Lerer Hippeau and Golden Ventures Invest $3.6 Million in Brodie Rec League, the Professional Basketball Experience for Everyday Athletes, to Fuel U.S. Expansion

Brodie Rec League (“Brodie”), the largest recreational basketball league in North America with more than 100,000 athletes and fans, announced today a $3.6 million seed round led by New York-based Lerer Hippeau and Toronto-based Golden Ventures to accelerate the company’s expansion across the United States and build the leading recreational sports platform for everyday athletes.

That expansion starts now. Brodie will launch in four new U.S. markets in Seattle, Atlanta, Long Island and New Jersey while adding locations across Chicago, Boston, and New York City, backed by a rebuilt player app, an in-house content operation, and a repeatable market expansion model. Winter registration opens September 25, with Brodie targeting the top 50 U.S. markets by the end of 2027.

“Our goal is to give everyday athletes around the world a professional basketball experience,” said Connor Renton, founder and CEO of Brodie Rec League. “We’re building a company that can deliver that same premium experience in any city – from the app and the brand to the content and operational infrastructure. The NBA has 500 players. We’re building for the millions of athletes who still want to play, compete, and feel like the pros. If you stopped playing after high school or university, this league was built for you.”

Renton was drawn to basketball by its culture and community but saw a significant gap between traditional recreational leagues and the organized sports experience he had grown up with. In 2019, he founded Brodie as a side project while working at a bank to build the kind of experience he felt was missing.

Today, Brodie serves 100,000 athletes and fans across 35 locations in 20 cities and operates more than 600 games each week. Its in-house content operation generates approximately 30,000 pieces of content per week and has driven more than 1 billion views across social platforms. Brodie has built that growth without paid marketing, with players and organic content serving as its primary acquisition engine.

Each 12-week Brodie season is designed to give everyday athletes a professional-level experience across six skill divisions, ranging from first-time players to former collegiate and professional athletes. Players receive custom uniforms, participate in Media Day and compete in filmed games featuring post-game highlights and social media content. Seasons also feature All-Star Games, Culture Cup events, fan nights and championship celebrations. The experience extends to the Brodie App, which combines AI-powered performance tracking, career statistics, badges, player archetypes, leaderboards, team chats and a social feed into one platform designed to enhance the in-person experience.

“It’s not surprising that Brodie has grown so quickly – the team (which has executed extremely well) has correctly identified a huge societal gap around real-life experiences right now,” said Ben Lerer, Managing Partner at Lerer Hippeau. “Attracting users digitally is one thing, but hooking them offline is another thing entirely – Brodie’s done both, and that combination is an

“You can learn a lot about Brodie just from watching,” said Ameet Shah, Partner at Golden Ventures. “A game night in one of their gyms has packed courts, engaged players, and immense energy for recreational competition. The opportunity in adult sports has been visible for a long time. The difficult part is building an experience people become ingrained in. Connor and the team are aiming to do both. Brodie is building from Toronto, with real ambition beyond it. We’re proud to lead the company’s seed round and partner with the team as they bring that experience to more players across North America.”

One in four adults participates in recreational sports, representing what Brodie estimates is an underserved market opportunity of approximately US$24 billion, yet the category remains fragmented and locally operated. As technology and AI increasingly reshape everyday life, Brodie is betting on the growing value of in-person experiences, creating a third space where adults can build friendships, stay active, and rediscover the competition and community they often lose after organized sports end. The company’s goal is to give everyday athletes something to train for, a community to show up for, and a reason to keep competing.

How to get involved: Winter season registration opens September 25 on brodierec.com. Follow the league at @brodierecleague on Instagram. Brodie is also hiring founding market builders, designers, and league managers; join the team at Brodie Careers.