Fantasy sports platform Dream11 onboards Swiggy, Astrotalk, Tata Neu as advertisers after free-to-play pivot

Dream 11

Fantasy sports platform Dream11 on September 23 announced that it has onboarded companies such as Swiggy, Astrotalk, and Tata Neu as advertisers, following its recent pivot to a free-to-play product with ads and sponsorships.

“Over the years, many brands have shown strong interest in partnering with Dream11, and now, after our pivot to free-to-play fantasy sports, we have begun onboarding them selectively," said Vikrant Mudaliar, Chief Marketing Officer, Dream Sports in a statement. Dream Sports is the parent company of Dream11.

What type of ads?

Apart from banner ads, the platform also features sponsored contests. For instance, Moneycontrol observed that a contest sponsored by Kunal Shah-led fintech firm Cred offers consumers up to 100 percent cashback on their credit card bills.

A screenshot of Cred-sponsored contest on Dream11

Mudaliar said that fantasy cricket continues to "drive remarkable engagement," with the platform claiming to have 10 million daily active players and more than 250 million total users. Nearly 70 percent of users are aged 18–35, with another 25 percent between 35 and 60.

He also highlighted product integrations such as live cricket streaming within Dream11 through its portfolio firm FanCode which ensure sports fans have constant access to fresh and engaging content.

"This journey of reimagining fantasy sports makes the experience more inclusive, competitive, and passion-driven, while giving advertisers quality reach, measurable engagement, and access to a very rich audience of millions of historically transacting users,” he said.

All paid contests halted

Last month, Dream11 halted all paid contests on its fantasy sports platform and shifted entirely to a free-to-play model. This move was prompted by the recently introduced online gaming law that prohibits online money games, which are games where a user makes a deposit, directly or indirectly, with the expectation of earning winnings on that deposit.

Dream Sports co-founder Harsh Jain told Moneycontrol in an interview last month that 95 percent of the company's revenues and 100 percent of its profits were coming from the earlier model of cash-based contests, which are prohibited under the new law.

Dream11 stated that brands can tailor their campaigns to different audiences, whether targeting young mobile-first fans, families in smaller towns, or seasoned cricket lovers in metros.

Founded in 2008 by Jain and Bhavit Sheth, Dream Sports was last valued at $8 billion when it received $840 million funding from a clutch of funds led by Falcon Edge, DST Global, D1 Capital, Redbird Capital, Tiger Global, TPG and Footpath Ventures in November 2021.

Apart from Dream11, Dream Sports also houses brands such as sports content and commerce platform FanCode, sports experiences platform DreamSetGo, mobile game development unit Dream Game Studios, fixed deposits and gold investment app Dream Money, and its philanthropic arm Dream Sports Foundation.