Michael Jordan, Mark Cuban, Ted Leonsis Betting $44 Million on Sportradar’s Data

Michael Jordan and Mark Cuban are betting that Sportradar will triumph as a sports “big data” leader, as the Swiss company continues its U.S. expansion. The two have invested in a $44 million (40) funding round led by Revolution Growth and are joining the newly formed advisory board at Sportradar.

The fast-growing sports technology company is developing various applications for its data and has secured partnerships with the NFL, NASCAR and the NHL in recent months. Sportradar expects that its data will be used for fantasy sports and social media. It could also come in handy for betting.

“Sportradar is well-positioned to be a global force in the sports data business,” Mark Cuban tells TechCrunch. “Their data scientists are amazing.”

Ted Leonsis, owner of several Washington sports teams and co-founder at Revolution Growth, is also joining the board at Sportradar. “Like Wall Street, sports is all about real-time data,” says Leonsis. “Tens of millions of people can’t get enough real-time information about players and teams and leagues.”

Sports teams could use the data to improve their game and fantasy football enthusiasts could make more informed bets. Sportradar “creates data streams and will eventually create more products and services that DraftKings and FanDuel and consumers might subscribe to.” The sports leagues could also use the data to create apps.

Sportradar says it covers over 325,000 live events across 48 sports. Google and Yahoo Sports are both clients, and its competition includes Stats.

The company employs over 1,000 developers and sports specialists across the globe and is backed by EQT, a European private equity group.