Daily Fantasy Sports Leader, FanDuel, Closes $70M Series D From Shamrock Capital Advisors, NBC Sports Ventures and KKR

NEW YORK--()--FanDuel Inc, (http://www.fanduel.com), the global leader in one-day fantasy sports, announced today that it has closed $70 million in Series D financing. That brings the company’s total capital raised to $88 million. The latest investment round was led by Shamrock Capital Advisors, LLC, with NBC Sports Ventures and KKR participating. Existing investors Comcast Ventures, Pentech Ventures, Bullpen Capital, Scottish Enterprise, and serial investor Richard Koch also participated. Shamrock Capital Advisors’ Partner, Mike LaSalle, and Principal, Alan Resnikoff, have joined FanDuel's board and Rick Cordella, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Digital Media, NBC Sports Group has joined as a board observer.

“This level of investment from Shamrock, NBC Sports, KKR and our existing investors is a testament to FanDuel’s leadership in the one-day fantasy sports industry and the growth potential within this space,” said Nigel Eccles, CEO of FanDuel. “We couldn’t be more pleased to be able to make this announcement at the start of football season, as more users begin to embrace the one-day fantasy experience.”

With 41 million people playing fantasy sports, FanDuel is transforming the industry with its innovative one-day format and industry-leading partnerships with brands such as Yahoo, ESPN, CBS, NBC and the Orlando Magic. FanDuel has seen rapid growth over the past 12 months, represents 65% of the daily and weekly fantasy sports market, and expects to pay out more than $400 million to users in 2014.

“We see FanDuel’s clear leadership in the one-day fantasy sports space and we wanted to help them accelerate their already explosive growth,” said Mike LaSalle of Shamrock Capital. “We look forward to working closely with FanDuel as they build out their web and mobile platforms and develop closer relationships with the leagues and media partners.”

FanDuel will use the funds to expand its teams in New York and Edinburgh, which are currently 106 employees strong. FanDuel will continue to introduce innovative, new products and features to its players across North America. Additionally, with this fantasy football season poised to be the biggest yet, this funding will help FanDuel reach a wider audience than ever before.

FanDuel differs from traditional fantasy sports in which league winners are only declared after the entire multi-month season ends. With FanDuel, the leagues can last just one day and prizes are paid out immediately after the relevant games have finished.

Mesa Global served as FanDuel’s investment bank for this round of financing.

About FanDuel

FanDuel is the leader in one-day fantasy sports, providing fantasy sports leagues that last just one day. Players can draft fantasy sports teams at any time in a wide variety of contests in head-to-head or multi-player contests. Players pay an entry fee for each contest and vie for cash prizes awarded to the player whose team generates the most fantasy points. Headquartered in New York with offices in Edinburgh, Scotland, FanDuel hosts fantasy football, baseball, hockey and basketball contests as well as college football and basketball across desktop, mobile and tablet platforms. FanDuel investors include Shamrock Capital Advisors, NBC Sports Ventures, KKR, Bullpen Capital, Comcast Ventures, Pentech Ventures, Piton Capital, Scottish Enterprise and Richard Koch. For more information, please visit http://www.fanduel.com or download the app from the Apple App Store.

About Shamrock

Shamrock Capital Advisors, LLC is a Los Angeles-based private equity firm with over $700 million of capital under management. Investing exclusively in the media, entertainment, and communications sectors, Shamrock partners with strong management teams and takes an active, collaborative approach to creating value in each investment. Shamrock is currently investing out of Shamrock Capital Growth Fund III, a $400 million fund raised in 2011. Shamrock’s current investments include FanDuel, Giant Creative/Strategy, Isolation Network, MarketCast, Mobilitie, PGOA Media, Screenvision and T3 Media. For more information, visit www.shamrockcap.com.

About KKR

KKR is a leading global investment firm that manages investments across multiple asset classes including private equity, energy, infrastructure, real estate, credit and hedge funds. KKR aims to generate attractive investment returns by following a patient and disciplined investment approach, employing world-class people, and driving growth and value creation at the asset level. KKR invests its own capital alongside its partners' capital and brings opportunities to others through its capital markets business. References to KKR's investments may include the activities of its sponsored funds. For additional information about KKR & Co. L.P. (NYSE:KKR), please visit KKR's website at www.kkr.com.

ABOUT NBC SPORTS GROUP

When the Comcast-NBCUniversal transaction was completed in January 2011, the sports assets of the two companies combined to form NBC Sports Group, which serves sports fans 24/7 with premier live events, insightful studio shows, and compelling original programming. The sports media company consists of a unique array of broadcast television, cable television, radio and digital sports assets, including NBC Sports, NBC Olympics, NBCSN (NBC Sports Network), Golf Channel, 11 NBC Sports Regional Networks, NBC Sports Radio and NBC Sports Digital. NBC Sports Group possesses an unparalleled collection of television rights agreements, partnering with some of the most prestigious sports properties in the world: the International Olympic Committee and United States Olympic Committee, the NFL, NHL, NASCAR, PGA TOUR, PGA of America, USGA, Churchill Downs, Premier League, MLS, Tour de France, French Open, Formula One, IndyCar and many more.

Contacts

FanDuel
Justine Sacco
Head of Communications
Tel: 646-930-0964
Cel: 516-554-5666
justine@fanduel.com

Contacts

FanDuel
Justine Sacco
Head of Communications
Tel: 646-930-0964
Cel: 516-554-5666
justine@fanduel.com