DAZN founder Sir Leonard Blavatnik has invested an additional $827 million into the sports streaming service.
According to the Financial Times, the amount put in by Sir Leonard has now reached $6.7 billion. Financial results, expected to be posted at Companies House in the UK next week, will show more heavy losses at the company.
DAZN is owned by Access Industries, a New York-based private holding company founded by Ukrainian-born Sir Leonard in 1986. It was created in 2007 from the merger of Premium TV Limited and Inform Group
In a company update issued on Friday, DAZN said between 2021 and 2024, it had more than doubled its revenues to reach $3.4 billion with revenues projected to reach $6 billion in 2025. It added that in 2024, DAZN achieved an increase in underlying profitability of over 50%.
DAZN says it has 300 million regular viewers and is targeting an eventual one billion users.
“2024 was a landmark year for DAZN, but we are only getting started. As we step into 2025, our ambitions are bigger than ever. Our aim to reach one billion global users reflects the scale of our vision, and – as the only global direct-to-consumer sports platform – we are well-positioned to make this a reality,” said Shay Segev, DAZN Group CEO.
“This ambition drives everything we do, and it requires bold, strategic moves that allow us to establish dominance in key markets quickly and effectively. Our recent agreement to acquire Australia’s leading sports and entertainment business – Foxtel Group – is a perfect example of this strategy in action.”
DAZN will pay News Corp and minority shareholder Telstra $2.2 billion for the pay-TV broadcaster.
There has been no further indication on whether Saudia-Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund would take its rumoured 10% investment in DAZN for $1 billion.
DAZN had extended content rights with the Bundesliga in Germany, Serie A in Italy and the Pro League in Belgium. It also made history with the telecast of the blockbuster boxing match between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk.
