Integrated Media Company (IMC) has signed a definitive agreement with DAZN Group to acquire a majority stake in the sports media company’s Goal.com entity, along with its other digital football-focused platforms.
As part of the acquisition IMC, which is a platform backed by private equity firm TPG Capital, will purchase a majority stake in Spox and VoetbalZone, DAZN’s German and Dutch football portals.
Ori Winitzer, Managing Director, IMC commented: “There are four billion soccer fans on earth. Their passion transcends borders and limits though the media serving them does not.
“Goal has long been an innately global platform for the soccer fan, with a strong journalistic tradition and a brand that’s synonymous with the sport. We see a significant opportunity to expand the platform’s reach and engagement through new content verticals, products, and experiences. We’re excited to partner with DAZN to serve all constituents in the soccer world.”
IMC has reported that its new potential acquisitions total nearly 150 million unique visitors (from August 2020) with the platforms offering news, scores, video and editorial content in 19 languages.
“We are thrilled to partner with IMC as we enter our next chapter of growth,” added James Rushton, Acting CEO, DAZN Group. “As we saw with Goal’s Lionel Messi exclusive, our football portals business features the top digital football destinations in the world. The investment from IMC will enable it to reach new heights, whilst allowing DAZN to focus its energy and resources on further strengthening our sports destination platform.”
Although exact details have not been revealed, it has been reported that DAZN will receive significant minority share whilst also having a seat on the board.
The news follows on from DAZN’s new distribution deal with Eurosport in which the Disney owned firm’s two main channels will be available to DAZN subscribers in Austria, Germany, Italy, Spain and Switzerland.
