by Marley Hughes, CEO, Magnolia Hill Partners
Every now and then, you meet someone who feels like they were born with the playbook — but still insists on writing their own. That’s Alex Bente.
He comes from one of the most iconic and influential families in global sports. His great-grandfather was Adi Dassler, the legendary founder of Adidas. It’s hard to overstate the impact of that lineage — not just in footwear, but in shaping the modern athlete, the global fanbase, and the business of sports as we know it.
But what makes Alex impressive isn’t just his family tree. It’s how humbly and intentionally he’s carving out his own path — one that honors that legacy while reimagining where sports are going next.
Today, he’s doing that through ADvantage, a sports tech platform now investing out of Fund II, focused squarely on the infrastructure of sports: the connective tissue, the overlooked rails, the systems that quietly shape how stories, athletes, and moments reach fans.
When he and I sat down for a conversation on the Driving with Marley podcast, it wasn’t just a chat with a good friend — it was a chance to learn from someone who’s been helping build the future of the game from behind the scenes.
Betting on Infrastructure
Alex doesn’t chase headlines. He backs what powers the headlines.
“Everyone’s focused on owning teams,” he told me. “But the bigger opportunity is in capturing the fan.”
That’s not a knock on team ownership — far from it. At Momentous, team ownership and hard-asset real estate are core to our strategy. But we’ve always believed the real long-term value comes from linking the physical and digital — stadiums and streams, live moments and monetizable engagement.
That’s where we find alignment with Alex and the Advantage team. We’re all building different pieces of the same future — one where the fan is the focal point, and the infrastructure is what makes the magic happen.
RedZone and the New Era of Fandom
Fan behavior has already shifted. RedZone changed how people consume Sundays. Fantasy sports rewired how they care about outcomes. Betting, streaming, and social platforms have fractured and personalized everything.
“There’s no reason RedZone shouldn’t personalize highlights based on your fantasy roster or betting slips,” Alex said. “That’s where this is going.”
Several portfolio companies are already enabling this world—helping teams, athletes, and leagues get content to the right people, in real time. One ADvantage portfolio company, Greenfly, is already enabling this world — helping teams, athletes, and leagues get content to the right people, in real time. That might sound small. But it solves a massive problem in distribution and engagement — not just in sports, but in entertainment, media, and beyond.
“We’re investing in how stories travel,” he told me. That line hit me like a no-look pass.
What Great Founders Share
When I asked Alex what he looks for in entrepreneurs, he didn’t blink:
“Clarity, resilience, and leadership. Sports is competitive by nature. If you’re building here, you better be ready to fight every day.”
That’s what makes him different. He’s not just betting on the next big league. He’s betting on the plumbing — the invisible systems that will redefine how sports are consumed, shared, and monetized. And he’s backing the builders who are crazy enough — and gritty enough — to take that on.
Friends, Partners, Builders
At MHP and our sports platform Momentous Sports, we’re proud to invest in teams and mixed-use real estate. But we’re equally committed to the infrastructure behind it — the systems that connect fans, monetize engagement, and shape the next generation of sports consumption.
That’s why we work with friends and partners like Alex and Advantage. Together, we’re helping weave the new fabric of sports — from the field to the feed, from the arena to the algorithm.
The future isn’t coming. It’s already here. And people like Alex Bente are helping build it.
Discover more at magnoliahillpartners.com
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