Sportradar Looking to Go Public

According to a report released earlier this week, Swiss gambling data company Sportradar, “the leading global provider of sports data intelligence”, is the latest in the legal sports betting space looking to become a publicly traded company. Reports have the sports betting, entertainment product and services provider in talks with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) for the chance to go public.

Special purpose acquisition company Horizon Acquisition Corp. II is the SPAC apparently stepping up to be that merger partner for Sportradar. Horizon Acquisition Corp. perhaps coincidentally already has ties to the North American Pro sports scene - Los Angeles Dodgers co-owner Todd Boehly is currently head of the acquisition company.

About Sportradar

Sportradar is not the household name that MGM or Bally's are but their role in the US legal sports betting industry is crucial, and indispensable. Sportradar is the company that takes sports data, translates it and allows companies to set odds and settle bets.

They also have a role in keeping up "the integrity of the games" - a catch phrase often used by opponents of a legal sports betting platform. Sportradar is able, through their proprietary software to provide analysis and intelligence to protect the integrity of sports and therefore lend some legitimacy to the sports betting industry on the whole.

With the booming legal sports betting industry showing zero signs of slowing down, and every aspect of sports becoming more data-driven, the need for companies like Sportradar have never been so great.

The Benefit To Going Public

There has been a rush to take US legal sports betting companies public, especially during this time of their industry's version of a gold rush. Rush Street Interactive, The Stars Group, Bally's, Genius Sports Group, Golden Nugget and theScore are examples of companies in which stock is available to the public, most of which have been thanks to SPAC deals.

The benefits to a publicly traded company are numerous but the main rationale is to generate cashflow to fund further expansion plans in the exploding US market. Such growth plans have never been so attainable – hence the recent rush by sports betting companies to generate as much cash flow as possible and expand their already impressive reach.

Sportradar Valuation

Sportradar, like most entities in the US legal sports betting industry has gone through enormous growth in the last couple of years. Back in 2018, the sports betting data provide was valued at about $2.4 billion. That was the last time Sportradar was rumored to be close to a deal with a blank-check company to go public. Last summer, the company was rumored to be valued at $8 billion. In this go-around, it is estimated that the company's value will be set between $10 billion and $12 billion.

It is no fluke that Sportradar's value has skyrocketed. The company provides data for the biggest sports leagues in North America including the NFL, NBA, NHL, Major League Baseball NASCAR and the PGA Tour and is said to have ties with over 1000 companies worldwide.

Big Money and Big Influence Behind the Deal

The potential Sportradar/Horizon Acquisitions will have the backing of some huge players with experience in not only the sporting world but also the sports betting world. As mentioned, Los Angeles Dodgers co-owner Todd Boehly is among the brass of Horizon Acquisition Corp. and the company lists the CEO of one of the two DFS behemoths as an advisor.

Sportradar isn't without its own set of influential figures that could play a large part in the profile of a newly publicly traded company. Sportradar investors include Mark Cuban of the Dallas Mavericks, Michael Jordan of the Charlotte Bobcats, and Ted Leonsis of the Washington Wizards. The NFL is said to not only be a client of Sportradar but an investor as well.

Value-Add

There had been no shortage of interest in a Sportradar/SPAC relationship, but Horizon Acquisitions apparently gives the data provider all it was looking for in a partner – a company to help them forge stronger relationships with North American Pro sports leagues, teams, and the media outlets that cover them. Horizon Acquisitions becomes that “value-add” that Sportradar identified as they key ingredient to any partnership deal.

So now Sportradar will emerge from a more behind-the-scenes roll in the legal sports betting industry and will become a name that more people recognize, thanks to the company’s profile as a publicly traded company. It is just another sign of the strength of the legal sports betting industry as we head deeper into 2021.