The growing alliance of influencers and sports betting added a pair of new members on Friday, as TikTok twins Haley and Hanna Cavinder brought their podcast, Twin Talk, to Jake Paul’s online gambling and media platform, Betr.
Former Fresno State and University of Miami basketball stars, the Cavinder twins were among the highest-paid college athletes after the NCAA approved name, image, and likeness (NIL) monetization. But why would the sisters produce their podcast under a sports betting company?
“Growing up, all my sisters, all my family would play sports. Betr touches [sports] on the entertainment side, and the partnership, in general, goes hand in hand with who Hanna and I are,” says Haley Cavinder, who remains the highest-scoring freshman in Fresno State basketball history.
Her sister Hanna adds: “It’s a betting community, but it’s also a media platform.” The pair are also equity partners in Betr.
The combination of sports-related media and betting has proved to be enormously successful for Barstool’s Dave Portnoy, who managed this week to regain 100% ownership of his company from Penn Entertainment for just $1 after selling it for $550 million. Barstool has been able to create value by tapping and incubating media figures on the platform like now top podcaster Alexandra Cooper.
And the marriage of media, sports betting, and influencers has likely helped fortify Betr as a venture capital darling, which was valued at $300 million at the time of its $35 million Series A extension (total funding is $85 million). The company is backed by a variety of angels and institutions, including Travis Scott and David Grutman as well as 8VC and Fuel Venture Capital.
It seems that Betr cofounder Paul, who launched the company in August of 2022, is emulating the Barstool model by bringing in the Cavinder twins as equity partners and launching their podcast via the media arm of Betr. And of course, Paul is the guest on episode one, now available on Spotify, YouTube, and Apple Music.