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- #152⚽ Top Funded Companies in Football Tech
#152⚽ Top Funded Companies in Football Tech
Plus F1 Doubles US Media Rights with Apple Deal
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When ESPN increased its annual US media rights deal with F1 from ~$5M/year (2018-22) to nearer $90M/year (2022-25), eyebrows were raised. As Apple takes that value up to $150M/year ($750M over 5 years, 2026 - 30), it is go-time for the sport.
It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise given that the Apple F1 film grossed $630 million worldwide, slotting in at P1 as the most successful sports movie in history. The sport has proven its cultural crossover; now comes the business model test. Will casual fans balk at another subscription? Will their freemium model (4-5 free races, paywall for the rest) work? How long till Ted Lasso makes an appearance on the grid?
Three U.S. races. A Brad Pitt movie. Cadillac is joining the grid. Now a mega streaming deal. Seems like the US is full throttle on F1.
⚽ FOOTBALL TECH REPORT 2025
Top Funded Companies in Football Tech
As broken down in our latest Football Tech Report, funding in football technology has tilted heavily toward the fan side of the game with streaming and sports media close behind. We’ve divided this by ‘Football Only’ startups purpose-built for the game, and ‘Football Also’ platforms with multi-sport reach but includes football exposure.
Football Only: Fans & Content on top
The all-time leaderboard is dominated by fan-facing giants Sorare ($738M) and OneFootball ($477M), which together make up nearly 80% of total top-10 funding. Both defined the Web3 and media waves of 2021-22 and continue to shape digital fan engagement today.
Next is TOCA Football ($170M) anchoring the performance-hardware segment, followed by TraceUp ($47M) and Playermaker ($40M) in video analysis and wearable tracking.
The rest of the leaderboard - Strikerz ($40M), Classic Football Shirts ($38.5M), Rei do Pitaco ($38.2M), Goals ($35M), and Matchday ($21M) - spans gaming, fantasy, and merchandise, illustrating how mid-market growth is diversifying across the fan ecosystem.
Football Also: Streaming and Sports Media scale
Among multi-sport companies active in football, DAZN ($1.83B) sits far ahead as the sector’s largest funding recipient, cementing its dominance in sports streaming. Behind it are Teamworks ($375M) and Genius Sports ($330M) - both powering the data and infrastructure backbone for clubs and leagues.
theScore ($251M), Cosm ($250M), TickPick ($250M), and SeatGeek ($238M) highlight the intersection of media, immersive venues, and ticketing. The remaining group is Minute Media ($190M), Pixellot ($177M), and Barstool Sports ($163M), that reflects how content creation and automation continue to attract sustained investment.
For a full breakdown by sector, geography, and trend, download the Football Tech Report 2025.
This is for those trying to separate market momentum from marketing noise. Whether you’re an investor, operator, or founder, it gives you a grounded view of where the money is flowing and what’s actually working.
PS: You'll see this report with early access to our all-new Intelligence Hub. We recommend taking it for a spin on your desktop/laptop. If you run into any issues or have any feedback, please reach out to us at [email protected].
📰 THE LATEST
Top News From The World Of Sports Tech & Biz
🏎️ Apple acquired exclusive U.S. broadcast rights to Formula 1 under a five-year, $750 million deal, solidifying its expansion into premium live sports streaming.
💊 Kohler Co. launched Kohler Health, a new digital health and wellness venture aimed at integrating advanced monitoring and wellness technologies into the home environment.
📱 Darius Garland launched Off Court, an athlete-driven digital platform that helps athletes manage their content, connect directly with fans, and monetize engagement outside traditional media.
🏀 NBA G League included a wearable technology mandate in its new collective bargaining agreement, potentially requiring players to use performance-tracking devices during games and practices for analytics and injury prevention.
⚽ WSL Football introduced Apple products across the Barclays Women’s Super League and Championship, enhancing player and coach performance workflows through Apple’s connected ecosystem.
⚙️ Atos deployed its advanced sport technologies for the World Para Swimming Championships in Singapore and the World Para Athletics Championships in New Delhi, providing AI-powered digital infrastructure and event management systems.
⚽ Fox Sports confirmed it will broadcast a record 69 matches from the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the most ever aired by a U.S. network for a single tournament.
🎾 Saudi Arabia secured hosting rights for an ATP Masters 1000 tournament, set to debut as early as 2028, marking a major milestone in the kingdom’s push to become a global tennis hub.
🏈 Saudi Arabia wants to host an NFL regular-season game, signaling its growing ambition to bring major U.S. sports leagues to the kingdom following its earlier push into flag football and golf.
