January 30 – DAZN posted operating losses of $830 million for 2023, raising further question marks over the financial sustainability of the sports streaming giant.
Year-on-year, DAZN is posting losses. While DAZN’s revenues rose to $2.9 billion in 2023, the streaming platform recorded a widening loss of $1.4 billion for 2023. It was $1.2 billion in 2022, $2.3 billion in 2021 and $1.3 billion in 2020.
At the same time, owner Leonard Blavatnik injected another $827 million into DAZN, which takes his total investment to more than $6 billion. The streaming service once vowed to become the ‘Netflix of Sports’, but DAZN has switched its mission statement to becoming the “Spotify of Sports”.
DAZN Chief Executive Shay Segev said he expected revenue to top $6 billion for 2025 with the acquisition of Australian pay-TV provider Foxtel and a reported $1 billion injection of Saudi money. At the same time, however, DAZN has earmarked $1 billion for the rights to the 2025 Club World Cup.
Segev stated: “2024 was a landmark year for DAZN, but we are only getting started. As we step into 2025, our ambitions are bigger than ever. Our aim to reach one billion global users reflects the scale of our vision, and – as the only global direct-to-consumer sports platform – we are well-positioned to make this a reality.”
“Our mission is clear: to build the biggest sports entertainment company by connecting fans everywhere to the sports they love; and this creates an incredible network effect, which is unique to DAZN.
“This ambition drives everything we do, and it requires bold, strategic moves that allow us to establish dominance in key markets quickly and effectively. Our recent agreement to acquire Australia’s leading sports and entertainment business – Foxtel Group – is a perfect example of this strategy in action.”
DAZN has said the streaming service has 300 million monthly users, but the base of paying subscribers is far more limited, which in turn has left the company struggling to stem losses.
Earlier this month Saudi Arabia, through SURJ, a private investment firm owned by the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund, closed in on acquiring up to a 10% stake in the company. DAZN declined to comment on what it labelled as “market speculation regarding investment in the group.”
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