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ABOUT US
Athletepreneur: Built to Stand on Business
Founded in 2005, and molded into a full-service agency in 2022, Athletepreneur® is more than an agency—it’s a movement. We’re redefining what it means to be an athlete in the modern era, sitting at the intersection of representation, education, and innovation. Our mission is simple: to equip athletes with the tools, partnerships, and mindset to own their future—on and off the field of play.
Whether you're lining up in the starting blocks, gearing up for Sundays, or building your brand as a college athlete, today’s competitors are more than performers—they’re platforms. And yet, far too many still leave the game without a roadmap, a team, or a vision for what comes next. We’re here to change that.
OUR Team
Mike Fingado
Co-Founder | NFL Agent | Entrepreneur
Mike Fingado is a veteran NFL sports agent, angel investor, and startup founder operating at the intersection of sports, tech, and venture capital. A former Florida State University track & field athlete, Mike holds a Master’s in Sports Management and completed executive education in Fintech from Wharton.
Before co-founding Athletepreneur®, Mike spent five years at Amazon, where he led the launch of new programs and mastered the art of scaling innovation inside complex systems. He’s a two-time accelerator alum (NMotion and 9Mile Labs) and actively advises top programs like Techstars, Y Combinator, and Gener8tor.
Mike’s work centers on building athlete-led ventures and funding pipelines. Whether structuring NIL deals or advising startups on go-to-market strategy, he brings founder empathy, investor savvy, and deep domain expertise to every table he joins.
Brian Dzingai
Co-Founder | Olympian | Financial Strategist
Brian Dzingai is a two-time Olympian (Athens 2004, Beijing 2008) and a seasoned financial executive with a unique blend of experience across elite sport, global finance, and startup innovation. His career includes roles at Deloitte, AllianceBernstein, and Aon.
Brian holds undergraduate and MBA degrees from Florida State University, as well as a Master’s in Intellectual Property Management from the Illinois Institute of Technology. He is also the co-founder of Athlete+, a fintech venture reimagining financial products for the sports ecosystem.
Biran is a TEDx speaker and has led financial literacy and entrepreneurship workshops at the Watson Institute and a program with the University of Chicago's Polsky Exchange
Emily Breunig
Startup Operator | VC Consultant | Athlete Advocate
Emily Breunig is a multi-time founding team member and startup operator with deep experience in biotech and health tech ventures. With degrees in Biology and Public Health from the University of Wisconsin and the University of Hohenheim (Germany), and a background as a collegiate volleyball player, Emily brings both scientific precision and athlete empathy to her work.
Emily has served as a venture consultant to multiple VC firms, providing diligence support and strategic growth advisory by tapping into her network of angels, operators, and subject-matter experts. Emily is also a frequent judge and mentor at innovation events including Pitch Mayhem, the Wisconsin Early Stage Symposium, and the Student Sports Business Conference. With a career spanning academic, non-profit, and commercial sectors, her expertise ranges from R&D and operations to fundraising and community strategy—making her an invaluable bridge between athletes and the wider startup ecosystem.