When the games stop, the job hunt starts. A Vancouver startup says it wants to make that next step a lot easier for athletes.
Free Agent has launched a professional networking platform built for athletes, from people who played one game to stars like Christine Sinclair and active players still on rosters, founder, CEO, and former professional hockey player Kirsten Toth told BetaKit.
“Our mission at Free Agent is to support athletes and ensure that they have the right opportunities and resources in order to succeed after sport,” Toth said. “Sweat does not show up on a resume.”
Athletes can join Free Agent’s social networking platform at no charge. They can use job-matching and marketplace features, and get training for new careers, including sales. Companies pay to access the talent pool.
“I like to use the phrase ‘sweat does not show up on a resume,’” Toth said. “Who are the people that have proved that they can go the extra mile, get the job done, work harder than anybody else in the world? Who are those people? Athletes.”
Toth said Free Agent is different from platforms like LinkedIn or Indeed because it is focused on athletes’ needs. She also said it removes some of the shame that can come with looking for work elsewhere.
“The challenge of transitioning out of sport, the complete identity crisis, it’s something that everyone shares, and it really eliminates the ego from the room,” Toth said. “When people are looking for work and exploring new career opportunities on Free Agent, they wear that on their sleeve.”
“People are almost tripping on themselves running to help … and I think that that’s something that’s really unique and beautiful about what we’ve created,” she added.
One feature on the platform is Brand Arena, a marketplace for brands and athletes to find each other for sponsorship opportunities. Toth said Free Agent added it after speaking with athletes who found their agents unhelpful, especially after retirement, when active players became the priority.
Unlike an agent, Brand Arena does not take fees from athletes.
“We wanted to create a space for [athletes] to come and be able to leverage 100 percent of their earnings,” Toth said.
The launch follows a $1.7 million USD pre-seed round, or $2.4 million CAD, including $500,000 CAD raised in 2024. Toth said the round was “non-traditional,” with no institutional investors and backing from about 55 angel investors who are almost all former college, professional, or Olympic athletes.
Launched out of beta last week, Free Agent is being widely adopted, according to Toth. She did not share hard numbers, but said the platform has player representation from more than 4,100 teams across 104 sports, including athletes from every male and female professional team and league in Canada and the United States.
“I see people [on Free Agent] lifting Super Bowl trophies, and we have one athlete on there that, I think if she spreads her wingspan, she probably has like 30 medals … and that’s just an average athlete on the platform,” Toth said. “The mission is to be above average, to be impactful, and to really represent the athlete community well in business and not be the dumb jocks.”
Toth said the funding will be used to grow the platform. “Ultimately, right now, the goal is to put as many opportunities in front of as many athletes as we possibly can,” she said.
Read more from BetaKit.