🏈 NFL owners approved the new Disney/ESPN media rights deal, finalizing terms that will keep Monday Night Football and related digital rights under the Disney umbrella for the next broadcast cycle.
🎮 Sports Interactive secured its first-ever FIFA license for Football Manager 2026, allowing official FIFA tournaments to be integrated into the franchise for the first time in its 30-year history.
📸 The NBA introduced Creators Court, a social media initiative pairing 12 digital creators with NBA storylines to produce viral, algorithm-friendly content across categories like art, crafts, and ASMR.
⚽ Real Madrid is exploring a potential overhaul of its 123-year-old member-owned structure, with discussions underway around external investment for the first time in the club’s history.
⚽ The United States expanded its 2031 Women’s World Cup bid to include Mexico, Costa Rica, and Jamaica, proposing the first-ever 48-team women’s tournament across four host nations.
🎬 Warner Bros. Discovery put itself up for sale, confirming interest from multiple potential buyers including Paramount Skydance, as the company weighs options amid media industry consolidation.
Money Talks |
💸 26North led a $700 million equity investment in NEP Group, fueling growth and innovation across live sports and entertainment technology while reinforcing NEP’s leadership in the global production ecosystem.
💰 CourtReserve, a leading racquet and paddle club software provider, secured a $54 million growth investment from Mainsail Partners to scale its product innovation and accelerate expansion across global racquet sports facilities.
💰 Jabbr, a combat sports technology startup, raised $5 million in a seed round led by Buckley Ventures, with participation from SevenSevenSix (Alexis Ohanian), John Zimmer, Andre Ward, and PSV Tech, to build an AI-powered platform designed to transform combat sports engagement.
🤝 Catapult acquired Impect, a German football analytics firm specializing in performance metrics and data intelligence, strengthening Catapult’s global football analytics, for $84 million.
🤝 MGAM (Mobile Global Esports Inc.) acquired the assets of Reality Sports Online, expanding into fantasy sports and predictive gaming with a proven NFL-style contract-based platform built on real-world economics to accelerate its presence in the growing fantasy sports market.
🤝 Hudl acquired Athletic Data Innovations (ADI), integrating the long-established sports science platform trusted by professional teams for over 15 years to enhance athlete performance measurement and multidirectional analytics.
🤝 The Arena Group Holdings Inc. acquired the digital assets of Lindy’s Sports, the historic U.S. sports publication founded in 1982, expanding the company’s sports and leisure media portfolio under its growing digital vertical.
💸 Alexis Ohanian invested in League One Volleyball, further expanding his women’s sports portfolio as the fast-rising volleyball league benefits from surging participation and viewership.
💸 CVC Capital Partners is in talks with Ares Management to secure a multibillion-dollar debt package to refinance its $12 billion portfolio of sports investments, marking one of the largest private credit deals in the sector.
💡STX STARTUP SPOTLIGHT
NEW SERIES: Over the next few weeks, we’re shining the spotlight on some of the most innovative startups shaping the future of sports. Each week, we’ll feature one company and share a short conversation with a key member of their leadership team.
In partnership with Sports Tech Nation
What problem do you solve and how do you solve it?
Ledsreact is redefining how elite teams measure and improve agility-faster, smarter, and completely wearable-free. Our flagship product, the Ledsreact Pro, uses cutting-edge radar to measure speed, reaction, acceleration, deceleration, and force-velocity power in real time- all without sensors, wearables, jackets, straps, or whatnot. With instant insights and gamified protocols, we transform complex performance testing into streamlined, intuitive decision-making for coaches and sports scientists.
Key achievements you want to highlight?
From Juventus to the LA Kings, top-tier teams trust Ledsreact to cut testing time by 90%-evaluating full squads in under 3 minutes, with automated data capture and force-velocity profiling built in. We've led the charge in multiplayer testing environments and created a unique agility scoring model that brings real match conditions to training. Built in close collaboration with top coaches and sports scientists, the Ledsreact Pro continues to set the standard for high-performance data in agility and cognitive readiness.
What can we expect from you in the next 12-18 months?
Video + Data, Synced: Launching before summer, our video integration will allow coaches to link performance data with synced footage-offering a powerful window into biomechanics and decision-making.
Smarter RTP: Our enhanced return-to-play modules will guide recovery through force-velocity benchmarking and movement symmetry tracking.
AI-Driven Insights: Expect real-time alerts, adaptive baselining, and tailored training suggestions-so coaches can act on the data, not just view it.
We’re also expanding globally with new partnerships across federations, academies, and pro clubs..
Get 15% Off Tickets to Sports Tech Nation!
Use code SPORTSTECHX_STN at checkout to claim your discount.
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