REPORT HIGHLIGHTS
To provide SportsTech enthusiasts with up-to-date information, SportsTechX co-founders Benjamin Penkert and Rohn Malhotra and their team have scanned over 12,000 startups and over 100 initiatives worldwide since 2017. SportsTech investments and deals between January 2017 and September 2021 are examined in this latest edition of VC Report.
“We’ve been analyzing and showcasing the SportsTech ecosystem in all of its facets for over four years by now, with a strong conviction that it will have its seat at the table of big tech industries at some point. It seems like this time has finally come now, with investors putting serious amounts into SportsTech companies” says Penkert.
Some key highlights from the report include:
- 2021 a record breaking year: Till September 2021, more than $8.3b has been invested in SportsTech making it the biggest year for the industry by far and already more than the previous two years combined. Projected to cross $12.7b before the year ends, 2021 is a landmark year for the industry. Average and Median deal values of $30.9m and $3.1m are at unprecedented levels.
- 30 SportsTech unicorns in total, 11 emerged in 2021: The likes of Peloton, DraftKings & Fanatics might be already familiar names but 2021 saw 11 more companies cross the $1b valuation mark, 6 of these through IPOs. Sportradar, Sorare and Fiture are just some companies that made major waves in 2021. Most importantly, the 30 unicorns are spread over 9 countries with 5 countries added to the list in 2021. A great example of how SportsTech is growing globally. The USA is currently home to the most unicorns with 14.
- NFTs hottest trend in SportsTech: NFTs started the year red hot and grew to emerge as the mega SportsTech trend of 2021, turning Dapper Labs, Sorare and others into big success stories. Connected & Digital Fitness continues to grow steadily all over the world while Betting & Fantasy Sports is the other major trend fueling the overall growth of the SportsTech industry, especially through mergers & acquisitions.
Providing an easy to digest breakdown of the market, the report contains chapters dedicated to Global Funding, Top Companies, Trends & Ecosystem with additional chapter Industry Snapshots available only in the PRO version.
“2021 following the pandemic hit, sports-starved 2020 has been like Metallica following a high school choir. With so many deals and announcements constantly, It feels like 2021 is the year where SportsTech truly went mainstream. The wider sports industry is finally acknowledging that innovation is not just necessary but actually the only way forward.” says Malhotra.
The team at SportsTechX has set out to help promote, grow and navigate the global SportsTech ecosystem by highlighting SportsTech startups and initiatives. They continue to achieve those goals through a steady commitment to creating new connections, formats and projects like that of the Global SportsTech VC Report.
PARTNER The shared passion for sports and technology between SportsTechX and its partner SIGNA Sports United, the #1 Sports Online Retailer in Europe, helped to make the report possible. With over 7 million active customers and close to 500 million annual webshop visitors, SIGNA Sports United is on a mission to go beyond retail and build the leading Global Sports Experience Platform through partnerships with SportsTech companies. Their expanding presence in the USA through recent acquisitions and an upcoming IPO reaffirms their commitment to becoming a truly global innovator in sports commerce and tech.
SOURCE SportsTechX
