UNA Sports Group Leads Investment in The Curling Group

UNA Sports Group has led an eight-figure investment round in The Curling Group (TCG), with participation from Relay Ventures. TCG is the company behind the Grand Slam of Curling, the Rock Channel media platform, and Rock League, a team-based professional league that brings together male and female curlers under a franchise model. UNA builds franchises in emerging leagues. Its portfolio includes the X Games Club New York summer and winter franchises in the MoonPay X Games League, where it is the first single group to own two clubs, and an investment in Unrivaled, the women's professional 3-on-3 basketball league.

David Rader, UNA's Co-Founder, President and COO, will join TCG's board. Del Wright, UNA's Co-Founder, CEO and Managing Partner, will be a board observer. UNA will also work with TCG's leadership on strategy, commercial partnerships and growth initiatives.

TCG cites the following audience figures for the Grand Slam of Curling's 2026 season opener in Victoria, compared with the opening event of the 2025 season:

105.5 million social impressions (up 437%)

50.7 million video views (up 489%)

Nearly 118,000 new followers

On CBC, viewership of the Sunday women's final rose 203% year over year and ranked among Canada's 50 most-watched programs of the day, despite NFL, NHL and MLB playoff competition

Women make up about 54% of the Grand Slam's linear TV audience and about 65% of Rock League's streaming audience.

This season, TCG signed five-year agreements with CBC and Sportsnet covering more than 300 hours of Grand Slam of Curling and Rock League coverage on Canadian linear television, roughly double previous years. It also signed a three-year agreement with ESPN for more than 300 hours of live coverage on ESPN+ in the U.S.

TCG acquired the Grand Slam of Curling, now in its 26th season, from Rogers Sportsnet in 2024 and launched Rock Channel that fall. It also owns and operates Rock League and all six of its franchises, each fielding five men and five women and representing the U.S., Canada, Europe and Asia Pacific. TCG's investors also include Pro Football Hall of Famer and competitive curler Jared Allen, who is an advisor to the company.

The Grand Slam of Curling Masters begins Tuesday, Nov. 3. Rock League, which debuted with a condensed season in April 2026, returns in January for its first full season: five events through April 2027, including its U.S. debut in Utica, N.Y., and a championship round in Kalamazoo, Mich.

We look for sports where fan demand is already strong and the commercial opportunity is just beginning to take shape, and curling is a perfect example, says Rader. Curling's audience is growing, getting younger, and going global. The TCG team has built the pieces to serve it: a premium event series in the Grand Slam of Curling, a direct line to fans through Rock Channel, and a brand-new league in Rock League. We're excited to join the board and help build a business that matches the sport's momentum.

Curling is woven into Canada's sporting identity, and we're building a modern sports entertainment company to take it to the world, says Nic Sulsky, Co-Founder and CEO, The Curling Group. Partnering with a U.S.-based investor like UNA is a vote of confidence in the sport, and a bridge to the American market, where our audience is already growing fast. UNA's experience building franchises in emerging leagues, and its team's prior experience across the NHL, NBA, and Formula 1, make them the right partner for our next stage. Three years from now, I want people to see a sustainable business built around curling competitions in Canada and the United States. Five years from now, I want them to see that we've changed what the sport can be globally.

The best opportunities in sports are the ones hiding in plain sight, and curling has been hiding in plain sight for decades, says John Albright, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Relay Ventures. TCG has the assets, the audience, and now, with UNA, the partner to unlock it. We're investing with conviction in what comes next.

As an entrepreneur and an early investor in TCG, I've seen firsthand how much untapped demand there is for this sport, says Allen. By securing a strategic partner in UNA, TCG has proven there is significant momentum behind curling in the U.S. and around the world. As a big fan of both TCG and the sport, I couldn't be more excited to be a part of what comes next!

LINK:	https://www.sportsvideo.org/2026/11/02/una-sports-group-leads-investme...
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