SCRUMMY
Former England rugby ace, 60, now making his own way outside of the game after creating ‘Tinder for sports stars’ app
It could soon expand to include three more sports
FORMER England rugby star Dean Richards has created an app dubbed the "sporting equivalent of Tinder".
The retired number eight, who also played for Leicester Tigers and the British Lions, has teamed up with his son William.
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Together they have created The Players Platform, a website and app for sports stars.
The service aims to provide opportunities for athletes who do not have contacts or agents.
Users are able to showcase their talents in a public forum with the hopes of attracting interest from elsewhere.
The platform has a swiping and matching feature similar to Tinder, prompting comparisons to the dating app.
Discussing the project, Richards told The Telegraph: "Players with any sort of standing within the game will have an agent, who will be able to push them around the world with their contacts.
"But there are so many out there who cannot touch base with people throughout the world, or even in Europe – even in another county.
"They don’t have the contacts or an agent or anything like that. It’s aimed at people just below elite level, those who would like to reach out to other parts of the world and experience cultures.
"William came through university and saw loads of kids who were either late developers or who wanted to travel the world using sport – and were never really given the opportunity because they didn’t have the contacts.
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"He thought it would be a good opportunity to develop an app and a website which gave these people the chance to promote themselves – whether that be locally or further afield.
"When he explained it to me, I thought it was a f***ing good idea!"
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With the website already live, the app is set to be released soon.
The Players Platform currently centres around rugby and football, but there are hopes to include netball, cricket and hockey in the future.
It is also already open to coaches, physios and analysts alongside players.
As a player, Richards represented England at three Rugby World Cups, reaching the final in 1991.
Since retiring, his coaching career has seen him work with Leicester, Grenoble, Harlequins and Newcastle Falcons, who he left in 2022.
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