Lionheart Sports Agency, a startup football NIL agency, has been acquired by Athletes in Control (AIC), one of the fastest-growing football NIL agencies in the country. Lionheart gained national traction through its representation of several rising stars in high school and college football, including University of Texas running back Quintrevion Wisner and Penn State quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer. AIC is led by NFLPA certified agent Regina Jackson and former NFL head coach and Super Bowl champion Antonio Pierce. In addition, Jackson’s son, Jayden Daniels, a former Heisman Trophy winner and current quarterback for the Washington Commanders, is a Brand Ambassador for AIC.
Lionheart’s co-founders, Hunter Kirsch and Matthew Sobel, have joined the AIC team as Senior Director of NIL & Marketing and Senior Director of Football Operations, respectively, to help accelerate AIC’s growth in the NIL sports representation market while continuing to provide first-class service to its athlete clients. Through the acquisition, Lionheart athletes will gain access to enhanced NIL resources, brand partnerships, and NIL education. Together, Lionheart and AIC are positioned to deliver industry-leading football NIL representation, empowering athletes to take greater control of their brands, opportunities, and futures.
From Lionheart’s earliest days as a startup, our firm advised the Lionheart team through its impressive growth in the NIL athlete representation industry, resulting in this successful exit just two years after its founding. The acquisition marks a major milestone and our firm was proud to advise Lionheart Sports Agency.
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We serve as a trusted legal advisor to athletes, founders, entrepreneurs, and emerging sports and technology companies operating at the intersection of innovation and talent. We guide clients through every stage of the business lifecycle, with a strong focus on venture capital and private equity financings, mergers and acquisitions, and other complex corporate transactions, as well as the commercial contracts, brand partnerships, and equity arrangements that drive growth in sports, NIL, media, and technology.
