Pitchin,’ made it to the playoffs.
By his own admission, 35-year old Dzienius is super competitive. A server by day, Dzienius has poured hundreds of hours — and thousands of dollars in fees for four separate leagues — into the game by night. This year, he plans to break the 500-game mark.
“Kickball after work is something I can always look forward to. I don’t have to think about it — I just put on my cleats and I show up. It’s how I keep in touch with my friends, it’s how I decompress, and it just feels so good to be out there,” Dzienius says.
Welcome to the wild world of adult social sports.
Some participants, like Dzienius, just can’t get enough. Others are more interested in the game of flip-cup that might happen afterwards. And still some others aren’t there for the love of the game, but rather to find love itself.
Behind all of them lies a multi-million dollar industry.
It’s an industry that rarely gets the spotlight but one that quietly shapes the social fabric of our favorite cities — and could soon be dominated by one private equity-backed big fish.
The anatomy of an industry
The opportunity for any 20-something or 30-something to play kickball, much less play as frequently as Dzienius, stems from a major shift in the late 1990s.
Back then, recreational sports leagues, run by local counties or municipalities for decades, suddenly privatized. The growth of the internet, which led to the emergence of a variety of tech-enabled registration platforms, allowed league organizers to better unify the experience of playing a sport with going out to a sponsor bar afterwards.
Olivia Heller/The Hustle
Entrepreneurs sensed an opportunity. They realized that they could improve the product of social sports and decided to shoot their shot.
Tim Horan was one of them.
In 2001, he took over as CEO of Heyday Athletic, a Philadelphia league that has since grown from fewer than 5k members to over 60k. He told me that one way entrepreneurs remade once-public sports leagues into profitable entities was advertising. Leagues like Heyday built relationships with brands like Coors Light so that they could reach the 21-to-40 year-olds playing in the leagues.
“Back in the day there was no such thing as Facebook ads. And so our leagues were quite a valuable marketing channel for these brands,” Horan says.
The combination of advertising plus an influx of millennials (the largest generation of young people since the Baby Boomers) who’d pay anywhere from $60-$200 for a season created a cottage industry.
And in 2010, the Sport & Social Industry Association (SSIA) was born. (Yes, there’s a whole association dedicated to this type of business.)
Earlier this year, they held their 15th annual conference in Las Vegas, with seminar topics like weather forecasting and refereeing. One of their guest speakers admitted, “they might be the most fun group of people ever.”
Kickball in New York City’s Tompkins Square Park. (Bill Tompkins/Getty Images)
Today, the SSIA has more than 80 member companies that run and organize sports leagues. Industry-wide, it’s estimated that:
- 60-70 companies bring in over $500k per year
- 20 bring in more than $2M
- Five make more than $5M
Heyday grew from $1M in revenue in 2004 to around $4.5M today. It makes 75–80% of its revenue from participation fees, with the rest coming from sponsorships.
The biggest expenses for Heyday, as with most leagues, are t-shirts provided to participants and facility rentals. Horan estimates that Heyday spends approximately $150k on the ~70k t-shirts they produce annually.
The league pays around $750k annually to rent the fields and gyms that host the games. It rents from school districts and municipalities, picking late start times to avoid what Horan calls the “cardinal sin” of adult social sports: taking away ballfield time from kids.
The Chicago special
According to Horan “the organizations that control the field and gyms control the market.”
And nowhere is this more apparent than in Chicago, a ~$10M market for adult social sports dominated by two main competitors, Chicago Sport & Social Club and Players Sport & Social Group. They abide by an almost invisible agreement.
“If you go to Montrose Beach [a public beach on Lake Michigan], you’ll see that Chicago Sport & Social Club will have their players’ beach volleyball games spread out over hundreds of yards and then suddenly, there’s this line in the sand and the rest of the space is occupied by Players Sport & Social Group,” Horan says.
Olivia Heller/The Hustle
These leagues feature nearly two dozen different sports, from kickball to euchre. Chris Hastings, founder of Chicago Sport & Social Club, has seen over 15% growth in each of the sports they offer over the last 5 years, with pickleball growing especially fast (25% YoY).
“The only sport we’ve seen a decline in is flag football, having been hit hard by the narrative around concussions that gained steam the last couple of years,” Hastings says.
And for many the sport is beside the point. These organizers say their leagues are thriving in large part because of the postgame social scene.
Sponsor bars, which throw in weeknight drink specials and structure for meeting strangers with shared interests, are a fixture of adult rec sports.
