STRYKZ: Meet The Management and Advisory Team

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strykz

5 min readJun 21, 2018

Anyone with even a fleeting interest in football will know it’s all about the team. You’ll never get anywhere with just one or two star players.

It’s the same with STRYKZ. Our team come from multiple, varied backgrounds and we believe that this is our strength.

When considering whether to take part in an ICO, it’s important to establish that the business has a core team who have a successful and lengthy background in their industry. The experience of the team is a key part of driving an ICO from a crypto vision to a viable, successful project.

We have a solid team of management and advisors all bringing a unique and vital voice to our business.

The STRYKZ and Football-Stars team have a deep and well-rounded understanding of their field, bringing their combined passion and knowledge to the platform.

The Power Of Three

Our Management team is made up of three key people: CEO Dirk Weyel, CMO Christian Szymanski and CFO Hong Thieu.

Dirk Weyel brings 20 years of experience in the gaming industry, having previously co-founded Frogster Interactive.

With his business acumen and wealth of knowledge he helped Frogster to grow into a leading European online games publisher.

He brings a deep understanding and knowledge of the gaming industry and is perfectly placed to establish fantasy sports in Europe and Asia with STRYKZ and the Football-Stars platform.

Christian Szymanski is also an alumnus of Frogster Games. As the Marketing director of Frogster Online Gaming he had a worldwide responsibility for major online games. Whilst at Codemasters he helmed the marketing for award-winning products like The Lord of the Rings Online and Operation Flashpoint.

His marketing career spans an impressive 20 years, during which he has built up a track record in developing brands and advertising strategies, so we know his safe hands will help guide Football-Stars and STRYKZ to success.

The trio is rounded out with financial mastermind Hong Thieu . In 2017, Hong brought 20 years experience to the Stryking management team when he joined as CFO. His financial expertise, entrepreneurial spirit and connections to Asia will no doubt serve STRYKZ and Football-Stars well as we push to develop fantasy sports to the Asian market.

Despite their diverse backgrounds, the three men are bound together by a love of football. It’s this passion — coupled with their unique business heritages that will drive them to make Football-Stars a success.

Strength In Numbers

Like any good team, we know where our individual strengths lie and that there’s power in combining them.

Our management are backed up by a number of advisors, covering the business, technical and sports industries.

Christopher Gerlinger is a serial entrepreneur with over 20 years of management and advisory experience in the Internet industry. Christopher is founder and CEO of German Startups Group, a leading German VC investor.

He is the former co-managing director at Frogster Interactive, and states, “I know Dirk from former times as co-managing director at Frogster Interactive which is why my participation in Stryking was a no brainer as I am familiar with Dirk’s capabilities and he has earned my full confidence over the years.”

Gaurang Torvekar is the Co-Founder and CEO of Indorse, a social network for professionals. He brings a strong background in blockchain to the pitch.

Having started mining cryptocurrency in 2011, he settled into the space with the use of smart contracts in 2015. He has a proven track record in ICO sales, and can bring a wealth of knowledge with him.

Heissam Hartmann has been active for 20 years in the digital startup world and has been involved in companies like eBay, MyVideo and brands4friends.

His current project is Passiontainment.com. A celebrity and influencer marketing service which bridges the gap between technology and entertainment. Heissam’s main role as an advisor is to approach influencers from the football world and create partnerships between them and Stryking.

He has already formed a successful partnership with former FIFA World footballer of the year and UEFA advisor Luís Figo.

Luís Figo has taken on the role of brand ambassador and can not only bring a football star’s opinion to the table, but a business one.

Speaking four languages fluently and holding a General Management degree, Luís is involved in several entrepreneurial projects, and is incredibly well-placed to be the face of Football-Stars.

Distinguished crypto investing expert and serial entrepreneur Samson Lee, Founder and CEO of Coinstreet Partners, has also taken on the mantle of advisor, bringing a sound knowledge of cryptocurrency and and business development to the team.

The Founder and CEO of football agency Pro Profil GmbH Thomas Kroth has also joined us recently.

After 14 years playing in the Bundesliga with Eintracht Frankfurt, Borussia Dortmund, Hamburger SV and 1. FC Köln, Thomas established a successful football agency and can bring key sports knowledge and business acumen to STRYKZ.

He can also supply strong links with players across some of Europe’s and Asia’s biggest clubs and leagues allowing for Football-Stars (https://football-stars.com/#/registration) to really spread its reach across the continents.