Sportradar Announces Canada Pension Plan Investment Board

TORONTO, Canada and MENLO PARK, Calif. and ST. GALLEN, Switzerland, July 09, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sportradar, the global leader in analysing and leveraging the power of sports data, today announced two new strategic partners: Canada Pension Plan Investment Board ( CPPIB ) and Silicon Valley-based growth equity firm TCV.

CPPIB, through its wholly owned subsidiary, CPP Investment Board Europe S.à r.l., and TCV will together acquire a stake in Sportradar at an enterprise value of EUR 2.1Bn (~USD 2.4Bn.) from private equity firm EQT and certain minority shareholders. Carsten Koerl, Founder and CEO, will retain his entire ownership position in Sportradar and will continue to drive its future development and growth. EQT will also reinvest a portion of its sale proceeds into Sportradar. Additional existing shareholders include Revolution Growth, Ted Leonsis, Michael Jordan, and Mark Cuban.

“CPPIB and TCV are both known for extensive global tech experience and a track record for working alongside innovative management teams to help achieve their long-term vision,” said Carsten Koerl, CEO of Sportradar. “Having two new investors with a strong North American footprint is ideal given our increasing focus and expanding operations in the U.S., as the sports industry evolves to meet the expectations of today’s sports fans. Sportradar will continue to develop best-in-class, integrity and technology-driven services as we expand into new market segments, and we’re excited to have such a strong team behind us.”

Sportradar is the nexus between sports and entertainment, serving leagues, news media, consumer platforms and sports betting operators with deep insights and a suite of strategic solutions to help grow their businesses. Sportradar is the trusted partner of more than 1,000 companies in over 80 countries and serves as the official partner of the NBA, NFL, NHL and NASCAR, as well as FIFA and UEFA. It is also the only provider entrusted to work with the US sports leagues in an official capacity to distribute sports data (NBA and NHL) and AV content (MLB) around the world for betting purposes. With deep industry relationships, Sportradar is not just redefining the experience of being a sports fan; it also safeguards fairness in the sports themselves through its Integrity Services team. By monitoring abnormal betting patterns or social signals around matches, Sportradar’s Integrity Services division has escalated insights to authorities that have resulted in hundreds of sporting sanctions globally.

“The sports data market, particularly real-time data, is a compelling long-term investment opportunity, with strong growth driven by rising fan engagement, opening of new markets and increasing spend on digital sports content globally,” said Ryan Selwood, Managing Director, Head of Direct Private Equity, CPPIB. “We are excited to partner with Carsten and look forward to supporting his innovative vision for Sportradar by further investing into artificial intelligence and global expansion.”

“Sportradar is a world-class sports data business that has maintained an impressive track record of delivering best-in-class technology solutions with a customer-centric approach,” said John Doran, General Partner at TCV. “We look forward to working with Carsten and the team to take advantage of the developing U.S. market and drive the evolution of how sports content will be consumed in the future.”

“Through this investment, CPPIB is able to participate in a compelling global technology growth story alongside our new partners, including Carsten and TCV,” said Alain Carrier, Senior Managing Director and Head of International, CPPIB. “We are thrilled to have the opportunity to work with Sportradar’s management team as they drive the company forward across new customer segments and geographies.”

“We love backing great CEOs with a big vision, and Sportradar fits that profile perfectly,” said Jay Hoag, founding General Partner at TCV. “We are excited about working with Carsten, CPPIB, and existing shareholders to accelerate product innovation and drive continued growth.”

“Revolution invested in Sportradar because we know how powerful real-time data and analytics have become to the live sports business. Sportradar’s vision for how the world will use this data has made them the most influential sports data and information company in the world, and they are well-positioned for expansion in the U.S. market given the recent decision by the Supreme Court to legalize sports betting,” said Ted Leonsis, Revolution Growth Cofounder and Partner.

EQT initially invested in Sportradar through its fund EQT Expansion Capital II in 2012, and subsequently invested through its fund EQT VI in 2014. During its partnership with EQT, Sportradar has seen positive organic and acquisition-based growth at approximately 40% revenue growth annually, and has grown its presence in Europe, the United States and Asia via the addition of 1,400 employees and a number of key strategic hires. The company now monitors and delivers insights from more than 400,000 matches annually across 60 sports categories, having developed the industry’s most proficient software while setting new standards for speed and accuracy.

“Sportradar has undergone an extraordinary transformation and is today a true global market leader in the sports data and digital content solutions space. The management team – led by Carsten – has done a fantastic job in driving the business towards the strategic vision that formed the basis for the partnership between Carsten and EQT,” said Dominik Stein, Partner at EQT. “We are convinced that CPPIB and TCV will be great partners to drive the strategic agenda for the future, and EQT is excited to maintain a minority stake in the company.”

Closing of the transaction is expected in Q4 2018, subject to the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals and consents.

About Sportradar Sportradar is the leading global provider of sports data intelligence. The nexus between sports and entertainment, the company serves leagues, news media, consumer platforms and sports betting operators with deep insights and a suite of strategic solutions to help grow their businesses. Sportradar is the trusted partner of more than 1,000 companies in over 80 countries and serves as the official partner of the NBA, NFL, NHL and NASCAR, as well as FIFA and UEFA. It is also the only provider entrusted to work with the US sports leagues in an official capacity to distribute sports data (NBA and NHL) and AV rights (MLB) around the world for betting purposes. The company monitors and delivers insights from more than 400,000 matches annually across 60 sports categories, having developed the industry’s most proficient software while setting new standards for speed and accuracy. With deep industry relationships, Sportradar is not just redefining the sports fan experience; it also safeguards the sports themselves through its Integrity Services division and advocacy for an integrity-driven ecosystem that is fair to partners, players and fans. For more information, visit www.sportradar.com .

About Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) is a professional investment management organization that invests the funds not needed by the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) to pay current benefits on behalf of 20 million contributors and beneficiaries. In order to build a diversified portfolio of CPP assets, CPPIB invests in public equities, private equities, real estate, infrastructure and fixed income instruments. Headquartered in Toronto, with offices in Hong Kong, London, Luxembourg, Mumbai, New York City, São Paulo and Sydney, CPPIB is governed and managed independently of the Canada Pension Plan and at arm's length from governments. At March 31, 2018, the CPP Fund totalled C$356.1 billion. For more information about CPPIB, please visit www.cppib.com  or follow us on LinkedIn  or Twitter .

About TCV Founded in 1995, TCV provides capital to growth-stage private and public companies in the technology industry. Since inception, TCV has invested over $10 billion in leading technology companies and has helped guide CEOs through more than 115 IPOs and strategic acquisitions. TCV has invested over $1 billion in Europe. Investments include Airbnb, Altiris, AxiomSL, Believe Digital, Dollar Shave Club, EtQ, ExactTarget, Expedia, Facebook, Fandango, GoDaddy, HomeAway, LinkedIn, Netflix, Rent the Runway, Sitecore, Splunk, Spotify, TourRadar, Varsity Tutors, and Zillow. TCV is headquartered in Menlo Park, California, with offices in New York and London. For more information about TCV, including a complete list of TCV investments, visit www.tcv.com .

About EQT EQT is a leading investment firm with approximately EUR 50 billion in raised capital across 27 funds. EQT funds have portfolio companies in Europe, Asia and the US with total sales of more than EUR 19 billion and approximately 110,000 employees. EQT works with portfolio companies to achieve sustainable growth, operational excellence and market leadership. More info: www.eqtpartners.com .