Faves Ushers in a New Chapter for Athletes, Expands Platform Capabilities Around Brand Partners, Sponsorships, and Data Intelligence

Faves Latest Updates Help Athletes Build Their Businesses During and Beyond Competitive Years

NEW YORK, June 2, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Faves, the platform powering athletes to turn their performance years into ongoing, lifelong business ventures, today announced the launch of its upgraded platform, unveiling a refreshed brand identity, expanded platform capabilities, and new offerings aimed at strengthening connections between athletes, brands, and fans. Initially launched into Beta in early 2026, the full global launch allows current and former athletes to capitalize on Faves' expansive network of brands and sponsorship opportunities

New to the platform, Faves has introduced the first iteration of its Pro Team, its hand selected athlete innovation team, built to help competitors grow their influence and deepen engagement with fans throughout and beyond their competition years. The inaugural roster includes Ali Riley, Rose Zhang, Alyssa Spencer, Matt Hauser, Bree Hall, Colin Varanyak, and Robert Farken, representing a growing network of athletes building businesses around who they are, not solely what they accomplish in competition. Those selected to join the Pro Team are existing athletes on Faves who boast unique use cases in building their personal businesses through the platform and lay the foundation for additional athletes to follow.

Alongside the Pro Team, Faves has launched its athlete marketing engine, a new platform automating the way brands build and scale a world class athlete marketing program, all in one place. Rooted in the belief that the next generation of brands will build their own rosters, rather than simply sponsoring someone else's, the platform allows brands to use Faves' infrastructure to build, measure, and manage their own roster of athletes, turning authentic athlete relationships into a scalable, trackable revenue channel without the operational headache. Initial brands include Create, Hyperice, and Freaks of Nature.

"We built Faves because we believe that being an athlete is a career that can last a lifetime, not just a season," said Thomas Salas, founder of Faves. "Athletes own the attention and trust of millions of consumers, making daily decisions about how they look, feel, perform, and belong. It's an accelerating structural shift from athletes acting like billboards to athletes acting like businesses. The next million professional athletes won't need a contract, team, or league to go pro. They'll leverage their trust, attention, and knowledge to build scalable businesses around their brand."

To date, Faves has already helped hundreds of athletes better understand their audiences, unlock partnership opportunities, and grow their presence beyond competition. Faves is removing the barriers of traditional sponsorship through better data, enabling them to act like an agent in every athlete's pocket. With the athletes interest driving the functionality of the software, Faves is able to bring more aligned opportunities across content, commerce, and partnerships to their athletes.

The updated platform introduces a more personalized experience designed to help athletes better define their goals and uncover opportunities aligned with their futures. Whether focused on growing a fanbase, developing commercial partnerships, creating content, or preparing for life after retirement, athletes are increasingly looking for ways to build sustainable careers that extend beyond the game.

"The economics of building an ecom brand have flipped," added Salas. "Teams are shrinking, distribution is more expensive every quarter, and AI is eroding trust in everything consumers see online. The voices that still cut through are the ones with real performance behind them, athletes. We built Faves because the brands that figure out how to work with athletes at scale will be the brands that win in the market."

To learn more, visit faves.xyz

About Faves

Faves (faves.xyz) is the platform powering athletes to turn their performance years into ongoing, lifelong business ventures. Designed for current and former competitors across professional and amateur sport, Faves provides athletes with the tools, connections, and community they need to build sustainable businesses around who they are, not just what they accomplish in competition.

The Faves platform combines personalized management software with a growing network of sponsors and brands, helping athletes better understand their audiences, unlock partnership opportunities, and grow their presence beyond the game. Through its Pro Team, an invite-only athlete community, and Brand Portal, Faves facilitates authentic, long-term relationships between athletes and the companies building the next generation of sport-driven brands.

Founded by Thomas Salas and Kai Vickers, Faves is built to ensure that the momentum athletes build during competition can carry forward into lasting business success through content, commerce, partnerships, and audience engagement. It is a platform built by athletes for the athletes.

To learn more, visit faves.xyz.

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SOURCE Faves