A “synergistic” relationship

Sports data company Sportradar announced on Monday that it is acquiring Synergy Sports. This deal will allow Sportradar to expand its range of products – college sports, in particular – and help further develop its relationships with major sports organizations around the world.

packages sports data into products to sell to sportsbooks and media firms

Synergy Sports is a leader when it comes to video and data analytics for college and professional sports in the United States. It also has been a pioneer in providing automated sports technology solutions. This allows the company to offer a wide range of services such as data feeds and video capture to help in the creation, distribution, and monetization of content. Sportradar currently packages sports data into products to sell to sportsbooks and media firms around the world.

Sportradar expects the deal to close during the second quarter, once it receives all of the necessary regulatory approvals. No details of the acquisition price were made public.

A wide range of partners

Sportradar already has an official partnership with the MLB, NHL, NFL, and NBA in the US. Synergy Sports’ portfolio of partnerships in the region includes the MLB, NBA, NCAA Division I basketball for men and women, as well as more than 90% of NCAA Division I men’s baseball.

Synergy’s main focus is on basketball, using its proprietary technology to tag every possession and log them across all games. The resulting data is usable by players and coaches to help develop their performances. Synergy also offers live streams to sports betting companies and live sports content to media companies like Turner Sports and ESPN.

The company also has a deal with the International Basketball Federation (FIBA).

Reaction to the acquisition

Sportradar believes that Synergy’s presence both in the US and overseas will be beneficial in delivering upon Sportradar’s vision for the future of digital sports content.

Sportradar Group CEO Carsten Koerl expressed how this acquisition will “expand our product offering into U.S. college sports data and video analytics and further cements our relationships with the major sports organizations in the U.S. and around the world.”

He also mentioned the great management team that has been in place at Synergy Sports and their dedication to both the customer and sports through their work.

Synergy Sports executive chairman Nick Maywald spoke about how Sportradar is an ideal partner to accelerate the company’s expansion. He referred to Sportradar’s “extensive knowledge in providing mission-critical content” to its customer base as being an ideal complement to Synergy’s “technology-based league relationships centered around our video technology and analytics products.”

Making moves

Sportradar is one of the biggest sports data companies in the world. It monitors, analyzes, and delivers insights on over 400,000 sports games each year, covering 60 sports. It has over 1,000 partners, helping it to offer a wide range of solutions to sportsbooks, sports federations, consumer platforms, and news media.

current valuation sitting around the $10bn mark

The company is currently in the mix for bidding on the exclusive NFL live betting data rights. Major competitors for the $100m+ annual deal include IMG Arena and Genius Sports. Management is also reportedly considering a public listing for Sportradar, with its current valuation sitting around the $10bn mark.

Synergy Sports works with more than 4,000 global clients, providing its partners with a single source for AI-driven data and video solutions. Los Angeles Dodgers co-owner Todd Boehly has a majority stake in Synergy Sports through his ownership of Eldridge Industries.

He is also reportedly leading the charge to bring Sportradar public through a SPAC, with Sportradar recently signing a letter of intent. Boehly reportedly had no direct involvement in the negotiations for Sportradar’s acquisition of Synergy Sports.