Netflix, Airbnb backer TCV makes India debut in Dream11 parent’s secondary round

Dream Sports, the Mumbai based company that owns fantasy gaming platform Dream11, has scored a $400 million secondary investment from a slew of investors. The deal marks the first ever India investment for Silicon Valley based venture capital firm TCV.  

TCV counts leading global technology companies such as Netflix, Airbnb, Sportradar and Peloton in its portfolio. TCV led the round along with returning investors D1 Capital Partners and Falcon Edge.  

"India is home to the world's largest and most energetic sports fan base with a dynamic mix that is unique to the subcontinent. Dream Sports is serving this community with a highly innovative product offering,” Gopi Vaddi, general partner at TCV, said. 

Existing investors Tiger Global, ChrysCapital, TPG Growth, Steadview Capital and Footpath Ventures  participated in this round, the company said in a statement. 

It did not disclose details on the investors who sold their stakes as part of the secondary round. 

“We have created the Fantasy Sports category in India to drive digital engagement to real-life sporting events and bring fans closer to the sport they love. We are proud to continually contribute to the overall expansion of the Indian sports ecosystem,” Harsh Jain, CEO and co-founder, Dream Sports, said. 

Avendus Capital was the exclusive financial advisor to Dream Sports on the transaction. 

The secondary transaction comes a little over six months after the company announced the close of a $225 million funding round that comprised a primary capital infusion and secondary transactions. Tiger Global, TPG Tech Adjacencies, ChrysCapital and Footpath Ventures led the round, the Mumbai-based company said.  

It wasn’t clear if the current transaction is the secondary portion from this round.

In April 2019, Dream Sports became the first homegrown gaming company to break into the unicorn club when Hong Kong headquartered hedge fund Steadview Capital picked up a stake. The Steadview investment created partial exits for early investors Kalaari Capital, Multiples Alternate Asset Management and Think Investments. 

Shenzhen headquartered technology conglomerate Tencent Holdings is also an existing investor in the company. In late 2018, Tencent led a $100 million investment round.  

Dream Sports was founded in 2008 by Jain and Bhavit Sheth. It runs fantasy leagues for cricket, football, kabaddi, basketball and other sports. The platform offers content in vernacular languages. It allows users to create virtual teams comprising real-life players and lets them organise matches based on the statistical performances of those players in actual games. 

Its other products include FanCode, a multi-sport aggregator platform; DreamSetGo, a sports travel and experiences platform; and DreamX, which is a sports startup studio and accelerator platform.