If you’re new to a city, this is where you make your friends. If you’re single, it’s where you might meet your future spouse.
Another league has taken socializing to the next level — and it might become powerful enough to dominate the entire industry.
The big fish in the pond
Giovanni Marcantoni started Volo Sports for a simple reason: to meet people, especially women.
While playing in leagues around Washington D.C., he noticed that many women would quit after a few weeks because the leagues were too intense.
So he set out to build his own league, sensing an opportunity to lower the barrier to entry for meeting new people.
From the start, Volo made it easy for people who didn’t have teams to sign up for a league as free agents and be matched onto teams with other strangers. He also went into bars in Baltimore’s Federal Hill neighborhood and bought people a beer in order to get their email address.
What started as a 16-person Bocce league in Baltimore in 2010 has now expanded to over nine major markets across the nation featuring over 13 different sports.
Olivia Heller/The Hustle
Volo Sports is, simply, the big fish of the industry. Since 2019, revenue has grown 5x and the number of annual participants has increased from ~100k to ~500k. They also recently attracted a $21m investment from private equity.
How did Volo grow this fast nationwide?
“I was in my twenties and had nothing to lose. Some of the more established [leagues] at the time, they had to ask themselves, ‘Do I have to go put money into a new market when I’m not even sure if it’s going to work?’” Marcantoni says.
To expand nationally, Volo acquired leagues in new cities, skipping the growing pains of starting from scratch. They were able to pick up localized best practices and this fueled their expansion to cities like New York, Boston, and San Diego.
These takeovers have been a reprieve for some adult rec league owners. Many have been at the helm for 20-plus years and an acquisition from a big player like Volo can mean a welcome payday.
“What Volo did is provide social sports leagues with a liquidity option — previously, there was no smooth way to exit a social sports league business. But now, you can get acquired by a bigger player like Volo,” says Galen Beers, founder of the SSIA.
Horan echoes the sentiment that these acquisitions are beneficial, especially for small or medium-sized leagues that are often a one-man operation.
“Many owners don’t have the quality of life that they’d want — they’re tired and they need help. A bigger player like Volo can help take the financial pressure off and free up their time,” he says.
He doesn’t believe that there’s a risk of the market turning into a monopoly.
“There have been many folks who have tried to acquire every single club over the last 10-to-15 years. I don’t think Volo will ever own everybody, even though they’re growing very fast,” he adds.
Volo volleyball players. (Volosports.com)
For Marcantoni, the growth potential of the industry is huge. So much so that Volo is investing in their own country-club style physical spaces through Club Volo, attempting to create its own iteration of a third place.
As Beers explained to me, these social sport companies are really “event-planning companies that have a specialty in sports; their natural evolution goes from sports leagues to diversifying.”
Indeed, a quick look under the “events” tab on Volo’s website returns results for speed dating, a Champions League watch party, and a comedy show.
And after speaking with many of these business owners like Marcantoni, I realized something.
In almost all cases, they had gone through this journey themselves. They had moved to a new city, started from scratch, and joined a social sports league. Slowly, they had found community, one they could count on both on and off the pitch.
They had discovered the magic of structure. The freedom of having something on the calendar. And once they did, they couldn’t keep the secret to themselves.
Marcantoni, after all, is the archetypal adult rec sports player. He met his wife in a Bocce league.
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Technology
UK Government backs British Esports and EFL digital skills pilot
British Esports has secured government funding to launch a pilot esports education program with the English Football League, targeting young people in disadvantaged communities.
The initiative, approved under a national digital inclusion fund, signals growing interest from policymakers in esports as a structured pathway for digital skills, safeguarding, and youth engagement.
Safe to Play pilot launches across ten club communities
The new Safe to Play campaign will run across ten football club communities and aims to reach around 400 young people. Delivered through existing football club charity programs, the project uses esports as a structured environment to support digital confidence, online safety, and wellbeing.
Each participating club will deliver a six- to eight-week program combining weekly workshops with supervised esports sessions. The content is designed to sit alongside existing youth provision, positioning esports as a tool for engagement rather than a standalone activity.
The pilot has been approved for funding by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology under its Digital Inclusion Innovation Fund.
Training, governance, and safeguarding framework
British Esports will act as a national partner for the project, with funding supporting facilitator training, content development, and accreditation. As part of the Play it Safe model, British Esports will deliver e-learning and one-day in-person training to 60 facilitators drawn from ten football club charities.
