Fantasy sports startup Dream11’s parent company Dream Sports has raised $400 million in the latest funding round led by the US-based private equity firm TCV, D1 Capital Partners, and Falcon Edge. The investment marks maiden India deal for TCV that had earlier backed companies such as Airbnb and Netflix. Dream11 also saw the participation of its existing investors such as Tiger Global, ChrysCapital, TPG Growth, Steadview Capital, and Footpath Ventures. The latest round comes six months after the company had raised a $225 million funding round led by Tiger Global Management, TPG Tech Adjacencies (TTAD), ChrysCapital, and Footpath Venture at a valuation of nearly $2.5 billion. The current round has reportedly valued the company at $5 billion.
“This is a huge vote of confidence to the Indian start-up ecosystem. We have created the Fantasy Sports category in India to drive digital engagement to real-life sporting events and bring fans closer to the sport they love. We are proud to continually contribute to the overall expansion of the Indian sports ecosystem,” said Harsh Jain, CEO and co-founder of Dream Sports. Dream11 was launched in 2008 and is among the earliest entrants in the fantasy gaming space in India.
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“India is home to the world’s largest and most energetic sports fan base with a dynamic mix that is unique to the subcontinent. Dream Sports is serving this community with a highly innovative product offering,” said Gopi Vaddi, General Partner, TCV. Dream11 claimed to have over 10 crore users playing fantasy cricket, football, kabaddi, basketball, hockey, volleyball, handball, rugby and baseball. The latest investment has come ahead of the 2021 Indian Premier League season that is scheduled next month.
According to a March 2019 report by KPMG-IFSG on sports gaming in India, Dream11 had a share of nearly 90 per cent in the local fantasy sports market. Moreover, as per a July 2020 report ‘Business of Fantasy Sports’ published by the Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports and KPMG, the gross revenue of the fantasy sports market in India was around $340.47 million in FY20 vis-à-vis around $131.64 million in FY19. The market is likely to be worth $3.7 billion by 2024.