BIRMINGHAM, Ala., June 03, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) has announced that SWAC TV, the official free streaming platform of the league has joined Mercurius Media Capital (MMC) as a Strategic Limited Partner, becoming the latest media platform to enter MMC's media-for-equity venture fund.
The SWAC counts over one million active alumni, 70,000 current students, and a fanbase that consistently fills stadiums across six states. Its audience is 87% African American, 67% college-educated, and 64% homeowners.
It is also a community that mainstream advertising has historically undervalued. Joining MMC gives SWAC TV access to a portfolio of consumer brands looking to build lasting relationships with that audience, while MMC portfolio companies gain a platform with deep roots and genuine cultural credibility.
The partnership combines SWAC TV's live sports reach and cultural authority with MMC's deal flow and media-for-equity structure. SWAC TV launched on August 1, 2025, the result of three years of development under Commissioner Dr. Charles McClelland.
It is free to download on Roku, Amazon Fire, Apple TV, Google Play, and Android TV, and streams all 18 SWAC-sponsored sports. In its inaugural season, the platform carried 45 football games, 137 basketball games, and 179 Olympic sports events and championships. It sits alongside the conference's existing media broadcast partnerships delivering over 360 televised games annually.
The SWAC's live event footprint reinforces that reach off screen. The Magic City Classic in Birmingham annually draws 62,000 fans while the Bayou Classic at the Caesars Superdome (61,998), the Florida Classic in Orlando (57,801), and the State Fair Classic in Dallas (55,321) also welcome an impressive number of fans each year. The conference has led NCAA Division I FCS in average home football attendance in 47 of the past 48 years, reaching over 800,000 fans in the 2025 season.
SWAC TV gives the conference direct ownership of its distribution for the first time. For brands in the MMC ecosystem, that means reaching an audience through a platform built by and for the community it serves.
"We look for media partners who have real trust with their audience,” said Piyush Puri, Founding Partner, Mercurius Media Capital. “The SWAC has built that over a century. SWAC TV now gives brands a way to act on it. That combination is exactly what we built MMC to find."
“The Southwestern Athletic Conference is extremely excited to partner with Mercurius Media Capital as we continue to expand the reach and impact of SWAC TV,” said SWAC Commissioner Dr. Charles McClelland.
“This partnership represents a tremendous opportunity to connect innovative brands with one of the most passionate, loyal, and culturally influential audiences in collegiate athletics. SWAC TV was created to provide our member institutions, student-athletes, and fans with a platform that authentically tells the story of our conference while delivering premier live sports and original content. By aligning with MMC, we are further positioning SWAC TV for long-term growth while creating meaningful opportunities that will enhance the visibility and value of the Southwestern Athletic Conference and the communities we proudly represent.”
About Mercurius Media Capital
Mercurius Media Capital (MMC) is pioneering a new category in venture capital: media as growth capital. As the first U.S.-based media-for-equity venture fund, MMC provides consumer facing companies with premium advertising inventory in exchange for equity, enabling them to scale brand awareness and customer acquisition without sacrificing cash reserves.
Co-founded by Satyan Gajwani and Piyush Puri, who bring over fifteen years of experience and a $3 billion track record in media investments through The Times of India Group, MMC launched in December 2023 and currently has $235M in media capital commitments (including optional capital).
The firm partners with leading media platforms, including Sinclair Broadcast Group, TelevisaUnivision, A+E Global Media, Atmosphere TV, and more to deliver nationwide reach across various channels such as television, digital, and out-of-home.
MMC has deployed nearly $40 million across its portfolio, empowering startups to compete with established players by combining capital efficiency, advertising expertise, and strategic operational support under one platform.
About the SWAC
The Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) is considered one of the premier HBCU conferences in the country and currently ranks among the elite in the nation in terms of HBCU alumni playing with professional sports teams.
Current championship competition offered by the league includes competition for men in Baseball, Basketball, Cross Country, Football, Golf, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field and Tennis.
Women’s competition is offered in the sports of Basketball, Bowling, Cross Country, Golf, Indoor Track and Field, Outdoor Track and Field, Soccer, Softball, Tennis and Volleyball.
Follow the SWAC
For complete coverage of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, please follow the SWAC on social media at @theswac (Twitter), @theswac (Facebook), and @theswac (Instagram) or visit the official home of the Southwestern Athletic Conference at www.swac.org.
Contact:
Kavitha Ramaswamy
Kavitha@mmc.us