Training covers safeguarding, wellbeing, digital confidence, online safety, and positive esports delivery. Guidance for the program is informed by British Esports’ Duty to Care in Esports framework, which sets standards for safe and responsible participation.
EFL in the Community will oversee national coordination, governance, and monitoring, while Sheffield United’s Community Foundation is acting as the accountable body. Sheffield Hallam University is providing external advisory input.
Potential national rollout
Project partners say the pilot is intended to test whether esports-based delivery can scale across the wider EFL network, which includes 72 clubs. A successful outcome could lead to a broader rollout through club community programs nationwide.
Debbie Cook, director of community at the English Football League, says, “The Safe to Play campaign is an exciting and innovative way to support young people in our EFL Club communities. Using esports as a vehicle for digital inclusion, online safety, and wellbeing, we’re equipping disadvantaged young people with essential skills for the modern world.”
Chester King, president at British Esports, adds, “We’re incredibly grateful to receive the Government’s support for this new Safe to Play campaign with the EFL. This backing will allow us to work alongside Sheffield United’s Community Foundation and other partners to deliver vital digital skills and online safety training to young people through esports.”
The announcement follows wider government action on youth engagement, including the launch of a new National Youth Strategy supported by a £500 million investment. The strategy, titled Youth Matters, has been shaped by feedback from more than 14,000 young people across England and focuses on rebuilding youth services and addressing social isolation.
ETIH Innovation Awards 2026
Technology
ASUS Republic of Gamers Presents Next-Gen Gaming Innovations, Commemorates 20 Years of Gaming Excellence at CES 2026
ROG showcases world-first technologies, next-generation gaming systems, and visionary collaborations that redefine gaming experiences
KEY POINTS
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Two decades of gaming leadership: At its Dare to Innovate virtual event, ROG celebrates 20 years of fearless experimentation and bold innovation
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Expanding gaming horizons: High-performance gaming innovation from Zephyrus laptops, Crosshair motherboards, Swift OLED monitors and more
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Cross-domain collaborations: ROG, Kojima Productions combine signature peripherals and the Flow Z13-KJP
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World’s first dual 16″ screen gaming laptop: ROG raises the bar of innovation to a whole new level with the pioneering Zephyrus Duo
LAS VEGAS, Jan. 5, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG) today announced its Dare to Innovate virtual event at CES 2026, unveiling the next chapter of its vision for gaming performance, design, and culture. The showcase celebrates 20 years of fearless innovation, highlighting breakthrough technologies that empower gamers and creators, while reinforcing ROG’s commitment to redefining gameplay, creation, and competitive performance worldwide.
A wide range of next-generation technologies across ROG’s gaming ecosystem is on display, including laptops, desktops, motherboards, and peripherals ― all engineered with world-first features and advanced capabilities that elevate performance and immersion.
On this 20-year milestone, ROG reflects on a legacy defined by bold concepts, pioneering engineering, and an unwavering dedication to its global community. From the groundbreaking Crosshair motherboard in 2006 to today’s cutting-edge gaming platforms, every milestone embodies the spirit of For Those Who Dare, a commitment to challenging conventions and redefining what gaming hardware can achieve.
Continuing this legacy, the ROG Lab embodies the heart of ROG’s experimental spirit, transforming ideas into tangible breakthroughs. This year’s showcase unveiled engineering advancements from the Lab, combining performance, thermal mastery, and user-focused design to elevate how gamers play, create, and connect.
ROG also extends its influence beyond technology into culture through global co-branding partnerships that merge gaming with music, fashion, art, and entertainment. Collaborations with creators and iconic franchises, including Kojima Productions, empower players to co-create within a growing, cross-domain ecosystem, reinforcing ROG’s role in shaping gaming identity and community worldwide.
ROG remains committed to pioneering the future of gaming, transforming daring visions into experiences that inspire every player to push beyond boundaries. Attendees at CES 2026 in Las Vegas can explore the latest ROG creations firsthand at The Venetian Expo, Level 3, San Polo #3403, from January 5 to 8, 2026.
Technology
Cryptocurrency Is Quietly Shaping the Next Wave of Digital Gaming Experiences
Digital gaming continues to evolve at a remarkable pace, and much of that momentum is coming from technologies that sit beneath the surface. Blockchain may not dominate headlines the way big releases or subscription shifts do, yet it increasingly shapes how players pay, own, and move digital assets across ecosystems. Developers are watching these shifts closely because the expectations forming today often become industry standards tomorrow.
