There’s a growing wave of sports content moving into creator territory, and Playback wants to be at the center of it. The livestreaming startup just raised $22 million from backers including Alexis Ohanian’s Seven Seven Six, Khosla Ventures, and NBA Investments, and it’s making a serious play to become the go-to platform where sports creators and fans watch live games together.
Launched in 2023, Playback positions itself as a sports-first alternative to Twitch, tailored specifically for fans who want community-driven, interactive viewing. The platform lets creators host live watch parties of NBA and MLB games, backed by official partnerships with League Pass and MLB.tv. There’s a catch: viewers need their own League Pass or MLB.tv subscriptions to see the actual game feed, but creator commentary and interaction are free and open.
The company’s pitch is straightforward: younger audiences aren’t watching sports the way previous generations did. CEO RJ Halperin believes the traditional broadcast model isn’t enough for digital-native fans. “Sports thrive off the social energy,” he said. Playback wants to replicate that energy in real time, with creators driving the conversation.
The funding follows growing demand for sports content on creator platforms like YouTube, where NIL deals and legalized sports betting have fueled a new generation of influencer-led coverage. Leagues like the NBA, NFL, and Formula 1 have leaned into these shifts, partnering with creators and experimenting with content formats to stay relevant to younger audiences.
Where Playback stands apart is in solving a core problem for sports creators: access. Unlike Twitch or YouTube, where copyright concerns can block creators from using real game footage, Playback’s rights agreements with leagues offer a clearer path. It’s not just an aggregation of fans—it’s a rights-cleared, league-supported space for co-viewing.
The startup hasn’t disclosed active user numbers, but the backing and participation from names like Kevin Garnett, Gilbert Arenas, and Jeff Teague give it real momentum. Playback’s monetization features, including room subscriptions and “power chats,” already give creators a way to generate revenue, and the company plans to layer on sponsorships and ads next.
With the new capital, Playback is accelerating its push to onboard more leagues and scale content access. Halperin framed it as a race: “We want to move as quickly as possible to build a bigger and bigger library of apps on our platform that allow fans to watch as much content as they want.”
Whether Playback becomes the Twitch for sports, or builds something even more tailored, will depend on how fast it can sign new rights deals and keep creators engaged. But for now, it’s building a new kind of digital arena—one where the fans sit closer to the front row than ever before.
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