News Article

Global Sports Tech Update | July 2022

Written by DrakeStar | Aug 29, 2022 5:52:58 AM


LONDON | NEW YORK | LOS ANGELES | August 29th, 2022 – Drake Star is pleased to release the July 2022 Sports Tech Industry Update, which provides an in-depth overview of the sector with a B2C and B2B market map, breakdown of M&A and funding activity, top headlines, and analysis of share price movement and sector valuations. According to the update, the sector reported nine M&A deals in July, accounting for $5.1b in disclosed deal activity, while fundraising activity totaled $153m over 21 deals.

Select M&A deals during July 2022 include:

  • PharmaNutra acquired sports medtech company Akern for an undisclosed amount
  • Sony Interactive Entertainment acquired esports company Repeat.gg for an undisclosed amount
  • X1 Esports and Entertainment acquired esports news platform Shift RLE for an undisclosed amount

“Industry valuations across the Digital Media, OTT/Content and Athlete Performance sectors bounced back in July despite the tight market conditions,” said Eric Ward, Managing Partner of Drake Star. “With consumer engagement continuing to increase, we expect this upward trend to continue throughout the remainder of the year.”

Gregory Bedrosian, CEO & Managing Partner of Drake Star, added, “Although July saw fewer M&A deals than last month, disclosed deal value totaled $5.1b compared to $1.8b in June. Larger companies are continuing to push their way into the space, resulting in larger strategic deals as the market matures.”

Standout funding rounds include:

  • Scorefam raised $25m in a funding round from Global Emerging Markets
  • Walla raised $8m in a series A round led by Industry Ventures
  • ShotQuality raised $3, in a seed round led by TIA Ventures

“It’s exciting to see that the number of active streamers on Twitch increased by 7.6% from June, alongside a 3.4% increase in hours watched,” said Michael Metzger, Partner of Drake Star. Continued growth of eSports audience and engagement is important to drive revenue for the companies in the ecosystem via advertising, sponsorship, and merchandise.

Drake Star Sports Tech Team:
Gregory Bedrosian, Eric Ward, Michael Metzger, Mohit Pareek, Mathilde Deschamps, Edward Page, Michael Heilweil, Chase Gibbs.