A daily newsletter summarizing recent activity & interesting start-ups globally
RECENT NOTABLE ACTIVITY – SPORTS TECH
- NextVR, a live and on-demand VR streaming platform for sports and concerts, raised $20M Series B funding from CITIC GuoAn Group Link
- ROKA Sports, Texas-based private label multisport apparel and equipment retailer, raised $12.1M funding in equity financing Link
- Spartan, Boston-based obstacle racing series organizer, raised $10M Series B in equity funding from undisclosed investors Link
- Zeven, Bangalore-based Internet-first brand for sports merchandise, raised $5M Seed funding from undisclosed investors Link
- Nielsen, a global information and measurement company has acquired sports measurement company Repucom, expands Sports Analytics Link
- Catapult, a sports technology firm acquires XOS Digital, a sports management software provider for $78.9M and PlayerTek, a GPS tracking firm for $3.49M Link
- New York lawmakers vote to legalize online fantasy sports Link
- NIKE releases brain training exercise feature called ‘Pro Genius’ on its soccer app Link
- The FIA Formula E Championship will live-stream the 2015-16 season finale directly to Facebook using Grabyo, an official live streaming partner of Facebook Link
- Possible implications of the Brexit on the English premier league Link
- Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) sold for $4 billion Link
- Mercedes-Benz made a high-tech golf cart inspired by sports cars Link
- Team GB use virtual reality to help athletes train for Rio 2016 Link
- Halo Sport headset aims to synchronize the brain and body of Olympics athletes Link
- Oulala.com, the daily fantasy sports (DFS) operator and B2B provider, will unveil its monetized platform for Australasia and the Indian subcontinent Link
SOME INTERESTING STARTUPS FOUND
Lucid App (2016, SF) – App for athletes to train their mind to improve their athletic ability.
SportsHero (2016, Singapore, $
LEADER BOARD – SPORTS TECH
Online Sports Platforms
E-Commerce
Fanatics (1995, Jacksonville, $620M, Acq.) – Licensed sports merchandise retailer. Backed by Silver Lake Partners, Alibaba, Temasek Holdings, Bank of America and Insight Venture Partners. Acquired by Kynetic in 2011
NetShoes (2000, Sao Paulo, $427M) – Online retailer of sporting goods, services in Brazil, Argentina and Mexico. Backed by Tiger Global Management and GIC.
Social Platforms
Sportlobster (2012, London, $16M) – Sports social network for news, blogs, scores and predictions. Backed by Daman Investments, MBM Capital, and Wychwood Capital Partners.
Yapp Media (2011, North Caldwell, $14M) – App-based social platform for sports fans.
Online Sports Media
LeSports (2014, Beijing, $1.35B) – Online sports video streaming website. Backed by HNA Group, Dalian Wanda Group and celebrity investors Sun Honglei, Jia Nailiang and Liu Tao.
Whistle Sports (2009, NYC, $73M) – Sports content provider. Acquired The Lacrosse Network in 2014. Backed by Tengelmann Ventures.
Stock Simulation
Fantex (2012, SF, $51M) – Online platform to buy and sell investments tied to athlete income. Backed by Kita Capital.
Fantasy Sports
DraftKings (2012, Boston, $446M) – Offers daily leagues for fantasy sports. Acquired StarStreet and DraftStreet in 2014. Backed by 21st Century Fox, Atlas Venture, The Raine Group and Redpoint Ventures.
FanDuel (2009, NYC, $363M) – Fantasy sports gaming company. Acquired AlphaDraft, Numberfire, and Kotikan in 2015. Backed by KKR, Piton Capital, and Shamrock Capital Advisors.
Sports Betting
William Hill Online (1934, London, IPO) – Provide retail, online and telephone-based sports betting and gaming services. Went IPO in 2002.
Paddy Power Betfair (1988, Dublin, IPO) – Provide online sports betting and gaming products. Went IPO in 2000.
Ladbrokes (1886, London, IPO) – Online betting and gaming company. Went IPO in 2006.
Ticketing
Gametime (2012, SF, $13M) – Last minute sports ticket sales app. Backed by Accel Partners.
Search and Booking platforms
Quyundong (2014, Guangzhou, $13M) – A mobile platform to book sports arena and venue.Backed by Banyan Capital.
Sports Management Tech
Team and Event Management
Active Network(1999, Dallas, $355M) – Cloud-based solution provider for outdoor events. Backed by ESPN, North Bridge Venture Partners, Performance Equity Management,Acquired by Vista Equity Partners in 2013 for $1.1B.
XOS digital (1999, Lake Mary, Florida, $86B) – Provides software for managing digital media assets for sports teams. Backed by Blue Chip Venture, Comcast Ventures, Dorchester Capital, Beechtree Capital, Liberty Media. Acquired by Catapult sports in 2016.
Venue Management
Fanpics (2013, San Diego, $5M) – Provides fans photograph inside the arena. Raised series A funding in 2014.
Sports Analytics
Hudl (2006, Lincoln, $77M) – Video analytics based training tool for athletes and coaches. Acquired Ubersense in 2014. Backed by Accel and Nelnet.
Krossover (2009, NYC, $29M) – Web-based video indexing and analytics platform. Backed by Active Angels, Jarcap and Baltimore Angels.
Sports Marketing Sports Marketing
Sportvision (1998, Chicago, $25.5M) – Develops sports entertainment media product. Backed by Motorola Solutions, Austin Ventures, Bay Partners, Escalate Capital, Lake Street Capital.
MVP index (2012, Dallas, $7M) – Social media audience measurement and analytics company. Backed by KB Partners, New Form Digital.
Smart Sporting Goods
Sports Equipment
Mission Athletacare (2008, New York City, $35M) – Develops products specific to athletes. Backed by Breakaway, Falconhead Capital.
Golfzon Simulator (2000, Seoul, $20M) – Indoor golf equipment that enables users to play golf indoors. Backed by STIC investments.
Wearables
Whoop (2012, Boston, $24M) – Wearable activity tracker for athletes and trainers. Backed by Two Sigma Ventures.
Vicis (2014, Seattle, $23M) – Advanced protective wear helmet for footballers. Backed by Alliance of Angels, Washington Research Foundation, W Fund, Trilogy Equity Partners.
VR/AR Devices
NextVR (2009, Laguna Beach, $115.5M) – Live and on demand VR streaming for Sports and concerts. Backed by Time Warner, Toba Capital, Comcast Ventures, RSE Ventures.
Voke VR (2004, Santa Clara, $25M) – Platform for on-demand streaming in VR. Backed by Intel Capital, A+E Networks, Nautilus Ventures.
Leaderboard includes all the top funded, IPO and successfully running bootstrapped companies along with their location, founding year and funding amount.
For latest updates, visit Sports Tech feed.