India’ leading sports technology firm Dream Sports has raised $225 million (Rs 1,650 crore) in investment comprising a primary capital infusion and secondary transactions led by Tiger Global Management, TPG Tech Adjacencies (TTAD), ChrysCapital and Footpath Ventures.
Dream Sports is the parent company of Dream11, FanCode and DreamX (DreamPay and DreamSetGo). Avendus Capital was the financial advisor to Dream Sports on this transaction.
According to sources, the valuation of the startup has jumped to $2.5 billion from $1.1 billion in April 2019. In April 2019, the sports platform became the first gaming company in the country to make it to the elite club of privately-held startups valued at $1 billion or more, when US-based hedge fund Steadview Capital led a $60 million round by purchasing secondary stakes from early investors. The company was valued at $700 million in September 2018, when it raised $100 million from Chinese internet giant Tencent.
Dream11 recently won the bid for the title sponsorship of the 13th season of Indian Premier League (IPL 2020) starting from September 19 in UAE.
Talking about the deal, Harsh Jain, CEO and Co-Founder, Dream Sports said, “We are excited to welcome our new partners, who share our passion for sports and have extensive experience in building highly valuable tech companies in India. As a homegrown Indian company, we are proud to continue adding value to our 10 crore Indian sports fans, investors, employees and the overall sports ecosystem in India. In the last two years, we have grown beyond fantasy sports to sports content, merchandise, streaming, experiences, and there is much more to come. Our vision is to ‘Make Sports Better’ for India and Indian fans through sports technology and innovation.”
Talking about this development, Akshay Tanna, Managing Director, TPG said, “The sports sector has high growth potential in India. There is a significant opportunity to enhance the fan experience and we are excited to partner with Dream Sports to leverage technology in ways that will deepen the connection between Indian fans and the sports they love.”
Commenting on this development, Kshitij Sheth, Vice President, ChrysCapital, said, “Dream Sports is the largest and fastest-growing Sports Tech platform in the country with a phenomenal track record. ChrysCapital is excited to be a part of their vision to transform the way sport is consumed through technology and innovation.”
Delighted about the rapid growth of the company and industry, Bhavit Sheth, COO and Co-Founder, Dream Sports, said, “We welcome our new partners in this phase of our growth. We have grown from one to many brands and from 200 Sportans (employees of Dream Sports) to 450 in the last two years. I am proud of our lean yet highly efficient team that has been the driving force behind the creation of ‘Sports Tech’ as a new industry category in India.”
