#138 💸 Fan-Focused Solutions Drive 76% of SportsTech Investment in 2025

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From Fitness to Fans - that’s the ‘follow the money’ trail of SportsTech investment it seems. Continuing from 2024 where Fans were clearly the focus, this has only increased in 2025. The message is crystal clear: Investors are IN on Fans, more than anything else.

Highest Funded Sector in Sports Tech 2025

Last week we dove deep into the shift towards smart fitness and wellness tech in sports. This week we’re taking a look into the highest-funded sector so far in 2025.

Fan Engagement has dominated sports tech investment in 2025 so far, capturing 76% of the total funding. Of the $9.1 billion invested year-to-date, nearly $7 billion (6.916 billion) has flowed specifically into fan-focused solutions.

Building upon an already strong 2024 when fan-focused companies secured 65% of total investment.

Top 10 Funded Companies 2025 YTD (Fan Engagement):

1. Napster Corp. (formerly Infinite Reality): Immersive fan engagement tools – $3 billion

2. Superbet: Multi-sport betting platform – $1.362 billion

3. DAZN: OTT sports streaming platform – $1 billion , $827.0 million

4. DraftKings: Fantasy sports contests – $600.0 million

5. Underdog: Fantasy sports for real money – $70.0 million

6. Cricbuzz: News, live scores and content for Cricket – $50 million

7. Poolhouse: Tech-driven immersive pool venues – $34.0 million

8. Edge Markets: Tools for responsible betting – $17.2 million

9. Men In Blazers: Soccer-focused media company – $15.0 million

10. Lingopalai: Live stream translation platform – $14.0 million

Fan focus also topped in 2024, with 65% of total investment:

These sizable investments depict a lasting shift towards innovative fan-engagement platforms designed to enrich the overall sports consumption experience, particularly driven by younger audiences and Gen-Z, who increasingly demand immersive, interactive, and personalized digital content experiences.

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Top News from the World of Sports Tech & Biz

🏀 NBA’s Launchpad Starting Five, originally announced in Feb 2025, showcased their offerings earlier this week at the NBA’s annual conference.

⚽ Brazilian YouTuber CazeTV secured streaming rights for all matches of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, marking a significant milestone for digital sports broadcasting in Brazil.

🎥 Riedel Communications launched RefSuite, a comprehensive ecosystem combining hardware, software, cloud services, and remote operations to enhance sports officiating, coaching, and production.

📺 DAZN rolled out a new ST 2110 global master control room developed with Techex and TAG Video Systems ahead of the FIFA Club World Cup 2025.

💉 Ultrahuman introduced Blood Vision in the US, a clinically validated at-home blood-testing solution for over 100 biomarkers, integrated with wearable lifestyle data.

⚽ Fanatics expanded its merchandise partnership with Premier League club Chelsea FC, strengthening its presence in European football.

🎧 Sony debuted custom-built NFL Coach’s Headsets designed specifically for sideline use, starting in the 2025 season.

🏎️ Formula E partnered with MrBeast's Feastables as its official snacking provider, starting with the 2025 Berlin E-Prix, to champion sustainability and engage new audiences.

📱 Snapchat teamed with TOGETHXR to empower female athlete digital creators, addressing gender disparities in media exposure and earnings in sports.

🏉 Fastbreak AI partnered with the National Rugby League for multi-year AI-driven scheduling to enhance fairness, reduce travel fatigue, and streamline broadcast logistics.

⚾ Pramana Labs' new AI agent unlocked significant analytics capabilities for Baseball America, delivering deeper insights into player performance and strategy.

🎬 Peacock will debut a new Paralympics documentary series titled "Adaptive" on July 28, showcasing the journeys of four athletes aiming for Paris 2024.

🎾 The 2025 Wimbledon final between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz hit a peak viewership of 8.3 million, the tournament's highest in nearly a decade.

⚾ FOX Sports expanded its MLB All-Star coverage in Atlanta with innovative tech including UmpCam, FlyCam, drones, and other advanced broadcast tools.

🥎 ScoutSync joined the Sports Tech HQ collective, aiming to drive innovation and collaboration within the sports technology sector.

Money Talks:

🤝 Flutter Entertainment acquired Boyd Gaming’s 5% stake in FanDuel for $1.75 billion, achieving full ownership of the leading sports betting brand.

💰 SharpLink Gaming raised $413 million to become the largest corporate Ethereum holder, significantly expanding its Ethereum-based treasury strategy.

💰 LiveLike secured a $3.5 million growth credit facility from Bigfoot Capital to accelerate growth of its fan engagement technology platform.

💰 upLYFT secured $670K (£500K) from Deepbridge Capital UK Innovation Seed Fund and TIME Interconnect (HK) Limited to launch its AI-powered wearable technology focused on athlete performance.

💰 SEGG Media Corporation invested an undisclosed amount in Veloce Media Group to enhance its sports and gaming portfolio, targeting content growth and fan engagement.

🤝 Deltatre acquired Endeavor Streaming for an undisclosed amount, creating a global leader in digital and streaming platform solutions.

💸 Premier League club Brentford are prepared to sell a minority stake at a £400 million valuation, marking a significant financial restructuring as current owner Matthew Benham offloads part of his holding.

💸 The Friedkin Group launched Pursuit Sports, expanding its investment portfolio in the global sports and entertainment industry.

Recap from our content archive:

🔙 STX Article: New Leagues and Emerging Formats

✅ STX Monthly: Last month’s sports tech dealflow, in case you missed it.

💪🏽 SportsTech AllStars Recap: Indian Sports Business and Tech Report series.