Huntington Beach, California (August 19, 2024) – Balltime, the world’s first AI-powered volleyball platform, today announced a groundbreaking 3-year partnership with League One Volleyball (LOVB), the largest brand in youth volleyball. Announced just after the 2024 Paris Olympics, this collaboration marks an important milestone in bringing AI technology to LOVB’s youth club network.
Balltime AI and LOVB are teaming up to provide junior athletes, coaches and club directors access to state-of-the-art AI video analysis, recruiting tools and statistical insights through the Balltime platform.
The collaboration builds off of a successful pilot last season, during which LOVB supported 500 of their club athletes to get recruited to play at the collegiate level in 2024. The new partnership includes exclusive features to help LOVB support their athletes with recruitment.
“As volleyball players and fans, we are so proud to work with LOVB - they’re a powerhouse moving the sport of volleyball forward"
“As volleyball players and fans, we are so proud to work with LOVB - they’re a powerhouse moving the sport of volleyball forward,” said Dan Banon, Co-Founder and CEO at Balltime. “Like us, they also want to make volleyball the highest profile women’s sport in the United States. We aim to fuel that growth by providing volleyball organizations at every level - from grassroots and youth clubs to professional teams - with the cutting-edge technology they need to take their game to the next level. And that’s exactly what we’re doing with this partnership.”
Balltime is the world's first AI-powered volleyball platform, trusted by over 3,500 teams globally. Designed for all levels, Balltime's easy-to-use interface and affordable pricing make pro-level video and analytics tools accessible to youth clubs, universities, high schools, and international teams. Backed by Phil Dalhausser, Taylor Crabb, and Stein Metzger, as well as Carli Lloyd and Zoe Fleck - who are also LOVB athletes - Balltime is on a mission to change the future of volleyball.
LOVB is a first-of-its-kind community that champions every stage of an athlete’s journey, from youth clubs through to professionals. The organization has rapidly grown to encompass the largest network of junior volleyball clubs in the U.S., with over 50 youth clubs, over 14,000 athletes, 3,000 coaches, and 6 professional teams. This foundation supports the upcoming launch of LOVB's professional league, LOVB Pro, which will be the first professional full season volleyball league in the U.S.
Already-announced pro players for the LOVB league include eleven athletes who recently participated in the 2024 Paris Olympics. LOVB has raised more than $50 million and its investors include notable figures like Billie Jean King, Kevin Durant, Lindsey Vonn, Jayson Tatum, and Candace Parker.
Balltime is the next generation video & analytics platform for volleyball, entirely powered by AI. Created by volleyball players, our mission is to democratize access to pro level video & analytics tools and to help athletes in the recruiting process. Individual families, high schools, youth clubs, collegiate programs and international teams all use Balltime’s platform to easily break down film, view stats & analytics, and create highlight videos to power their recruiting journeys. Balltime is headquartered in Tel Aviv and backed by some of the biggest names in the sport (Phil Dalhausser, Carli Lloyd, Zoe Fleck, Taylor Crabb, Stein Metzger). Learn more at https://www.balltime.com/ or on Instagram at @balltime.ai.
Founded in 2020, LOVB’s mission is to reimagine the future of volleyball. With a unique community up approach, the female first, single entity league has attracted the attention of notable investors from female founded companies who understand the opportunity the league will bring as it reaches 38 million former and current players in the US and continues its trajectory of being the most played youth sport for girls. For more information on LOVB, its athlete council and its professional league, please visit www.lovb.com or on social channels like Instagram.
