Many household stars in UK sport have used their influence, platform and wealth to invest in tech companies.
From England cricket stars to Premier League footballers and the nation’s most treasured modern tennis champion, a number of world-famous athletes have invested in HealthTechs, FinTechs, sports apps and more.
BusinessCloud looks at some of the most well-known investments.
England’s cricket stars
Media and investment group 4CAST, founded by England cricketing stars Ben Stokes, Stuart Broad, Jofra Archer and Jos Buttler, partnered with tickets and events sales platform Seat Unique in December 2024.
Since the collaboration, London-based Seat Unique has confirmed partnerships with the London Stadium and the Utilita Bowl, as well as appointing former England rugby union star Matt Dawson as a business advisor.
4CAST specialises in athlete-driven media productions and early-stage investments, and boasts an influential roster of talent, including cricketers Ollie Pope, Liam Livingstone, KL Rahul and Matty Potts.
Diogo Dalot & Cristiano Ronaldo
Bioniq, a developer of personalised nutritional supplements based on blood biomarker data, has two high-profile sports stars with shares in its firm.
The London-based firm received an investment in October 2024 from global phenom Cristiano Ronaldo, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest athletes of all time.
The investment brought the company’s value up to $82m.
Ronaldo’s former Manchester United team-mate and current Portugal team-mate Diogo Dalot shortly followed suit in March 2025, investing £840,000 into the HealthTech.
Rio Ferdinand
Manchester United legend and TNT Sports pundit Rio Ferdinand joined forces with Cifr.io in February 2025, a UK technology firm pioneering a groundbreaking solution to tackle the global epidemic of counterfeit football shirts.
The former England international has had a busy start to 2025 when it comes to tech, as another company which he has shares in – London-based FinTech Sokin – secured £12m debt funding from funds and accounts managed by BlackRock in late January.
Ferdinand has also previously backed platform WeAre8, an app aiming to help people to reclaim their economic power and drive real-world change.
The London-based firm, which is also backed by presenter Clare Balding, launched a campaign on the app called Blow the Whistle, aiming to take a stand against racism and empower people to unite for change.
Ferdinand himself spearheaded this with WeAre8 founder Zoe Kalar.
Andy Murray
The greatest British tennis player in recent history, former ATP world number one Andy Murray has a vested interest in a number of tech companies.
In 2016, when he was arguably at the peak of his sporting powers, he invested in pet monitoring app Dog Tracker Nano, cycle navigation app Beeline and blow LTD, a ‘beauty on demand’ service.
Two years on, he became an investor in FinTech startups Investly and Landbay, before putting money into the ‘Airbnb for tennis’ app DEUCE.
The twice Wimbledon champ has also invested in learning platform HowNow, workplace wellbeing and engagement company Titrac and digital giving platform GoodBox, which was rescued from administration via a rarely used restructuring plan in 2023. The latest twist in the saga saw an appeal for fees from administrators Frost Group dismissed by the courts in March 2025.
One of Murray’s earliest investments was into the Fuel Ventures Fund – a tech investment company founded by Mark Pearson in 2015.
Gary Lineker
A household name in the UK for over 40 years, former England international Gary Lineker backed home insurance startup Neos in October 2016. He exited the firm on 1st January 2019.
The now-TV presenter, who will leave Match of the Day at the end of the Premier League season after 25 years as host, has also been an investor in telematics insurance company Ticker since its inception.
Gary Neville & Vincent Kompany
Two of Manchester’s most iconic defenders put their rivalries to one side when they both invested in Manchester-based virtual reality elite sports training startup Rezzil.
The company last year agreed a four-year licensing investment deal with the Premier League and the two worked on the launch of VR game Premier League Player.
The firm has also previously gained the backing of fellow footballing figures Thierry Henry, Michail Antonio and Tyrone Mings.
Raheem Sterling & Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Former Liverpool stars Sterling and Oxlade-Chamberlain became significant investors and global ambassadors in player tracking and analysis provider STATSports.
The pair joined the Newry-based firm in 2019, where it was reported by Forbes that they had each invested over £1m.
The firm has now partnered with elite sports clubs including Arsenal and has been backed by England captain Harry Kane.
Thierry Henry, Cesc Fabregas & Robin Van Persie
Three Arsenal legends teamed up in 2014 to invest in social video and mobile video advertising firm Grabyo.
The three took part in a £1.3m funding round raised by the London-based startup, which was founded in 2013 by Will Neale.