Vicis announced an expansion of its $30 million Series B fundraising, adding investments from quarterbacks Alex Smith and Aaron Rodgers, through Rx3 Ventures. This is the second investment in the company by both NFL quarterbacks.
The additional funding will help Vicis meet heavy demand for its Zero1 Youth football helmet, the youth version of its top-rated Zero1. The company has raised more than $85M to date as it continues its mission to protect athletes on the field at every level.
“We have a responsibility to protect young players for football to continue to thrive,” said Alex Smith. “Helping innovators like Vicis allows me to give back to the sport I love, in a way that will make a difference to the next generation of athletes.”
“We develop our protective technologies by working closely with subject-matter experts such as NFL players, equipment managers, and medical staff,” said Dave Marver, Vicis CEO and co-founder. “We are gratified by this additional investment from Alex and Aaron, and even prouder that our new youth helmet is in such high demand.”
The Zero1 Youth is the first football helmet engineered specifically for young players and the impacts they encounter on the field. Like its varsity counterpart, which has been adopted by over 150 professional and college teams and 1,200 high school programs, the Zero1 Youth features a deformable outer shell and unique columnar layer designed to slow impact forces like a car bumper. The helmet’s lightweight, compact design is tailored to youth anatomies and offers the industry’s widest field of view, allowing young players to see more of the field and react more quickly to potential impacts.
Developed with the same methodical rigor and creativity as the flagship Zero1, which ranked first in both 2017 and 2018’s NFL/NFLPA Helmet Laboratory Performance Testing, the Zero1 Youth is available now for team and individual orders.
Image courtesy Vicis