Players have grown used to seamless digital transactions, whether they’re purchasing cosmetic packs or moving funds between entertainment platforms. That comfort is now extending to crypto‑enabled services, particularly in areas where fast settlement and transparent transfers matter. Some entertainment categories, including platforms such as Ethereum online casinos, illustrate how blockchain-based payments are becoming a practical alternative rather than a novelty. These examples help frame how gamers might come to expect the same kind of fluidity in mainstream titles. And as more players experiment with varied digital payment rails, studios are paying attention to how these habits could influence in‑game systems.
The Rise of Blockchain-Backed Payment Options Across Modern Gaming Platforms
Studios exploring blockchain payments aren’t necessarily chasing hype; they’re reacting to a widening ecosystem. The Web3 gaming sector was valued at $25.63 billion last year and is projected to surge to $124.74 billion by 2032. That long‑term growth outlook signals that payment experimentation in gaming isn’t slowing down.
The appeal for developers is straightforward: blockchains can handle microtransactions, cross‑platform rewards, and user‑to‑user transfers with fewer intermediaries. For players, the value comes from speed and clarity, especially when moving funds between platforms that don’t traditionally “talk” to one another. That combination of utility and consistency adds weight to the idea that blockchain payments could soon feel as ordinary as digital wallets did a decade ago.
Developers Are Leveraging Crypto Infrastructure for In-Game Economies
Ownership has become a defining issue in modern gaming, especially as digital libraries expand and cross‑platform play becomes the norm. Some teams are experimenting with blockchain-based IDs, tokens, or asset registries to give players a stronger sense of permanence. Ubisoft’s blockchain‑integrated releases from last year hinted at how publishers might use distributed ledgers for identity systems rather than speculative assets, making the technology more functional than flashy.
Market momentum supports this approach. Data from CoinLaw places the global blockchain gaming market at $21.6 billion in 2025, reflecting how many players are engaging with tokenized assets and decentralized economies. That figure underscores how digital ownership has become more than a niche experiment.
When implemented with care, crypto infrastructure can support predictable, player‑friendly marketplaces where items maintain consistent histories and transparent value. This matters because it could reduce fraud, stabilize in‑game trading, and help teams build cohesive economies that last across sequels or updates. The challenge lies in making the tech invisible enough that players benefit without needing to think about consensus models or wallet mechanics.
Where Crypto Entertainment Fits In: From Streaming Integrations to Emerging Models Like Ethereum Casinos
Crypto-enabled entertainment doesn’t exist in isolation; it’s increasingly brushing up against mainstream gaming habits. Streamers have already experimented with token-gated communities, blockchain reward drops, and audience‑driven item giveaways. These integrations quietly shift expectations around what digital ownership should look like, especially when viewers can carry items or achievements into other community spaces.
Platforms using crypto payments, including models similar to those found on the Ethereum casino side of the entertainment industry, show how frictionless transfers and transparent balances appeal to users who want quick access without traditional payment delays. For game studios, these behaviors serve as a test case for what players may expect from in‑game marketplaces or cross‑title inventories.
What’s more, these experiments hint at a broader trend: entertainment platforms are blending, and payment systems are blending with them. The line between playing, watching, and collecting is thinning, and blockchain often sits in the background, enabling that shift.
What These Shifts Signal for the Future of Player Experience and Industry Standards
If the current trajectory continues, the next wave of digital gaming could revolve around portability and permanence. Players increasingly expect items, progress, and identity markers to travel with them, even as they jump between devices, subscription models, or entirely different worlds. Blockchain’s role here won’t always be visible, but it will be foundational.
Studios face a balancing act. They need to incorporate emerging tech without overwhelming players with complexity or triggering backlash tied to past Web3 missteps. Yet the appetite for secure, consistent, and interoperable systems is growing. Developers who meet that demand—quietly, thoughtfully, and with a focus on player value—could set the tone for the next decade of game design.
In practice, that means treating blockchain not as a selling point but as supporting infrastructure. Successful implementations will feel intuitive, not experimental, and they’ll prioritize long‑term reliability over hype. As more publishers adopt these tools to streamline payments, protect assets, and enhance cross‑platform continuity, blockchain’s influence on gaming will likely move from occasional talking point to everyday expectation.
Related
Technology
Voltage to demo instant gaming payments at ICE – Payments
With the gaming community set to converge on Barcelona, Voltage is addressing the industry’s most pressing payment challenges head-on.
