# Hydration Break

> What pro athletes build off the field. A sourced database of 48 professional athletes and 131 off-the-field ventures (businesses, investments, real estate, film & media, creative work, philanthropy). Every claim links to news or press sources. Updated 2026-10-28.

## Data

- [Full plain-text dump](https://hydrationbreak.co/llms-full.txt): every athlete, venture and source URL
- [JSON dataset](https://hydrationbreak.co/data/athletes.json): machine-readable, CC BY 4.0

## Categories

- [Business](https://hydrationbreak.co/category/business/): Athletes who founded, run or franchise real companies.
- [Investing](https://hydrationbreak.co/category/investing/): Team stakes, venture funds and startup cap tables.
- [Real Estate](https://hydrationbreak.co/category/real-estate/): Developers, landlords and commercial real-estate builders.
- [Film & Media](https://hydrationbreak.co/category/film-and-media/): Production companies, studios, shows and publishing.
- [Creative](https://hydrationbreak.co/category/creative/): Oscars, games and other creative work.
- [Philanthropy](https://hydrationbreak.co/category/philanthropy/): Foundations, schools, hospitals and community work.

## Athletes

- [LeBron James](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/lebron-james/): Basketball, USA. The NBA's all-time scoring leader built a Hollywood studio and a sports-media network on the side.
- [Kevin Durant](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/kevin-durant/): Basketball, USA. Two-time Finals MVP turned media mogul and prolific tech investor.
- [Peyton Manning](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/peyton-manning/): Football, USA. The audible-calling QB now runs a production studio named after his signature call.
- [Serena Williams](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/serena-williams/): Tennis, USA. 23-time Grand Slam champion who became a venture capitalist backing diverse founders.
- [Venus Williams](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/venus-williams/): Tennis, USA. Seven-time major champ who runs an interior design firm and co-owns an NFL stake.
- [Naomi Osaka](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/naomi-osaka/): Tennis, Japan. Four-time Slam winner building a media company and backing women's sports teams.
- [Magic Johnson](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/magic-johnson/): Basketball, USA. Five-time champion who became one of the most successful athlete-owners in sports.
- [Shaquille O'Neal](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/shaquille-oneal/): Basketball, USA. Hall of Famer, early Google investor, and fast-food empire builder.
- [Alex Rodriguez](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/alex-rodriguez/): Baseball, USA. A-Rod's second act is a real-estate and holdings empire.
- [Tom Brady](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/tom-brady/): Football, USA. Seven rings, then a broadcasting deal, a production company and an NFL ownership stake.
- [Stephen Curry](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/stephen-curry/): Basketball, USA. The greatest shooter ever runs a production company, a signature brand and a family foundation.
- [Michael Jordan](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/michael-jordan/): Basketball, USA. The first former player to become majority owner of an NBA team, now a NASCAR owner.
- [David Beckham](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/david-beckham/): Soccer, England. From free kicks to club president: Inter Miami, Salford and a stack of side bets.
- [Maria Sharapova](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/maria-sharapova/): Tennis, Russia. Five-time Slam champion turned candy founder and consumer-brand investor.
- [Roger Staubach](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/roger-staubach/): Football, USA. Hall of Fame QB who built a commercial real-estate firm and sold it for $613M.
- [Junior Bridgeman](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/junior-bridgeman/): Basketball, USA. Turned 450+ restaurants into a bottling empire, then bought Ebony and a piece of the Bucks.
- [Colin Kaepernick](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/colin-kaepernick/): Football, USA. Activist QB who founded a youth camp and a publishing house.
- [Patrick Mahomes](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/patrick-mahomes/): Football, USA. Chiefs superstar with stakes in three KC teams and a Whataburger expansion.
- [Lewis Hamilton](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/lewis-hamilton/): Formula 1, England. Seven-time champion with a plant-based burger chain, a spirits brand and a film credit.
- [Giannis Antetokounmpo](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/giannis-antetokounmpo/): Basketball, Greece. From Athens street vendor to MVP, owner, and subject of a Disney film.
- [Kobe Bryant](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/kobe-bryant/): Basketball, USA. The only NBA legend with an Academy Award.
- [Dwyane Wade](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/dwyane-wade/): Basketball, USA. Heat legend turned co-owner of the Utah Jazz and Chicago Sky.
