Recently, Swiss billionaire Carsten Koerl was featured in a podcast where he shared a story from three years back. “That was one of the moments in your life and I’ve been standing there short after Covid with Michael Jordan. He said to me in the morning. He said ‘Carsten, today I’m your cheerleader’ and I only smiled,” Koerl said, via Bloomberg Podcasts. Amidst the many business investments that Jordan engaged in, he was also one of the early investors in Carsten Koerl’s sports betting venture, which made headlines when it went public through an IPO in 2021.

The company’s owner also had some high praises for the legend. “He’s so competitive, and that’s what I get from Michael. He is, I think, the most competitive person on the planet I know, and learning from him, that spirit I want to win was and is, for me, a great exercise,” said Koerl, who launched Sportradar in 2001 after he realized he can’t have a future in athletics.

Sportradar is currently valued at $3.43 billion and has been a global leader in sports betting and entertainment products as the company operates at the crossroads of sports, media, and betting, offering tailored solutions to sports federations, media outlets, consumer platforms, and betting operators, all aimed at driving business growth. In fact, Jordan took on a more prominent role in Koerl’s venture when he became the company’s special advisor.

Michael Jordan as the special advisor in Carsten Koerl’s billion-dollar company

It was back in September 2021 when Jordan took his involvement with Koerl’s project to the next level by joining Sportradar’s directors, executive team, lead investors, and honored guests at the Nasdaq opening bell ringing ceremony. That event marked a significant milestone for Carsten Koerl as his company celebrated its first day as a publicly traded company.