Magnus Carlsen is demonstrating his passion for soccer by opening his wallet.
The Norwegian chess grandmaster has become an investor in soccer training and entertainment company TOCA Football. The five-time world champion joins a growing list of star investors from the sports world including England national soccer team captain Harry Kane and most recently Angel City FC standouts Alyssa and Gisele Thompson.
Financial terms of the Carlsen deal were not disclosed but he will also serve as a brand ambassador as part of the company equity deal. The world’s top-ranked player will look to find ways to involve soccer and chess fans while promoting TOCA as part of the partnership. In a release, he says there’s “a lot of crossover” between the two activities.
This is the latest example of Carlsen’s interest in soccer. The 33-year-old previously was one of the top- ranked players in Fantasy Premier League, one of the world’s most popular fantasy games.
A chess prodigy, Carlsen rose to fame at a young age and was awarded the grandmaster title at 13. Many consider him the best chess player of the last decade. Though he’s not an athlete per se like TOCA’s other brand ambassadors, he provides the company an opportunity to cross over into a different fan demographic that will potentially grow their consumer base.
TOCA, founded in 2016 by former Major League soccer (MLS) midfielder Eddie Lewis, has been growing its profile in recent years. The MLS-backed tech experiences company struck a 10-year deal with the league back in 2022 to become the official training and entertainment facility partner.