It's been six months of building FAYDER. I want these updates to be open, so here's everything: the numbers, what's working, what isn't, and what I'm learning along the way.
The Numbers
Athletes: 36 have joined. 19 are live, 5 are about to go live, and 10 are already earning.
Fans: 127 have signed up. 74 have subscribed to an athlete, 33 paid and 41 free.
Positives
The idea lands. Athletes get it straight away: it's a direct line to the people who want to back them. Fans get it too. They help fund an athlete's journey and get brought behind the scenes in return. Neither side needs it over-explained.
Fans are staying. Some have dropped off, which is normal, but most people who back an athlete stick with them.
Athletes keep joining. Nobody is paid to be on FAYDER. They join because they need it, and that's the best signal we could ask for.
People are noticing. We've caught the attention of UK Sport, the UK's funding agency. UK sport are fan's of our mission, respect the technology we've built and we're working on a partnership.
What's Hard
Awareness. Not enough people know FAYDER exists. That's on me. I've spent six months building and not nearly enough time telling the story. This update is part of fixing that.
Athletes learning to open up. Asking athletes to invite fans in means asking them to become something new. They aren't unwilling. Most have just spent their whole careers with their heads down. Opening the door takes practice, and we're helping them do it.
The cold start. Right now our communities have a "you first" problem. Fans aren't sure what to ask, athletes aren't sure what fans want to hear, so both sides wait. We're working with athletes to go first and give fans something to respond to.
What I'm learning: why do people back an athlete?
I've been spending a lot of time working out why people are backing athletes. Is it...
Is it access? Partly. If you had a direct line to Roger Federer, you'd take it. But access to the next Federer is different. It takes belief before there's any proof, and it asks something of you. Federer didn't get there alone. A team built him. What if fans could be that team?
Is it belief? The fans who've replied to my emails keep saying a version of the same thing: "We get it. These athletes need backing." That isn't sympathy. It's people who can see the system is broken and want to do something about it. Not charity. Not sponsorship. Belief, backed by action.
"what do fans want?"
I talk to athletes about this every day: what's interesting, what's entertaining, what's worth someone's time. Athletes are brilliant at their sport. We're helping them think the same way about their story.
why am I doing this?
I want two things to come out of FAYDER:
Fewer athletes quit because they can't afford to keep going.
Fans feel closer to the biggest moments in sport, because they were there before those moments happened.
I'll leave you with two questions.
What does the future of sport look like if only the athletes who can afford to compete make it?
And if the answer is that athletes pay their way by becoming part-time influencers, is that really the best we can do for the people we expect to win medals?
Know an athlete who'd be great on FAYDER? Send them this link
Disagree with anything? Get in touch: ben@fayder.app I read every email.