Back in September, The Athletic reportedly hired investment bank LionTree to help seek a buyer at a valuation of more than $750m.
At that time LionTree had planned to have all bids submitted for the sports media outlet by mid-October 2021.
Although it is uncertain whether it can ascertain its expected value, as the site is reported to be unprofitable and “burning cash;” betting companies are interested in sports media, however, which dramatically raises the site’s chances of receiving a “proper offer."
The Athletic and Axios were planning to merge and go public, but the sports media outlet decided to put the talks on hold as it began negotiations with the New York Times.
Yet the potential deal with the New York Times broke down over a money issue and a disagreement on how to compensate the sports site’s employees for their equity in the company.
The sports media outlet includes Founder Fund, Courtside Ventures and Powerhouse Capital as investors.
The subscription-only sports media outlet currently has around 1.2 million subscribers and had benefited from a post-money valuation of $530m following a funding round in 2020.
Reports said The Athletic’s 2021 revenue would be nearly $80m (showing a 50% increase year-on-year), and 2022 revenue is expected to reach $120m.
FanDuel recorded $902m in revenue during the first half of the year, while DraftKings’ Q2 2021 revenue grew 297% year-over-year to $298m.