- [Rory McIlroy](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/rory-mcilroy/): Golf, Northern Ireland. Major champion, VC firm founder, and co-creator of TGL with Tiger Woods.
- [Usain Bolt](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/usain-bolt/): Track & Field, Jamaica. The fastest man alive bet on scooters, esports and a new track series.
- [Tony Hawk](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/tony-hawk/): Skateboarding, USA. Skateboarding's Birdman owns a board company, a chicken spot, and funds skateparks.
- [Mia Hamm](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/mia-hamm/): Soccer, USA. Two-time World Cup winner, co-owner of LAFC and Angel City.
- [Billie Jean King](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/billie-jean-king/): Tennis, USA. Founder of the WTA and Women's Sports Foundation; pioneer of women's sports media.
- [Allyson Felix](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/allyson-felix/): Track & Field, USA. The most decorated U.S. track Olympian left Nike and built her own shoe company.
- [Candace Parker](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/candace-parker/): Basketball, USA. Three-time WNBA champ now running women's basketball at Adidas.
- [Dikembe Mutombo](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/dikembe-mutombo/): Basketball, DR Congo. Shot-blocking legend whose foundation built a 300-bed hospital in Kinshasa.
- [Alex Morgan](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/alex-morgan/): Soccer, USA. Two-time World Cup champion who co-founded a women's sports media company and writes kids' books.
- [Megan Rapinoe](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/megan-rapinoe/): Soccer, USA. World Cup winner and activist who now runs a production company with Sue Bird.
- [Sue Bird](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/sue-bird/): Basketball, USA. Four-time WNBA champion turned media founder.
- [Erling Haaland](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/erling-haaland/): Soccer, Norway. Norway's 2026 World Cup meme machine (cowboy Snapchats, leading the Viking Row after the win over Brazil) also runs a serious investment vehicle.
- [Martin Ødegaard](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/martin-degaard/): Soccer, Norway. Norway's captain grabbed the bass drum to lead the viral Viking Row on the pitch at the 2026 World Cup.
- [Leo Østigård](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/leo-stig-rd/): Soccer, Norway. Norway's 2026 World Cup defender has quietly built a personal index of Norwegian savings banks.
- [Jude Bellingham](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/jude-bellingham/): Soccer, England. His Haaland bromance and quick brace made him one of England's most-talked-about players at the 2026 World Cup.
- [Harry Kane](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/harry-kane/): Soccer, England. England's captain went viral for losing his voice at the 2026 World Cup; off the pitch he writes startup checks.
- [Bukayo Saka](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/bukayo-saka/): Soccer, England. England winger in the 2026 World Cup squad, known off the pitch for funding children's surgery in Nigeria.
- [Marcus Rashford](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/marcus-rashford/): Soccer, England. The footballer who changed UK child-food policy also runs a book club and a children's book line.
- [Lionel Messi](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/lionel-messi/): Soccer, Argentina. Argentina's captain, whose side knocked England out of the 2026 World Cup semifinal, is now a club owner in Uruguay.
- [Kylian Mbappé](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/kylian-mbapp/): Soccer, France. France's captain and striker already owns a club back home.
- [Cristiano Ronaldo](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/cristiano-ronaldo/): Soccer, Portugal. The most-followed athlete on earth runs hotels and part-owns a Portuguese media group.
- [Virat Kohli](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/virat-kohli/): Cricket, India. India's batting icon is a football club owner and a consumer-brand investor.
- [Rafael Nadal](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/rafael-nadal/): Tennis, Spain. The 22-time Slam champion co-owns a hotel brand with Meliá.
- [Roger Federer](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/roger-federer/): Tennis, Switzerland. His sneaker bet on a Swiss startup turned into one of sport's best investments.
- [Siya Kolisi](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/siya-kolisi/): Rugby, South Africa. Two-time World Cup-winning Springbok captain who runs a foundation with his wife Rachel.
- [Nico Rosberg](https://hydrationbreak.co/athletes/nico-rosberg/): Formula 1, Germany. The 2016 F1 world champion is now a venture capitalist.

## Optional

- [How we source](https://hydrationbreak.co/methodology/): sourcing rules, update cadence, corrections, data license
- [About](https://hydrationbreak.co/about/): editorial rules and how the site makes money