Attendees at ICE can visit stand 4L52 for a firsthand look at how Lightning Network technology enables instant, near-zero-fee deposits and withdrawals, eliminating chargebacks and unlocking new revenue streams.
The company’s platform empowers online casinos, sports betting, and social gaming operators to move value instantly and globally, bypassing the high costs and slow settlement times of traditional financial rails.
“Our platform is built to solve the real-world challenges of high fees and slow withdrawals that directly impact player experience and operator margins,” said Graham Krizek, CEO of Voltage. “At our booth, we are demonstrating that Lightning Network transactions are not just theoretical, but are a practical, scalable tool for increasing retention and profitability, available right now.”
At ICE, the Voltage team will conduct consultations showcasing how operators can:
- Increase margins with Lightning’s minimal transaction fees.
- Eliminate chargeback risks with Bitcoin’s irreversible transactions.
- Enable instant coin packs and rewards for seamless player engagement.
- Access global markets without intermediaries or currency barriers.
Voltage’s enterprise-grade infrastructure allows iGaming companies to integrate Bitcoin and stablecoin payments without the complexity of building it themselves, providing a seamless experience for both the operator and the player.
Operators, developers, and media attending ICE Barcelona 2025 are encouraged to visit the Voltage team to get hands on and discuss how to integrate instant payments into their platforms.
Technology
Fast Track strengthens platform as Greco becomes core Fast Track product – Gaming
Fast Track, the leading CRM technology provider for the iGaming industry, today announced that Greco, the gameplay risk management company acquired in February 2025, has now transitioned to become a core Fast Track product.
Following a successful period operating as a standalone business, Greco is now scaling fully under the Fast Track product umbrella. This marks a strategic step in expanding Fast Trackʼs platform beyond engagement execution into value-led optimisation, with a specific focus on helping operators scale bonus strategies with greater precision and control.
Founded in 2021 as a joint venture with Fast Track, Greco introduced a new approach to gameplay risk modelling through its proprietary Gameplay Risk Engine (Greco). The technology enables iGaming operators to model theoretical player value, detect behavioural anomalies and make smarter, data-driven decisions around bonus allocation and gameplay exposure.
As part of Fast Track, Greco becomes a foundational component alongside Fast Trackʼs real-time CRM, AI-driven gamification and natural language products.
“This has always been about building something bigger than the sum of its parts,” said Simon Lidzén, CEO and co-founder of Fast Track. “Greco adds a powerful new dimension to our platform.
“By bringing it fully under Fast Track, we can help operators scale their bonus strategies with the same sophistication they apply to CRM strategies – backed by real-time data, intelligence and world-class execution.”
As Greco becomes a core Fast Track product, it will be delivered with the same world-class service, reliability and pace of innovation that Fast Track customers expect. The offering will be complemented by an expanded service layer designed to help operators optimise and scale both CRM strategies and bonus strategies, working from one central system.
Grecoʼs co-founders, Ozric Vondervelden and Ed Dickerson, remain actively involved as the technology and team transition into Fast Trackʼs broader product organisation.
With this move, Fast Track continues to evolve its platform to support iGaming operators in digitalising operations, delivering true 1:1 experiences and shifting from promotion execution to scalable, value-driven player engagement.
Meet Fast Track at ICE
Fast Track will showcase the new Greco-powered product in action at ICE Barcelona, from 19-21 January. Operators are invited to visit the Fast Track stand to see how gameplay, risk, intelligence and CRM orchestration come together to scale smarter bonus strategies.
Technology
High-Performance Monitor Lineups : HKC Corporation
HKC Corporation’s participation in CES 2026 centers on presenting a diversified portfolio of display technologies through its three distinct brands. Each model targets a specific segment of the high-performance monitor market.
HKC Corporation’s showcase is anchored by the introduction of several flagship products. The HKC M10 Ultra is promoted as the first monitor to utilize an RGB MiniLED backlight system for enhanced color and brightness control. It would appeal to professional graphic designers, video editors, and game developers. The KOORUI S4941XO is a large-format OLED screen with a high refresh rate aimed at immersive simulation gaming. Finally, the ANTGAMER ANT275PQ Ultra stands as an LCD monitor with an exceptionally high refresh rate for competitive esports.
Collectively, HKC Corporation’s display products demonstrate the company’s technical focus on advancements in panel construction, backlight engineering, and integrated image processing software.
Image Credit: HKC Corporation
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