In advance of this week’s start of the next instalment of the National Football League (NFL), daily fantasy sports operator DraftKings has secured $153 million in new funding from a number of investors.
According to a report from the multinational business magazine Fortune, new investors in Draft Kings include Revolution Growth, which is an investment firm controlled by AOL founder Steve Case in partnership Washington Capitals and Washington Wizards owner Ted Leonsis.
“Revolution Growth is a tremendous new partner for DraftKings with an entrepreneurial outlook and spirit of innovation that meshes perfectly with the culture of our company,” read a statement from Jason Robins, Chief Executive Officer for DraftKings.
Fortune reported that DraftKings has previously raised capital from investment firms associated with New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft as well as Dallas Cowboys supremo Jerry Jones while Major League Baseball also holds a small equity stake. The magazine revealed that this latest deal will see Revolution Growth partner Steve Murray, formerly of New York-based venture capital firm SoftBank Capital, join the daily fantasy sports company’s board of directors.
“Building a business is never easy, especially one that is leading the creation of a new marketplace,” read a statement from Murray. “But Revolution Growth has the expertise to help entrepreneurs execute on their ideas, especially where sports and policy intersect.”
Although DraftKings has not divulged how it will use the new-found cash, technology publication TechCrunch reported that the daily fantasy sports operator last year spent around $156 million on television advertisements with the majority of this dropped during the 17-week NFL season.
Fortune reported that existing DraftKings investors include Accomplice, DST Global, FirstMark Capital, GGV Capital, The Raine Group and Wellington Management while this latest round of funding valued the firm “substantially lower” than the around $2 billion it was worth at this same time last year.