The global sports streaming service DAZN has agreed to buy a majority stake in the Australian pay-TV giant Foxtel and its subsidiary streaming services Kayo, Binge and Hubbl.
The $3.4bn deal, which is still subject to regulatory approval, could boost the international profile of Australian sport and provide a major windfall to DAZN, which remains relatively unknown in Australia.
News Corp, the Murdoch-controlled media empire, will get a 6% stake in DAZN and a board seat in the deal.
What is DAZN?
DAZN (pronounced “Da-Zone”) is a British sports and entertainment streaming platform that was launched in 2015. In recent years, it has aggressively expanded its coverage by signing deals with sporting leagues for broadcasting rights and acquiring controlling stakes in other broadcasters.
The company claims to be one of Europe’s largest sports streaming services, with about 20m paying subscribers and close to 60m users. It claims to stream more than 90,000 live events each year with a reach of 300m viewers.
DAZN describes itself as “the home of European football, women’s football, boxing and mixed-martial arts and the NFL internationally”. It also broadcasts the Bundesliga, Serie A, La Liga, Ligue 1, Formula 1, NBA and Moto GP and has secured rights to the 2025 Fifa Club World Cup.
When the deal was announced, a Foxtel spokesperson said the business was considering bringing DAZN content to its Australian customers in future, but for now the local rights to the events listed by DAZN are held by a variety of broadcasters, primarily beIN Sports for European domestic fooball leagues.
What else does it do?
In 2022 DAZN expanded into gambling and launched DAZN Bet. The gambling service is registered in several European countries and was formed in partnership with online casino provider Pragmatic Solutions.
When the betting service was launched, DAZN’s chief executive, Shay Segev, said: “The convergence of sports media and betting is the future.” Segev is a former chief executive of gambling giant Entain, which runs the Ladbrokes brand.
DAZN Bet has formal partnerships with some sporting leagues and advertises its brand at stadiums. By acquiring Foxtel’s broadcast rights to the AFL and cricket, DAZN Bet may be able to increase gambling revenue from international markets.
DAZN Bet is not registered in Australia and it is unclear whether the company will seek to enter the lucrative domestic market if the deal with Foxtel is approved. DAZN Bet offers in-play betting, which is illegal in Australia.
Who funds it?
DAZN is backed by one of the world’s richest men, the British Ukrainian billionaire Len Blavatnik, whose investment firm Access Industries has a major stake in the streaming service’s parent company, Perform Group.
Blavatnik was born in Odesa, in what was then Soviet Ukraine, but has renounced Russian citizenship and is a dual US-UK citizen. His early fortune was amassed after purchasing former state assets in Russia that were privatised by the government.
Blavatnik received a knighthood in recognition of his donations to British institutions such as the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Courtauld Institute of Art and the National Portrait Gallery.
He also controls a wide range of businesses including Warner Music – home to Ed Sheeran, Dua Lipa and Megan Thee Stallion – and London’s Theatre Royal Haymarket.
What does this mean for Australian sport?
Potentially a bigger audience internationally. In a press release announcing the deal, Segev said DAZN was “committed to using our global reach to export Australia’s most popular sports to new markets around the world, just as we have done with the NFL”.
But Segev also suggested DAZN saw commercial opportunities in targeting Australian consumers.
Australians watch more sport than any other country in the world, which makes this deal an incredibly exciting opportunity for DAZN to enter a key market, marking another step in our long-term strategy to become the global home of sport.
