DAZN Group has posted its latest financial results, revealing an operating loss of $1.06bn (£837m) in 2022.
The sports media business group, which runs the global sports streaming service DAZN, will regard the news as an improvement on 2021’s $1.35bn (£1.06bn) loss.
The results span a year in which the company has acquired the domestic streaming rights to Spanish men’s football top-tier LaLiga until 2027 and launched of the DAZN Bet sportsbook and gaming brand. The streaming service also officially launched in the UK in 2022.
The UK-based company, which now operates in over 200 countries recorded $2.19bn (£1.73bn) in revenue last year, a 41% increase from 2021.
The increase has been largely attributed to the DAZN’s growing direct-to-consumer work with a revenue increase to $2.12bn (£1.67bn), from $1.46bn (£1.15bn) in 2021.
Broadcast partnerships proved more disappointing with income falling by $19.9m (£15.7m) to $74.7m (£59m) which has been attributed by DAZN to ‘competition cyclicality.’
Germany, Italy, Spain, Japan, US AND Canada are considering DAZN’s key markets. Geographically, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa brought in $1.65bn (1.3bn) for the company last year, with all other regions contributing $542.8m (£4.2m).
Operating costs came to $893.9m (£705m) while rights costs were up to $2.36bn (£1.86bn) from $1.92bn (£1.51bn) last year.
As of 31st December 2022, DAZN Group had ‘commitments to acquire sports content rights’ totaling $7.6bn (6bn), up from $6.4 billion (£5bn) at the end of 2021.
As the company looks ahead, it recently announced a new free tier to its streaming service. According to Bloomberg the business is also seeking up to $1bn in capital to secure more top-tier streaming rights.
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