SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
US business and technology news sources have reported that Walt Disney Co (Disney) has backed away from its proposed $250 million investment in daily fantasy sports operator DraftKings.
Disney will continue its partnership with DraftKings by providing exclusive fantasy sports content through its sports media network ESPN.
DraftKings management stated that the operator was pleased to continue its partnership with Disney/ESPN which benefited its operations by providing DraftKings with a strategic advantage over competitors.
In April news broke that Disney had committed to investing $250 million in DraftKings, Disney sought to own a 27% in the operator. The investment deal would see DraftKings gain $500 million in ad-coverage on Disney media verticals.
Details as to why the Disney investment deal broke down, remain unclear. However it appears that DraftKings is in advanced talks with a number of strategic investors to raise a large investment round. To date the operator has raised +$75 million in venture financing.
The news of Disney withdrawal of investment in DraftKings follows yesterday’s announcement that the NBA had agreed an equity stake partnership in main market rival FanDuel.
