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§ Private Profile · West Hartford, Connecticut, 06117, United States
Digital platform connecting recreational tennis and pickleball players with courts, coaches, lessons, and matches.
Based in New York City, Break the Love operates a digital marketplace that connects recreational racquet sports players with available courts, professional coaches, and competitive matches. The platform facilitates bookings for tennis and pickleball activities across public and private facilities, serving a user base of over 120,000 individuals across nine states and 41 cities. The enterprise generates revenue through marketplace booking fees, tournament hosting, and corporate sponsorships, supported by $2.5 million in seed funding led by the Lake Nona Fund. To scale its operations and enhance its service offerings, the startup collaborates with prominent industry partners including the United States Tennis Association, Wilson Sporting Goods, and Adidas. The company is also developing a sister brand called Break the Birdie to expand into the golf sector. Break the Love was founded in 2019 by Trisha Goyal.
Break the Love has raised $3.3M across 2 funding rounds.
Break the Love has raised $3.3M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Break the Love is a mobile app that connects recreational tennis and pickleball players with each other, available courts at private clubs, colleges, and public parks, coaches, and local competitions, acting as a "virtual tennis club" for all skill levels.[1][2][3] Founded in 2019 and headquartered in West Hartford, Connecticut, it serves everyday athletes seeking convenient, personalized racquet sports experiences without the barriers of traditional country clubs, solving issues like coordinating match play, court bookings, and community building via a one-stop marketplace.[1][2][6] The company has shown strong growth momentum, reaching 120,000 users, securing a $2.5 million seed round in 2022 from investors like Lake Nona Fund and Antler Ventures, and expanding partnerships with brands such as Wilson, Equinox, YouFit Gyms, and the USTA.[2][5]
It has evolved into Break Sports, broadening beyond racquet sports to include golf and other court sports across 20 U.S. cities, with revenue under $5 million and a tech stack including Mapbox, NodeJS, and Google tools.[1][6]
Break the Love was founded in 2019 by Trisha Goyal, a NYU Stern School of Business graduate with prior experience in consumer tech at AppNexus (AdTech), The Huffington Post (product and business development), ESPN (leading digital product), and GIPHY.[2][3] The idea emerged when Goyal moved from New York to Connecticut for an ESPN job and struggled to find consistent tennis match play, facing limited options like expensive club memberships or disorganized Facebook/Meetup groups with inconvenient logistics.[2][3][5][6]
Goyal leveraged her product management expertise to build a platform addressing these pain points, launching with micro-community features like interest-driven leagues and groups that drove early traction.[5] Pivotal moments include rapid expansion into pickleball amid its surge in popularity, a $2.5 million seed funding round in January 2022, and high-profile 2022 activations at events like the WTA Finals and Art Basel.[2][5] By 2025, it has rebranded to Break Sports, expanding to golf and more sports while operating in 20 U.S. cities.[6]
Break the Love rides the explosive growth of recreational racquet sports, particularly pickleball's mainstream surge and tennis's resurgence post-pandemic, fueled by demand for accessible, social fitness amid hybrid lifestyles.[2][4] Timing is ideal as technology disrupts traditional club models—high costs and exclusivity—enabling scalable, on-demand booking platforms that lower barriers for non-elites.[3][6]
Market forces like rising participation (e.g., pickleball's exponential engagement), venue partnerships, and brand tie-ins position it favorably in the $multi-billion sports tech sector.[2][5] It influences the ecosystem by reinventing "social sports" platforms, inspiring similar marketplaces for everyday athletes and promoting sustainable growth through data-driven tools for providers.[2][4][6]
Break the Love is poised to dominate recreational sports discovery by scaling its marketplace model across more sports like golf and court-based activities, targeting further geographic expansion and tech upgrades for providers.[2][4][6] Trends like AI personalization, hybrid virtual-physical communities, and pickleball's continued boom will shape its path, potentially unlocking new revenue via premium features and global reach.[2][4]
Its influence may evolve from racquet sports niche player to comprehensive "Break Sports" hub, challenging incumbents by prioritizing user-centric innovation—much like how it turned a personal tennis frustration into a thriving virtual club for 120,000+ users.[2][5][6]
Break the Love has raised $3.3M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Break the Love's investors include Thomas Rudy, Antler, Kayyak Ventures, Plum Alley Investments, Primary Venture Partners, Spark Capital, Trajectory Ventures, Scott Belsky, Tom Williams, Brian O'Kelley, Hannah Bronfman, Inez Matadin.
Break the Love has raised $3.3M across 2 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $3.0M Seed in January 2022.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 1, 2022 | $3M Seed | Thomas Rudy | Antler, Kayyak Ventures, Plum Alley Investments, Primary Venture Partners, Spark Capital, Trajectory Ventures, Scott Belsky, TOM Williams, Brian O'kelley, Hannah Bronfman, Inez Matadin, Sanne Vloet, Vania King, WIM Fissette, Caddie Ventures, RED Giraffe Advisors | Announced |
| Aug 1, 2020 | $250K Seed | — | Grotech Ventures, NRV, Point Judith Capital, Razor's Edge Ventures | Announced |