Jan 26, 2026
Welcome to episode 227 of Sports Management Podcast.
Today’s guest is Alan Arlt, founder of
Ultimate Hoops and co-founder of ARLT Consulting.
Alan built a recreational basketball league into a highly-engaged
sports product with stats, highlights, and experiences that made
everyday players feel like pros and he sold it with an 18x return
in under two years.
In this episode, we spoke about:
What makes a sports product truly ‘sticky’
How to scale without losing quality
How AI is changing the future of participation sports.
And much more!
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Listeners of the Sports Management Podcast get an exclusive 20% off on SportsPro+ with the code SMPOD20. All you need to do is head to sportspro.com/membership and start exploring today.
Time stamps:
00:00 Intro
00:58 Building “sticky” sports products with ARLT
Consulting
02:16 From sports nerd to sports entrepreneur
02:59 The Ultimate Hoops idea (treat everyone like Kobe)
03:42 From 6 teams to 40 teams in under a year
03:42 Acquired by Lifetime Fitness (18 months in)
04:26 The Carmelo Anthony moment (“I think I’m done”)
05:11 The 18x return (and why he didn’t plan an exit)
05:58 The “sticky product” flywheel (daily engagement)
06:54 Passion vs practicality (unit economics matter)
08:22 The 2-step decision process (gut → diligence)
09:46 Why athlete partnerships are everything (B2A
mindset)
11:51 AI changed everything (stats + highlights at scale)
13:28 How ARLT uses AI with clients today
14:18 Why this model works for every sport
15:06 The golden rule (people want to feel special)
15:45 The post-game interview that proved the concept
17:24 Why AI will create “1,000 Ultimate Hoops”
19:53 The mindset shift (leaving Discovery to take the
leap)
21:36 Why side hustles are the new advantage
22:50 The biggest founder mistakes (too fast vs too slow)
24:10 Best advice for founders (just get started)
25:47 How to use AI without losing the human edge
27:07 Leadership style (do every job, stay in the weeds)
30:28 Hiring without a vacuum (team fit matters)
32:11 Scaling too fast (when it stopped feeling like Ultimate
Hoops)
33:02 COVID shutdown (the hardest stretch)
35:25 Letting 85% of the team go (and rebuilding)
37:02 Guest recommendations (SportsVisio + AIM Sports
Group)
39:00 Outro
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