SportsTech update Aug 2022: The wave continues

Back from a summer break and well over the halfway mark in the year calls for a SportsTech recap. Summed up into our top 5 stories of the year so far. Starting with…

1. 2022 still riding that wave

We’ve played the 2021 record on loop for a while now, $12b+ in investment will do that. And it seems like 2022 is proving to be a solid follow up. $5.7b invested in the 1st 7 months of this year. Down about 23% compared to the same period last year but that’s hardly something to moan about given the general global economic climate.

$100m+ deals in good number, 11 so far this year compared to 19 in the same period last year. Long way to go to match the year end total of 34 but there’s still plenty of time and good momentum to get there.

2. The Fanatics IPO is inevitable

$995m raised in 2021 followed by?$1.5b raised in 2022?to top the funding charts in 2022 by a country mile. Most importantly, look at the valuations,?$6.2b?in Aug 2020 >?$13b?in Mar 2021 >?$18b?in Aug 2021 to now $27b in Mar 2022!

Now that’s what being aggressive with your fundraising looks like. An incredible vote of confidence from new investors who have jumped on board to help Fanatics reach it’s goal of becoming a?$100b company.

The latest round means that 2022 is unlikely and the broader financial climate will have a big say in it’s timing but at this point the IPO is a?when?rather than an?if. 2023 or early 2024? Maybe their new sportsbook will be open to taking bets.

3. NFTs are still a thing

Love them or hate them, you simply can’t ignore them. The polarising acronym NFTs have continued to be a big part of the SportsTech story in 2022.

On one hand we’ve seen over $1b invested in NFT related startups, with existing big names raising more rounds and some new ones jumping onto the scene. The latter is especially true in India with 2 companies, Rario & FanCraze, announced $100m+ deals in the early part of the year. Collectibles will continue to be a niche segment but we’re seeing an evolution in offerings as?utility?becomes more than a buzz word.

On the other hand, no matter where list you look at, there certainly has been a slowdown in trading activity as we keep reporting on our?NiftySports?newsletter. Subscribe if you want to keep up with the latest news.

Here are the 5 companies that have raised the most so far

1. Animoca Brands:?$360m
2. Autograph:?$170
3. Rario:?$120m
4. FanCraze:?$100m
5. Gems:?$55m

4. Everyone wants to stream Live Sports

We talked about this in our?North American SportsTech Report?in April.?New York Times?talked about this last month. LinkedIn is full of opinions. And plenty more will share more in the coming months.

It’s no secret that big tech (Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix and Google) have taken a shine to sports in general and live sports especially. Apple signed a mega deal with the MLS, the?NFL confirmed?that it’s Sunday ticket will move to a streaming service next year and promptly launched their own streaming service?NFL+. A bunch of those names were interested in the IPLs streaming rights which smashed?some serious records.

My favourite though is relationship cliff-hanger of long time?Friends?Netflix & Formula1.?ESPN is playing spoilsport?for now, in the US at least. But I really hope those two work it out.

All that just means that live sports deals are likely to get a nice bit sweeter.

5. SportsTech ecosystem gets stronger & stronger

Every year we add to the list of new SportsTech focused funds / accelerators / innovation programs. And 2022 has provided quite a list to add. Will run through a few quickly

1. Arsenal brought back their?innovation lab
2. SportBoost brought Iker Casillas, Wayra Innovation Hub & LaLiga together for an?accelerator program
3. Adidas and Le Tremplin?launched an innovation lab?to support women-led or women-focused startups promote. Very cool.
4. Cardinal Sports Capital announced a?$100m accelerator?focused on Sports Betting and SportsTech. Cha-ching.
5. Konvoy Ventures Launches?$150M Investment Fund, largely towards gaming & crypto

There are plenty more to name, which we continue to do across our channels. Kudos to all these people driving new initiatives in the space. We appreciate you.

More content

Next up will be our Annual Global SportsTech VC Report, likely published mid November. If you haven’t yet, you can download our other?reports. And if you have already, thanks! As always we have plenty more content:

• SportsTech Weekly: Covering top news in SportsTech, every Thursday at 5 PM CET on?YouTube?and?LinkedIn
• Regular newsletters:?SportsTechX monthly?for SportsTech updates and?Nifty Sports?for all things Sports + NFTs
• Podcast: Published bi-weekly, conversations with news making startups, investors & initiatives in SportsTech

Plenty of events to round off the year so hit us up if you happen to be there:?Wold Football Summit in Sevilla,?SportBiz Europe in Barcelona,?Impulse Summit in St. Gallen?and probably a few more. See you there.

. . .

Rohn Malhotra?is a Co-Founder at Berlin based?SportsTechX?— Data & insights about SportsTech startups and the surrounding ecosystem. You can get in touch here on LinkedIn?or?email.