DAZN’s global sports play: Can it win media buyers in streaming’s big leagues?
From streaming the biggest boxing fights from the world’s leading promoters to buying Australia’s Foxtel for US$2.2 billion, sports streamer DAZN continues to reach new heights. The company is approaching $5 billion in revenue following the April acquisition, with new landmark properties, including the FIFA Club World Cup 2025, amplifying the impact. And while revenues are up, losses are dropping – down to $936 million in 2024 from $1.4 billion the year before, according to accounts filed in September. With profitability within reach, the firm is reportedly mulling an IPO.
The muscling into the mainstream puts it in competition with the likes of Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and even Apple, which took U.S. broadcasting rights to Formula One from ESPN in recent weeks. Notably, DAZN owns exclusive rights to broadcast F1 races in Spain and Portugal, as well as non-exclusive rights in Japan.
The streamer is making inroads into becoming the destination for sports — but it is still facing challenges, said Matthew Evenson, senior analyst for media and entertainment at Omdia.
One obstacle DAZN must overcome is its fragmented brand awareness. Recognition “is sort of in pockets” depending on your geographical base, Evenson said. “In Italy, we’ll know it because of the football, whereas over here [in the U.K.], it’s maybe more known for boxing.”
Carving a niche among the streaming giants
The range of sports that it streams is so varied — and location dependent — that media buyers don’t yet think about it as a single sports destination, tending to default to household name streamers like Netflix and Prime Video.
“When we have broader briefs, [DAZN is] not necessarily first on the plan,” said Gregor Chalmers, head of broadcast at The Kite Factory. Unless stakeholders are sports fans themselves, some still “have never heard of” DAZN, Chalmers added. So planners must justify it more than the big streamers.
However, that is changing as the brand continues to grow and becomes more mainstream. “With sport viewership being the biggest draw for viewership across all demographics and streaming platforms, DAZN has all the makings of becoming a staple publisher in media plans,” said Guillermo Dvorak, director of sales in Europe, the Middle East and Africa for CTV advertising platform Sabio.
And for businesses looking to target sports-watching audiences, DAZN is a natural choice. “Where we have a brief that’s wanting to reach a sports audience, they’re someone we definitely think of,” Chalmers said. “They’re going to be a high consideration if you’re working in video games, alcohol, gambling and cars, among others.”
Chalmers pointed to clients including the Ryder Cup and a boxing video game title where The Kite Factory worked with DAZN and found success. The firm would work with DAZN more often but said that “to deliver on a broader scale, that comes down to the acquisitions and their wider plans for growth as a business.”
Expanding future ambitions
To that end, DAZN recently bolstered its programmatic offering with a new partnership with The Trade Desk, supporting audience reach to customers using European Unified ID (EUID) and OpenPath.
The acquisition of Foxtel is another key signal of future ambitions. DAZN’s chief executive, Shay Segev, said last month that it has always planned to be more than a streamer. DAZN is building “a global digital platform” where betting and fan discussion can take place alongside watching sports as they happen.
“If DAZN continues on the path of hoovering up the real crown jewel-type sports and getting big key moments, then that does change things, because even clients whose day-to-day business is not chasing a younger or a male audience, they understand that there is a cultural relevance in being in the final of the Euros,” Chalmers said.
The Current is owned and operated by The Trade Desk Inc.