In this very special guest episode, David travels to London to sit down with Eni Shabani, Co-Founder of Rising Ballers. Eni takes us behind the scenes of one of the biggest media platforms in football, sharing the deeply personal story of how a passion project, inspired by his younger brother's own difficult journey in the academy system, turned into a full-time, profitable business. 

KEY TAKEAWAYS 

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  Rising Ballers was born out of a personal problem: The platform was created as a passion project to give a voice to young, talented players who face an "unforgiving path" in the football industry, inspired directly by the co-founder's younger brother's experience.

  
  

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  Authenticity was the key to their early growth. The co-founders leaned into a "raw" style. They worked directly with players who had smaller social media followings, allowing them to authenticate the channel from the start and gain immediate traction.

  
  

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  The value of "making bets" on new initiatives: Ani credits their creative success to constantly making bets, such as launching She's A Baller in 2019 to give a platform to young female footballers before the major wave of investment in women's sports.

  
  

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  Avoiding the "corporate machine" is crucial: The platform has intentionally avoided raising money to stay independent and maintain its authentic, non-corporate voice, which is highly valued by its young audience.

  
  

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  Impact over money is the core value: Initiatives like The Chance, which connects 32 top young players with multiple scouts from clubs like Arsenal and Fulham, illustrate their primary goal of making a tangible impact on the players' careers.

  
  

BEST MOMENTS

"The industry itself has its challenges... so why not create a voice for these players where platform them, hero them, providing the opportunity for them to make it in the first team."

"What [SBTV founder Jamal Edwards] did for music culture... was inspirational. We saw what he did in music, and we saw that actually within football, there wasn't really a voice for these communities."

"I always tell this story... Brendan would be showing up in Leyton Orient kit... I'd be showing up in a full suit, coming from work. It's like, what the hell is going on here?"

"If we can tell Arsenal fans that they've got a gem like Saka or someone else coming up, then of course that will put pressure on the manager to start him."

"I've worked... really long weeks... but honestly, because it's something that I've been deeply passionate about, it's never felt like work."

TO CONNECT WITH ENI

https://www.linkedin.com/in/enishabani/ 

https://www.linkedin.com/company/risingballers/

https://risingballers.co/ 

OUR SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-chimbaza-/ 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebusinessoffootballpodcast/

Tik Tok : https://www.tiktok.com/@businessoffootball

HOST BIO

Right out of the block, David Chimbaza took his International Football Business degree to do exactly what it says on the tin: Launch his own International Football Business, DTCMEDIAUK. His company works with professional leaders & business owners in the football industry to create, monetise & scale their brands for their business & professional gains. Having created and managed multiple of his own sports social media accounts from the age of 15, many of which have scaled thousands of pounds & millions of views across 3 different platforms, David has constantly found ways to bring new and engaging entertainment to his audience.  Now documenting his story of managing his Global business, his experiences in Stewarding, digital management & many more, David will bring you a fresh insight into how anyone can conquer the industry. 

This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media. https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/