Wayne Kimmel: How Relationships and Venture Capital Shape the Business of Sports

What does it take to walk into a room where you know no one — and walk out with relationships that can change lives?

For Wayne Kimmel, that simple idea has shaped an entire career.

In this episode of No Wrong Choices, we explore the journey of a venture capitalist who has spent decades helping entrepreneurs turn bold ideas into real companies — particularly across the rapidly evolving business of sports. As the founder of 76 Capital, Wayne has built a reputation for investing in innovation, supporting founders, and helping transform industries through relationships, vision, and persistence.

But his story isn’t just about venture capital or sports. It’s about how showing up, building trust, and helping others succeed can open doors you never imagined.

From Law to Venture Capital: A Career Pivot Built on Curiosity

Wayne Kimmel didn’t set out to become a venture capitalist. His early career began in law — a path that offered stability and structure. But like many meaningful career journeys, his direction changed through exposure, curiosity, and opportunity.

A single encounter with the world of venture investing sparked something deeper. He saw how investors could partner with entrepreneurs to build companies, solve problems, and bring entirely new ideas to life. That realization led him to shift course — moving from practicing law to investing in people with big visions.

That decision would ultimately define his professional life.

Wayne’s transition illustrates a powerful career lesson: meaningful change often begins not with a master plan, but with paying attention to what genuinely excites you.

Venture Capital as a Partnership — Not Just an Investment

One of the defining themes of Wayne’s career is how he views venture capital itself.

For him, investing isn’t just about funding companies. It’s about relationships.

Successful venture capital requires more than identifying promising ideas. It means supporting founders through uncertainty, helping them navigate growth, and working alongside them as partners. The most successful investors don’t simply provide capital — they help build companies.

This relationship-driven approach has shaped Wayne’s philosophy for decades. He focuses on people first, believing that trust, communication, and alignment are often more important than spreadsheets or projections.

In an industry often associated with high stakes and financial returns, Wayne emphasizes something more fundamental: helping entrepreneurs succeed.

Investing in Innovation Across the Business of Sports

While Wayne’s investments span multiple sectors, he is especially well known for his work across the business of sports — an industry undergoing massive transformation driven by technology, data, media, and fan engagement.

From sports technology startups to media ventures and emerging sports innovation companies, his work reflects a simple belief: sports are no longer just games — they are dynamic businesses shaped by technology and entrepreneurship.

Through his firm, Wayne has supported companies exploring:

• data analytics and performance technology

• fan engagement platforms

• sports media innovation

• emerging betting and gaming ecosystems

• digital experiences that redefine how fans interact with teams and leagues

The sports industry continues to evolve rapidly, and venture capital plays a critical role in enabling that change. Wayne’s work sits at the intersection of entrepreneurship, innovation, and one of the most passionate global markets in the world.

Recognizing Big Ideas Early

One hallmark of successful venture investors is the ability to recognize potential before it becomes obvious.

Early in his investing career, Wayne backed Seamless — the online food ordering platform that helped change how millions of people interact with restaurants. At the time, ordering meals digitally was far from mainstream. Today, it’s routine.

That experience reflects a key truth about innovation: ideas that seem ordinary today often looked uncertain — even improbable — at the beginning.

Venture capital is fundamentally about identifying possibility before others see it clearly. But doing that well requires more than insight. It requires conviction, patience, and trust in the people building something new.

The Real Driver of Opportunity: Relationships

If there is one lesson that runs through Wayne’s entire story, it is this:

Opportunity is created through relationships.

Not networking in the transactional sense — but genuine connection. Showing interest. Helping others. Being present. Listening. Contributing.

Careers don’t unfold in isolation. They evolve through interactions with people who share ideas, offer support, create openings, and collaborate toward common goals.

Wayne’s experience demonstrates that relationships are not just a byproduct of success — they are often the engine that makes success possible in the first place.

What Entrepreneurs and Professionals Can Learn

Wayne Kimmel’s career offers practical insights for anyone navigating their own professional journey — whether in venture capital, entrepreneurship, or any field driven by innovation.

1. Show up and engage

Opportunities rarely arrive fully formed. They emerge through conversations, environments, and interactions where ideas are exchanged.

2. Build relationships before you need them

Trust is cumulative. The strongest partnerships develop over time, not at the moment a deal is required.

3. Focus on helping others succeed

Value creation is mutual. Supporting others often leads to opportunities that cannot be predicted in advance.

4. Stay open to career pivots

Many successful paths begin with unexpected transitions. Curiosity can be a powerful guide.

5. Believe in possibility

Innovation depends on people willing to invest in ideas that don’t yet exist — and in the people determined to create them.

A Career Built on Helping Big Ideas Become Reality

Wayne Kimmel’s story reflects the core mission of venture capital at its best: partnering with entrepreneurs to turn possibility into reality.

His work across the business of sports demonstrates how innovation happens — not just through technology, but through collaboration, trust, and long-term commitment to people with bold visions.

More than anything, his journey is a reminder that careers are shaped by relationships, and that meaningful opportunities often begin with a simple step forward — a conversation, a connection, or a willingness to engage.

Listen to the Full Conversation

If you’re interested in entrepreneurship, venture capital, sports innovation, or how relationships shape career opportunities, this episode offers practical insights and powerful perspective.

Listen to the full conversation with Wayne Kimmel on No Wrong Choices — available wherever you get your podcasts.