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The venture arm of Swedish private equity group EQT is leading a $25mn investment in a new six-a-side football competition that has attracted support from former stars such as Ronaldinho and Gary Lineker.
Founded last year, the start-up Baller League hopes to attract fans who prefer shorter 30-minute matches and will watch games on digital channels such as TikTok, YouTube and Amazon-owned Twitch.
“Football is the most popular game on earth, so it’s something that’s incredibly relatable,” said Ashley Lundström, a partner at EQT Ventures. “We saw something that can touch audiences around the globe.”
Baller League, which has been going for two seasons in Germany, has the support of other former professionals including Luis Figo and John Terry. The start-up raised $8mn this summer from wealthy individuals and is now expanding in the US and UK.
The company is focusing on smaller-format football matches, rather than the traditional 11-a-side game.
“The largest sport in the world is not 11-a-side football,” said Felix Starck, chief executive of Baller League. “The largest sport in the world when it comes to participation is small side.”
The start-up is among a new generation of sports-focused companies that are using influencers and social media to reach global audiences. New sports leagues are trying to capitalise on younger generations who are looking for shorter-form content on the likes of Twitch and YouTube.
Olajide Olatunji, known as KSI, and fellow YouTube star Darren Jason Watkins Jr, who goes by IShowSpeed online, are also working with Baller League. Together, the duo have more than 58mn subscribers on YouTube alone.
Starck said the company would generate revenues from the same avenues as existing football leagues, including sponsorships, ticketing and media rights without charging for its content. “We’re not behind a paywall, we’re very consumable where the future generations are,” he added.
Kings League, a seven-a-side football competition founded by former FC Barcelona defender Gerard Piqué, raised €60mn from investors including venture capital firm Left Lane earlier this year. Spanish Twitch streamer Ibai Llanos Garatea has helped to raise the profile of Kings League, which has commercial partnerships with companies including Santander and sportswear maker Adidas.
EQT Ventures’ move marks the latest private equity investment in sports, and comes a day after the US’s National Football League struck deals with buyout groups for the first time.
In order to capture younger audiences, more sports investors have turned to new formats. Billionaire Larry Ellison’s SailGP started in 2019, as it set out to emulate the success of Formula One car racing on the waves. Saudi-backed E1 Series, an electric powerboat competition that has attracted celebrity team owners including former quarterback Tom Brady and actor Will Smith, held its first season this year.
Some sports governing bodies themselves are also offering new formats to appeal to a broader base. The England and Wales Cricket Board launched The Hundred in 2021, a 100-ball version of the game that can finish within two and a half hours instead of the several days required for traditional Test matches.
New ventures can also be controversial. The game of golf was divided over the Saudi-backed LIV Golf, a new team-based competition, with players at odds over whether to join.
